by Tijan
Heat surged to my cheeks, and my head went down. Lonely? I was missing Mason, but to hear it said out loud was embarrassing.
“I wasn’t. I didn’t.” Jackson shifted towards me. “Sam?”
I shook my head. I hadn’t told Mason yet, and I wasn’t going to tell Logan first. “Stop it, Logan. I told you last night. I know Jackson. We were talking about Jeff. My ex. His cousin. Remember him? He worshiped you last year.”
Logan rolled his eyes, but didn’t say anything. When he shot me a look, I knew he was saving it for when Jackson left. I sighed on the inside. Oh joy for that conversation. As if sensing the same thing, Jackson said, “Well. I suppose I should go. It was nice running into you, Sam.” He jerked his head in a nod. “Kade.”
“Jackass.” Logan nodded back, his reply monotone.
Pausing, Jackson glanced back at me, then pressed his mouth in a flat line and lifted his hand in a small wave. “See ya, Sam.”
We waited as he went to his car and pulled out of the lot. As soon as it turned onto the road, Logan gave me an incredulous look. “Sam? What the fuck?”
“We have history.” I shut him up with that.
“What?”
I cursed at myself. Why had I said that? “Look, he was nice to me one night when Jeff was being his usual asshole self. You don’t have to worry about anything. Trust me. I’m not even friends with him, but I’m not going to ignore him.”
He snorted. “You’ve been smelling Malinda’s perfume too much. It’s gotten in your head if you think that guy doesn’t want, at least, friendship.” He pointed to where Jackson left. “He wants way more than friendship.”
“Logan,” I didn’t want to argue, “what are you doing here?”
He lifted a shoulder. “Okay. That’s my cue to let it drop, but I’m telling you. That guy’s going to be ‘around’ a lot more than you think.” He lifted his fingers to form quotations in the air. “And I know the dude knew you worked today. Mark told me he was asking about you at the party last night.”
“Really?”
“Really.” He gestured to Manny’s. “I came to hackle you while you worked. You’re not working?”
“They don’t need me today.”
“I see. Is Jax in there?”
I shook my head. “She’s with Channing.” And because I remembered that I hadn’t squared things away from last night, I added, “Hey, don’t give her a hard time the next time you see her.”
“What do you mean?”
“About last night. She was stalling you. I wanted to talk to Jack—”
“Jackass.”
I kept going, “—son last night. She doesn’t have a problem with Kris. She was just having my back last night.”
I expected a smartass response back, something derogatory about Heather, or maybe a cocky remark about Kris. I got silence instead. “What’s wrong?”
Logan continued to stare at me, long and hard. He was dressed in a long-sleeve shirt. A slight breeze sped past us, plastering his shirt against his torso, but he didn’t move. He continued to stare at me. His dark hair moved in the sudden rush of air. He kept staring. His hands slid back into his jean pockets, outlining his lean frame and broad shoulders.
“Logan?”
He murmured, his voice low and grave, “There’s about three things wrong with your last statement.”
My mouth went dry. Oh shit.
He moved closer one step. His hands remained in his pockets, and he looked down his nose at me. He would’ve been intimidating to anyone else. I wasn’t anyone else. I was family. Holding my breath, I waited to see what he was going to throw at me.
He lifted a finger. “One. You lied to me.”
“I didn’t.”
A second finger uncurled up. “Two. You had someone else lie to me.”
I kept quiet and just waited for him to finish.
A third finger. “Three. Someone else was in the know, not me.”
“Logan—”
“Not me,” he repeated, a flash of anger filling his eyes. “Not me, Sam. You put Heather above me. We’re family. You shouldn’t put anyone above me except Mason.” He shook his head, so slowly. “I know you’re dealing with something, and I’ve tried being patient. Mase keeps telling me to be patient, but it’s starting to piss me off. If we’re no longer family, maybe you should let me fucking know.”
“Logan—” The word cut off in my throat. He shook his head and turned away. “Logan.”
Instead of answering, he went to his Escalade.
“Logan!”
He didn’t answer. He got inside and pulled out of the parking lot within seconds.
Well…fuck me.
*
MASON
A week later
“Kade.” Drew signaled to get my attention, but I barely heard him. I couldn’t hear much except the music. We were at Cliché, on the private football floor. A huge group had congregated to celebrate the end of exams. There were others from school, and I recognized a couple girls from our class, but I was there for only one reason. I needed to make sure my roommate didn’t get too plastered. Ten a.m. practice was going to come too damn early.
Drew waved again, mouthing my name once more, so I slid out of the booth and rounded it on the other side. As I sat down next to him, I watched Matteo dance. He wore a white, unbuttoned shirt. His bare chest was solid muscle, but his stomach ended with a fat roll hanging over his jeans. Grinning, sweat rolling down his face, he rubbed a brisk hand over his bald head. He placed one hand on his hip, pointed at us, and yelled, “FOR YOU, GUYS!” With his hand still raised to us, he took a dramatic step, turning so his ass was facing us. With his hand up, he started pointing at the others around him, keeping in rhythm with the music. At the same time, the deejay suddenly switched the song. Loud bass slammed through the speakers. It sent a wave of energy through the crowd and everyone started dancing harder. As this happened, Matteo glanced over his shoulder at us, winked, and bent low. His ass stayed up, and he began twerking.
“Oh my god.” Drew looked down. His shoulders lifted as he began laughing, shaking his head at the same time. “Only Matteo.”
“Mason!” Matteo yelled again. He had moved closer to us. A small ring of people continued to surround him, but there was an opening for us. “Roommate pay per view.” As he shouted each word, his ass twerked up and down. The bass in the song changed again, speeding up, and Matteo stopped shouting. He kept going, matching the fast pace of the song.
“We do not need to see this.”
I grinned. “Just be glad we’re getting the back end view.”
Drew tucked his chin to his chest and bent over the table. His shoulders shook even more. When he kept laughing, I frowned. A tray had been placed on the table with ten shot glasses. All of them had been emptied. There were a few other empty glasses next to them. I was about to ask how much he had when Matteo lumbered over to us, panting.
“Guys.” He bumped the table with his hip, tipping over a few of those glasses. Matteo had no clue. He slapped a hand on his knee, bending over so his face was close to ours. Some of his sweat splashed off his arm onto us.
“Ew.” Drew leaned back, as much as possible, pressing against the booth. “Matty, back up.” He ran a hand down his arm and flicked some of the sweat off. He glanced at me, but I flashed him a grin and tugged at my long sleeve.
He groaned. “I get too hot if I wear those.”
Matteo was looking between us, his head moving back and forth, like he was watching a tennis match. I turned to him, and when he sensed the small conversation was over, his eyes lit up. “Okay. I have an idea.”
“No.” Drew and I spoke at the same time.
Matteo paused, looked at both of us, and said again, “I have an idea.”
“No.” We spoke again.
“What?”
Drew rolled his eyes. “You’re plastered. Any idea you have right now, we’re not doing. It’s going to be a stupid idea.”
“It’s
an awesome idea.” His eyebrows were arched high, and his eyeballs seemed to be bulging out. His entire face was animated.
“We have practice tomorrow morning. Are you going to live long enough to get there?”
“No,” he said to me, and turned to Drew. “So about my plan—”
Drew pointed at me. “He’s saying no. I’m saying no. Fuck, Matty.” He ran a hand over his face and let it drop to his lap with a thud. “I’m wasted, and I’m more sober than you. This is a problem.”
“I have an idea—”
“NO!” Drew and I shouted, speaking as one.
Matteo paused, his eyes skirted back and forth, and he opened his mouth. I groaned. He was going to say the same damn thing. Drew jerked forward and pointed at the dance floor, “Hey, look!”
Matteo whipped around, a permanent grin on his face.
As he was turned, Drew tapped my arm. “We need to get him out of here.” He stopped, held up a finger for me to wait. “We need to get me out of here too. Coach is going to kill me tomorrow.”
Matteo was still looking for what Drew had pointed at.
“Coach is going to kill all of us.” I grabbed Matteo’s arm, prepared to drag him with us, whether he wanted to leave or not.
“Not you.” Drew stood with me and fell behind me. “You’re sober. Thank god you came with us. We don’t need any press recording us trying to hail down a cab. Matty would flash his tits and if that wouldn’t work, I’m sure he would've performed a strip show.”
I started to laugh, but Matteo whipped his hand backwards and slapped me.
“Hey!” That fucker hurt.
He was still looking ahead of us. His hand came back, his fingers spread to deliver another slap. He said, “Hey, hey, hey.” He reached farther, trying to hit my face.
I dodged, stepping back into Drew. My elbow got him in the gut, and he doubled over. Matteo’s hand was still flailing around. Grabbing it, I yanked him back. He looked up at me, still grinning, and pointed with his free hand. “It’s that chick you did a presentation with.”
Letting go of Matteo, so he didn’t fall but couldn’t hit me again, I scanned the dance floor and saw Marissa in the middle. Her head was back. Her eyes were closed. Her hair was let down. It touched the small of her back as she held her arms in the air. A guy was grinding against her. His hands were holding her hips, and as she kept dancing, he eyed her rack. Wearing a tiny tank top and a short skirt, he was getting a good view. As I watched, one of his hands slid around her hip to cup her rear end. He grabbed a good handful, and a smirk etched over his face.
“Wasn’t she mad at you or something?”
I did a double take at Matteo. “How are you this drunk and still remember shit like that?”
He shrugged, grinning. “Steel trap.” He tapped his head.
The presentation had gone fine, but Marissa refused to talk to me when we met right before class. Matteo and Drew had been there, waiting for me to go in, so they had caught the tension between us. I was surprised others hadn’t. The entire class had walked past us. When Marissa turned her back to me, it had gotten a few raised eyebrows.
I looked for the others from the group. The redhead had talked to Drew after our exam so I knew that’s how they got invited, but I didn’t see her or the other two. “Is she alone?”
Matteo grunted. “She doesn’t look alone.” The guy still had his hand on her ass, but he leaned forward and kissed her exposed neck.
Marissa didn’t react. She kept raising her hands in the air, pumping her fist to the music. The deejay started a new song, bleeding the songs together so the beat slowed. So did Marissa’s hands and she paused. As the beat built, speeding up and getting louder, everyone waited. Then the beat exploded and another wave of energy went over the crowd. Marissa reacted, jumping up and down in a frenzied motion. The guy leaned back, just holding onto her hips to keep her close.
Drew said over my shoulder, “Dude. She’s clueless. She doesn’t even know that guy is there.”
A growl came from me, and I pushed Matteo forward.
He said, “Hey.”
I kept propelling him forward, using him to break through the crowd. I said over my shoulder to Drew, “Stay close. Watch the crowd to see if any girls react when we get to her. She might be here with a friend.”
He nodded.
When we got to them, the guy looked up. They did a double take at the sight of Matteo and grinned, waving at him. Matteo said, “Hi, douchebag. Release the wench.”
“What?”
I rolled my eyes, stepping around Matteo. When the douchebag saw me, saw the scowl on my face, his hands lifted in surrender. “Oh whoa. I thought she was single. I swear.”
I grabbed Marissa’s arm, but she kept dancing. I said to him, “She’s wasted. She doesn’t even know if she’s single. Get lost before I decide to find out who you are and kick your ass later.”
His eyes got big, and he was gone in an instant.
“Marissa.” I pulled her closer. “Hey.”
One of her eyes opened, peeking at me. “Huh?”
The smell of alcohol singed my nostrils, and I moved so I could yell into her ear, “Who are you here with?”
Giggling, she stopped dancing and rested a hand on my chest. She lifted her shoulder up and cringed. “That tickles.”
Drew moved closer. We were beginning to attract attention. I lifted an eyebrow, silently asking if he noticed anyone. He shook his head and said, “She might be alone. I have no idea.”
Matteo started dancing next to us. When he began moving away, Drew grabbed his arm, anchoring him in place.
“Marissa, do you have your phone on you?” I couldn’t see any pockets on her skirt, and she didn’t have a purse with her. I said to Drew, “She has to have friends here.”
“Yeah, but if she does, they’re not around.” He was skimming the crowd. “I’m not seeing anyone I even recognize. How did all these people get invited? We’re the only football players here.”
Matteo bumped into us.
I jerked my head at him. “Take a guess.”
Drew groaned. “Yep. It’s time for us to go home.” He focused on Marissa. “What do we do with her?”
“I have no fucking clue. I would call Nate to see if he knew where she lived, but I don’t have my phone.”
“Why don’t you have your phone?”
“We came here straight from class. I left it at home, thinking we’d go back to the house before coming here.”
He nodded, then lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “Well, she can come with us? I’ll sleep on the couch. She can have my room. It’s a single.”
The thought of Marissa sleeping at my house didn’t sit well with me, but I had no other choice. I grimaced. “All right. Let’s head home.” My hand curled tighter on Marissa’s arm, and I yelled in her ear, “Last time. Are any of your friends here?”
A fresh wave of giggling sputtered out of her and she shook her head. “No,” she said. “I don’t have any friends. Not even you. You used to be my friend.” She poked my chest. “We’re no longer friends.” The laughter subsided, and her tone turned sad. “I wish we were still friends.”
Drew heard her and an alarmed look flashed over his face. “She’s going to start crying. Let me take her.”
I nodded, released her, and took hold of Matteo. Drew leaned close to her ear. I assumed that he was telling her who he was, even though it wouldn’t have mattered. She was too drunk to care. On that note, I slapped a hand on Matteo’s back. “Time to head home, buddy.”
He jerked his head in a nod, leaned forward, bunched his shoulders so he looked fierce, and began to lead us out of there.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
SAMANTHA
Logan was distant during the entire week and people took notice. Heather asked what had happened. I didn’t want to talk about it. He’d been right. Since Mason left, I had pulled away from him. The Threesome Fearsome was down to a Twosome Fearsome, but with different players. I’d
been so worried about losing my family because of Logan’s feelings for me that I’d been the one to jeopardize it. Because of that, I had kept to myself for the week.
It was Friday night, the football team had won, so of course, that meant a party. This time one of Logan’s friends was throwing the party. When I pulled onto the road by the house, I parked towards the end. I didn’t want to be boxed in. As I started walking towards the house, more cars passed me to park closer to the house. I glimpsed at some of the drivers and knew it was going to be a big party. Fallen Crest Academites had been invited; I recognized a few of the people. As I got to the house, I realized there were more people there than I had thought. The house was packed. There was barely any walking space. I started to wedge myself through two big guys, both with their backs to me. Suddenly, from behind me, someone shouted, “OUT OF THE WAY! KEG COMING THROUGH!”
I was pushed to the side, ramming against two people. One cried out in pain, then a growl sounded close to my ear. “You bitch! Get off me.” I was shoved back. Time slowed, and I knew what was going to happen.
I turned, seeing some of Logan’s friends headed right towards me. They weren’t looking ahead. Their faces were straining as they pushed the keg on a dolly, and it was coming fast. People had scattered and I had a brief thought that they must’ve done this before. I closed my eyes. I was still in the air from being shoved back. I couldn’t do anything. I was going to get hit, so I braced myself. At the last second, someone grabbed me and yanked me the other way.
A rush of air slammed into my chest, but I pressed against whoever was holding me, flattening myself as much as possible. The guys barreled past me. A litany of curses followed them. “Watch where you’re fucking going!”
Someone yelled, “You almost hit someone. She would’ve been wiped out.”
The rush of relief left me weak, and I turned to thank whoever had saved me. Natalie. Her lips were pressed tight together, the ends curved down, and a dead look was in her eyes. She shoved me away from her and shook her head. “You got your ass kicked last year. If I knew a keg could’ve done it, we would’ve saved the trouble. Honestly, Sam, you suck. You almost got laid out.”
