Hate You, Henley: An Enemies To Lovers Sports Romance (Brooks University Book 3)

by Hannah Gray

  My sorority sisters and the very attractive Cam eye me over. My face feels so hot that it could melt off.

  “No! I didn’t have sex with Weston Wade! He was getting me back for yelling that he has a small penis.”

  “But … you said you haven’t had sex with him. So, how do you know his penis is small?” Bree quizzes me.

  “Bree, take it down a notch.” Layla narrows her eyes. “You’re doing too much right now.”

  “I don’t know if his penis is small. I was just being a bitch.” I defend myself.

  These girls are looking at me like I’m an insect. They’ve all seen a dick—I’m sure of it. It isn’t like I’m a black sheep in a group of the whitest of white ones.

  “Why?” Claire scrunches her nose up. “Why would you need to be?”

  I sigh. “He and I … it’s just … complicated. And that complicatedness makes us do stupid crap like this.” I jerk my chin toward where Weston is walking.

  They all stare at me before finally filing away. Besides Layla.

  She pats my shoulder. “Don’t worry about them. Bitches be bitches, right?”

  I try my best to smile through my humiliation. “Right. And snitches be snitches.”

  “Exactly, my friend. Now, let’s go get this crap finished, so we can go home.”

  “Deal.” I nod and watch Weston off in the distance, strutting around like his shit don’t stink.

  My God. He can be a douche.

  But I guess I had it coming to me. After that stunt I pulled.

  Cam runs his hand over the top of his head and watches me. “Well … that was interesting. You and Wade?”

  “No,” I say bluntly. “We are enemies. We certainly haven’t … slept together.”

  His eyes seem to lighten. And he relaxes a little bit before leaning in and kissing me on the cheek. “Good,” he says before walking off.

  Maybe this day isn’t so bad after all.

  We continue to pick up the remainder of the tables, chairs, and everything else that was involved for this event. Until, eventually, the arena is back to normal, and nobody could ever tell we were there.

  I stay longer than most everyone else. One, because I have literally nowhere else to be. And two, I suppose you could say I’m brown-nosing Claire a bit after my behavior on Friday night.

  When there is nothing left to do and everyone else is gone, I grab my things and head toward the exit.

  I’m almost to the sliding doors when, suddenly, I’m pulled into a dark closet.

  A squeal escapes my throat when I’m pushed against the wall.

  “That was some shit you pulled today,” Weston’s gritty voice coos. “First, calling my dick small. Second, that shit with Cam.”

  My heart leaps into my throat when his hand snakes around to my ass.

  “You going to let him do this to that perfect ass, Henley?” He squeezes harder.

  And even though until now, he’s never done this, I buckle at the knees with want. I should be appalled. Instead, I’m just turned on. Painfully turned on.

  Still, I try to fight it because it isn’t right. “Maybe I will.” I pull my head back and look up at him.

  Even in the darkness, I can see his eyes watch me with pure hate.

  “Maybe I’ll let him bring me up to one of these rooms.” I reach out. I know I shouldn’t, but I do it anyway.

  When I run my hand under his shirt on his bare skin, he hisses into the darkness.

  “Maybe I’ll let him fuck me. The way you never would.” I drag my palm along his rigid abdomen. “The way you still never will.”

  A certain daringness and confidence flow through my veins. And suddenly, I want to push this man until he won’t let me push anymore.

  “You were too busy with Dane.” His skin vibrates as he speaks. “But if you wanted to ride my dick, all you had to do was ask. I’d have gladly welcomed you on board.” His hand releases my ass and moves to my neck. “Maybe I could have fucked the bitchiness right out of you.”

  Gliding my hand down, I know exactly what I’m doing when I hear a growl escape his lips. Running my hand back and forth under his waistband, I inch my way a little lower. “Guess we’ll never know, will we?”

  My entire body wants me to go further. But I know that I can’t. I also don’t think I can stop myself. I want him more than words can describe.

  His breathing deepens, and he runs his fingers up to my chin and rubs the pad of his thumb along my bottom lip. “Maybe I should take a break from hating you for the night and fuck you right against this wall.” His free hand goes to my hip, pulling me harder against him. “Bet you’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

  He trails his finger over my lips before popping one barely inside my mouth and gliding it against my tongue. Instinctively, I wrap my lips around it and suck, watching him react with pure need.

  My thighs clench from something that is so insignificant yet incredibly hot and dirty as I imagine his finger being something else.

  “Dirty fucking girl. You would like it, wouldn’t you?” he says through gritted teeth.

  “Maybe.” I run my teeth down his finger, making him hiss again. “Find out. I dare you.”

  We stay in complete silence. The hunger for each other is palpable, and the sexual tension is so thick that I can hardly even stand to not go further. I’ve never needed something so bad in my entire life.

  He stills for a moment, as if pondering it. His eyes are completely glazed over. And darker than I’ve ever seen them before. And for once, I have no clue what he’s going to do or even what he’s thinking. But something inside of me so desperately needs him to want me the way I want him.

  Unexpectedly, he releases me and backs away, leaving me instantly cold. “Stay away from Cam Hardy. He’s no good.”

  Confused, I stare at him in utter confusion before gathering myself up.

  “You know Cam?” I ask curiously. My hand already misses his skin against it, and my mouth already longs for him to toy with me again.

  “Yeah. Stay away,” he mutters, stepping back. “They say he’s got herpes.”

  My nose involuntarily scrunches up. “Wait, really? Who’s they?” I narrow my eyes. “You’re lying.”

  As he begins to walk out of the closet, he stops in the doorway and shrugs. “I don’t know. Go find out for yourself. Herpes isn’t that bad … right?” The words leave his mouth so smugly.

  I instantly regret giving in to his touch at all. That’s exactly what he wanted, and I fell for it.

  Not sparing me another glance, he struts out. Leaving me just as quickly as he came in.

  He’s frustrating. So am I. The best thing I can do is avoid him as much as possible. Even if it means being a good girl so that he doesn’t have to rescue me anymore. I mean, I have to be good anyway to stay in my sorority. It’s sort of like I’m killing two birds with one stone.

  Only I felt his skin against mine today. And having his finger slide between my lips made me ache to have other things there too.

  I wonder, Is he toying with me to see how far he can push me? Or does he want to take me the way I want to be taken?

  fifteen

  Henley

  I reach the wall after my last lap, move my goggles onto my swim cap, and wipe my eyes. I wish I could stay longer, but I know other swimmers are going to be trickling in soon.

  My chest heaves after I swam for as long and hard as I did. But it feels good. I feel alive.

  Setting my hands on the edge of the pool, I jump up.

  “Back at it again, I see.” A voice startles me, nearly giving me a heart attack.

  The coach of the Brooks University swim team sits in the corner, writing on a clipboard.

  “Uh …” I stutter nervously. “Yeah, I hope that’s okay.”

  “And if it wasn’t, would you still swim?” His eyes never leave whatever he’s writing in front of him.

  “Probably. I could find a pool somewhere close, I’m sure.” I pull my swim cap off and g
rab my towel, wrapping it around myself. “Am I going to need to do that?”

  “Why do you come here so often?” Finally, his eyes flick to mine. “What do you get out of it?”

  I think hard about my answer. Trying to formulate a thought that won’t make me sound like an idiot. “The feeling of being free.” I hold his gaze. “That’s what the water does for me. It gives me freedom that I can’t find anywhere else.”

  I feel raw. And open. Normally, I don’t just blab about my feelings. But for some reason, something in my brain is telling me that I need to. Like … as if this moment might shape my future. And I can’t mess it up.

  “If you swam for me, would you quit?” His eyes narrow slightly.

  “No,” I say, shaking my head. “I tried to quit. Something led me right back to the water. I just … I can’t shake it.”

  He doesn’t smile. Or nod. Or do anything. “Practice is at ten a.m. tomorrow. Don’t be late,” he says sharply and turns to walk away.

  “Yes, sir,” I spit out nervously.

  Five minutes ago, I didn’t even know if I wanted to be on the swim team. Now … I am. And I have no second thoughts about it. This feels right.

  As he makes his way to his office, he looks over his shoulder. “We don’t do this. Ever. Adding athletes this late.” He puts one hand on his office door. “Don’t mess this up, kid. Don’t make me regret sticking my neck out for you.”

  “I won’t. I swear it,” I tell him truthfully.

  He chuckles. “You must have Weston Wade wrapped around your finger. I can tell you, that was the first time I’ve had a guy come into my office and tell me I should put someone on my team.” He pauses. “For the record, this decision didn’t have a damn thing to do with Wade; it had everything to do with how good you swim.”

  And with that, he’s gone. Leaving me with the realization that Weston Wade still has my back, even when I’m a complete bitch.

  But it also pisses me off—because he’ll think he can take credit for me being on the swim team to begin with.

  Weston

  I sit in my morning class, completely unable to pay a lick of attention.

  Not only did I have early practice this morning, but I was also up all night, debating whether or not to go find Henley and give her what she so clearly wanted. I imagined running my hands over every inch of her body and making her beg me for more.

  Yesterday, after the fundraiser, I had to take off before I took my cock out of my pants and fucked her in a dirty supply closet. I would have. I was so fucking close. And she would have let me. I know she would have. But then after, she would have just gone back to hating my guts.

  I remember the days when Henley Hayes was like a ray of fucking sunshine. My ray of sunshine. Now, she’s like a dark storm cloud that is out to shoot lightning bolts at everyone—crippling them, frying them, all the awful shit. Well, maybe not everyone, just me. For a long time now, she’s put on an act that she hates me. But her body language lately, well, it’s been calling her bluff. She doesn’t hate me. Not one fucking bit.

  For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted that girl. No questions. No other possibilities. She was it. Then, she started treating me like an enemy. And after a while, I played along too. I also stopped waiting for her to come around and started taking home the chicks who were begging to be my one-night stand. It wasn’t the same as having my best friend in my life, but they did the trick in keeping my mind busy. Before this though, it was her who changed first. She blinked in the game, taking her eyes off of the grand prize. She looked away. Not me. Not until she pushed me so far that I thought we couldn’t come back from it. Even then, I fucking followed her to Brooks.

  My whole life, whether it be football, a truck, or to be the best in sports, I’ve given everything I am to make it happen. With her, it’ll be no different.

  And one day, mark my words, Henley Hayes will be mine. And she’ll wonder why she ever tried to push me away to begin with.

  I just hope she’s ready.

  sixteen

  Henley

  I walk out of my last class of the day and take in a big breath of fresh air. It is a gorgeous September day here in Georgia. It’s warm with low humidity. Birds are chirping, and the campus sidewalks are lined with grass so green that it almost looks like a picture. Between the offer I got this morning from Coach to be on the swim team to almost being thrown out of my sorority, it almost seems like I have a fresh start.

  I wish Weston and I could start fresh. But we can’t. And that’s my fault, not his. Still … every single time I imagine his fingers digging into my ass or his finger sliding between my lips, my heart squeezes, and so do my legs.

  My phone rings in my bag, and when I take it out, I smile when I see Mom on the screen.

  “Hey, Mom,” I say, sliding it between my ear and my shoulder.

  “Hello, my love!” Even on the phone, I can tell she’s smiling. “How are you? How have your first few weeks of school been?”

  “Pretty good actually.” I start the short trek toward my house. “How’s everything down there?”

  “Good.” She clears her throat. “Listen, your dad’s birthday is in a few days. Can you come home Sunday night? It’s his fiftieth. So, I want to have a nice dinner for him with all his favorite people.”

  I have practice Sunday morning. But I’ll be out by nine, so I could certainly make it.

  I haven’t told my parents yet about the swim team. I know they’ll make a big deal about it, and a part of me doesn’t even think I deserve the spot on the team. I don’t want to tell anyone yet.

  “And … just out of curiosity, who are his favorite people?” I ask. “I mean, aside from me, of course.”

  She giggles. “Oh, you know … your grandparents and Uncle Wyatt and Aunt Angela.” I can hear it in her voice that she’s not giving me all the details.

  Wyatt and Angela aren’t really my aunt and uncle. But since they are my parents’ best friends, they might as well be. They also happen to be Dane and Weston’s mom and dad.

  “And … who else?”

  “Well, Weston has early morning practice on Sunday, so he said he was coming after. But as for Dane, it’s a lot farther of a drive. So, I don’t think he’ll make it.”

  “Great,” I grumble, tossing my head dramatically. Being a complete baby, I answer sarcastically, “Sounds amazing.”

  “Well, it’s not your birthday. It’s your dad’s. When it’s your birthday, you can invite whoever you want,” she says as sweetly as she can, though there’s a bit of a bite in her tone.

  “I certainly won’t be inviting Weston Wade.” I sigh. “I’ll be there. You know I’d never miss Daddy’s birthday.”

  “I wish you two were still close.” She sounds sad. “You and Weston … you could ride together.”

  “Not. Happening.” I groan. “I’d hitchhike the whole way and risk getting picked up by a serial killer who would stuff me in his chest freezer before being stuck in a vehicle with him for that long.”

  “That is a very detailed explanation.” She sighs. “Fine. I’ll see you Sunday. I can’t wait to give you a big hug.”

  I smile. “You too, Mama. Love you.”

  “Love you. Bye-bye,” she says and ends the call.

  I pinch the bridge of my nose as I walk. “A family dinner, where I have to sit around a table with the Wades. Yay,” I mutter to myself. Likely looking like a crazy person. Then again, I suppose I am a crazy person.

  Best-case scenario is if Dane doesn’t make it. Which it sounds like he won’t. At least I won’t have to deal with Weston and Dane.

  The thought of being sandwiched between the pair of them … yeah … no, thanks.

  Dane and I still talk but not nearly as much as we did after we both left Gray. Even though we got each other through a dark time, we share a painful memory that neither of us wants to relive.

  And his brother … well, his brother holds my heart in the palm of his hand. He just doesn’t know i
t. And I’d like to keep it that way.

  So, being a bitch isn’t really a choice. I more have to do it for my own survival. Because if I let Weston Wade in, he’d consume every fiber of my being. And then we’d hurt each other. And I’d be left to pick up the pieces… again.

  seventeen

  Weston

  I walk out of the weight room just in time to see Cam and his sidekicks walking in.

  “Wade. How’s it going today?” Cam says, stopping beside me.

  “Goin’, I suppose,” I answer lazily.

  His face pisses me off. Before the fundraiser, I had no problem with him. Now, I could lay the fucker out.

  “What’s the deal with you and that cutie Henley Hayes?” He smirks. “She’s fucking hot as hell.”

  “Stay away from her,” I warn, moving my eyes from him to his minions. “Understood?”

  His head pulls back, and a cocky grin covers his face. “I’m sorry? Is she your property or something? Didn’t sound like she liked you all that much, Wade. Time to go piss on someone else perhaps?”

  Keeping my face stoic, I tilt my head. “She is my property, Cam-Cam. And if you challenge me on that, I’ll make it so you can’t skate ever again.”

  He steps toward me. “Is that a threat?” His nostrils flare.

  “No.” I laugh, slapping his shoulder. I start to walk away but turn. “It’s a fucking promise.”

  Just as I walk outside, I see Cole and Knox waiting for me.

  “Dude, why’d you take so long? We thought you were right behind us,” Knox says sharply.

  “Oh … yeah.” I scratch the back of my neck. “Forgot something. Had to run back in.”

  Cole eyes me over but finally nods. “You guys want to go get some food? I’m hungry.”

  I shake my head. “I have to go to a birthday party back in my hometown tonight. Won’t be back till late.”

  Allison called me a few days ago, informing me she was having dinner for Andy tonight. I was going to tell the guys before now, but I guess it slipped my mind.

  “What kind of birthday?” Knox’s eyes narrow. “You holding out information on us again? Being all sneaky and shit?”