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Walton comes out next and announces that Jayden is going to be insufferable for at least a month, as if it’s my job to do something about it. And I’m pretty sure this confirms a very important scout is interested in Jayden, which yaaaay!

“You say that as if he isn’t insufferable now.” I grin.

“Yeah, but now it’s going to be worse.” He scowls and limps toward the parking lot.

When the doors open again, Jayden strides out with his bag in his hand. His eyes meet mine, and he lets the bag drop to the ground right there and closes the distance between us. He scoops me off my feet and spins me around, so I yelp and swat at his shoulder, but he only buries his face in my hair.

“Did you see it?” he asks once he puts me down.

“I was right there. I saw everything.”

“The header, though.”

“It went in off your face.”

“Off my forehead.” A grin tugs at his lips. “I need you to remember it when you brag about me later.”

“Fine. Your very important forehead sent us to the final.”

“Thank you.”

I tilt my head at him. “Declan mentioned some guy in a suit. What are you not telling me?”

“Okay.” He holds up his hands. “I’m just not saying anything yet, because I don’t want to jinx it. I’ll explain once I know more, okay? But yeah, there’s interest from a big European club.”

I fight the urge to grin like an idiot. I’m going to have to be the calm one, because there’s no chance Jayden will be if he signs for a big club.

“Burgess!” Montoya yells from the edge of the parking lot. “Party! You’re coming, right?”

“Later!” Jayden yells back.

“You said that last time!”

“He’s going to be impossible about this tomorrow,” Jayden whispers to me.

“Once he starts partying, he won’t even remember any of this.”

Jayden snatches his bag off the ground and laces his fingers through mine. “Can we go back to my room? I don’t want to see anyone else tonight.”

“Not even your adoring fans?”

“Especially not them.”

On our way to the dorms, he tucks me against his side, his arm around my shoulders, and he kisses the top of my head.

“You were amazing tonight,” I say.

“Yeah?”

“Don’t make me say it again. Your ego doesn’t need the help.”

His lips curve into a smirk, and his arm tightens around my shoulders. When some guys shout congratulations at him from the other side, he raises the hand holding his bag in greeting.

When we reach his dorm, he unlocks the door and lets me in first, and as soon as it shuts behind us, he pins me against it and kisses me. When his hands sneak under my jacket, I forget everything else.

I wrestle his hoodie over his head and fling it somewhere behind him. When I trail my hands down his chest, he lets out a low sound against my lips.

“We won,” he whispers.