Invisible To Her Bully (Jessa and Noah) novel Chapter 40

Noah

Wednesday.

Two more days until Friday’s game.

Two more days until a college recruiter showed up to watch me — well, technically Jackson too, but still. This was supposed to be my moment, my chance to prove I wasn’t just some hometown player who peaked in high school.

And right now?

I was blowing it.

Coach’s voice still echoed in my head from yesterday’s practice.

“Carter! What the hell was that?”

He’d ripped into me after I missed a simple play — one I could run in my sleep. I’d tried to shake it off, to get my head back in the game, but it was like everything kept slipping through my fingers.

Noah Carter never slips.

But yesterday, I did. Badly.

And now Coach was on my ass, harder than ever.

One more mess-up and he’d bench me, recruiter or no recruiter.

I slammed my locker door shut, jaw tight.

I couldn’t let that happen. Not after everything I’d worked for.

Which meant one thing: no distractions.

And right now, Jessa Lombardi was the biggest distraction in my life.

⸻

I spotted her at the other end of the hall as I headed toward class.

She was standing with Mariah, laughing at something her friend said.

Her head was tipped back slightly, her hair catching the light, and for a split second, my chest squeezed so hard I almost stopped walking.

Almost.

I forced myself to keep moving.

Eyes forward.

No looking.

No thinking about how she’d felt standing so close to me by the bonfire.

No replaying that moment when we’d nearly kissed and wondering what it would’ve been like if I hadn’t said something stupid to ruin it.

I had to shut it down.

So when her gaze flicked up and met mine, I did the only thing I could.

I looked right past her.

Her smile faltered, just barely, before she turned back to Mariah like nothing happened.

But I saw it — that tiny flash of hurt.

And it nearly killed me.

⸻

By lunch, I’d perfected the act.

“Yeah, well,” I said tightly, “maybe if certain people weren’t standing on the sidelines distracting me—”

I cut myself off so fast my teeth clicked.

Jackson raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“Nothing.” I shoved a fry in my mouth before I could say anything else.

The last thing I needed was Jackson sniffing around and putting two and two together about me and his sister.

Especially when there wasn’t even a me and his sister.

Not really.

⸻

As lunch went on, I kept my head down, sticking to safe topics — football, the game, Coach’s impossible drills.

I didn’t laugh at Daniel’s jokes, didn’t glance in Jessa’s direction, didn’t do anything that might give me away.

I was Noah Carter, focused and ready.

A machine.

At least, that’s what I told myself.

But when the bell rang and we all got up to leave, I couldn’t help it.

I looked over one last time.

Jessa was already gone.

And the empty space where she’d been felt like a punch straight to the gut.