“Matt, here. Wading his way through all the girls on campus.”
“All of them but one,” Matt winked at her. “Happy Birthday, Cole. I was going to get you a present, but I figured that knowing me is the greatest gift you could ever get.” He slapped Cole on the back. “Plus, I can see that you already have everything you could possibly want.”
“Thanks, man. It’s the truth.” Cole smiled down at Bri. “Well, Beautiful, ready to get out of here?”
“If you’re ready,” she stood. “Bye, Matt. See you around.”
“Have fun you two,” Matt gave them a knowing grin.
“Don’t hurry home,” Cole grinned back. He took Bri’s hand and led her out to the car. Since this was a date, he’d insisted on driving.
“Remind me never to leave you alone at a party again. I turn my back for five minutes, and you start flirting with another guy.” Cole’s voice was light and joking, but Bri knew from the tightness of his smile that he was a little upset.
“I wasn’t flirting with anyone.” She looked at him, confused.
“Come on, you and Matt were totally flirting.”
“What? No were weren’t. You know Matt, he’s like that with everyone.”
“Yeah, everyone he wants to bang.” Cole’s forced smile finally faltered, and he looked at her pointedly.
“Are you serious? Matt and I have talked hundreds of times. He’s always like that. Why is this bothering you now?” She couldn’t believe how ridiculous he was being.
“He’s never tried to hit on you before,” Cole shrugged.
“Oh my gosh,” Bri laughed. “I promise you, Matt was not hitting on me.”
“Well, that’s not what it looked like to me.” He parked the Jeep outside Bri’s dorm, and crossed his arms indignantly.
“Hey, look at me.” She waited for him to finally meet her eyes. “Even if Matt was hitting on me, which he wasn’t, why would you think you have anything to worry about?” Unable to answer, Cole turned his head. “Just because some guy tries, doesn’t mean it will work. You can’t be there to stop every guy from hitting on me, and I don’t want you to be. I’m a big girl, I can take care of myself.” She reached up and grabbed his cheeks, forcing his eyes back to hers. “You need understand, and believe, that there isn’t anyone else for me but you. You are all I want. You have nothing to worry about, because no other guy could ever compare to you. You’ve ruined me, Cole,” she smiled, and watched his eyes soften.
“Really?” he smiled back.
“Really.” She leaned in and proved it with a kiss.
Pulling back, Cole sighed. “Sorry I’m such an idiot sometimes.”
“You’re a guy. It kind of comes with the territory,” she teased. “Want to come up for a bit? I don’t think anyone else is home.” She raised her brow.
“Do you even need to ask?” A huge smile spread across Cole’s face, and he practically jumped out of the car to get her door.
But, when Bri opened the door to her room, Addison and Stephanie, two of her roommates, were in the living room watching a movie. Disappointed, she turned to Cole.
“Sorry, I thought they’d all be out tonight.”
“That’s okay. I could still hang out for a while if you want?”
“Definitely,” she reached for his hand and led him inside.
“Cole!” Addison and Stephanie cheered as he walked in.
“Come on in, we just started Pitch Perfect,” Stephanie grinned as she and Addison made room for Bri and Cole on the couch.
“Oh yay, my favorite,” Cole grimaced as he sat, and pulled Bri down onto his lap. Bri snuggled into him, and they spent the rest of the night cuddled together on the couch, sneaking kisses in between laughs.
Chapter 3
Thursday night, Cole trudged into his room after practice. Barely managing the energy to shower, he pulled on a t-shirt and some warm up pants, flopped down on the couch, and mindlessly started flipping through channels on the TV. Matt had gone back to his bedroom to study, and Cole was enjoying a rare moment of peace and quiet. He had homework, and studying, and drawing he needed to do, but for right now he just wanted to sit.
A light knock on the door interrupted his reverie. Sighing, he pulled himself up and answered the door.
“Bri!” He was shocked. It was just past eleven o’clock, she didn’t usually come over this late. “Come on in,” he moved to let her pass.
“Sorry, I know it’s late. I didn’t wake you, did I?” She smiled apologetically as she sat on the couch.
“No, I was up.” He sat next to her, and eyed her curiously. Her hands were clenched together, and her mouth was a tight, grim line. Something was bothering her. “What’s wrong?”
“What? Nothing, I’m fine. I just wanted to see you,” she tried to smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes.
“Bri, something’s wrong. You don’t usually show up at my door at this time of night. Not that I’m complaining,” he smiled, and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her into his chest. “Tell me what’s bothering you.”
“It’s stupid really, and I shouldn’t let it get to me, but I just had a really bad night at practice.”
“Tell me about it.”
“One of the girls on the team totally ripped me a new one tonight, in front of everyone. And it wouldn’t bother me so much if I deserved it, but I didn’t even do anything. Granted, she’s a total bitch to everyone, but for some reason, she’s had it out for me since the beginning. She seems to have made it her goal in life to berate and humiliate me.”
“So, kick her butt back. Why would you let her treat you like that?” He was surprised. Bri was the toughest girl he knew. She didn’t take any crap from anyone, especially him, and he loved that about her.
“Because she’s the director’s niece, and can do no wrong in Tanya’s eyes. In fact, Tanya lets Jillian practically run the team, even though she’s only a sophomore. Did you know Jillian whined and complained enough that Tanya gave her her own room? Only the seniors get their own rooms. She’s like freaking Frankenstein, and if I push back at all, she’ll get me kicked off the team.”
“Can she do that?” He rubbed her back soothingly.
“She has before. Apparently last year there was another girl she didn’t like, and she got Tanya to cut her. Jillian is freaking untouchable, and it really pisses me off. Do you know how hard it was for me not to let her have it tonight? I was so angry, I almost punched her.”
“Oh baby, I’m sorry,” he squeezed her. He knew how frustrated she must be. She’d always been able to stand up for herself, and now she was forced to shut up and take it. It was actually kind of cute, seeing her all frustrated and vulnerable. He didn’t often get to see that side of her. And while he hated to see her upset, he couldn’t deny that there was something very appealing about her helplessness.
“Anyway, I just really needed you to make me feel better,” she snuggled tighter against him.
“Anytime,” he kissed the top of her head. He beamed inside knowing she had come to him for comfort. Not her best friend, Layla, or her roommates, him. He felt a huge swell of pride knowing that he was what she needed, and the alpha male inside him beat his chest in pleasure. Now, he just needed to figure out a way to make her feel better. He hoped that distracting her would help take her mind off her problems and get her in a better mood. “Oh, while you’re here, I have a couple things to ask you, if that’s okay?” When she nodded against his chest he continued. “We are having a team dinner, a week from Saturday, and I was hoping you’d be my date?”
“I’d love to,” she pulled back and smiled at him.
“Good. Now before I ask this other thing, I want you to promise me you’ll keep an open mind, okay?”
“Okay,” she replied warily.
“You know I have my weekly clinics for my drawing class on Wednesdays. Well, we need models for those clinics, and we get extra credit if we bring in someone.” He paused nervously. He wasn’t sure how Bri was going to t
ake this. “So, I was wondering if you’d be willing to come in and model for us?”
She sat frozen for a moment. “Um, this wouldn’t require nakedness, would it?”
“Why, do you object to nakedness?” he grinned. Man, what he wouldn’t give to see that. “No, no nakedness,” he continued when she just glared at him. “For our next unit, my professor is looking for some ballerinas to come in and pose for us. You would be fully clothed, I promise.” Unfortunately.
“Oh, okay then. Um, sure, why not?”
“Really? Because you don’t have to if you don’t want to.”
“No really, I think it’d be kind of fun,” she smiled.
“Okay. I’ll let Professor Bailey know, and he’ll have his assistant call you to schedule a night.”
“Sounds good. Well, I guess I’d better get home, and let you get to sleep.” She went to stand up, but Cole pulled her back down. Now that he had her here, he was going to take advantage of it.
“I’m sorry, but you can’t go quite yet,” he grinned wolfishly at her. “I haven’t seen you all week, and I’m not letting you get away that easily.” He captured her lips, and made up for all the time he’d missed that week.
On Friday night, Cole was in the locker room after practice. A couple of the guys were talking about who they were bringing to the dinner the next night, when Jordan sat down next to him.
“Cole, my brother from another mother! Tell me, who is that fine piece of ass you’ve been hanging with lately? Are you bringing her tomorrow night?”
Cole smiled tightly. He knew Jordan was just being Jordan, trying to razz him a bit, but it still set his teeth on edge to hear him refer to Bri like that.
“Her name is Bri. You’ve met her before, at my birthday party, remember?” he replied stiffly. “And Jordan? No offense, but if I ever hear you talk about her like that again, you and I are going to have a problem,” he finished seriously.
Jordan held up his hands. “No problem. I apologize, I didn’t realize it was that serious. I thought you were like these other idiots here, just chasing some tail. But, I see how it is now,” he gave Cole a knowing smirk. “Please give Bri my warmest regards.”
“Yeah, I’ll do that,” Cole shook his head, grinning. “What about you, J? Anyone special caught your eye yet?”
“Plenty have caught my eye, and I fully intend to pursue each and every one.” He smiled smugly. “That’s what you should be doing, too. You’re a basketball star. You should be taking advantage of all the benefits that come with that.”
“Yeah right,” Cole scoffed. “I’m a second string bench warmer. I doubt anyone on campus even knows who I am.”
“Oh trust me, they know,” Jordan winked at him. “Well, I’ll see all you suckers tomorrow. Peace!” he yelled and swaggered out of the locker room. Only Jordan could pull off an exit like that.
And for a moment, Cole found himself jealous of him. His starting position, his notoriety, his confidence. But then he thought about Bri, and how lucky he was, and set himself straight. That player lifestyle may suit Jordan, but Cole had something so much better.
Deciding he needed a little pick-me-up, he headed down to Bri’s place. If he was lucky, he might be able to catch her in the shower. Hey, a guy could dream, right?
On Saturday night, Cole knocked on Bri’s door. He wore his charcoal suit with Bri’s favorite dark blue shirt. He was feeling pretty confident in his appearance, until she opened the door.
Bri wore a gray knee length dress, that draped from her shoulders to a conservative, but definitely sexy, scoop neck, and hugged her curves all the way down. She had a silver ribbon tied at her waist, and gray suede heels. Her auburn hair, a glorious shock of color against her dress, fell in long waves over her shoulder. She smiled up at him, and Cole felt his heart stutter.
He had no idea how she could afford a new outfit every time they went out. He had a sneaking suspicion that she probably spent his total monthly living allotment on clothes alone. Things were tight as his dad’s auto shop, and Jimmy didn’t have a lot of extra money to send Cole. Fortunately Cole’s athletic scholarship covered all of the important things. But still, it must be nice having a rich daddy. Shame immediately flooded him, and he chased away that thought. He knew Bri’s dad, and Connor was a good man. Cole didn’t know where that sudden surge of bitterness came from, but he quickly shot it down. The fact that Bri was well taken care of was nothing to complain about. Especially when it produced results like this. She was breathtaking.
She smiled, and her amber eyes took him in, obviously liking what she was seeing. He couldn’t help the satisfied smile that crossed his face, knowing she was as proud that he was hers, as he was that she was his. After a moment of awkward gawking, Cole cleared his throat.
“Hi,” he smiled reaching for her hand. He was suddenly desperate to touch her. “Are you ready?”
Nodding, she took his hand and they headed out to her Jeep. She handed him the keys, and he helped her into the passenger seat. Pulling out of the parking lot, Cole glanced sideways at her.
“You look beautiful tonight.”
“Thanks, so do you,” she smiled back.
“No, really. You look absolutely stunning,” he pressed, and was rewarded by a blush in her cheeks.
“So, I finally get to meet the rest of your team. This should be interesting,” she grinned.
“Yep,” he replied, unable to keep his eyes off her. This posed kind of a problem while he was trying to drive. Shaking himself mentally, he returned his focus to the road. “Hopefully dinner won’t last too long, and we can do something fun after.”
“That’d be great.” She eyed him from her seat, and Cole wished more than anything that they could forget dinner, and head back to his room.
Coach had reserved a banquet room in one of the nicer hotels in Durham, and as Cole and Bri entered, dozens of eyes snapped up to watch them. Cole quickly led Bri over to a table, and most of the eyes moved on. Most, but not all. Cole glared pointedly at a couple of his teammates before they finally dropped their eyes. Satisfied that Bri was no longer being ogled, he turned to her and smiled. But the expression on her face stopped him cold.
“What? Ambria, was is it?”
Bri looked like her worst nightmare had just come to life.
“Jillian. Jillian is here.” She nodded towards a girl at a nearby table with long, dark brown hair and narrowed blue eyes. That icy stare was aimed right at Bri.
“That’s Jillian?” Cole recognized the girl, though he hadn’t known her name.
“Unfortunately. I just hope she doesn't try to embarrass me or anything. She looks like she’s trying really hard to come up with something.” Bri tried to smile, but her distress came through loud and clear.
Cole was shocked. He hadn’t realized that Jillian worried Bri so much, that things were that bad. Thinking, he hoped he had something that would take her worry away.
“That is Jillian. Hmm. All the guys on the basketball team call her something else.” He grinned wickedly at Bri, and her lips turned up hopefully.
“Oh really? What do they call her?”
“Well, they call her a lot of things, but the nicest is a lap bunny. I don’t know if anyone even knows her real name.”
“A lap bunny? Why?” An adorable crease appeared between Bri’s eyebrows.
“Because she hops from one lap to the next, attaching herself to whoever is popular at the time, or whoever will give her attention. She worked her way through the second strings last year, I hear, and now it looks like she’s making a play for the starters.” He shook his head sadly. “She thinks she’s playing them, trying to latch onto their fame and popularity in order to further her own, but what she doesn’t get is that no one has any intention of keeping her around. They all know she’s a gold digging, fame riding, self-absorbed opportunist, and they drop her after she’s outlived her usefulness. But, she doesn’t get it, or seem to care. She just moves onto the next guy that’ll take her. It�
�s actually quite sad.”
“She’s sloppy seconds.” A satisfied smirk crossed her face. “Oh, I can’t wait to shove that in her face.”
“Whoa. I didn’t tell you that so you could start poking the beast. I just wanted you to know that you don’t have to let her intimidate you. She may think she’s invincible, but she’s not nearly as important as she thinks she is.”
Bri turned to look at him, her eyes shining.
“Thank you,” she leaned over and kissed him. “You always know just how to make me feel like myself again. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Me too, baby. And I don’t ever want to find out.”
Cole pulled back, and dinner was served. He noticed that Jillian’s scowl deepened as she kept a close eye on him and Bri all evening.
After everyone was through eating, Coach got up and had the team all introduce themselves and their dates, before he went into a speech about his hopes for the season and what to expect from there on out. Afterward, a DJ started playing some music, and some of the couples started dancing. Cole saw Matt and his date out on the floor, doing something that might pass as dancing. Jordan was out there, too, showing that his moves weren’t limited to the basketball court. Bri was talking to the girl next to her, and he reached over and brushed his fingers up her arm, getting her attention.
“Want to dance?” He smiled seductively at her.
Her face flushed and she nodded. He lead her out to the dance floor, and he kept her pressed tightly against him all night long.
Chapter 4
As Bri walked into the art studio, she wondered how on earth she’d let Cole talk her into this. She’d expected maybe twenty people, not over double that many. Nervousness gripped her, and she wondered if she could sneak out before anyone saw her.
“You’ll be fine,” Cole whispered in her ear, sensing her discomfort. He squeezed her hand reassuringly and lead her inside.
“Ah, you must be our model,” a young man smiled as he approached them. “Hi, I’m Daymon, Professor Bailey’s teaching assistant. I’m in charge of the weekly clinics. You must be Ambria.”
Certified Disaster (Beautiful Mess Book 2) Page 3
