Roughing

by Jillian Quinn

  When I’m crossing the street at the light, Finch stops me almost dead in my tracks, calling out my name. I slow my pace until he catches up to me.

  “Bash, wait up!” Finch yells behind me, his sneakers hitting the pavement with a loud thud. He cups my shoulder with his big hand, bringing me to a halt.

  I turn to face him as he blows out a puff of air. He hunches over, his palms flat on his thighs, as he attempts to catch his breath. He looks as though he just ran a marathon, beads of sweat rolling off his forehead and down his face.

  “Dude, you look like you’re about to pass out. Where are you coming from?”

  “Coach wanted me to get some running in today.”

  Finch pulls the black cutoff shirt over his head and wipes his forehead with it. “This training is killer,” he says, slinging his shirt around his neck. “Coach is riding me hard.”

  I laugh as I tap him in the stomach, and what used to be a six-pack moves with my touch. “You’re out of shape. Just do what Coach tells you, and you’ll be fine. We can’t have you getting benched this season because you were too busy doing keg stands instead of training.”

  Finch shrugs, his broad shoulders creating a wall.

  As the son of Sebastian Prince, Sr.—who was not only a pro football player but also the star quarterback at Strickland University back in the eighties—I had big shoes to fill when I’d joined the team. I grew up with the mentality that practice and training come before parties and girls. My dad made sure of it. But Finch’s lack of discipline and constant partying had almost gotten him thrown off the team last year.

  With my father’s intervention, he’d managed to keep his position, but he is on thin ice. There’s only so much the Prince name can do for my friends. And Finch has to want to help himself.

  “I’m working on it,” Finch says, keeping pace with me as we walk through campus. “I have to lay off the beer for a while. Coach is making me work with our trainer until I get back into shape.”

  The extra weight doesn’t agree with him, and it shows on the field. He’s slow as fuck, getting his ass handed to him on a nightly basis. Over the past year, he has gone from fast-tracking it to the pros to barely keeping his spot on the team. Unlike me, Finch doesn’t have a dad to call him ten times a day to remind him about how much he’s screwing up his career. That’s why he needs me to tell him that he’s blowing his shot. It’s also my job as the team captain to ensure the guys are meeting their goals.

  I tap him on the back. “Laying off the beer sounds like a good start, but I’ll believe it when I see it. You should try drinking a protein shake instead of eating at the SAC every day. All that processed food is bad for you.”

  “Nah. Those shakes taste like rotten vegetables mixed with chocolate powder. I think I’ll pass.”

  “You can suck it up until the season is over.”

  He sighs. “I guess I can give it a try.”

  “Just hold your nose and open your mouth. It’s that simple. You overthink everything. The taste will grow on you after a while.”

  Finch nods in acknowledgment.

  We round the corner without uttering another word until we reach our house. Finch waves to someone across the street, but my gaze drifts elsewhere. Even in the mid-day sun, the street is almost back to full-blown rage mode. We live on a street with other Victorian’s similar to ours. Off-campus housing in the city means you’re only two blocks away from the main part of campus and one block over from Greek Row, which means never-ending parties.

  With his elbow, Finch taps me on the bicep to get my attention. “What happened with Tori last night? Conner told me you left with her.”

  I shove my hands in my pockets and shrug, still focused on the concrete. “Yeah, I went home with Tori, but it’s not what you think. She has a concussion from the hit she took at the game. I brought her home and stayed the night on her couch.”

  Finch sighs. “Are you trying to get back with her again?”

  My focus shifts back to the ground. “Nope, she still hates me. That hasn’t changed. But she’s letting me stay with her this weekend. I don’t want her to be alone with a concussion.”

  “Look, man, I know you like this girl, but—”

  I hold up my hand to make him stop. “Save it. I already know what you’re going to say.”

  “All I was going to say is that she will flip out if she ever finds out what you did for her. What you continue to do for her.”

  “I told you about that as my friend, not so you can throw it in my face. Tori can never know. She would leave school and ruin her chance of graduating if she had any idea that I was involved. She’s too proud to take anything from me, even though she needs my help.”

  “What about Harper? If she finds out you’re talking to Tori again, she will flip out.”

  “You were there. She already caused a scene this morning at the SAC.”

  “Harper is the one you need to worry about. As soon as you stop fucking her, she’ll tell Tori all about the deal you have with her dad.”

  “I don’t know. I hate fucking Harper. I hate looking at her. Every time I have to touch her, my skin crawls. But—”

  “You don’t have a choice,” he finishes for me.

  “Nope. I wish things were simpler. I should’ve been upfront with Tori years ago. I should’ve made her listen to me.”

  “Even if she believed you didn’t cheat on her, she never would’ve accepted a hand out from you. The things you did for her no one would do.”

  “I owed her that much after everything I put her through.”

  “Yeah, I guess. Why don’t you just tell Tori that you love her and just get it over with?”

  “I’m not in love with Tori.”

  “Yes, you are,” he challenges, rolling his eyes at me. “You don’t have to say it for everyone to know. Every time you see her, you shut down. And you’re—”

  I throw out my hand once more to silence him. “Enough about Tori. I don’t want to hear it anymore.”

  “Fine. All I’m saying is that you should come clean with Tori.”

  “Not a chance.”

  “You could get rid of Harper.”

  “I’ll figure something out. Stay out of it.”

  When we reach the house, I keep walking without saying a word. Finch runs up the steps to our house, slapping two of our teammates on the backs as they stand on the porch, pounding beers.

  “No beer,” I tell Finch. After his workout and Coach giving him hell, I shouldn’t even have to tell him to stick with the plan. But I know I do. He’s the kind of person who needs someone to crack the whip. Otherwise, he’ll veer off track.

  I raise my hand and check my phone in case Tori called. No texts and no missed calls—at least none I want to answer. I have several messages from Harper that can wait. The only girl that matters right now is Tori.

  Like most Saturdays, after a long night of partying, the house looks like a scene from Animal House. I waltz through the house and stop in the living room. Beer cans, liquor bottles, and empty cups litter the floor. A few guys who live in the house are sleeping on couches. For the most part, everyone is in zombie mode after last night’s party, while some of the guys have picked up right where they left off.

  I walk past the half-awake, still drunk people and into the dining room, finding a similar situation.

  Why are they still here? It’s almost one o’clock in the afternoon. If it were a normal day, we’d all be at practice, but Coach had given us the day off to rest after doing so well last night. Finch and a few others are the only ones who were not exempt. They have themselves to blame.

  “Wake up, assholes,” I say, cupping my hands around my mouth

  Mike Kelly peels his shaggy blond head from the long dining table and looks over at me with one eye open. “What the fuck, Bash? I’m trying to sleep.”

  I clap my hands together. “Time to wake up, Boss. If you sleep all day, you’ll end up paying for it tomorrow when Coach gets a hold of you.�
��

  He perks up at the mention of Coach. His name alone puts the guys on their toes. Coach Davenport doesn’t fuck around. Of all the coaches I’ve had over the years, he’s the strictest. My dad says that’s what makes him a winner. The Strickland Senators have been champs sixteen out of the almost thirty years since Coach has been with the team. He breeds professional football players.

  Some of the guys who live in the house file into the kitchen, and that’s when the beer begins flowing. Within the first twenty minutes, they’ve upgraded from beer to vodka. As their captain, I should give all of them hell for drinking during the season. Today is special. I have Tori to get back to and could care less what everyone else is doing.

  Finch sits across from me at the bar, drinking a can of beer with a big fuck-you grin on his face.

  I raise an eyebrow at him. “Why are you staring at me like that?”

  “Oh, nothing. I just heard you have a surprise waiting for you in your bedroom.”

  I let out a puff of air. “What now? It had better be a good surprise.”

  “I guess it depends on how you look at it.”

  “That doesn’t sound good.”

  He wipes his mouth with his forearm and gulps down the rest of his beer. “Go see for yourself.”

  Somewhat nervous about what could be waiting for me, I get up, using the counter to stabilize myself. I nod at Finch and make my way upstairs to my room. At the end of the long hallway, I push open the door, unsure of what awaits me on the other side. If it were anyone else on any other day, this would be the best possible surprise. Except now I have another shot with Tori, and I don’t want to blow it.

  And Harper no longer does it for me. In all honesty, she never did. Naked and twisted up with a dark haired girl, Harper pinches the girl’s nipple between her fingers, staring at me as she kisses her on the lips. I don’t want to be turned on. But I am. I’m a man. I can’t help it that my dick twitches at the sight of two naked women in my bed, fooling around.

  Harper has never been shy when it comes to sharing me with other women. I prefer it that way. It keeps us from getting too close. This is all part of our normal games. Except I have grown tired of her bullshit, even though she does everything in her power to fulfill all my fantasies. Sometimes, sex is not enough. I want more, and now I have a chance to have it with Tori. If I don’t fuck things up again.

  “Harper, what are you doing here?” My voice comes off like a growl in the quiet room, startling the girl next to Harper in the bed.

  Harper spreads her legs to give me a nice view of her pussy. The two of them had already started before I got here. Fuck me. I’m hard and annoyed with myself that Harper can provoke this response from me. She’s a cold, manipulative bitch who blackmails me into having sex with her, but I can’t deny that my dick likes her pussy. The rest of me can’t fucking stand her.

  “We want to take turns sucking your cock, Bash. Then, I want you to fuck my friend and let me watch before you fuck me.”

  Why does she have to say and do things that make it harder to throw her out? Stop thinking with your dick. I have to remind myself that Tori has a concussion and needs me. She’s the one I want to spend my weekend with—not Harper or her friend.

  Harper gets up from the bed, her tits shaking as she stalks toward me. Trying not to think about how good she looks naked, I turn away from her as she runs her fingers up my arm. I suck in a deep breath, focusing on Tori. She’s the one that matters now. Too bad Harper is part of the equation. If I don’t fuck her, she’ll get mad and do something stupid. But at the same time, I don’t want to do anything that could affect what I have going with Tori.

  Harper flicks her tongue over her lips, attempting to unbutton my jeans. I should stop her and tell her to leave my house. It takes a few seconds before I start thinking with the right head and clamp a hand over hers, holding her in place.

  “What’s wrong, Bash?” She speaks so low her voice is almost a whisper. “Don’t be like this. We want to play with you.”

  A game. That’s all this ever was to Harper. To me, our arrangement was and still is my fucking life. She never seemed to understand that.

  “I’m not in the mood, Harper.”

  She feels over my jeans with her other hand and smiles up at me. “Liar. You’re so fucking hard right now. Stop denying you want me.”

  Peeling her hands from my body, I take a step back. My gaze falls over her tits for a split second before I get enough sense to walk away. Everything about her is dangerous. I wish I could avoid her. But she would make my life a living hell. She would also ruin Tori’s life. And I can’t have that happen. Tori deserves better.

  “You were amazing last night,” the mystery girl on my bed says, as I turn my back to open the top drawer of my dresser. “It was such a good game.”

  “Thanks,” I mutter, grabbing a handful of socks and boxers.

  After I pick through the drawers and grab the essential items I need for the weekend, I stuff the clothes and toiletries into a small duffel bag and sling it over my shoulder.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Harper curls her fingers around my bicep as I step into the bathroom I share with Clay.

  “I have things to do.”

  “Yeah, you have Ella and me to do. Don’t even think about leaving before you fuck us. You bailed on me last night for your charity case. I am losing my patience with you, Bash.”

  “Tori is not my charity case,” I spit back. “You’re losing your patience with me? You have been driving me fucking crazy for months. Maybe if you weren’t conning me into having sex with you, I’d enjoy it more.”

  She chuckles, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “That’s not what you said a few days ago when you were licking my pussy.” Dragging her nails down my arms, she whines. “Just give me what I want, and then you can go. I’m wet and horny. We’ve been waiting here for you for at least an hour.”

  Cupping her shoulders with both hands, I force her to look up at me. “Not now, Harper. Will you just listen to me for once? I have to leave.”

  How long can I hold her off without this coming back to bite me in the ass? Everything with Harper has strings attached. When she had discovered my secret, Harper presented the offer of sex. I was pissed at first, but once I warmed up to the idea of having guaranteed pussy whenever I wanted it, I didn’t think it was such a bad deal. Until I found out it wasn’t just sex on occasion.

  Harper is insatiable. I think she has a sex addiction. And she gets jealous of every girl I talk to that she doesn’t invite into bed with us. She hates Tori because she knows I’d never share her. A girl like Tori is special, not someone you pass around to your friends.

  Harper clenches her teeth, giving me her best angry scowl. I don’t care. As always, she’s in the way of my plans.

  “You will pay for this, Bash,” she chokes out.

  “I’m sure I will.” I shrug, nonchalant. “But right now I don’t give a fuck.”

  I exit the bathroom, ignoring the girl on my bed, and open the door, about to leave when Harper grabs my arm. “Please, Bash. Don’t leave us. Stay for an hour, and then you can go.”

  “Rain check,” I tell her, spinning around to look her in the eyes. Reaching up to stroke her cheek with my fingers, I say, “I can’t this weekend. Just listen to what I’m telling you. I’ll make it up to you later. Okay?”

  One touch is all it takes to shut her down. It works every time. And it was all for show. I fucking hate her ass so much that touching her anymore makes me want to vomit. Most guys would kill for the chance to have a threesome with Harper, and I’ve had plenty of them, but I can’t do this with her anymore.

  The anger fades from her face, and her features soften. “Okay. But I will hold you to it. A promise is a promise, and I plan to collect.”

  “I’m sure you do,” I say, laughing, “but I have to go. Why don’t you play with your friend? Let her keep you company until I get back.”

  She smiles. “I’ll
take dirty pictures for you so that you won’t miss any of it.”

  I nod, pretending to care. “That’s a good girl.”

  Without another word, I turn on my heel and shut the door behind me. Ever since I let Harper into my world, she’s been a constant reminder of everything that’s wrong in my life. My father told me the same shit had happened to him before and even more so after he went pro. Women are relentless when it comes to athletes. At least now, I can get back to Tori without any more drama from Harper. For now.

  Chapter 7

  Tori

  Disoriented, I wake to the loud thump of Bash’s fist slamming against the door, the sound so annoying it makes my head pound more than it did before my nap.

  I open the door in fuzzy slippers and the jean shorts and shirt I still have on from last night. Man, I feel like a dirtball. I sent Bash home to take a shower, and here I am with dried puke in the corner of my mouth and old clothes stuck to my skin from sweating in my sleep.

  My hair is sticking up all over the place, mussed up from sleep. Not that I care. Impressing Bash is the last thing on my mind. Somehow, he doesn’t even look repulsed when he takes in the sight of me.

  I yawn, stretching my hands over my head, and lean against the doorframe. “Hey…I thought you were taking a shower.”

  He glances down at his clothes. We both have on our outfits from last night. “I packed a few things. I was planning to take one here if that’s okay.”

  Moving to the side so that Bash can enter my suite, I hold out my hand and motion for him to come inside. “That’s fine. I still need to get one. My hair is all gross and is in desperate need of shampoo, but my head is spinning too much to stand up for long periods of time.”

  Bash closes the door behind him and follows me into the room. “I can help you wash your hair if you want.”

  I smile at his comment. That has to be one of the nicest things I’ve ever heard from his mouth. “I’m not sure how we’ll make that work without you seeing me naked. And…” I lose my train of thought just thinking about what we did before my nap. That kiss was everything.