Game On (Westland University)

by Lynn Stevens

  “You know why,” I whispered. Henry was the last person I wanted to enter this conversation. Devon knew about him. He knew that I cheated on Henry when we’d been together. It was easier to hate Devon. It became a habit after Henry left.

  “Are you still with him?” he asked.

  My eyes widened. “No. Why would…?”

  “I don’t know, Olivia. He’s not around campus, but that doesn’t mean you’re not doing the long-distance thing with him.” He rubbed his hand down his face. “Is he still in the picture?”

  “He’s engaged to someone else and she’s pregnant,” I blurted in a desperate attempt to make it clear that Henry was not in my life anymore. “He’s not even in the frame.”

  “So what’s the problem?”

  “Why do you completely ignore me at JenCar? Why do you act like—”

  “What in the hell are you talking about? All I’ve ever done is flirt with you.”

  My eyes widened. “You call that flirting?”

  “Arguing with you is a fucking aphrodisiac.” Devon pushed to his feet and moved in front of me. He offered his hand. I slipped my fingers into his grasp and he pulled me against his chest. “You’re brilliant. You never take my shit. You’re so damn beautiful and don’t even know it.”

  “I am?” My heart slammed against my ribs as if they were a prison and Devon was my freedom. His arms slipped around my waist. I pressed my palms against his chest. “Then why do you ignore me?”

  He smirked. “Because if I don’t ignore you at work, I’ll do nothing but think about taking you into an empty office and making sure you remember every bit of what I’d do to you.” His head bent, his lips hovering over mine. “And I’d start like this.”

  Devon kissed me and the world melted away. Nothing mattered but the way his lips moved, the way his tongue danced around mine, and the way we melded together. My hands slid up his chest, around his neck. I lifted to my tiptoes to get more of him. Devon’s hands tightened around my waist then slid under my shirt.

  My skin burned where he touched me. I needed more. Then he broke away. Both of us breathed as if we’d finished a marathon in record time.

  His eyes held a question, and I hoped like hell he could see the answer in mine. Our heads tilted to come together again, when there was a knock on my door.

  “You expecting someone?” he whispered.

  I shook my head as they pounded harder. Even though it was the last thing I wanted, I stepped out of Devon’s hot embrace and went to the door. With a quick clothing adjustment, I pulled it open, ready to give Paige a piece of my mind. Who else would knock on my door at nine on a Sunday morning?

  It wasn’t Paige. My body chilled as I stared into the brown eyes I’d once thought loved me.

  “Hello, Liv,” Henry said.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “Henry? Wh-what’re you…” I couldn’t even finish the question. There was absolutely no reason for Henry to show up at my place. None whatsoever. Not even a problem with my family should ever send Henry my way.

  “Yeah, Henry, what’re you doing here?” Devon said behind me. He didn’t touch me, but I could feel him nonetheless.

  Henry’s gaze left me and shot over my shoulder to Devon. The boyish grin disappeared the minute it registered who exactly was in my apartment. “This guy? Of all the people on campus you could pick, this is who you go with?”

  “Who she picks is none of your business,” Devon snapped.

  “Hey, Liv,” Trevor said, popping up behind my ex. “Henry and I were—” He stopped cold when his gaze discovered Devon behind me. “Who the fuck are you, and what’re you doing here?”

  The tension between them stretched, with me stuck in the middle. A headache tightened my temples.

  “Oh, I think it might be his business,” Henry said, crossing his arms and widening his stance.

  Devon’s hands found my hips, pulling me away from the door. “Nope, it’s not.” He reached around me and slammed the door in Henry’s and my brother’s faces. “Well, that was unexpected. You wanna tell me why Romeo showed up on your doorstep?”

  I pushed away from Devon. “I have no clue. But you’re not going to score points with my brother after slamming the door in his face.”

  “Your brother?” Devon pointed at the door. “Why is your ex hanging out with your brother?”

  “Henry works for my father.” I turned around to pull the door open again, but I hesitated. Henry and Trevor were here for a reason, but I wanted to just forget Henry was on the other side of the door. There wasn’t any real choice. Trevor wouldn’t wait much longer.

  I opened the door. Henry still stood there with his arms crossed and his attitude fully on display. Trevor wasn’t much better. They both raised their eyebrows. I took a deep breath and stepped back, motioning them inside. Henry had never been here before. He did a quick circle of the place, ignoring how Devon lounged on my daybed like he lived here. I had to admit, that was pretty sexy. Trevor, however, knew the layout and his nostrils flared at Devon. If they hadn’t intruded, I probably would’ve let things go too far with Devon. I wanted to anyway. It wasn’t the wisest decision at this point in our relationship. Could I even call it a relationship? I still didn’t know for certain. We’d only just started talking seriously about there being an us.

  “Does your boy toy need to stay?” Henry asked.

  “Yes,” Devon said just as I said, “No.” His stare could burn through steel.

  “No means no,” Trevor added. He stood over Devon with his arms crossed. “Dad’s going to have a field day when he finds out you had a ‘sleepover.’”

  “One, I’m not twelve. Two, he’s not going to find out,” I said, mimicking my brother’s stance.

  “Yeah, like it matters to Dad that you’re all grown up. He still thinks you’re some sweet, innocent little nine-year-old. And you don’t think I won’t tell him you’re letting guys stay at your place?” Trevor snorted. “You’re the brilliant one in the family, sis. I’m gonna call him as soon as GQ leaves.”

  “More like Sports Illustrated,” Devon said as he stood, toe-to-toe with my brother. “I don’t mind getting sweaty.”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I said as I pushed in between them. “First, there was no ‘getting sweaty’ here last night. Devon was too drunk to drive and my place was closer.” Not entirely true, but Trevor didn’t need to know the details. “He slept, as in snored, here. That’s all. Second, if you tell Dad then I’ll tell him the real reason you had to replace the fabric on the backseat of his old Caddy.” To make myself perfectly clear, I pretended to smoke a joint. “You don’t want that, do you?”

  “Blackmail, sis?” Trevor put his hands on my shoulders. “I’ve never been prouder.”

  “You’re a jerk.” I smiled at my big brother. Had it been Nick, or God forbid Tony, Devon would’ve been tossed out on his ass.

  Trevor shrugged and his hands fell away. He turned toward Devon. “Now, back to the matter of dating my sister. I think you and I should talk.” Trevor moved toward the door and held it open for Devon. “After you.”

  “Seriously? You want me to leave you alone with…him?” Devon pointed at Henry.

  “Just go with him. If you don’t, he’ll be more annoying than normal,” I said. “Please?”

  He turned toward me, closing the short distance in two steps. “Olivia,” he said. “Don’t let this…” He took a deep breath and licked his lips as he exhaled. “Don’t ruin what’s just getting started. Because we can be amazing together.”

  I reached up and caressed his cheek. “It won’t. But if we do have something going—”

  “We do.”

  “—then you’re going to have to trust me.” I tried to smile, but it fell away as quickly as it lifted. “Or we’re never going to work.”

  “We’re going to work.” He bent down and kissed me quickly. “Be sure of that.”

  Trevor clamped a hand on Devon’s shoulder. “If you think it’s gonna work with my s
ister, you need to know a few ground rules.” Trevor winked at me. “Don’t worry, sis. I’ll make sure he treats you right.”

  As soon as they were out the door, I turned around to give Henry a piece of my mind. He had folded the quilt, setting it on his lap and running his hand over the fabric.

  “I remember when you finished this,” he said. “You cried in my arms because it was done and your mom would never see it.”

  “Still feels like yesterday,” I said.

  “We’ve been through a lot together.” He laid the quilt back onto the daybed. “Survived a lot, too.”

  “It’s all in the past.” I leaned against the wall, glancing at the remnants of breakfast on the table beside me. “Why’re you guys here?”

  Henry’s eyebrows creased. “I’m sorry… No, I’m not. I’m not sorry I interrupted whatever was going on with that loser.”

  “He’s not a loser, and it’s none of your business.” My voice sounded as tired as I felt. Henry’s sudden presence sucked the life out of me. “Just tell me what you want so I can get on with my day.”

  “I will never forget the night you told me.” His expression tightened. “About sleeping with him. Why’d you do that to me? Hell, Liv, why’d you even tell me?”

  “Because I didn’t want to lie to you. We had one rule, to be honest with each other. The guilt…it was overwhelming. And you demanded to know who, remember? I was so scared of losing you that I told you it was Devon.” I squeezed my hands into fists. “Why are you bringing it up now? It happened years ago. Besides, you’re getting married soon and you’re going to be a father. Nothing in our past is relevant.”

  “Everything in our past is relevant. I still love you.”

  I froze in place. He didn’t mean that. He couldn’t.

  “I want you back.” He stood and rushed me. There wasn’t time to move. “It’s not right with… It’s not right. She’s not you.” He bent down to kiss me, but I turned my face so all he got was cheek. “I miss you.”

  I laughed, not because there was anything funny about this entire situation but because it was completely absurd. It also had the desired effect. Henry backed off and shoved his hands into his pockets.

  “What’s so funny?” His face turned beet red.

  “You. You’re fucking hysterical.” I grabbed my stomach.

  “That’s not very ladylike,” he said. “Is this his influence on you? The Olivia Dawson I knew wouldn’t talk like a street hustler.”

  “Oh, Henry,” I said, forcing back the hysterics. “The Olivia Dawson you knew had no clue what a tool you really are.”

  “Excuse me?” His eyes widened as he took another step away from me.

  “What kind of man comes to his ex-girlfriend’s apartment five hours away from his pregnant fiancée?” I shook my head at the absurdity of it all. Had he done this before Christmas, I would’ve considered taking him back. So much had changed since then.

  “She’s not you,” he said.

  “No, she’s not. But she’s the one you chose.” I sat at the table because I couldn’t stand anymore. This entire morning had worn me down. I started off not knowing if Devon would stay to asking him to leave.

  “I…it’s not working.” He moved toward the photo of my family. “She’s…”

  “Hormonal? Whatever’s going on you have to take that into consideration.” I needed to do something, like clean up breakfast. The memory of Devon’s smile across my table sent a shiver down my spine. I picked up the plates and took them into the kitchen. “Look, I have things to do and you need to go back to Kerns.”

  “Yeah.” He came over to the table and picked up the silverware. “Your dad’s finally going to open a used lot.”

  I took the forks from him, dropping them into the white ceramic bowl the eggs were in. Henry’s complete one-eighty would’ve thrown me off guard if it wasn’t for the simple fact that he’d always been like that. If a conversation wasn’t going his way, he’d turn it on a dime. Shove anything unpleasant under the rug. Just like he did when I told him about my night with Devon. Why did these types of realizations always knock on my door too late?

  “Really? He never mentioned it.”

  “No, I suppose not. He’s picking up cars first.” Henry moved into the kitchen and grabbed the washcloth. “That’s why we’re in Madison. There’s an ’82 Mustang he bought. Trevor and I are taking it back.”

  “That’s great. Is he stable enough to open?” If anyone knew Dad’s finances, it was Henry. I wanted him to leave after his declaration, but I also knew that there had to be some form of peace between us. We weren’t there yet, not by a long shot. One day maybe that would happen. Until then, I needed to be civil for the sake of my family. They still treated Henry like part of the family.

  “More than stable enough. The garage has been running in the black for years. The El Camino he restored last fall sold higher than expected.” Henry tossed the washcloth back into the sink. “I’m still not sure selling used cars is the right step, but he’s determined. He’d make more if he kept up the restoration instead. Nick’s more than capable of running the garage by himself. Then your Dad could focus on the restoration side.”

  “Who’s going to run the lot?” I sat at the table and Henry took the seat across from me. Nick was a master mechanic. Plus my older brother had business sense, more so than the others. Henry and I were back on familiar ground, money and family. He’d do anything for my father. They’d been good friends when we dated. Even after we broke up, Dad didn’t hold it against Henry that he’d broken his only daughter’s heart. He hired him to keep the books without hesitation.

  “Believe it or not, Trevor’s going to manage the whole thing.”

  I laughed because there was no way he was joking.

  “With my help.”

  “Thank God. If Trevor was in charge of it, we’d be out of business in a week.” Trevor wasn’t the sharpest tool in the garage. He was a smooth talker who always got what he wanted. My younger brothers were still trying to live down Trevor’s reputation with the ladies. Maybe used car salesman was the right job for him. Suddenly I was even more worried about what he was telling Devon outside.

  “Your dad’s concerned about you.” He chuckled but there wasn’t any humor in it. “Tony’s got the Army. Nick and Trevor have good jobs. Even if the lot fails, Trevor will always have the garage with Nick. But you, he’s not so sure.”

  I shook my head. This was an old story. Dad never thought I should go into engineering. He wanted me to be a teacher or a nurse or something simple. He wanted me to marry Henry and live in Kerns. Maybe that was one reason I’d stuck with Henry for as long as I did. That piece of enlightenment came too little too late. It made sense, though. And it made more sense why my father hired Henry to work for him. Dad probably thought I’d come home eventually. Henry’s engagement stuck a fork in that. But Dad hadn’t seemed bitter during Christmas—he’d even been friendly with Amanda.

  “I told him you’d be fine, better than he could ever imagine.” Henry reached out and patted my hand. “You’re going to do great things.”

  “Thanks,” I said.

  “I should probably go. We need to get back before three. Knowing Trevor, we’ll have to stop at least three times.” Henry stood and headed toward the door. “Can we forget about…earlier?”

  “Yeah,” I said, not moving from my chair. Henry needed to leave on his own. If I saw him out, while it might be polite, he’d probably view it as an open invitation to come back. If he walked out, he’d also view it as his decision. Henry loved having the last word.

  “Thanks.” He put his hand on the doorknob, but he didn’t turn it. “Are you sure about that guy? Can you trust him after what happened?”

  “You mean when I cheated on you with him? It was a mutual drunk one-night stand.” I shook my head. “And it was more than two years ago. Both of us are different people now.”

  He nodded, clenching his jaw.

  I didn’t answer hi
m as Trevor opened the door and barged in. “I like him, sis. Don’t tell him I said that, but I do. He said to tell you he’d call later. Something about practice.” He clapped Henry on the shoulder. “Ready?”

  “Yeah.”

  Trevor leaned in and kissed my cheek. “Sorry this was a short visit. Next time we’ll hang out more. See ya for the birthday party.”

  “Bye, Trevor.” I glanced at Henry. He wouldn’t meet my gaze.

  Trevor opened the door and ran out as if he was still twelve. Henry followed him and left without saying good-bye. I was fine with that. Henry and I had said good-bye enough in our life. We didn’t need a final one.

  Chapter Seventeen

  I thought about going in to work after they left, but I’d already called in sick. Logan would grill me on Tuesday when I showed for my next shift. I also thought about texting Devon to let him know Henry was gone. Instead, I grabbed my advanced propulsions systems book and curled up in my chair. I didn’t open it.

  My thoughts drifted to Devon and what had happened before we were interrupted. He wanted to see where this would lead as much as I did. It was exciting and terrifying at the same time.

  Logistically, it would take a lot of work. We both had full class loads and our internships. He had baseball and I had my job at Stockade. My time was already stretched thin. Adding a new relationship into the mix didn’t make sense.

  But it made less sense to ignore these confusing feelings. Yeah, I was still confused. Even with the knowledge that Devon wanted more, I was afraid this was some big cosmic joke. I kept waiting for someone to pop out from behind a plant and yell “gotcha,” which was ridiculous. Risk-taking wasn’t in my nature. And this felt like a huge one. It was second nature to expect the worst.

  I fell asleep, waking in the early evening to a soft knock. It was almost five. Had I gone to work, I’d still be there. Whomever was at the door wasn’t someone who knew my schedule. They rapped again.

  Ignoring the peephole, I pulled it open and came face-to-face with Devon. “Hey.”