Convenient Fall (Players of Marycliff University Book 2)

by Jerica MacMillan

  She poked out her lower lip in a fake pout that only lasted a second before she smiled again. “We're supposed to be a team. That means we go down together. Aren't football players supposed to understand the importance of teamwork?”

  “Are you questioning my loyalty?” She laughed at him, and he grinned back, his eyes on her mouth. Her lips were plump and red, begging to be kissed. He loved the way she looked, her hair wet and slicked back, her face lit up with a smile.

  “It looks like they're going again. Do you want to keep playing?”

  Megan's voice pulled his attention back from his wandering thoughts. Giving in to his lust with her was probably a bad idea. Unless maybe she was interested too …

  “Chris?”

  “Hmm?”

  She gestured at the others. “Are we going to play again?”

  Man, she was distracting. He nodded once and grinned. “Let's go.”

  He dropped down again and she climbed back on. He suppressed a sigh as he realized this was the closest he was going to get to feeling her thighs around his head, and it wasn't from the direction he wanted. But she was his roommate. He needed to remember that.

  They played two more rounds of chicken fight. They lost the next round early but won the one after that. Megan sat on his shoulders with her arms raised. “Whoo! We won!”

  He laughed, then maneuvered her so she turned and slid down his front. They were pressed together for a moment, her breasts squished against his torso, the bare skin of her belly against his lower abdomen. Megan looked up into his face, and he saw her brown eyes get darker. He dropped his eyes to her lips. They were parted on an indrawn breath and he wanted to kiss them so bad.

  She broke the spell of the moment, stepping back, breaking the contact between them, and he immediately missed the feel of her body pressed against his. “Thanks. I had fun.” She glanced over her shoulder toward the shallow end, then looked back at him. “I’m, um. I'm going to go get a drink.”

  She made her way to the edge and hopped out. Chris waited for her to get out before he followed behind her to get a drink, too.

  When he got out of the pool Matt casually approached, a beer in one hand. He walked next to Chris for a few steps before he turned and stepped in front of him. His move forced Chris to stop and looked for all the world like it wasn't intentional, but Chris knew him well enough to know Matt was trying to handle him. Matt's eyes were amused, but he wasn't smiling. He leaned against the low wall that separated the main patio from the pool area, taking a drink of his beer. “What are you doing?”

  Chris gestured toward the open door into the house. “Getting a drink.”

  “Oh, is that all?” Matt's eyebrows went up and he took another sip of his beer. “You sure about that?”

  “What's your point, Matt?” Chris wasn't in the mood for this.

  Matt shrugged. “Just looks like you're trying to put the moves on our roomie.”

  “So?”

  Matt shook his head. “Bad idea, man.” His eyes scanned the party spread out over the yard and in the pool. “There's a whole group of chicks to fuck here, most of them happy to have an hour with you. Leave Megan alone.” The amusement had bled out of his eyes as he took another drink of his beer, his stance still casual, but his face and his tone serious.

  Chris took a breath, puffing out his chest, unconsciously clenching his fists and flexing his arms. “What if she doesn't want to be left alone?”

  Matt just shook his head again. “She's living with us. Use your big head for once instead of your little one.”

  Chris bristled. Having been classed as a dumb jock all his life, he was sensitive to having his intelligence questioned. “I’m not a fucking idiot.”

  “I know, man. Didn't say you were. But think about what'll happen if you fuck her. You think she's going to stick around and watch you fuck your way through all these jersey chasers for the rest of the year?” He shook his head again. “Nope. Not that one. She'd hate you and move out at the first opportunity. It was pure dumb luck that she agreed to take Lance's place so we weren't left in the lurch. You really want to fuck that up already?”

  Chris clenched his jaw, not wanting to admit that Matt was right, but knowing he was. “You just cockblocking so you can have a shot?”

  Matt laughed at that. “Nah. She reminds me too much of my sister. But I like her. She's fun to hang around with and I don't want to pick up her share of the rent until we find another roommate if you fuck her over. You get me?”

  Chris deflated a little, relaxing. “Yeah, man. I get you.”

  Matt nodded once, straightening up. “Good.” Chris watched him wander off, still drinking his beer.

  Fuck. After feeling her against him, staying away from Megan was going to be harder than he thought. But Matt was right. Fucking her would be a bad idea.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Megan glanced behind her when she got to the door. Matt and Chris were talking by the edge of the patio. Matt looked relaxed and unconcerned, but Chris was all flexing muscles and narrowed eyes. She couldn't hear them from this distance over the noise of the party, so she wasn't sure what that was about. She wasn't sure if she wanted to find out either.

  Instead of getting a drink, she decided to change into dry clothes first. She grabbed her bag from the corner behind the armchair where Matt had stashed their stuff, trying to be quick so she didn't drip all over everything.

  She found an empty bathroom where she dried off and changed into her favorite party top and cutoff shorts. It had spaghetti straps and a v-neck that showed off the perfect amount of cleavage. It skimmed over her curves without clinging, just hinting at what was beneath, so that the look was effortless and sexy. She slipped on her favorite wedge sandals and stuffed her flip flops back in her bag along with her swimsuit rolled in her towel.

  When she came out of the bathroom, the music had been turned on and people were starting to dance in the clear space on the patio. Megan loved to dance, especially after she'd had a few drinks. She stashed her bag behind the chair again and made her way to the kitchen.

  The guy behind the bar lifted his chin at her and smiled when she made her way into his line of sight. “Can I get you something?”

  She smiled back, the artist part of her brain noticing the contrast of his white teeth against his dark skin and wondering how she would render that on a canvas. Growing up in a predominately white town meant that she didn't have that much experience painting other skin colors, and her fingers itched for a brush. She pushed those thoughts aside to answer his question. “Whaddaya got?”

  He leaned onto the counter on his forearms. “Oh, a little of this, a little of that. Beer, soda, liquor. Want me to mix you something?”

  “A Jack and Coke, thanks.”

  He nodded and snagged a red Solo cup from the stack off to the side, filling it with ice and pouring the soda and whisky into it. When he started to straighten the bottle up after a couple glugs of whisky, she reached out and tipped the bottom back up, letting more liquor pour into her cup. He looked at her and smiled.

  “I’m late getting started. I have to catch up.” She took the cup from him and took a long drink.

  “Well, why don't you stay right here, and I'll help you.” He gestured to a bar stool across from him. “I’m Cooper.”

  “Megan.” She slid into the seat, leaning over the bar and drinking some more. It was strong, almost half Jack. Just the way she liked it. She'd seen the cans of Rolling Rock around. It was a popular party beer, but she wasn't a fan. She was snobby about her beer anyway. Hopefully the guys kept good beer in the house.

  Cooper mixed himself a drink and apparently decided to give up bartender duties, because he pulled a stool close to hers and sat down. They chatted, and Megan started to enjoy herself more, the warm feeling from the alcohol spreading through her letting her relax. After she’d drained the last of her drink, she slammed the cup down on the counter and grabbed Cooper by the hand. “Let's dance.”

  H
e didn't resist, just followed behind her until they were in the small open area where people were dancing. He slid in behind her, one hand on her hip, and moved with her to the beat. They danced together for a couple of songs, then he vanished. Megan stopped dancing and looked behind her, at a loss. She’d thought they were having a nice time. He'd had his hands on her hips and stroking around her waist not that long ago. Now he was nowhere to be seen.

  Matt approached with a drink in each hand. “Thirsty?” He held out a cup to her. She frowned up at him, but decided that another drink sounded good. It was another Jack and Coke, nice and strong, just the way she liked it. She moved off the dance floor, hanging with Matt for a while, drinking and chatting. More people joined them, team members and the girls hanging around them. Some of them were girlfriends, some of them were just football player groupies. She'd heard the guys refer to them as jersey chasers, which made her wonder how she was categorized. She wasn't a girlfriend, but she definitely wasn't a jersey chaser. Not that she'd necessarily turn down any of the hot guys that she got to ogle today, but she wasn't here just to try to get banged by a football player. She was the female roommate of two of the seniors on the team. That apparently put her in a category all her own.

  After she finished her drink someone else asked her to dance. Again, after a few songs, he was gone. When she stopped to look around, Chris raised his drink at her and lifted an eyebrow. She nodded. She definitely needed to get more drunk if she couldn’t keep a guy dancing with her for more than two or three songs.

  Chris met her on her way off the dance floor with another drink, handing it to her, watching her take a long drink. “Having fun?” His eyes glittered with some unreadable emotion.

  She gave him a quizzical look. “Um, yeah. Or I would be if my dance partners didn't keep bailing.”

  Chris just gave a “hmm,” in response and buried his face in his cup. Megan couldn't figure out what his deal was tonight. He kept acting strangely. Like he was annoyed with her or something. But he'd been the one to invite her, and when they were in the pool, he hadn't seemed to be bothered by her being there. If he didn't seem so annoyed the rest of the time, she'd think he was attracted to her by the way he insisted she partner with him for the chicken fight, the way he ran his hands over her thighs while she sat perched on his shoulders, and the way he held her against him when he let her down at the end. But he'd been distant since then and was giving her weird looks now. He wasn't even keeping up the easy flirtation they'd started over the summer. She had no idea what she could've done to irritate him. Maybe he felt like her being at the party was cramping his style? Then why did he invite her in the first place? She could've gone to another party by herself, or just stayed home and unpacked and gone to bed early.

  “Wanna dance?” Chris's low voice near her ear sent shivers down her spine and pulled her out of her thoughts. She looked up at his face, gauging his sincerity.

  “Sure.”

  He led her by the hand back onto the dance floor. He was still shirtless, his shorts hanging low off his hips, giving her a full view of his defined muscles. The football team had been training and practicing for weeks now, and he was at peak condition. With one hand around her back, he pulled her close, and she could feel the heat he threw off. His smell, a spicy mix of cologne and him, filled her nose. She looked up at his face and his lips curved up in a small smile, his eyes darkening.

  Megan's lips parted, her breath coming a little faster at the undisguised desire on Chris's face. She could feel him hardening against her belly where he held her pressed against him.

  This time she saw it when Matt pulled Chris away from her. He tapped Chris on the shoulder, and Chris turned, the look on his face morphing to annoyance. He let go of her to face Matt and pushed her behind him. She took a step to the side and watched, surrounded by gyrating bodies, unable to hear them over the music. Matt had an unreadable look on his face. He leaned in, said something close to Chris's ear, and shook his head. Chris's shoulders slumped, he cast a glance over his shoulder at her, his eyes hard, and walked away in the direction of the kitchen.

  She watched Chris walk away before turning to Matt. “What was that about?”

  He looked down at her and hitched up one side of his mouth in a crooked smile. “Nothin'. Another drink?”

  His face didn’t give anything away. She agreed with a shrug, and they made their way back to the kitchen. Chris was nowhere to be found, which seemed strange to her since he’d headed this way. Matt stayed with her at the bar until she wandered off in search of a more comfortable place to sit. She found a spot on a couch in the living room. The house had an open floor plan, so she could see into the kitchen as well as out the open patio doors to the pool area. The party was in full swing around her. People were drinking, dancing, making out, having fun.

  She wasn't having fun anymore. Her dance partners kept disappearing, and after the way Chris and Matt kept showing up with drinks just as she found herself alone combined with their little performance on the dance floor, she had the sneaking suspicion they were responsible for that. She couldn't figure out what Chris's deal was. He acted like he wanted her, but then he kept shutting down. It was probably for the best that way. She just wished he wouldn't go to the trouble of making her seem off-limits to everyone else if he wasn't going to follow through.

  She looked up and saw Chris across the room, a redhead hanging off him, her hands all over his arms and chest. Not long after that it looked like they were having a competition to see whose tongue could go further down the other's throat. She tore her eyes away, not wanting to see any more of that.

  * * *

  Chris pulled away from the redhead—Brianna?—who'd just given him a taste of what she'd been drinking. Something sweet and fruity from what he could tell. She ran a hand up his chest. “Should we find an empty bedroom?”

  He looked toward the living room just in time to see Megan turn her head away from his direction. Damn. Any thought he had of getting laid tonight vanished. He shook his head, taking the girl's hands off his chest. “Thanks for the offer, but not tonight.”

  She turned her head to follow the direction of his gaze. She snorted. “Have fun with that.” Chris turned his gaze to her, hearing the bite in her tone. He didn't like it when girls got catty, especially over him. It's not like he was trying to find a girlfriend by sleeping with some random chick at a party. He never even remembered their names once he was done, sometimes before he even got started. What was the point of acting jealous and possessive of a one-night stand?

  “On second thought, not ever.” He dropped her hands and went into the kitchen. He needed another drink. These pool parties were usually fun. It was a great way for the team to blow off steam together before the season started. They were done with two-a-day practices since classes started on Monday and their first game was next weekend. The next few months were busy, with only one Saturday off between now and Thanksgiving. The annual pool party before classes started cemented the bond the team formed during the preseason practices and got them game-ready. But Chris wasn't feeling it this year.

  Matt found him at the bar, downing a few more shots. He wore a frown. “I thought you were the DD tonight, man.”

  Chris knocked back another shot of tequila and shrugged. “Plans change.”

  Matt crossed his arms. “Don't you think you ought to tell the other potential drivers if you need to change plans?”

  “Fuck off, Schwartz. You've been in my face enough tonight. You can sober up enough to drive in an hour or two if you stop drinking now.” He gestured toward the living room. “Or tell Megan to stop drinking so she can drive.” He poured himself another shot and drank it in one swallow, barely feeling the burn of the liquor anymore. Normally when he'd had this many shots he had a nice buzz going and a warm feeling of contentment centered in his chest. Now he was just pissed. In more ways than one. He was angry and drunk and the alcohol wasn't doing anything to make him feel better.

  He rai
sed his eyes to Matt's face. Matt made a sound of disgust and headed for the living room. Chris figured he was going to talk to Megan, but he didn't care to watch. The two of them seemed closer than he liked. He didn't see her giving Matt the same searching or wary looks she shot at him. And Matt had been touching her off and on all night long. Way more than he had. He'd only touched her under the guise of playing a game, and then for the one time they’d danced together before Matt interrupted them.

  The more he thought about it, the more pissed off he became. At Matt. At Megan. At the whole fucking situation. And he wasn't even going to be able to get laid, because he kept seeing the look on Megan's face when he'd looked up from kissing that other chick. It was a mixture of hurt and disgust.

  Fuck that. What right did she have to be hurt or disgusted? He was a man. He had needs. This was a party. She hadn't been disgusted when she'd been dancing with his teammates and they'd had their hands all over her ass. What right did she have to be disgusted with him? They'd just been kissing. It wasn't like he was fucking her against the wall in front of everyone. Which sometimes happened at these parties. Not that he would do that. He wasn't an exhibitionist. But other guys didn't seem to care if anyone saw them.

  He'd been planning on getting laid tonight. He didn't want the redhead anymore. She seemed like she could turn into a clingy bitch, and that was the last thing he needed. Someone else, though. There was always a whole crowd of jersey chasers at these things. Surely he could find one to take care of him for tonight.

  CHAPTER THREE

  A shaft of light from the split in the curtains fell across Megan's face. She groaned and rolled over, her head pounding. The familiar roiling in her stomach had her lurching out of bed and stumbling into the bathroom, where she heaved up whatever was left in her stomach.

  She sank onto the floor in the unfamiliar bathroom. A wan smile crossed her face. Breaking in the new digs. She was christening her new bathroom with her first hangover. It had taken much longer to do this in the apartment she'd shared with Abby. She'd always felt a little bad about leaving Abby at home by herself when they'd lived together. Partly because she'd felt like she was abandoning Abby, despite Abby's protestations that she liked staying home and reading or watching a movie or whatever it was she did while Megan was out partying. Partly because she'd always thought Abby needed to break out of her shell a little more.