by Tijan
“Shit.” From Joe.
I did so, releasing him, but my thumb ran over his tip as a parting goodbye.
“Pull your hand out of my pants.”
I did so, half-laughing as I felt his hand flexing to cup the back of my head.
“Now.” He nipped at my earlobe with his teeth. “Zip me up.”
I moved so I could use both hands to close his pants. Once I was done, Stone pulled my head back to his and he had one last hot and demanding kiss for me. Releasing me, he stepped back. “She’s all yours.” He was staring right at me as he said those words and I got the message.
He walked away, his back turned toward the line at the end of the alley. And he put his hands in his pockets, his shoulders hunching forward, pulling his shirt to outline his back, and I almost called him back. I almost gave in to him, told him it was a complete lie, but my teeth sank into my lip because I couldn’t.
He was done.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
I was not proud of what I did. But it was necessary.
I was flicking a tear away when Cammie came over, her hip bumping into mine. She turned so her tray of drinks was angled away and said to me, “I’m still on a high about that delicious quarterback, but we have to process that later because that entire table came in and asked for you.”
I followed her gaze, and I had to smile, something I never thought I would’ve done a month ago. The table was full of housemates and their boyfriends, i.e., the football team. Just like with Stone, all eyes went to them.
She saw and her eyebrows went up. “You know them? They’re going to be the rowdiest group here.”
Was Cammie not here when they came in? I tried to remember, but I don’t think she was.
“I live with half of them. They’ll be fine for me.”
Both her eyebrows shot up. “No kidding?”
“No kidding.”
She eyed them again. “Tell ’em congratulations for me. They kicked some Homecoming ass today.”
I scooped up the tab from my emptied table and patted her arm. “I sure will, and they sure did.”
She laughed as I moved past her, tucking the bill and tip in my apron and pulling out an order sheet. I was getting good enough where I rarely needed it, but one just never knew. Coming up to the table where Wyatt, Mia, Noel, Savannah, Nacho, Lisa, Nicole, and Dent were sharing, along with two more tables around them that housed the rest of the football team along with more of their party friends, I gave ’em a big smile. “Congratulations, guys!”
They threw up their arms. “Heeeey!!”
The rest of the bar thought I was cheering them and they all joined in, yelling out congratulations.
Once they died down, Nacho leaned toward me. He was the closest and his beefy arms were resting on the table. “You watched our game.” He looked happy about that.
“I did.”
Wyatt had pulled his phone out and he read from the screen, “Nice fucking tight ass. Tell Mia she did good picking you for your second score from the thirty.” He was beaming as he looked up at me. “You’re awesome.”
I tipped my head back, laughing, and actually enjoying it for once. “Thank you, and I meant what I wrote. You guys did really great today.”
Nicole asked, “Why didn’t you sit with us?”
Oh.
That.
I was wincing on the inside. “Because I was actually working. One of the boxes, but I could still see. I made sure to see.”
She frowned, but didn’t respond.
Mia’s eyes narrowed. “What box?”
Fuck’s sake. Really?
I shrugged. “Just one of them.”
“There’s just two boxes that get servers during games. The coach’s box, which a bunch of the Kings’ players and families were using today, or a TV exec box. Which one were you in?”
Why did she continue to hate me? I thought we’d moved past this. But I lied through my teeth, “Must’ve been the exec one. Funny. I thought they seemed a bit Hollywood.”
She pressed her lips together and I knew what she was thinking. Liar. Yeah, well. I was. I didn’t care.
“So, what’ll everyone have?”
They gave me their orders and I weaved through the crowd to go put it in. Mia must’ve followed me, because as soon as I got to the register, she was next to me and scowling. “Why’d you lie?”
I paused, eyeing her. She was glancing over her shoulder. One hand on the counter by the register and the other tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She moved as Cammie had to get behind the bar. Kneeling down, Cammie shot me a look.
I shrugged, but Mia was back to scowling at me.
“What do you mean?’
“I know you were in the other box. I know Ben from class and I ran into him after the game. We chatted. He told me about a blue-haired girl helping him today. That was you.”
“So?”
I finished putting in the order and went to fill a pitcher of beer. Mia waited, going right with me.
“So?! So, you shouldn’t have to put yourself in a situation like that. I looked up Stone’s parents. His mom looks like a bitch.”
An argument could totally be made here, be one to know one, but I moved to another table and gave them the new pitcher, pulling the empty one. All eyes went to Mia, because she was one of the blessed and holy people. She just didn’t get it in that moment. All eyes would be on me until she and the entire table left, but they’d had my back the last month. I could make Stone hate me, but I didn’t have it in me to make them hate me. There was no point.
Then it hit me what was actually going on.
Mia was worried about me.
Mia. Bitch Mia. Bully Mia. Mia who I thought would’ve laughed if I had killed myself when I first moved in, that Mia. Now she was the one following me around at my job, interrogating me why I put myself in that situation.
A wave of emotion swept over me and I put the emptied pitcher on a nearby table. Ignoring the ‘hey!’ from the girls there, I grabbed Mia in for a hug.
She stiffened, her hands coming to my side. “What. Is. This?” Yes. She said it just like that.
I just laughed, hugging her tighter before stepping back and picking up the empty pitcher again. “Nothing. Just felt a hug coming on.”
She backed up, her mouth fully sneering at me. “Well. Don’t.” She shook her arms as if to get the touch of me off of her. “Wyatt’s the only one who touches me.”
She cared. She totally cared.
She kept backing up, then stopped. Her face cleared before growing determined again. “Next time you have to work a box at a game like today, ask who’s going to be in it.”
Okay. Let’s play this game, too.
I asked, starting to grin, “And what, then? If I find out it’s someone like today?”
“Refuse.” Duh.
My grin grew. “And if my boss says I have no choice?”
Her mouth flattened. Her head pulled back. She’d never thought of that scenario and gave me a shrug. “Then quit? They’ll hire you the next day. I mean, look around.” She waved a hand. “This place needs you. It’s a mess.”
I let out a full laugh now.
Mia rolled her eyes and turned to go back to her table.
Cammie sidled up next to me, a tray under her arm. “You know Mia Catanna?”
I did her one better. “I live with Mia Catanna.” I moved to go and take more orders because this was my job and this was my new normal. And I loved it because for some reason, everything fell into place and it hit me that night.
I would be okay.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Boy, oh boy. Times had changed.
All of my housemates and the rest of the football team stayed until the bar closed. And apparently, when everyone is celebrating, when everyone is loose and relaxed and happy, there’s a contagious feeling that takes over entire crowds. I could say that because I was in the back of my house. I was sitting at the picnic table, squished with Joe
on one side, Cammie on the other. Ben had even been called and he was sitting at the end of our table.
We had Dent and Nacho debating the dangers of going keto during the off season, even for a month to trim pounds, and the rest of my housemates were either spread around the backyard or in the house because here I was. Antisocial, newly orphaned college student in the midst of one of my housemate’s infamous parties. I knew tonight was extra special because I’d even glimpsed some of my classmates from my genetics class in the corner.
“It’s ridiculous!” Dent cried out, half rising from his side of the table. “Why the fuck would you want to trim weight and in the off season, no less? You’re a defensive lineman. We need you in your weight class.”
“Because Coach thinks I need to trim.”
“Not like that!” Dent was very concerned about this potential diet. “Your body will rebel and you’ll lose muscle mass. This is the stupidest idea I’ve ever heard from you. Lean meat. Carbs in moderation. And fruits and vegetables. Stick to your protein drinks, too. Or hell, have you talked to the team’s nutritionist? What’d she say about this?”
Nacho’s shit-eating grin was enough to convince me he had no intention of going through a keto crash diet, but it was funny to see Dent get so worked up.
Cammie leaned down to me, then. “So, these guys? Really? They’re all your roommates?” Her tone was awed, but she was trying to hide how awed she was. That told me she was really awed.
“It kinda was this horrible miscommunication, but we’ve all grown on each other. Sort of like a clam and two shells.”
“I’ll say.” Nacho had overheard. He pointed at me. “I love clams. They look like dicks. And you guys haven’t lived until you’ve tasted this girl’s cooking. She does a full pizza buffet that’s out of this world. I don’t know what you’re going to school for, Dusty, but you should be going for culinary school. You could be one of those Michelob chefs.”
Dent burst out laughing, holding his sides. “It’s Michelin chefs. Michelin. Not the beer, you dumbass.”
“I’m not the dumbass thinking a starting defensive lineman is going to do keto on his off season.”
Dent stopped laughing. Frowned. And shot to his feet. “What? You were lying the whole time?”
“I was messing with you, not lying.”
“You fuckhead.” He stalked off, going into the house. Lisa called after him, but he ignored her. She frowned, holding a beer, but turned back to the group she’d been talking to.
“He gets so worked up about everything.” Nacho was now griping, but he stood and was going after him.
Lisa said something to him, too, and he only gestured into the house. She sent me a frown, wavering, then came over. She moved to the edge of the table where I was. The rest of the conversation halted. That’s just what happened when these guys approached. Lisa didn’t notice, her eyes only on me. “Those two fight or something?”
“Nacho was gonna do the keto thing. Dent believed him. Got upset when he found out it was a joke.”
Lisa rolled her eyes. “He’s so sensitive sometimes.” She migrated back over to her group, sipping on her beer the whole time.
I didn’t recognize the others at the table besides Joe, Cammie, and Ben.
Joe groaned, hunching over the table. “I shouldn’t be here. I’m a grad student and I manage the Quail. I should go, be irresponsible somewhere else.”
Ben grinned at him. “Or maybe you should stick around, see if you can get lucky?”
Ben held his beer up over the table. He said as Joe clinked it with his, “That’s the way to go, man. It’s only Homecoming once a year, and we blew the Stallions out of the water this year. We should celebrate.”
Cammie was watching the two, her own faint grin tugging at her lip. “Look at you both, bonding and having a good time.”
Ben nodded, saluting her with his beer. “Thanks for the invite.” He scanned the backyard. “I know Catanna from school, but she’s never invited me to one of these parties.”
Cammie gestured to me. “Don’t thank me. Thank our hookup here.”
“That’s not me. The guys were just at the bar and said, “Everyone head over.””
She laughed. “Right, because the last time they did that, staff were included in the invite?”
I had no idea.
Joe leaned closer to me, the four of us pulling in to form our own group at the table. “They’ve never done this. I’m older than everyone here, but even I’ve heard about the infamous ‘football house’ parties.” At my confused look, he clarified, “This is the football house, not because the actual team lives here, but because most of the team are always hanging out here. You’ve got connections, girl.” He whistled, leaning back. “And you basically lied at your job interview.”
“I have no connections.”
The door was shoved open, slamming against the side of the house. It was loud enough that everyone paused in their conversations and looked over. Wyatt was there. He was looking, and seeing me, he waved. “Dusty Girl, come here! We just got back from the grocery store.”
I groaned, but I stood up. “You think if you buy the materials, your personal chef will come?”
He barked out a laugh as I walked up the patio steps. His arm came down around my shoulder and he walked with me inside. “There’s our awesome little funny chef, making a Field of Dreams reference. We could do with a few more.”
Noel and Savannah were unpacking the groceries.
I murmured, “Just call me James Earl Jones.” But even though I was grumbling, I spied the fresh cilantro and arugula, and I was already thinking about some fancy Mexican recipes. I nudged Wyatt’s side before he dropped his arm. “Tell me the truth. You guys only like me because I can cook a mean meal, right?”
I started laughing, but he saw the look on my face and sobered up real quick. “You serious?”
“Nah.” I was.
Wyatt went back to smiling from ear to ear and he squeezed my shoulders, leaning down so his chin touched my shoulder. “Whatever you make, we will worship. You’re the Boss, Dusty Girl.” He squeezed my shoulders once more before holding out his hand and half-burping, “Beer me.”
A beer materialized from the crowd and was placed in his hand.
He winked at me before leaving. “God. I love this place.”
He was already gone when Savannah and Noel finished unpacking everything. They paused next to me. Noel was reaching inside the fridge and pulling out a beer for both of them when Cammie came in, pushing her way through the crowd. She ducked her head, putting a strand of her hair behind her ear that was already there, and she seemed to shrink in size somehow. A hand resting on the counter, she waved with her other one. “Hi. I work with Blue.”
Savannah looked at the beer in Cammie’s hand.
Cammie’s laugh hitched up a note. She put her beer on the counter before rubbing her hand over her pants to dry it. She lifted it back for Savannah. “Sorry about that. Cammie again.” Her cheeks were pinking.
I’d never seen Cammie like this.
She was the picture of cool, calm, and confident. And she was gorgeous, just as beautiful as Mia or Savannah. But Savannah glanced at me. Noel took a step back, the fridge shutting, and he leaned a hand on the counter behind her. He was letting her run the show.
As if she needed a second to weigh the options, she put her hand in Cammie’s, shaking it. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m one of Dusty’s roommates.” She couldn’t pull her hand away quick enough, and inclined her head toward me. “Blue?”
“’Cause you know.” I flicked my own hair back over my shoulder, going back to grabbing a bowl to wash the cilantro in. “So, who wants to help chop some tomatoes?”
“Cammie.”
Ben had come in, standing beside her.
“Oh!” Her eyes were wide. “We were going to take off. Joe left. Ben said he’d give me a ride home. You working tomorrow?”
I shook my head. “It’s a study day for me, all
day.”
“Joe wouldn’t put you on the schedule seven days in a row.”
I griped. “You’d think he’d want to. I’m way better than Moore.”
Ben grimaced. “I was worried he was going to send her to work the boxes today.”
Cammie flicked her eyes up. “You were better than Moore before you were even a waitress, and if you’re not working tomorrow, I’ll see you Tuesday. I’m off on Monday.” She nodded to Savannah and Noel. “It was nice officially meeting you guys.”
She and Ben both held up a hand as they left, returning through the back door again.
Savannah helped with the food. Noel helped her help with the food. Lisa. Mia and Wyatt. Nacho and Dent. They all came to the kitchen, wandering in. They formed a casual-looking wall to keep everyone out and gave us a pocket of normalcy within the raging party.
Once the food was done, I did what I usually did.
I scooped up a small plate for myself, setting everything out for everyone else. I cooked. They cleaned up. That was the deal, and this time when I slipped to the basement, put my food in the fridge down there, and headed to my room, I had a weird sense of familiarity.
I was starting to enjoy living here.
I was thinking about that when the basement door opened and footsteps hurried down the stairs. I figured it was Lisa heading to her room, but it wasn’t her who said my name. “Dusty.”
I turned back.
Siobhan stood there, her hand still on the railing, one foot on the ground and the other still on the last step. Her eyebrows were arched high, her mouth slightly opened, and then she closed it, her chest rising and falling. “Wow. Okay. I’m here. I didn’t…” She stepped down that last step, letting go of the railing. Her hands folded in front of her and she looked to the ground. “Trent’s roommate goes to the Quail a lot. He said you were working there now and I’ve been meaning to come in, say something, but I just haven’t. We were there tonight, actually trying to be normal college students. Heard the general invite, and here we are.”
“You got past my roommates.” I took a step toward her, indicating upstairs. “They keep the basement sectioned off for a reason.”