burrowbabe

[burrowbabe]

any Joe fic recs?

OKAY OKAY there are SO MANY on this app, like goddamn but here are some of my favs as of late. I also encourage you to check out all of these writers' ENTIRE masterlists because everything they do is so so good:

*** Quick disclaimer that I'm pretty sure almost all if not all of these blogs are 18+ ONLY (along with my blog so if you're reading this under 18...please leave)! Please respect our personal boundaries and only interact with our content if you are of legal age ***

@tigertales9 - Hard Reset Series

It's so epic that this series follows the '23-'24 season GAME to GAME down to the specifics. Obviously the last couple parts are pretty angsty (😭), but the ups and downs of the season are so so good, and Joe and the reader's relationship is written so perfect I cry 🥹

@tigertales9 - Sex and Candy

This is one of their older fics, but it's PERFECT for halloween (but honestly I've been rereading since like JULY 😭). I think the concept is just so original and there aren't a tonnn of au fics of Joe I've seen on here, so I love this oneee 😚

@slimshiesty - "Hate me later, please." Mini Series

Oh my god. If you want SMUTTT, read anything by this writer. This series got me hooked, and now I read all her shit cause it's just tewww good 🤭

@starsinthesky5 - you belong with me series

Like be so fr...friends to lovers goes CRAZYYY in this series. Perfect mix of fluff and angst and smut and UGHHHHKDSF. Everything she writes has me giggling and kicking my feet, but this series has me in a chokehold.

@joeyb1989 - i can fix him (no really i can)

I fear the Taylor Swift titled works will ALWAYS get to me. This whole storyline is just so scrumptious and the writing is top tierrr you all MUST check it out. (Also maybe i am jealous...yeah let me go jump off the nearest bridge rq)

@joeys-babe - Simply Shady I & II

Just all around hits every single mark. The fluff, the angst, the smut, it's all there, it's all perfect, and it makes you loveee that blonde hair 😫

@eternalsunrise - when in france

France Joe. France Joe, I will always love you and you live in my mind rent free because of this fic right here. The cutest of all time. I die.

@yelenasbraid - late nights & sweet as sugar

These two are my GO TOs when I need a tooth rotting, fluffy ass Joe fic. One being about those tiring late nights (lol) and one being about those soft, slow mornings. Yeah, I could melt.

Again there's so many it's hard to keep track but I've been loving these recently and there's even more in my #fic recs tag

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 10

Hello hello ;) I got bored and decided to write the next chapter tonight! (not thoroughly proofread)

** trigger warning

Intense smut ... absolute filth. Inspired by 'Can I' by Kehlani.

---------

It was becoming increasingly difficult to take things slow with Joe. Every glance, every sly smirk and every secret kiss made you want to jump his bones. And you almost never got alone time to take things further, even if you wanted to.

Playing with yourself when thoughts of his naked body over came you, could only do so much. You needed real release. 

Tana's birthday was coming up, and while you had every intention of making her day special, you couldn't help but selfishly look forward to the trip to Las Vegas you all would be taking in honor of the occasion. That meant, private hotel rooms.

You booked the penthouse suite at Ceaser's Palace for your friends, and a separate room on another floor for yourself claiming there wouldn't be enough room to sleep everyone comfortably. 

"You prude! No one will be getting any sleep this weekend if I have anything to say about it." Tana exclaimed, sitting on her overly full luggage to zip it closed.

"You do what you want, but I need my beauty rest." You quip, pretending to throw your hair over your shoulder.

With an annoyed eye roll, Tana joins the rest of the crew outside to load up the car.

You resume gathering the last of your things before making your way down the hall. Before making it to the top of the stairs, a hand grabs your elbow, pulling you to the side of the dimly lit hall. Joe looks down at you with a small smile before pulling you in for a kiss.

With a sigh, you melt into his body, dropping your bag and wrapping your arms around his neck.

"Do you really think we're going to be able to sneak away this weekend?" Joe asks, biting his lip.

"I hope so .. we deserve some proper alone time." You smirk.

"Oh yeah? What does that entail?"

"Hmm ... I'm thinking room service, fuzzy robes, champagne ..." You raise your eyebrows and look at him with sultry eyes.

"I like the sound of that." He replies, leaning down to the crook of your neck to inhale your perfume before landing a kiss right under your ear.

You're interrupted once again by a holler from your brother in the distance.

"We're gonna miss the flight!" He yells.

Disappointedly, you and Joe are broken out of each other's embrace and quickly make your way down to the garage.

Everyone had already claimed their seats in the large SUV, leaving only 2 open spots in the very back of the vehicle. Joe's size made it difficult to clammer into the last row, not without Ja'Marr razzing him. You didn't mind the close proximity though, you're able to clasp Joe's hand for the whole ride without any of the others noticing.

-----------

After a quick, booze filled trip on the private jet you had chartered, everyone was ready to throw their things down in their respective rooms, and get ready for the night ahead of them. 

Joe had claimed he got his own room as well as he would need to "hit the gym in the morning and maybe call it an early night", to which resulted in merciless teasing. You couldn't help but stifle your own laugh when he broke this news, learning that he is a terrible liar.

"Football is over man! You gotta cut loose." Ja'Marr clapped him on his back giving him a look in disbelief.

"We don't win championships with that attitude." He slyly remarked, earning a groan from his best friend.

"OK Sheisty ... wouldn't want to throw you off your 8 p.m. bedtime." Ja'Marr rolls his eyes in good fun but finally dropping the subject to Joe's relief.

Butterflies fluttered in your stomach knowing you'd have all his attention tonight.

Touching up your smokey eye in the mirror, you heard a knock at your door. Assuming it was one of your friend summoning you for the dinner reservations you had made, you quickly grabbed your purse and threw on your short black heels.

"Coming!" You call out, trotting over to swing open the door to meet Joe's shocked expression. His eyes roamed your whole body. Your micro skirt showed off your perfectly tanned legs, while your black lace top exentuated your full chest.

"I - you ... I was just ..." He was lost for words.

"Just come here." You say, pulling him in for a glossy kiss.

"God, you're gonna kill me having to look at you all night." He sighed, moving his hand down your waist.

"You'll just have to wait." You smirk and pat the side of his cheek. "We're gonna be late"

You strut off towards the elevator, with him chasing after you like a puppy. 

The rest of your friends were waiting in the lobby roaring with laughter.

"Holy shit!" Tana interrupts the conversation she was having with Nick when her eyes land on you. "Now that's what I'm talking about! You'll have guys falling from trees for you looking like that!"

You couldn't help the blush that crept up your cheeks. She was the most blunt person you had ever known but she never failed to hype you up.

"I think you need a jacket." Your brother complains, earning an eyeroll from you.

"Enough about me! It's your weekend." You wave Tana off and the crew moves for the car to drive you all to the restaurant.

After running up a handsome bill at the most expensive restaurant on the strip, gambling was next on the agenda. You hated the thought of throwing money away, especially with high stakes. So you sat yourself at the penny slots and went to town. You kept looking around to make sure you kept tabs on your group, always making eye contact with Joe who was sat at the blackjack table with the others. 

He gives you a sublte motion with his two middle fingers to come over to the table. The motion alone sending a jolt to your nether regions. You cash out quickly, earning a mere $10, before making your way over to Joe. 

"I'm rich!" You wave your winning ticket in front of his face.

"Look at you, high roller." He laughs. Unknowingly you snake your arm around his shoulder, leaning into him, giggling. Ja'Marr makes a confused face making you stiffen and straighten up, stepping away from Joe.

"Sorry, I get touchy-feely when I'm drunk." You joke, trying to back pedal, awkwardly making eye contact with Ja'Marr again. A blush creeps up on your cheeks and you throw back the rest of your drink to distract yourself from the budding tension.

"This is boring, lets hit the club!" Tana says, breaking the silence - thank God.

"I second that. I need me some phone numbers." AJ shimmies his eyebrows suggestively.

You let out a breath you hadn't realized you were holding. Surely you were more nervous than you needed to be. 

You needed another drink, and ASAP.

The club was loud and busy. Sweaty bodies grinding all over each other as house music shook the floor. AJ flagged down a bottle service waitress and arranged a VIP section for all of you in the corner of the room.

It seemed like every round you all ordered, required a toast to Tana's birthday. Each proclaimation more outrageous and hilarious than the next. Each tequila soda was going down like water. Every glance in Joe's direction more sexually charged. The world was starting to disappear around you.

"I need to dance!" You announce, but fallen on deaf ears as everyone was engrossed in their own conversations.

You manage to get into a standing position and stumble slightly into the crowd of people. You didn't care, you swayed your body to the music. Closing your eyes and running your hands through your hair, you felt invincible. 

Some flashes indicated fans taking photos of you, but you didn't care about that either, you were having a blast. 

A pair of hands snake around your waist, pulling you into a tent in their pants. You allow them to move with you to the beat.

"You're so fucking sexy." The man shouts in your ear with his hot breath. You look up to see its a total stranger towering over you, and not the man you wanted it to be.

Suddenly, a hand clasps over yours, pulling you away from the stranger and down the hall towards the bathrooms. You're pushed into the wall, meeting Joe's eyes that have darkened. His cheeks are flushed slightly from the alcohol and his lips are plump from biting down on them.

"Are you OK?" He asks, searching your face for any type of concern.

"I'm better now." You say, sliding your hands up his abdomen.

"You drive me crazy you know that?" 

Joe pulls you close and smashes his lips to yours, moving desperately against you.

"Let's go home." You huff in between kisses.

You follow Joe's lead as he pulls you through the crowd of people, expertly avoiding your table full of friends.

Your panties are absolutley soaked and you're both practically running to the exit to get the next cab to the hotel. 

The ride back is silent but so sexually charged, it was palpable.

It took major restraint and self-control to keep from doing it right there in the car or even the elevator up to the room.

Bursting through the door and locking it behind you, you pounce on Joe. Backing up towards the bed before the back of his knees hit the edge of the bed, making him fall flat on his back.

Finally making contact with Joe's soft lips again made a shiver run down your spine - so wet, so plump, so right.

Moving in sync with one another, your lips stay attached, only breaking slightly to introduce your tongues. 

Joe groans at the taste of sweet liquor on your mouth, pulling your hips closer so you collapse into his lap, straddling him on your bed.

Running your hands through his soft blonde hair, you sigh in relief at the contact he makes with your ass, grasping it in his big hands. Pulling you closer to the bulge in his pants, your pussy grinds against him offering you at least some relief.

Joe pulls back slightly to quickly grab the hem of your shirt to take it off, exposing your black lace covered breasts. Before diving in to kiss your neck, you push his shoulders back to get off of his lap. A look of panic washes over his face, thinking you were changing your mind. But that was far from true. Wasting no time, you spread his knees apart, kneeling down in between them.

With a sigh of relief and a groan accompanying it, Joe watches you work on his zipper, pulling down his grey jeans. A tent in his boxers was an understatement. The outline of his hard cock looked bigger than you ever imagined. Looking up at him through your eyelashes, you hook your fingers under the band of his boxers, slowly pulling them off to be thrown in the pile with his jeans. His cock springs up in front of your eyes, making your jaw drop slightly.

"Fuck." You mutter, eyeing his member standing at attention. Taking your hand, you wrap it around the bottom of his shaft, looking to meet his eyes again to see his pleased reaction. His tip leaked with pre cum, which you happily wiped with your thumb before attaching your lips to his pink, throbbing tip. Giving it a small kiss, Joe watches you intently before you lick a stripe from base to tip causing him to roll his head back in pleasure.

"Holy shit ... fuck me." He groans.

Spitting on his tip, you watch it drip down before taking his whole cock in your mouth. With a hiss, Joe grabs the back of your head gently with one hand, silently begging you not to move.

"Fuck ... keep doing that and I'm gonna cum already." He mutters defeatedly.

Pushing down further, you let his tip hit the back of your throat, earning another loud groan from Joe. Slowly sucking all the way up to the top, you come off his tip with a 'pop' sound. 

Joe looks down at you with a darkness in his eyes that you had never seen before.

"C'mere baby." In one swift motion, he grabs your hips to lead you back up to the bed, pulling you back into his lap to unclip your bra and taste himself on your lips. Flipping you over onto your back, Joe pulls on your lower lip with his teeth mid-kiss, pulling off your skirt and underwear and quickly tossing them over with the rest of the clothes. Completely exposed now, Joe breaks from the kiss to stand back and look at your naked body.

His mouth parts slightly, shaking his head in disbelief. 

"So perfect." he mutters, looking you up and down.

Grabbing your ankles and pulling you closer to the edge of the bed, he kneels in front of your dripping center, licking a stripe from your entrance to the top of your throbbing clit earning a loud moan from you.

"Joey!" you exclaim, already writhing from the contact.

Moving his hands to grip under your thighs, he holds you open to devour you. He starts with small kitten licks on your clit, kissing and sucking on the sensitive nub. 

No guy had ever gone down on you before, let alone knew where the clit was. So, to have someone be so attentive to your pleasure first was shocking and amazing.

Moving faster circles on your clit, Joe introduces two fingers into your entrance, sliding them in slowly.

Your back begins to arch and you feel that coil in your stomach.

"Joe ... oh my God.. y-yes please don't stop" you cry out. His assault on your clit is merciless as his fingers pump in and out of you faster and faster. His free hand won't let you rise far off the bed, he pins you down as you writhe beneath him in pleasure.

"Oh God Joey ... I'm gonna cum." you whine, egging him on to add a third finger inside of you.

Your eyes roll into the back of your head as you choke out a string of moans. Joe continues licking your clit softly as your orgasm tears through you. With your legs shaking, and breath hitched in your throat, Joe makes a string of kisses up your inner thigh as you come down from your high.

Flipping you over, he pulls your hips so your core meets his throbbing cock. Grabbing a condom from his pants pocket, he tears it open with hi mouth, adjusting it over himself.

With a smack to your ass, you jolt forward from the contact, moaning loudly. 

"So wet for me." He growls, sliding his tip up and down your entrance.

"Please, Joe." You whine, moving to your elbows to arch your ass higher in the air.

In one swift motion he penetrates you, earning a shocked gasp from you. You choke out a moan as you adjust to his size. He pumps in and out of you deep and hard, your bodies smacking together with each movement.

Your eyes flutter shut in pure bliss. There was no stopping the loud moans coming from you no matter who heard. And Joe's sweet affirmations about how tight and beautiful you were made it even harder not to cum right then and there. 

Joe suddenly pulls out to your dismay causing you to whine. He sits with his back against the headboard. "C'mere baby."

You crawl over to hima nd straddle his lap, taking him in your hand to position him at you entrance once again. Sinking down on top of him, you both moan in unison. 

"So good for me." He says, grpping your hips and grinding up into you. Your clit rubs against his lower stomach perfectly, adding to the already overwhelming sensation. He sucks on your right nipple making you cry out, digging your nails into his shoulders.

"Cum for me baby." He demands in a low, husky whisper.

You core tightens and your body begins to shake. Joe forces you down harder on him and moves your hips faster against him.

"Fuck - yes!" You whimper, slowing your movements and shuttering against him. Joe growls and tips his head back against the head board as he jerks up into you, reaching his own climax.

You collapse into him meeting his lips one last time before pulling off to lay beside him.

You find it hard to catch your breath as you come back to reality.

"You still think you're broken?" He asks with a cocky smile.

You rapidly shake your head and bite your lip. "Where have you been all my life?"

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 9

The next morning, you're sat in the living room enjoying a cup of coffee with your brother AJ, discussing the upcoming deadline for your album.

"We have to narrow down the final songs, Anna. We can't just keep recording and scrapping everything." AJ says, running a hand through his hair. 

"Don't you think I know that?" You say, rolling your eyes. You set you coffee down on the table in front of you, noticing someone else had entered the room during your conversation.

Joe.

"Good morning." He greets, shuffling in and sitting on the couch opposite of you. You both share closed mouthed smiles and divert eye contact quickly to avoid any awkwardness in front of your brother.

"We'll just have to call Oliver later." AJ says, sinking back into the couch with a big sigh.

Oliver was your loyal manager since day one. He was no stranger to your late night phone calls, strange requests, and complaints when it came to career obligations. 

"Fine. We'll just see what he says." You shrug, picking up your coffee once more and meeting Joe's eyes. 

His hair was disarray and the small crinkles under his sleepy eyes were so adorable. You just wanted to kiss him again. 

He thought the same, eyeing your mismatched pajama bottoms and top, with your novelty oversized sneaker-looking slippers.

"I gotta get in the shower, let's meet back here in 30 and call him." AJ says, gathering his things and leaving you and Joe alone in the living room,

He matches your small smile as it grows, looking at one another.

"So, what are you up to today?" You ask, raising an eyebrow.

"Hanging out with you, hopefully."

"We can arrange that." You reply, surveying your surroundings before inching closer to him. 

"After my meeting today, let's try to blow everybody off and try to spend some time together. Ya know, maybe order food, watch a movie? The whole first date cliche." 

A wide smile spreads across Joe's face at this suggestion. 

"I would love that." 

***

Later that afternoon, the rest of your friends suggest going to dinner and a nightclub. While everyone but you and Joe agree, your hopes for a quiet night in seem to be in motion.

"But Annie, what about dancing to our favorite songs?" Tana whines.

"We can do that any other night, babe. I just want to take a night off and chill." You say.

"Me too." Agrees Joe. 

"You guys are lame!" Nick chimes in, throwing back another shot to pregame the nights events.

"Listen, you guys have a great time. Joe and I will be saving our money and the debilitating hangover for another occasion." You quip, silencing any other protests.

"If you insist." Tana rolls her eyes.

"Besides, Joe and I will make ourselves busy. I have plenty of rom-coms on deck that he needs to see." You say, looking at him with a devious smile.

With an exaggerated, wide-eyed look, you laugh knowing full well that this statement wasn't totally fabricated.

***

Around 8 p.m., the others were just heading out to dinner, just as your take-out was arriving. As you called out distant goodbye's for the night, you and Joe cracked open the Chinese food containers.

You queued up Never Been Kissed on the living room TV as Joe grabbed a bottle of wine from the fridge to accompany your dinner.

"Now what is this hot garbage you're about to make me watch?" He asks, laughing as he joins you on the couch.

"Only one of the greatest Drew Barrymore movies ever." You quip, pouring he and you a glass of rosé.

You didn't pay much attention to the movie though. As you ate, you both yapped about the silly characters, plot lines, and jokes, until the conversation ended up on yourselves. 

"Listen, I did not know I would get suspended for that!" You exclaim, slamming your carton of noodles on the coffee table.

"How could you not!?" Joe laughs, grabbing his abdomen at your outrageous story form yesteryear. 

As the laughter died down, you rest your elbow on the top of the couch, looking at him with stars in your eyes. 

You had polished off the bottle of rosé long ago, but that wasn't the only reason for the blush on your cheeks. 

Joe's shyness had fallen away, sitting and talking with Anna all night. 

"I have to say, this date falls in the top three of best date ever." Joe says, earning a shocked expression from you.

"Top three?! I'm not number one?"

"Maybe, maybe not. You'll never know." He laughs, biting his lower lip.

"I'm not used to being number two. I'd better hope I'm the top of the list, or we're through."

Both of your dazed eyes scan each others' faces, thinking of every possible way to make the next move.

Slow and steady wins the race.

Sighing, Joe leans back against the couch.

"Do you know how beautiful you are?" he asks.

You lips part, not knowing what to say. His blue grey eyes are swimming with emotion and you're captivated by it. 

"How on Earth do I get the privilege to know you?"

Your heart pounds in your chest. You don't know how to respond, but fight the desire to grab him by the collar and kiss him. 

You can't even spit a word out before he inches closer to you.

"I would do anything to please you." He says, moving to kiss your neck. You gasp, rolling your head to the side to give him better access.

"Joe, I- "

"I know. I don't want to do anything you don't want to do."

You don't exactly want to give it all up to him now, but the aching desire in your core begs to differ. But, emotionally, you know you can't delve into such intimacy so soon with the fear of getting hurt. 

Joe plays with the waistband of your sweats while attacking your neck and mouth with kisses. 

"What do you think about taking these off?" He asks, with no ounce of pressure whatsoever. His eyes are pleading in an innocent way.

You nod your head quickly, grabbing the hair at the nape of his neck to pull him closer as he worked his hands over your body.

Before he could get your pants past your hips, the alarm system had indicated that the front door was open, followed by a loud roar of chatter from your roommates who had just gotten home. 

Jumping a foot away from each other, you whine in desperation and pull your pants back all the way up.

Joe, having to grab a throw pillow to hold over his lap, joined you in sharing a painful expression because of the interruption. 

"Heyyyy guys! How was your night?" Tana slurred, holding herself steady on the back of the couch. 

How had you let the time pass you by? 

"Good." You say, with a closed mouthed smile. "Just heading off to bed."

"Me too. Too many tequila sodas." She says, rubbing her temples. "Tuck me in?" She asks.

You look at a panic stricken Joe, and reluctantly agree.

You get up to assist Tana up the stairs as Joe is joined by your brother and his friends in the living room. Your panties are soaked and you mind races with the thoughts of what would have transpired if no one had come in.

Living under the same roof, though, it was bound to happen again.

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smut to come soon I promiseeeee

[burrowbabe]

Masterlist

Last updated: October 20, 2024

Joe Burrow

Give and Take - Series

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 8

Moving your lips in sync, your adrenaline rushed like never before. Wrapping your arms around Joe's neck, you didn't want to break, even for a breath. Just as your tongue swiped his bottom lip for access, Joe pulls away. Putting his hands on your hips and nudging you off his lap, the gasp that escaped your mouth was audible.

"D-did I do something wrong?" You ask, exasperated.

Shaking his head profusely, you could see he was trying to catch his breath to choke out a reply.

"No! I just .. we can't ... I don't know."

Your wild eyes searched his face for an answer.

"This is just not how I Imagined this would go." He says, almost with a hint of disappointment.

You swallow a lump forming in your throat from embarrassment.

Had you come on too strong?

Judging by his tense body language, you figured that you had.

"I'm sorry." You blurt out, quickly diverting your eyes from him and moving towards the door to escape the awkwardness.

"Anna, wait." Joe says, lunging to grab your wrist before you had the chance to run away.

Your eyes were welling with tears now and you desperately wanted to erase the last 10 minutes. How did you let this happen? How stupid could you be? Getting drunk and jumping all over him! Your mind raced as the images from the night came back to you. 

"Let's stop for a second." He says, but before he can get another word out, you cut him off.

"No, it's fine! I'm just drunk and stupid and I shouldn't have done that. That's not me at all. Let's just forget this, it was a mistake."

Joe hadn't let go of your wrist, and the silence after your blabbering excuse made you want to meet his eyes again. And they showed immense hurt, to say the least.

"A mistake?" He whispers, confused.

"A mistake." You repeat.

Slowly, he releases your wrist and diverts his eyes to the floor, biting the inside of his cheek.

Quickly, you whip open the door and get as far away from him as you can.

________________________________________________________________________________

Joe's spirit was broken.

All he wanted was to talk about taking it slow, not take back the whole night. 

He sulked in his bed for the next few hours following the incident with you. Thinking all the way back to the first time he met you, Joe swore there was chemistry between you and him. Something real. 

Every touch, every look, every laugh, Joe felt butterflies in his stomach.

And he didn't want to take no for an answer.

Getting up from his bed, he made his way down the hall towards your bedroom. The light from under the door indicated that you were up and rearing from what had happened earlier, just like him.

With a soft knock, Joe waited patiently on the other side of the door from which you had your back against, with your knees to your chest.

You had been sitting in the same spot you basically had rejected him in, hating yourself for losing control of your emotions like that. 

Why didn't you just hear him out?  You thought, until the knock made you jump out of you skin.

Opening the door slightly, you caught a glimpse of Joe biting his lower lip and hands stuffed into his pockets.

Heat rose to your face, feeling humiliated once again. You thought at least you could avoid him till the morning.

"Can we please talk?" He asks. 

You pause for a moment, weighing your options.

"Sure." You croak, opening the door wider for him to enter.

He saunters over to the middle of the room, hands still in his pockets. Turning to you, you can see he is seemingly just as nervous as you are. You instinctively cross your arms over your chest and lean against the farthest wall from him, maybe to keep yourself from kissing him like an animal again? You weren't sure. Anything to wipe the sad look on his face.

"Listen, I know you said what happened was a mistake, but I respectfully disagree."

You shift from one foot to the other as your heart starts pounding.

"Don't you think I wanted that just as bad as you?" He questions with a scoff.

"I don't know."

"Well, I did."

Joe takes a couple steps towards you.

"I respect you, deeply. I didn't want to take advantage of the situation by going too fast, too soon. I wasn't trying to push you away for good." He explains.

"We've been getting to know each other, and things have been so fun and great, I just didn't want to complicate things." He continues.

You shrug.

"I'm more embarrassed than anything. I got caught up in the moment, and I wasn't thinking." You shake your head and try to cover your face. Joe steps closer to you and moves your hands. 

"No, don't do that. Don't hide from me."

You look up at him through your lashes, meeting his kind eyes.

"I'm scared. I don't know how I'll be able to open up to you after everything I've been through." You say, feeling the tears come once again.

"Anna, all I want is to show you I'm not him. If I like you, and you like me, why don't we just start over and see where things go?"

"What about when you go back to Cincinnati?" You question, a look of fear washing over your face.

You had caught feelings, and very quick at that. How could you potentially start dating someone who was bound to leave?

"Let's not think about that right now." He says. "I just don't want to brush these feelings under the rug anymore."

"Neither do I." You reply sheepishly. "But I don't know if I can give you what you want right now."

"That's OK." He says, biting the inside of his cheek again, backing away from you. "One day at a time."

As he turns to head for the door, you call after him.

"Joe, wait." 

Pulling him back to you, you stand on your tip toes to reach his lips for a soft, gentle kiss.

Joe sighs into your mouth, running his hands up your arms. You pull away, meeting his eyes again which are vacant of any trace of hurt any more.

"Goodnight, Anna." he says, finally letting go of you.

"Goodnight, Joe."

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I'm back after many moons, my bad! I want to get back to writing, I've missed this story so badly. Hopefully I'll get out some more chapters this week.

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 7

Joe let the warm water run down the front of his head as he gripped the wall in front of him, stroking himself.

'Taking hold of your plump ass as you grind against him, his mouth hangs agape looking at your face scrunched up in pleasure.

"Joe!" you cry out in a breathy moan.

“Faster … faster.” You whine, bouncing up and down on his cock. Joe bucks his hips up into you, matching your rhythm.

With a loud moan of approval, he feels you clench around him.

You move faster and faster pushing yourself over the edge before -'

Joe's core clenches and shakes and his breath hitches as he ejaculates into his hand.

With his eyes screwed shut, choking to catch his breath, he tries to keep himself from collapsing.

He really tried to refrain from touching himself, but all he could think about lately was the moment between him and Anna. For a second, he thought maybe he would get to taste her lips.

It was incredibly difficult for him to justify that the interruption from AJ was a good thing. Sure, the whole 'friends' thing would have gone out the window, but you had practically gave him an opening during your chat.

Making his way down to the living room, you and Tana are sat on the couch watching some sort of reality show.

The two of you exchange small, closed mouth smiles, like you awkwardly have been for the last 2 weeks.

It was killing him not to talk to you normally.

Little did he know, you felt the same way.

You were incredibly embarrassed, for one. After spilling your guts to Joe, you didn't want him to think you were desperate.

You both needed to clear the air, because nothing did actually happen. It was just a matter of who broke the ice first.

*

It was Friday night, but instead of clubbing, you suggested a chill night in, to Tana's dismay.

It was like your own little house party. Music played, drinks were flowing and it was the first time in 2 weeks you had felt relaxed in front of Joe. Partly because you were avoiding each other, but in a group setting things felt ... normal.

"Let's play never have I ever!" Tana screams.

A colossal groan erupts from the group.

"I'm not playing your fuckin' games anymore!" You say, remembering the first night you all had met Joe and Ja'Marr.

With the tension, if Tana asked anything outrageous now, it would make things a whole lot worse.

"Then what do you suggest?" She counters, looking at you with red squinted eyes from all the alcohol she had consumed.

"Let's just play pong or something over at the pool house. We'll partner up." You suggest, looking around the room to meet a bunch of nodding heads.

"Wait, wait ... pool house?" Ja'Marr asks in disbelief. "Your pool has its own house?"

"You haven't seen?" You ask with a laugh.

You motion for the others to follow you.

Making your way to the backyard, you point in the distance behind a couple of trees.

"Pool house is over there. Technically it's the guest house, but we'll hang in there from time to time."

"Oh y'all rich-rich" Ja'Marr says, causing Joe to laugh with the smile you adore.

Typing in a quick code near the doorknob, you push open the door, revealing the small, yet luxurious pool house.

There's a full kitchen, including a bar. There's a living room area with a large sectional, fireplace and flat screen tv. A short set of stairs leading to a bedroom and bathroom on the second level, and various arcade games scattered around open corners.

"Usually my Mom stays here when she visits. Or I'll come here to escape these lunatics." You say, rolling your eyes.

"Hmph, I forget how nice it is in here." Tana says, looking around in wonder with her hands on her hips.

"Don't fuck up my sanctuary now. You're not allowed." You laugh.

Everyone gathers around the kitchen island like usual, setting down the various drinks you all had brought over from the main house.

"I think we have a folding table in the closet for pong." AJ says, snapping open a beer.

Joe offers to help him retrieve it, setting it up in the space between the kitchen and living room. You and Tana set up solo cups in the correct formation and dig out a couple rogue ping pong balls from a junk drawer.

"What are the teams?" Nick asks.

"I think it's only fair the girls get one of the professional athletes on their team." Ja'Marr teases.

"Hey! Who says Tana and I can’t hold our own?” You ask.

"Because you guys totally suck." AJ quips and everyone bursts into laughter.

"I am not that bad!" Tana exclaims. "I'll prove it! Me and Ja'Marr versus Anna and Joe. Then we'll see who's the best."

With a quick glance between one another and a shrug, everyone agrees to pair up.

"AJ and Nick play winner." Tana says, putting her beer down to throw her hair up into a ponytail.

"Uh oh ... I think she means business." Joe laughs, looking at you with wide eyes.

With Joe's perfect aim and your competitiveness and enthusiasm, the two of you win every game.

With each ball that sunk into a cup, you and Joe celebrate, high-fiving and hyping each other up.

"Balls back right here!" You exclaim after you both sank two in a row.

Joe was oddly mesmerized by you the entire time playing together. He was amused at your trash talk and competitiveness. Things finally felt like they were progressing between you both.

After another easy win, everyone was sick of you and Joe's gloating.

"Suckers!" You scream, flipping them the middle finger.

"Unbelievable." Ja'Marr shakes his head in defeat.

At this point, Tana was unconscious on the couch after spending most of the time complaining that she wasn't getting a fair turn during the game.

"Sucks to suck." You'd say with a shrug, and she'd pout.

"Let's just watch a movie or something, I'm tired as fuck." Nick suggests, flopping down on the end of the sectional.

AJ and Ja'Marr seemed to be on the same page, except you and Joe. As everyone settled down on the couch watching Ted, not even the talking bear could get you and Joe's attention off each other.

The two of you sat in the kitchen giggling, cracking jokes about the others and rehashing highlights from the previous game.

“I am the best cheerleader! Am I right or am I right?” You ask, wiggling your eyebrows.

“Yup, you definitely need to try out for the Ben-Gals. We need you out on that field.”

For what felt like hours, you and Joe chatted about funny memories from your lives and future plans, playfully teasing back and forth.

Neither of you realized how loud your conversation was becoming until your brother had shushed you angrily, half asleep.

"Can you pipe down? Jesus!" He complained.

Sharing a goofy look, you and Joe venture out of the pool house, snagging a bottle of wine from the bar on the way.

"Jeez, tough crowd." You laugh.

"Ah, whatever. We'll make our own party." Joe replies, waving the bottle in front of him.

The two of you walk side by side along the path back to the main house in peaceful silence for a moment.

Joe cracks the seal on the head of the wine bottle and takes a long swig before holding it out towards you.

Following suit, you let the cold liquid run down your throat, easing more of the tension between the two of you.

"So ... when's the album coming out?" Joe asks.

"Soon." you smile, "It's a story start to finish, but I don’t think it’s complete yet.”

“Writers block?” He asks.

“No, actually. I’m almost too inspired that I just keep recording, and I don’t even know which songs to choose for the final product.”

"Want to see my recording studio?" you ask him.

With an excited nod, you lead Joe upstairs.

The door to the recording studio is heavy and padded. Joe is intimidated by all the technical soundboards, microphones and other equipment around the room, surrounding the glass booth.

"Welp, this is it." you say with a shrug. "Except you've seen the kitchen island is more popular these days."

Joe nods with a smile, astonished by the glass case in the corner of the room, filled with awards. Grammys, which were the most identifiable to him, made up the majority of the case's contents. Record plaques adorned every inch of the walls, too.

Taking a swig from the bottle, you eye Joe looking around in awe.

"Different from a locker room, huh?" You laugh sheepishly.

"Very different." He agrees.

Watching him survey your accomplishments with a look of shock on his face definitely stroked your ego, but the buzz in your head from the alcohol gave you even more confidence.

Even looking at him do something so mundane didn’t stop the wetness from pooling in your panties.

He was just so perfect - family oriented, successful, kind … and insanely hot.

You shift from one foot to the other, clenching your thighs together to get some relief.

Before thinking, you blurt out, “Do you want to see my room?"

Joe's blood ran cold, and his heart skipped a beat for a moment. He whipped his head around to look at you standing a couple feet away from him, glazed eyes, blushed cheeks and a small smirk on your face.

He didn't know if this was a trick question or not. Was she going to think he was creepy if he said yes? Or yes too enthusiastically?

"Uh ... sure. Got any cool stuff in there?" He laughs.

“Tons.” You reply, motioning for him to follow you.

You knew exactly what you were doing. How else would you get him in your room? You thought, play it off like a house tour.

Maybe it was the alcohol talking, or your deep longing for physical touch, but you were suddenly ready to lay it all out on the table for Joe. No more walking on eggshells around each other.

Leading him down the hall, you dramatically wave around the grand master bedroom.

"Welcome to my lair." You smile, holding out the wine bottle towards Joe who happily takes it. His anxiety was through the roof at the moment. He wasn't really sure how far to push this situation without making it weird for your friendship.

With a soft click of the lock on the door, you lean your back against it, biting your lower lip in anticipation.

“You can sit if you want.” You shrug, meeting his wide doe eyes. He looks nervous, but that turns you on even more.

"Can I tell you something?" You ask, slowly walking towards him sitting on your bed.

Joe nods apprehensively, trying to ignore the twitch of his cock at the sound of your low, sultry voice.

With a deep sigh, you look him up and down, admiring everything about him.

Finally reaching him across the room, you slowly bend over to slide your hand around his to take the wine bottle. You take a long swig without breaking eye contact, while his mouth hangs slightly agape in awe just watching you.

Turning to set the bottle down on the table next to you, you find Joe's eyes again that have seemed to darken.

Sliding your hands up his abdomen, feeling his muscles through his t-shirt, you lean into his ear whispering, "I am so incredibly attracted to you."

Joe's mind raced with responses - none of them he deemed adequate for this situation.

Choosing the silent response, he swiftly wraps his hand around the back of your neck, pulling you in close until your lips meet.

_____________________________________

smutsmutsmutsmutsmut incoming 👀

[burrowbabe]

trying to get back into writing! I have so much in my drafts to be postedddddd

[burrowbabe]

new chapter of "Give and Take" is posted! I know it's short ... but blessing your feeds with ✨this✨

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 6

Joe tossed and turned all night wondering how to approach you the next day. He felt some sort of responsibility to cheer you up to ensure you knew he was genuine.

Joe could barely count on one hand how many days he had known you, and yet, he was captivated. He feared wasting the time he had here at your house, sleeping next door, seeing you every day by pussyfooting around the obvious - he was attracted.

Joe reaches under the pillow behind his head to grab his phone. Opening Instagram, he sees that you had just shared something to your story. A simple screenshot of a quote reading,

"I wonder what I look like in your eyes."

Hovering his thumb over the heart reaction button on his phone, he quickly hit it, locking his phone. Leaving him in the darkness with his heart racing, he felt like a middle-schooler.

He knew that instantly you were notified of his interaction with your story, but how would you take it?

Little did he know, you were pleasantly surprised as a DM appeared in your inbox. You wondered, too, why Joe was still awake, clutching your phone to your chest. You didn't even realize that he followed you, let alone curious enough to look at your posts.

Joe decides to grab a glass of water before he choked on his own saliva with anxiety.

Not bothering to put on a shirt, he merely slips on a pair of shorts before heading towards the kitchen.

The house is eerily quiet in comparison to the usual loud banter amongst friends. At this point in time, he wished Ja'Marr was awake so he had someone to talk to. But deep down, he knew he wouldn't be taken seriously, nor did he want to stir up anything before he even knew what he wanted out of this budding relationship with Anna.

He didn't realize he was caught in his own thoughts again until water spilled over the edge of the glass he was filling, splattering all over the floor and his feet.

"Shit." he curses at himself, placing the glass quietly on the counter before grabbing some paper towels to clean up.

With his back turned, bent over, sopping up the water, he didn't even hear you enter the room.

"Hey."

Joe jumps slightly, whipping his head around to see you standing in the kitchen in an oversized t-shirt and socks.

Quickly standing up and throwing the paper towels in the trash, Joe is lost for words.

"Y-You scared me. I didn't think anyone else was awake." he says sheepishly.

"Same idea as me." you say, gesturing to the overly filled glass of water on the counter.

Silence fills the room for a moment while you fill up your own cup of water. Joe leans his back against the kitchen island, looking you up and down while your back is facing him.

He noted how sexy your legs were. He thought about what it would be like to grab you under the thighs and take you on this counter right now, smothering your moans with his hand cupped over your mouth.

With the head of his cock twitching, he internally criticized himself for objectifying you, but he couldn't help it. The last thing he wanted was to have a conversation with you with a noticeable hard-on.

Friends first. He reminded himself.

You sip on your glass of water, leaning against the counter opposite of Joe. Noticing his discomfort you ask,

"What's keeping you up tonight?"

Joe sighs and shakes his head.

"Nothing in particular."

Another moment of silence goes by. God, why did this have to be so awkward?

"Thanks for ... chatting with me earlier." you say, tucking a loose strand of hair behind your ear. "I'm sorry my old drama ruined dinner."

Furrowing his brow, Joe shakes his head vigorously.

"You didn't ruin anything, trust me."

You searched his eyes for some sort of indication that he was lying, but found nothing but pure softness behind his lashes.

"Still ... not how I anticipated starting off our friendship - bombarding you on day 3 with my issues." you half-laugh, rolling your eyes.

"It's not stupid." he says seriously. "You can talk to me about whatever."

Taking a deep breath, you set your glass down. In an effort to "clear the air" you think back to everything that was posted in the tabloids.

'Travis seen in hotel in Vegas with another girl!'

'Anna Carter crying leaving the Ritz Carlton!'

'Travis on bail for assault charges!'

'Where is Anna Carter??'

"What do you know already?" You finally ask.

Joe's mind races with what Tana had told him earlier.

"Nothing really ... I don't believe what they put in the media." he says, swallowing hard.

You swallow hard too, hoping this is the last time you have to think about Travis for a long time. But, for the sake of transparency and context, you felt Joe needed to know.

"Well ... let's just say that my ex is the type of emotionally unavailable guy to physically and emotionally abuse you, use you, and cheat on you, and expect you to be OK with it because he's the man and you're the woman. Stay in your place and shut up."

You feel your eyes well up with tears but shake your head to rid the sensation. No more tears for that man.

With a deep breath, you cross your arms over your chest instinctually for security.

"I found out he had been cheating on me the entire relationship, whilst draining my bank account and using my name and resources to launch his career." you say, biting the inside of your cheek. "When I confronted him about it all, he assaulted me."

Joe shakes his head in disbelief, reigniting the anger he had earlier.

"I will never let a man raise his hand to me twice. That was a wake up call." you continue. "As shattered as I was, what hurt more was the fact the he assumed I had such little respect for myself, that I would never walk away."

You bite your lower lip fighting back the tears. Now was not the time to get angry again.

"I'm so sorry." Joe whispers, shaking his head.

"It's in the past." you shrug. "I'm breaking the habit, focusing on myself, and hoping to find someone way out of my comfort zone ... a nice guy." you laugh.

"And you will." Joe insists, nodding towards you encouragingly.

Meeting his eyes with a small smile, you quickly wipe a tear that you hadn't realized had begun to fall. Compose yourself, you think.

"Welp, that's the gist." you laugh defeatedly. Humor was a coping mechanism, but at this point in your life it had come second nature.

"Anything else that comes to mind, I'm sure you'll find it on TMZ first." you laugh, again.

Idiot. You think to yourself.

-

You hated downplaying everything but in an effort to move on, it felt like it was the only way. You had a type, that's for sure. With your daddy issues, thug-ish, confident assholes were your go-to. Did it ever end up well? No. Did it fill the void? Yes.

You had begun seeing a therapist shortly after the breakup that encouraged you to actively change your ways. You knew what you were seeking was bad for you, it was just a matter of not doing it anymore.

-

"So anyway, I'm sure you're done hearing about my relationship issues. What about you? Any girls in your life?" you ask, hoping to divert the conversation in a more positive direction. You still didn't have confirmation whether or not Joe was seeing anyone, despite continuously digging online.

He shakes his head, pursing his lips. "No, no one."

"What? C'mon. You're a celebrity, you must have girls falling from trees for you!" you laugh in disbelief.

"I'm not saying I don't have people approach me ... just none that I'm interested in." he shrugs.

"I find it hard to believe you don't hook up on the road." you raise your brows, waiting for his response.

"... Maybe a couple times." he shyly admits.

"I knew it!" you both laugh and he blushes in embarrassment. You loved how coy he was.

It was true, he fucked around with a few girls here and there. Although no girls were allowed in the hotel rooms during the season, he was Joe Burrow.

Sure, it was satisfying in the moment, but he woke up every time feeling gross for some reason. He couldn't understand why, but he thought that maybe he was actually seeking something deeper.

His DM's were flooded with messages from social media influencers, other sports players' girlfriends and wives, and fans whom he'd occasionally pursue if he was in their city. But a cheap fuck was all it felt like.

"Sex is sex." He shrugs. "But it's more enjoyable with someone you actually care about."

"I wouldn't know." you say, rolling your eyes.

Joe looks at you in confusion.

"I don't think I've experienced anything close to 'caring'." you explain. "Sex is easy for guys ... straightforward. So if you don't give a shit about your girlfriend, it's quick and simple."

Joe raises his eyebrows in surprise, "So ... you're saying it's never been enjoyable for you?"

"Not usually, no. Maybe I'm just broken." you shrug.

With a beat, you laugh, covering your face. "I'm so sorry, how the hell did we end up at this conversation?"

You felt the blush creeping up on your cheeks as you met his amused expression.

"I don't know, but it seems like you've been with selfish douchebags." he says.

"I don't know what it's like not to be." you reply, looking down at your feet.

A flicker of light above both of your heads startles you before the kitchen goes dark.

"Oh shit, I think I need to change the lightbulb." you say, moving to grab a spare from under the kitchen sink.

"Do you mind boosting me up?" you ask.

You move towards Joe thinking he was just going to link his hands together for you to step on, but instead, he grabs you under your thighs and lifts you above his head.

Quickly replacing the bulb, you give Joe the OK before he slowly loosens his grip on you, allowing you to slide down the front of his body.

His hands snake up the back of your shirt as you come down, him admiring your soft skin in his head.

With your hands on his shoulders holding steady, you meet each others eyes for a second, both second guessing the situation.

Eyes flicking down to his lips, and his eyes to yours, silence engulfs the room.

His shirtless body is warm, muscular ... inviting. If you didn't know any better you'd think the bulge in his shorts was merely caused by something in his pocket being this close to one another.

With a short, stuttered breath, you slowly lean closer to his face before a voice interrupts you causing you both to jump away from one another.

"Why is everyone up right now?" your brother AJ asks groggily.

You and Joe look between one another and AJ before stuttering for a reply.

"J-Just thirsty ... talking ... can't sleep." you say.

AJ clearly must've not seen the position the two of you were in previously, with his eyes squinted shut from the dim kitchen light, scratching his bed head.

Pouring himself a glass of water and grabbing a snack from the cabinet, you and Joe awkwardly avoid eye contact.

You hadn't realized sweat building and the anxiety tightening your chest.

Mouth agape, looking for the right words to say, "Well ... goodnight." you spit out.

"See you in the morning." he replies.

You turn and scurry out of the kitchen before your brother noticed you were just in your panties under that big shirt.

Fuck.

--------------------------------------------------------------

** Sorry again for the short hiatus. I am now fully recovered, and back on my bullshit. As much as I wanted to write smut in this chapter, it's just not in the cards for Joe and Anna right now. So, I leave you with this cliff hanger for now to get a new chapter out.

I've already begun writing chapter 7 and hope to get it out this weekend!

xoxo

[burrowbabe]

Thank you sooooo much to everyone who has liked and reposted "Give and Take" thus far! I apologize for the delay of Chapter 6, I just graduated and then I was cursed with conjunctivitis >:( In the meantime, message me if you have any requests for one shots whether or not they are related to "Give and Take" is totally fine!

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 5

"Travis is here." you respond, grimacing in his direction.

She turns to look over her shoulder.

" ... and he's coming this way."

Your ex proved to be one of then worst people on the planet. While that is the consensus amongst most couples who have broken up, you like to believe he takes the cake.

He quickly makes it to your table in a few strides with a smug look on his face.

"Hey guys. Long time, no see."

He leans his arm on the back of your chair, looking down at you.

"Can I help you?" you question with a look of disgust on your face.

"Just being friendly, Anna."

"For once ..." you quip. "I'm trying to have a nice night with my friends if you don't mind, thanks."

He looks around the table as if waiting for someone to beg him to stay. Of course, no one does considering your past with him. Your friends were never his friends despite what he thinks.

"Nice to see no one has changed." He mutters.

Putting his hands up to surrender, he backs away from the table.

"Jeez ... tough crowd. I'll be seeing you around." he directs at you with a wink.

With a roll of your eyes, you quietly apologize to the table for the interruption and motion for the waitress to bring the check.

"No, no. Please, it's my treat." Joe insists, taking the check and handing over his credit card.

"I just want to get out of here." you say and the rest of the group thanks Joe for dinner.

"He's a tool Anna. Forget about it!" Tana says, caressing your back on the car ride home.

"I'm fine ... just annoyed is all."

You pinch the bridge of your nose as you feel a stress headache coming on.

"He always does this. Pops up out of the blue to remind me how miserable our relationship was."

"He must be looking for me to beat his ass again." your brother comments from the row behind, garnering a defeated laugh from you.

"Who was that girl?" Tana wonders aloud.

"I don't know, and I don't care." You reply, watching the nightlife whizz by the window to distract yourself.

--

Travis was a class A narcissist. You had met him for the first time at 15 years old when you attended the Grammy's after party. You had swept the rap category with your debut album.

As you awkwardly made small talk with your music idols, Travis had approached you, offering to sneak you some alcohol. Taking him up on his offer, you and him sipped champagne behind some bushes. He was charming, he made you laugh, and he was incredibly handsome.

You didn't meet again for 2 years, spotting him at a night club one night with your friends. From there, you both were inseparable.

3 long years of dating turned into the most tumultuous experience of your life. The honeymoon phase was far over just a couple months in, but you were convinced that if you love someone, you make it work no matter the circumstances.

It had been 10 months since your very public breakup, and running into him was not getting any easier.

--

It seemed everyone had caught on to the fact that your mood was soiled for the rest of the night. So, the group went their separate ways when the town car dropped you off at your house.

You let the hot water run down your neck and shoulders for a long while, hoping it would relieve some of the tension your ex had caused.

While you felt more comfortable in your sweats, you still weren't totally relaxed.

When you go downstairs, you see Tana passed out on one side of the couch and Joe watching TV.

"Where'd everyone go?" you ask as you approach the living room. Pausing the movie he was watching, Joe turns to look at you.

"Ja'Marr went to meet some friends at the club, Nick went home, and your brother invited a girl over." he explains with a shrug.

Nodding your head with pursed lips, you sit down on the couch next to Joe.

He resumes the movie for a while, you both just silently enjoying Pootie Tang.

"Are you OK?" he asks after a long while.

Taking a deep breath, you shrug.

"Yeah I guess."

You bite your inner cheek and make eye contact. He looks at you intently, noticing the glaze over your eyes from tears that could spill any second.

"I don't even like his music anyway." Joe says, drawing a weak smile from you.

"He's terrible." you say, shaking your head.

A beat of silence goes by.

"I can't say that I didn't see the gossip in the media when you guys broke up. I don't know how guys can just dog girls like that." Joe says.

"Me neither." You mutter. "Took me a long time to figure it out."

You meet Joe's eyes as he nods. You can feel tears rush to your eyes and the last thing you wanted to do was cry in front of him. You didn't even feel sad about the situation anymore, just incredibly exhausted by having to rehash it.

Biting your lower lip, you swallow hard to keep from looking like you were ready to burst into tears.

"I think I'm just gonna put myself to bed." You say, getting up from the couch. "Goodnight."

"Night." He replies. When you're gone, Joe is too lost in his thoughts to realize Tana was awake.

"There is some serious tension there." She says, snapping Joe out of his trance.

"What do you mean?"

"You were totally 2 seconds away from kissing." She says, matter-of-factly.

Shaking his head with a furrowed brow Joe denies it.

"If you say so." She says, definitely not convinced.

"He hit her you know." She says, causing Joe's head to whip around.

"What?"

"Right here in the house. They had a fight and he punched her and threw her down the stairs. Him and AJ got into a brawl, the cops came ... all that." She explains.

"Are you kidding me? That's insane!" Joe replies, flabbergasted.

"Yeah, we couldn't believe it. All because she confronted him about cheating on her." She scoffs and shakes her head.

"She disappeared back home to New York for like 4 months and we didn't hear from her. She was really fucked up over the whole situation. Then randomly she just showed up again, happy as hell." Tana continues.

"Do you think she's OK now?" He asks.

"She's stronger than me, that's for sure. I think she just needed a break from LA. She's definitely back to her old self, which we're all happy about, but I do think she should branch out and find someone new." Tana says, whipping the blanket off of herself.

"Welp, I'm going up to my room. See ya in the morning Joey boy."

Joe spends the next few minutes staring off into space in silence, going over what Tana had told him. Call it mid-Western, mama's boy values, or just plain morals, but he was furious that someone could disrespect a woman like Travis had disrespected Anna.

He couldn't imagine hurting Anna, or any woman for that matter intentionally. She was different, nothing like he had ever encountered before.

He was attracted to her confidence and success, her kindness and generosity, and their difference in upbringing and culture intrigued him.

He put himself to bed that night fantasizing about the ways he would treat Anna differently than her ex. This somehow aroused him and he ignored the urge to touch himself, at least for tonight.

One step at a time. He tells himself.

He wanted whatever might transpire between he and Anna to be organic.

Friends first. He thinks.

Whatever distrust she had in men romantically, he was determined to fix that.

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 4

You did not in fact go to sleep when you got up to your bedroom. Despite how exhausted you felt, you couldn't help but eavesdrop on the howling laughter coming from down by the pool area.

You should've gotten in the hot tub.

Your subconscious taunted you with fantasies of everyone trickling off to sleep, leaving you and Joe to your own devices in the hot tub. You would kiss him, you think. But again, as soon as you come face to face with him, you choke with anxiety.

A knock sounds at your door, slightly making you jump out of your skin as you're snapped out of your thoughts.

"Yeah?" You call, but no response.

With a huff of annoyance you get up and move to swing open the door to reveal Tana.

"Oh ... hey."

"You good?" she asks, sounding genuinely concerned.

"Yeah, why?"

"You just disappeared. Everyone was wondering where you were. Can I come in?" she asks apprehensively.

Moving out of the way to let her enter, she leaps onto your bed.

"Are you sure you're OK?" she presses again.

"Yeah, just tired I guess." you reply, joining her on the bed.

She sucks her teeth, "Bullshit."

"No seriously." You reply. You didn't;t want to sound defensive at the risk of having to spill what you're actually feeling. After last night's embarrassment, you feared that if you told Tana about Joe, she would meddle in the situation. Or worse, be upset because she likes him.

She stares at you with raised brows as if waiting for further response.

"Okay, if you say so." she shrugs. Getting up to head towards the door, you call her name, causing her whip around again.

"Yeah?"

"Do you really think I should start dating again?" you ask sheepishly.

"Oh, hell yeah." she responds.

With a maniacal smile and a wiggle of her eyebrows, she pulls a giggle from you.

"We'll have guys lined up out the door for you before you know it. We gotta get you a wax, hair appointment, nails -"

"Goodnight Tana ..." you say pushing her out the door.

*

Surprisingly, you had got a full night's sleep which surely made your head feel more clear. However, as soon as you spotted Joe eating breakfast downstairs alone, you felt uneasy again.

With a closed-mouth smile, you greet him quietly before grabbing a mug of your own to pour some coffee.

"How'd you sleep?" he asks.

"Really good actually." You respond, avoiding eye contact.

"Good. We missed you last night."

You meet his eyes with a pause.

"Really?"

"Tana near started whining that she was the only girl." he responds with a laugh.

"Oh, well, she'll get over it." you laugh. "She's always hanging with the boys when I'm not around."

"Do your friends tour with you usually or do they stay here?" Joe asks.

You join him at the kitchen island with your coffee.

"They usually come with me. They don't have much else to do." you shrug. "But I'm also recording songs on the road so my brother has to be there to produce."

Joe nods his head listening along.

"They're my posse whether I like it or not." you say, causing him to laugh.

With a short awkward silence, you both try to speak at the same time.

"Oh-"

"Sorr-"

"No you go ahead." you concede.

"I was just gonna ask what a good restaurant around here was. I wanted to call and make reservation for tonight."

"Depends how much you want to spend." you joke.

"I think I can afford whatever you guys want." he smirks.

You pretend to think for a moment. "Hmmm, well in that case, let's go to Catch. I could eat a good surf and turf meal for a family of 3 right now."

He laughs with his bright white smile.

"You got it. I'll call right now." he says.

*

At around 6 p.m. everyone began getting ready for dinner. You couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the afternoon after this morning's conversation with Joe. Some of your anxiety had gone away after realizing how easy he was to talk to.

You couldn't get his smile and the sound of his laugh out of your head all throughout your thorough self-care routine.

Always gotta be prepared. You think to yourself as you shave every inch of your body.

"Would you actually fuck him though?" your friend Pat asks you on the phone while you applied your makeup.

He was your gay best friend from back home in New York. You trusted him with anything and everything, but kept the identity of this guy you were interested in anonymous, just in case he were to blab to your mother. You wished to do the same with Tana, but she lives too close to easily put two and two together.

"No! Not tonight at least ..." you bite your lip with a smile.

"You lying bitch!" he laughs. "You are so down bad for him."

"Nuh uh" you protest.

"Uh huh!"

"I want to get to know each other more before that's even a consideration." you say, sticking your index finger in your mouth to clean the lipstick off.

"If you say so, girl. Text me later. You better have a juicy update!" Pat exclaims before hanging up with a 'bye' and 'I love you".

Catch was definitely high end, but you didn't want to look too extra. The outfit you chose toed the line between subtle and sexy.

The short, black cocktail dress hugged your curves, with a halter style neck that accentuated your breasts with no bra. Pairing you're crystal encrusted, open toed, Louboutin's with your small diamond tennis necklace, you spritzed yourself with your Chanel perfume before heading downstairs.

AJ, Joe, and Ja'Marr sat in the living room watching the Lakers play, pregaming the restaurant with some beers when you descended the stairs.

"You look nice." your brother compliments you with a smile.

"Why thank you, Anthony." you reply with a smile. You were the only one who called your brother by his full name, as much as he hated it, you were the only one allowed. He gave up arguing with you about it many years ago, and it just seemed to stick.

"Who are we waiting for?" Ja'Marr asks, throwing back the rest of his drink.

"Just Tana. She was on her way down when I just saw her." you reply.

"Speak of the devil!" AJ laughs.

Tana descends the stairs in a tight mini skirt and a crop top that barley covers her upper half. Clip clopping uncomfortably in her 8 inch heels, you can't help but stifle a laugh.

"You know we're not going to a nightclub right?" AJ jokes.

"Shut up! I look hot." Tana says, flipping her long blonde hair over her shoulder.

A few minutes later, you all load into the black town car that Joe and Ja'Marr had ordered to take you to the restaurant.

Catch was always packed with celebrity wannabe's and social media influencers, but regardless, you were bound to see someone you knew.

The waitress leads you all to a large table near the windows on the right side of the restaurant. This was the best seat in the house. Sitting in the seat across from Joe, everyone else claimed their spot at the table.

"While you're here, I'll take a White Claw." Tana states confidently before the waitress even finishes handing out the menus.

"Bitch, you are so trashy." you laugh. "Get some motherfuckin' wine like a grown up."

"Don't hate! It keeps me skinny." she shrugs. "Besides, why would it be on the menu if people shouldn't have it?" she questions matter-of-factly.

"Fair enough."

In no time, the drinks are flowing, the food is devoured, and overall, everyone is laughing and having a good time.

You begin to learn random things about Joe. Like he's a massive SpongeBob Squarepants fan, and he wears socks at the beach.

Your face had began to flush from the chardonnay you were drinking, but you liked how loose you were feeling in front of Joe. You shared some things about yourself as well, telling him about your mother and what it was like growing up in a strict Italian family. You confessed that you love The Office, and that you secretly love sour gummy worms despite your trainer forbidding you from having them.

All is well for the remainder of the evening until the waitress comes over with another round of, specifically, your drink only.

Taking it from her with a look of confusion, she motions to a table across the restaurant.

"This was sent from the gentlemen in blue over there."

Leaning to look past her, you spot your ex grinning at you, sitting at a table with another girl.

You heart sinks and you scoff in disgust.

"Tell him I'm all set, thanks." you say, handing the wine glass back to her. She takes it back looking equally as confused as you were before and walks away.

"What was that about?" Tana asks.

"Travis is here." you respond, grimacing in his direction.

She turns to look over her shoulder.

" ... and he's coming this way."

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 3

"Hey, so we were just talking ... since Joe and Ja'Marr are just looking to spend the off season in LA, I offered they just stay here." AJ shrugs looking to you as if asking permission.

You were speechless for a moment, thinking about being in such close proximity. Not even because you just met them - your house had basically become a hotel for your brother and best friend's late night hookups - but for the simple fact that you think you have a crush.

How weird could it get? You think, nodding to your brother and Joe.

"Y-Yeah that's fine." You quickly say.

"Word." AJ smiles and resumes eating his breakfast.

"Thank you guys, seriously. You really don't have to do this for us." Joe says, looking between you and your brother.

"N-No, its our pleasure. We're all friends." You say, giving him a close-mouthed smile. You and Joe hold eye contact for a moment, almost as if trying to read one another's expressions.

"Welp, I'm gonna go shower." You state, once again trying to escape an awkward situation.

“We have some recording to do today.” You direct towards your brother. Quickly getting up from you chair you think, what is wrong with you? Shaking your head as you ascend the stairs. He must think you're so weird.

The self deprecation continued all throughout your morning routine, and as time passed, you realized that not only was that nagging feeling in your body exhausting, but you truly were tired from not sleeping the night before.

You had a deadline coming up for the release of your new album. The label had been checking in non-stop to make sure you were being productive - which you were - but not at the pace they would've liked.

After combing through your wet hair, you hear AJ call up to you from the bottom of the stairs.

"Ann! I brought all our shit down here because of the good acoustics, remember?"

"Yeah, OK. I'll be right down." You reply.

Even though you had spent thousands of dollars on a state-of-the-art home recording studio, you found that recording your vocals in the kitchen sounded much better. Of course, the studio was still put to use, but you both found yourselves set up on the kitchen island more often than not.

When you descended the stairs, you could see everyone sitting around the island waiting for your arrival. An audience was nothing new to you, but when you were performing the song finished, not during the creative process.

Having your friends Tana and Nick listen in was one thing, but now Joe and Ja'Marr sat patiently as well, which churned your stomach with anxiety.

"Jeez, we got a full house." You jokingly say, laughing awkwardly.

"They wanna see how the sausage is made." AJ jokes, garnering laughter to erupt from the table. You laughed along to play it cool, but you knew this was going to be difficult. Your songs were personal to you and it was important to you to have a safe space where you could criticize yourself, cry, goof off and argue with your brother over the sound engineering without people judging.

"All we know is football. I wanna see how y'all make my favorite songs." Ja'Marr says, smiling encouragingly.

Deep down, you knew everything would be fine, but you totally felt put on the spot.

"Of course, of course." You smile, swallowing your nerves.

For the rest of the afternoon, you recorded a handful of songs, some rap, some R&B and pop that showed off your range. The process became easier as time went by, with the guys offering words of support and cringeworthy synchronized dance moves to the beat of the songs.

Everyone spent the time laughing and having fun, accompanied by your famous obscene lyrics that you became popular for. You didn't know if this impressed Joe or not. Would he think you were sexy for being empowered and aggressive? Or would it be a turnoff that you were so vocal about your sexuality? Nonetheless, a smile never left his face, which you took as a good sign.

After spending some time in the living room watching a raunchy, late-night comedy, Tana suggests you go for a swim.

"Now?" You whine, but everyone else was eager to change and jump in the pool.

Digging through a drawer of bikinis in your bedroom, you debated which one you wanted to wear. Should you be modest or sexy? That was the question. Deciding on sexy, you put on a bright blue, micro bikini. Your brother wouldn't be pleased, but you wanted to show off your body a little bit.

You were the last to emerge from the house, closing the sliding glass door to the patio behind you and seeing everyone splashing in the pool having a chicken fight.

You certainly needed some liquid courage to stop your racing mind from feeling self conscious. So, you grabbed the bottle of vodka from the night before to drink straight up.

Throwing your towel down on one of the sun chairs, Tana turns her attention to you from atop AJ's shoulders.

"Holy shit! You look hot!" She exclaims, causing everyone else to look in your direction. You try not to catch Joe's eye and thankfully the darkness of the night hid the blush that crept up on your cheeks.

You murmur a 'thank you' before taking a swig from the bottle of vodka.

"I just kicked Ja'Marr's ass! Ann come play chicken. You can be Joe's partner!" Tana suggests excitedly.

You set the bottle down and turn to see Ja'Marr fall off Joe's shoulders and swim towards the edge of the pool to pull himself out.

Anxiety struck you once again, but you obliged and eased into the pool.

Great, now my literal vagina is going to be up against this guy's neck.

By the time you reach Joe, and before you can even blink, he's hoisting you up atop his shoulders with such ease that you feel your core clench with arousal.

You just met this guy yesterday, calm down. You remind yourself, hoping to God he did not just feel the reaction he gave you.

"Push her! Push her!" AJ screams as you and Tana interlock fingers trying to throw each other into the pool.

With Joe's tight grip on your shins and a hard shove that you mustered up, you sent Tana flying backwards into the water.

"Yes!" You scream. Joe takes you off his shoulders with a huge smile plastered across his face. You high five and celebrate as Tana spits out water and attempts to clear her eyes of chlorine after going under.

It was only after the commotion died down, and people started venturing into the hot tub, that you noticed the muscles on Joe's shirtless body. This was something you could not find on the internet the previous night ... and you had tried.

Before you could get too ahead of yourself, Joe's voice broke you out of your trance. You realize it was only you and him left in the pool and he's asking you about your plans for the next day.

"Oh, I'm not doing anything I don't think." You say.

"Good, I was hoping to take you all out to dinner to say thank you for letting us stay here." He replies.

Hope deflated slightly in you, thinking that maybe he was going to ask you out on a date. But, again, you remind yourself that you and him barely know each other, and he has not shown any interest in you.

"That sounds great." You say with a small smile.

"Do you want to get in the hot tub?" He asks.

Feeling slightly rejected, you shake your head. "No, I think I'm gonna head up to bed. I didn't get much sleep last night."

His brow slightly furrows and for a second, you think he looks disappointed.

"Joeyyyyyyyyyy!" Tana calls from afar. "Come sit next to me!"

Looking at each other once more, he nods quickly. "Yeah, yeah, of course. Sleep well."

With that, you hoist yourself out of the pool and gather your things. Watching Joe get into the hot tub next to Tana caused a wave of jealousy to come over you, but you needed to stop yourself from getting into something that could hurt you again.

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 2

The black Escalade pulled up the long windy driveway leading up to your house, letting out everyone one by one, like a clown car. AJ thanked the driver and discreetly handed him a tip during their handshake.

Entering the 6-digit code to your front door, everyone followed behind you to take a seat around the island in your spacious kitchen.

"Your house is dope." Ja'Marr says with wide eyes, looking around the modern, shiny style of your newly renovated home.

With a quiet 'thank you', you pull out a bottle of vodka from the liquor cabinet. You were plagued with a weird feeling you had never felt before. Alcohol seemed to be the only way you were going to be able to calm down.

Was he looking at you like you were looking at him?

You always were able to play it cool. Having male friends, and hell, being one of the most successful artists in a male-dominated genre of music, you had to have confidence. But this was different. Joe attracted you in a way that previous boyfriends had not, and you weren't sure why.

"Let's play a game or something!" Tana exclaims, throwing back another shot she had poured herself when you weren't looking.

"Ooou like what?" Your mutual friend, Nick, questions pulling his stool closer to the island.

"Never have I ever?" She suggests, wiggling her eyebrows.

AJ audibly groans, "That's so middle school."

Everyone laughed in agreement but Tana persisted.

"No guys! We can make it ... adult," She says with a smirk, "... expose everyone."

"We have guests," AJ says, motioning between Joe and Ja'Marr. "... do we really need to subject them to your perverted questions?"

Another burst of laughter from the group still does not stop Tana from insisting.

"You guys are so boring. This is a surefire way to get comfortable with new people!"

After more protesting, it is decided that you all would play for a few rounds.

While Joe and Ja'Marr asked generic questions, your closest friends seemed to be targeting you.

"Never have I ever ... not had sex in so long that I basically became a virgin again." Tana says confidently, looking right in your direction.

You could feel the heat rise to your face. There was no way you were going to put a finger down to a question like that. Sure, your friends knew of your bad luck in relationships, but you were focusing on your work. Tana was always hounding you to hook up with people for the hell of it, but that wasn't appealing. Plus, you weren't sure you had totally overcome the trauma from your past relationship.

Everyone looked around at each other in curiosity to see who would move. No one did, and thankfully, the question was dropped fairly quickly. Giving Tana a glare, she knew you guys would be hashing it out later.

Around 2 a.m., no one was able to hide their yawns any longer.

"Yo, if you want, y'all can crash here." AJ tells Joe and Ja'Marr. "You know ... rather than having to have a car bring you back to a hotel."

The three look between each other and nod, thanking AJ for his offer. You offer to help grab linens for the guest rooms since Tana had snuck off to bed upstairs, and Nick chose to curl up on the couch.

"Is this room OK?" You ask, throwing sheets and a blanket on the mattress of one of your many guest rooms.

"This is more than OK! Thank you." Joe replies. He stuffs his hands in his pockets and looks at you.

"Sorry if tonight was unwillingly sprung on you," You giggle. "... if you couldn't tell, I surround myself with the wild misfits of LA."

Joe flashes his bright white smile and laughs with you.

"No, tonight was fun. I'm glad it worked out the way it did. I had been wanting to meet you."

You raise your eyebrows in surprise, "Wanting to meet me?" You question, butterflies exploding in your stomach at his confession.

"Yeah ... AJ and I have been friends for a little bit now. We met a couple months ago at an event in New York." He explains. "And ... I'm also a fan of your music." He admits, averting his gaze and smirking bashfully.

"Oh ... well ... thank you so much. I had fun tonight too. Hopefully you stick around for a bit so we can hang out more." You reply with a shy smirk as well. Inching towards the door, you feel the tension in the room so thick, that you could cut it with a knife.

"Well... goodnight." You say, trying to escape this situation so you could analyze what the hell is going on with you.

"Goodnight Anna." Joe smiles. After an awkward pause you close the door behind you, letting out a huge breath you had no idea you were holding in.

Walking back towards your room, you spot Tana coming out of the bathroom. Taking this as your opportunity to confront her, you catch up before she can close her bedroom door.

"Hey!" You whisper yell. Tana stops and turns to look at you with confusion. "What the hell was that back there? Telling people I don't have sex?"

Tana laughs with a tinge of disbelief. "Ann, it was just a joke. No one knew I was talking about you."

"I don't care, that was humiliating!" You reply, folding your arms over your chest.

"What does it matter? It was just us."

"And two guys we just met." You counter.

You both pause, looking at each other in a standoff.

"I'm sorry. I didn't think it would be a big deal." She shrugs.

"Just ... keep the gossip I tell you, to yourself please." You demand, exasperated. You and your best friend hug and exchange 'goodnight's' and 'I love you's' before turning in for the night.

*

You could not sleep a wink. Tossing and turning all night long, all you could think about was the football hunk sleeping in the next room. Like you always do, you analyze every action and conversation that transpired while you were around him. Did you sound stupid? Were you being drunk and annoying? Were you trying too hard to be funny? Does he even think you're pretty? Everything bothered you, and you were certain you did something to turn him off of you.

However, you did seem to think he was flirting a little at one point or another. Maybe not?

One thing you had not considered at 4 a.m. was that maybe ... he had a girlfriend.

Rolling over to your nightstand to grab you phone off the charger, you quickly type 'Joe Bengals' into the search bar, only to be met with dozens of articles about Joe Mixon, Joe Bachie and ... Joe Burrow. Clicking on his photo, you know for sure that it's him. This led you down a rabbit hole of gossip magazine articles and sports statistics, which helped you figure out that he is supposedly single and really good at football. There were no pictures of him with any females at all really, which struck you as odd. As a famous NFL quarterback, how has he not had at least one scandal with a thirsty Instagram model?

After a few hours of scrolling and watching every interview that you could find on YouTube, you started to feel guilty for stalking him so hard. Calling it a night was an understatement. The sun had already started peeking through the curtains in your room.

"Fuck." You groan. Looks like you would be getting no sleep at all.

Dozing off for what felt like a minute, the smell of bacon and coffee woke you.

Checking your phone once more, you see that it's 9 a.m. Willing yourself to peel off the covers, you put on your slippers and head downstairs to find everyone awake. You thought for sure you would just be catching your brother after an early morning workout while everyone else slept the day away, hungover. But, you were surprisingly mistaken.

You grab a seat next to Tana at the kitchen table across from Joe who takes a sip of what you presumed to be a protein shake.

"Morning sleepy head!" Tana chirps, stroking your hair.

"Hey. I can't believe everyone is up right now." You awkwardly laugh as you try to avoid making eye contact with Joe again. Part of you felt embarrassed, like he knew that you spent your sleepless night investigating him.

AJ joins the rest of you at the table with a plate of breakfast.

"Hey, so we were just talking ... since Joe and Ja'Marr are just looking to spend the off season in LA, I offered they just stay here."

[burrowbabe]

Give and Take - Chapter 1

It had been a while since you went out after a show. Your brother and your best friends had nagged you constantly for being too invested in your work to have fun. So, you reluctantly agreed after a couple shots of tequila that rounded out your pre-performance ritual to calm the nerves.

By the time you had finished the encore, sweat poured down your face and soaked the vintage Tupac shirt you had been wearing. The last thing you wanted to do was get dolled up for the club. But, you made a promise.

Your makeup artist touches up a second application of powder while your hair stylist finishes blowing out your hair into bouncy waves.

Only 1 hour to get ready. Nice. You think to yourself as you adjust your breasts in the tight top that your best friend, Tana, had bought for you. You knew that even though your turnaround time from concert to "club-ready" was short, everyone would already be super drunk by the time you got to the club.

"This girl really thinks this is what is going to help me meet guys." You scoff, pushing out more cleavage.

"You gotta put yourself out there some day girl!" Your makeup artist, Mario, says matter-of-factly, standing behind you in the mirror.

With a roll of your eyes, you say your thank you's to the production crew and venue staff on your way out, and jump into the black Escalade waiting for you outside the backdoor.

The drive to the club was fairly long. With your status, you couldn't just pull up to any run-of-the-mill dive bar. So, that meant driving out to West Hollywood, stuck in traffic, just to have a nice cocktail in a VIP section of a boujee place.

Your friends surely loved the fame more than you did. The perks of even being associated with you got them into every club, store, and event known to man. You didn't mind though. You loved them like family, but sometimes you wished they realized how tired you were working to provide this life for them.

The driver pulls up to the front of the club where dozens of people are lined up to get in. You recognize the bouncer at the front entrance since you frequented this place a lot. With a smile, he opens the red rope for you to enter. Slipping a hundred dollar bill into his breast pocket, you wink and take a deep sigh of anticipation as the pounding bass from inside rattles your chest.

Heckling from the line of people, who had probably been waiting for hours on this particular Saturday night, was hard to ignore. With an apologetic look towards the crowd, and a mouthed 'I'm sorry', many people began shouting your name after realizing who actually had cut them.

Multi-colored lights flashed so much so, that it was hard to see where you were going. A man wearing a similar black suit to the bouncer out front appears and guides you in the darkness with a hand on your lower back.

"Right up there, Miss Carter." He says, pointing up ahead.

In the distance you could see your best friend Tana dancing on the small table in front of the velvet red couch where the rest of the group sat.

"Annie!" Tana screams when she spots you ascending the stairs.

"Hi babe. You OK?" You ask, hugging her tightly as if you didn't just see her 3 hours prior.

"Of course! I've been waiting to dance with you. All our favorite songs have been playing." She shimmies her breasts in a little dance move and cackles loudly at your wide-eyed expression.

She turns and grabs a full cup to shove into your hands. With a small sip, you quickly figure out that this concoction Tana has made is 90% vodka. She doesn't notice your sour expression as you choke this drink down, thankfully. Although, the liquor goes straight to your head in the next few minutes, and as Tana hands you a shot glass, you realize it was going to be one of those nights.

For a while, you were able to mingle with many of your friends and acquaintances who had shown up. They clowned you for only showing up to party once a year, and like usual, you countered with how busy your schedule is. With roaring drunken laughter at this response each time you said it, you knew none of these people actually believed you.

From behind you, you hear a high-pitched whistle causing you to whip your head around. You spot your twin brother, AJ, sitting on the velvet red couch with a couple of guys you don't recognize.

"Hey, what's up?" You smile and sit on the edge of the small table in front of them.

"Nothing much ... just wanted to introduce you to my friends Joe and Ja'Marr. They came out to the show tonight!"

After a quick look between the two of them waiting for you to reply, a lightbulb went off in your head.

"Oh my God! Wait ... I know you. You guys were just at the Super Bowl!" You exclaim feeling proud that you remembered something sports related.

The two men laugh shyly.

"Ann. Ixnay on the otten ray ..." Your brother jokes. "Sore subject."

"We didn't win." Ja'Marr laughs.

You felt incredibly stupid bringing it up and immediately were apologetic.

Who you presumed to be Joe, flashes his bright white teeth in a smile.

"Don't worry, there's always next year. Gotta be thankful we got this far."

Mashing your lips together and taking in a moment of awkward silence, you decide to change the subject.

"Thank you guys for coming out to see the show! Are you staying in LA long?"

"Season's over ... we figured we would hang around a bit." Ja'Marr states, glancing over at Joe for silent approval.

Joe nods and makes brief eye contact with you. His stunning grey eyes seemed to pierce through you.

As the guys continued to talk more about their stay in LA, you absentmindedly looked Joe up and down. His immaculate sneakers looked freshly polished, and his grey jeans were tight on his fit legs. You followed the veins in his hands up to the bracelets that adorned his wrists, to his forearms, up to his diamond chain that sat nicely on his chest in a black graphic tee. Snapping you out of your inspection, your brother's voice came back into earshot.

"I invited them to come hang at our house after this, if that's cool?"

Darting your eyes away from Joe, you nod profusely.

"Oh yeah - for sure. I don't care."

Joe purses his lips and nods, looking to Ja'marr who checks his pockets for his stuff.

"I'm down."

"Aight, let's bounce then." AJ says.

Standing up, your brother makes a signal to your other close friends that it's time to go.

Smoothing out your shirt as you all head out to the town car to bring you back to your house, you're happy this shirt showed off your cleavage.