Allyson Reed shapes her life to make her parents proud, but whenever she's with Daxson Winters, the star wide receiver with a troubled past, her perfectly-crafted existence crumbles at the seams.
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The loose doorknob jingled as someone twisted it from the hallway, startling me awake. The unfamiliar white ceiling of the guest room greeted me. I sat up in the bed and ran my fingers through my dark hair with a yawn. The door creaked when Alexis opened it and poked her head through the doorway.
"Ally, are you awake yet?" She asked.
A smile spread across my lips as I stretched my legs out beneath the covers. "Yeah, I'm awake." I patted the mattress beside me. "What's up?"
Alexis grinned as she squeezed into the room and shut the door. She hurried over to the bed and climbed onto the mattress. "Do you want to help Momma and I cook breakfast? All the boys are still asleep." She rolled her eyes and shrugged.
"Yeah, I can do that. Thanks for asking me."
"No thanks necessary. You're part of the family now, Ally." She squeezed my arm before sliding back off the bed. "Maybe after breakfast, I can show you all my inventions."
"I'd love that." I slipped from the bed and grabbed my sweats from my bag on the floor, pulling them on over my shorts.
Alexis grinned before exiting the room and disappearing down the hallway. I tucked my hair behind my ears and grabbed my purple toiletries pouch from my bag on the floor. Too bad I couldn't wake up to Daxson. My desperate attempts to 'seduce' him last night had failed miserably.
I crossed the hallway from the guest room to the small bathroom and set my pouch down on the counter. He'd said we'd go to hell if we slept in the same bed before marriage in a pastor's house. My lips twitched into a smile at the memory of him standing in front of me with a grin. I splashed some water onto my face and stared into the mirror. I can't even remember the last time I was this happy. This confident. My fingers played with the ends of my hair where the red highlights were visible. It was nice to have control over my life again. I opened my mouth to analyze my teeth, which had whitened without the constant vomiting. Who knew life could be so imperfect and it still be okay?
After brushing my teeth, I made my way into the kitchen where Alexis and her mother were bent over the counter mixing dough in a glass bowl.
"Good-morning, Allyson. Did you sleep well?" Jasmine asked as she flipped the bowl over and spread the dough on some wax paper that covered the table.
I smiled as I stepped over to the table and took a seat in front of them. "I slept great. Thanks for letting me crash in the guest room."
"You're welcome to stay here anytime." She unscrewed the lid to a mason jar and handed it to me.
I started to push the lid onto the dough and create perfectly rounded biscuits.
Jasmine laughed as she pressed her lid into the dough as well. "Who taught you how to make biscuits from scratch?"
