Catch Your Breath by Shannyn Schroeder Read Free Book Online Page B

reached Liam, they shook hands and Jimmy offered him money for food.
    “Put that away.”
    “Every year my brothers all come over here, eat your food, and drink your beer. Let
     me cover some of it.”
    “We always plan extra. It’s tradition. I don’t want your money.”
    Jimmy stood there feeling frustrated. Not paying for his share made him feel like
     a kid again. People never really knew how to react to him. They tried to be nice,
     but he saw the pity in their eyes. He was the boy whose mom had been killed, therefore,
     he and his brothers could do whatever they wanted. His past became a ticket to skate
     through life.
    And it made him nuts.
    He tucked his money away only because he knew Liam had refused out of friendship,
     not pity.
    “Hey, Jimmy,” someone called.
    When Jimmy turned to look, he saw a crowd had gathered behind them and he immediately
     knew it was football time. The O’Learys stood on one side, facing his brothers Tommy
     and Sean. Jimmy scanned the crowd. No Kevin? He never missed a block party.
    Liam covered the grill and slapped Jimmy’s back. “Let’s go. Time for the O’Learys
     to beat the O’Malleys.”
    “Shit. In your dreams.”
    They joined the crowd on opposing sides. As usual, Ryan O’Leary was captain, although
     Colin obviously offered direction. Jimmy took his spot in front of his brothers.
    Tommy said, “Kevin will be here in five.”
    Jimmy counted the O’Learys. They had added a bunch of new faces, but lucky for him,
     they were all women. “We’ll take Griffin.”
    “Griffin’s an O’Leary. You can’t have him,” Ryan said.
    “His last name’s Walker.”
    Ryan shook his head. “You try that every year. I brought him to the party, so I get
     to keep him.”
    True, Jimmy did try to get Griffin every year. He did it to annoy Ryan more than anything.
     They took turns grabbing up their old neighborhood friends until they had two teams.
    Then the entire crowd made its way down to the end of the block and the field where
     they played. Standing on the rough, dry grass was like coming home for Jimmy. This
     was where his father had first taught him to throw a football, and where he got his
     first tackle and his first kiss. Summer wouldn’t be summer without a football game
     on this field.
    The game they played wasn’t regulation anything. It was supposed to be touch football,
     but it often got out of hand. They didn’t call plays because most of the players wouldn’t
     have a clue as to what any of it meant. He took the spot as quarterback, hoping no
     one would notice.
    Of course, Moira opened her big mouth.
    “No way, Jimmy. Rules are, you can’t play quarterback. It’s cheating.”
    “I haven’t played quarterback since high school. I think we can erase that rule.”
    She shoved her hands on her hips, trying to look tough. “But you’re still playing
     football. You play for that special cop league. You’re a ringer and it’s not fair.”
    Her head tilted with attitude while she spoke, but she wasn’t really angry.
    He threw his hands up and took up a spot on the defense line. It made him a little
     crazy that they didn’t use positions. Everyone just stood on the line and either ran
     for the ball or ran to stop the opposing players. The lack of structure irritated
     him.
    The O’Learys won the coin toss. The ball was snapped and Moira came running through
     the line. She was easy enough to spot with her flaming hair, but no one else on his
     team seemed to notice. Some were breaking through to get at Colin, who played quarterback,
     and others were already piled up on the line.
    Jimmy dropped back and ran after Moira, glancing over his shoulder. Sure enough, the
     ball headed her way.
    He bore down on her and waited a half second. If she caught the ball, all he had to
     do was tag her, but he couldn’t figure out where to reach that wouldn’t get him slapped,
     so he decided to try for an interception. He turned to reach for the ball, but