Coach hesitates. “Let’s wait. I appreciate your team camaraderie and willingness to help, but like I said, one hundred percent.”
“Yes, sir,” I say as Coach pats me on the back. I let out a frustrated sigh after he leaves. He’s being overcautious. I’m more than fine. But it’s hard to be upset when I should be nothing but grateful to have a coaching staff that cares. It’s just watching everyone take full practice is damn tough.
Practice ends, and the team heads back to the locker. I pull my shirt off and toss it in the gym bag. My heart nearly skips a beat when an angry voice booms across the locker room.
“What the hell do you think you were doing having sex with my sister?”
My head whips to the side to where the commotion is taking place, and I breathe a sigh of relief. Two of the new freshmen, Phil and George, are in a lockdown, face to face.
“We hooked up. What’s the big deal? It’s not like she didn’t want it.”
I cringe. Wrong thing to say, buddy. Phil grabs George by the collar and slams him against the locker.
“Whoa,” Braxton yells as he races over to them. “Both of you need to chill.”
He places himself between them and breaks them apart before any punches could be thrown and both of the freshmen end up expelled. All we need is for teammates to be tossed out of the program. Coach knows tensions can arise between teammates, but if he hears of any members fighting, they’ll be kicked off the team. Fighting isn’t tolerated. Period.
Phil spits on the floor, his nostrils flaring. “I’ll chill after I wipe the floor with his face.”
George straightens. “What the hell is the problem? Your sister’s a consenting adult. She came on to me.”
“You shouldn’t have fucked her.”
“I didn’t realize she was your sister until after.”
“She’s my twin. How could you not?”
“Enough,” Braxton yells and shoots a warning glare at George. “You need to apologize to Phil.” George goes to protest, but Braxton smacks his palm against George’s chest. “The only words I want to hear from your mouth is an apology. You don’t fuck teammates’ sisters, period. It’s a rule that’s never broken. It doesn’t matter that you didn’t know. You know now and should be nothing but remorseful.”
Fuck. Braxton’s never going to be okay with me dating Shannon. I’m all too aware of the tic in my jaw when Dalton shoots me a knowing look. I suppose I owe him a shit-ton of gratitude for keeping quiet. He knew Shannon stayed with me the entire weekend and had the decency to make himself scarce. Luckily, Garret didn’t come home until late Sunday afternoon. By then, I had already taken Shannon back to her dorm.
Garret never mentioned being at the fair. When I broached the subject, he got jittery and played it off as nothing. I took that as a sign he’d rather be in the dark about what’s going on between Shannon and me. Like the whole knowing less is better type of situation.
George takes a calming breath and relaxes his stance. “Look, man. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disrespect you or her. I didn’t know she was your sister until it was too late.”
“The next time, I’ll kill you.”
Braxton holds his hand up. “No threats. Just accept his apology and move on. You can’t blame him if he didn’t know.”
“It won’t happen again,” George says.
“You’re damn right it won’t.”
“Hey,” Braxton warns.
Phil grunts but concedes. “Fine, I’ll let it go. Just stay away from her.” He stalks out of the locker room and slams the door behind him. Once the initial shock wears down, the rest of the guys head to the showers, their chattering increasing.
“Jesus, that was insane.” Braxton tosses his shirt in his bag and takes off his pants.
“Yeah.” I run my hand over my jaw, not sure what to say. Now certainly isn’t the time to bring up seeing Shannon. But damn, I don’t want to keep pushing it off. I’ll have to think of something creative. I can’t wait until Braxton and I graduate, for fuck’s sake.
“What I don’t get is they room together. How the hell did he not know his roommate had a twin. That doesn’t make sense. I can’t believe Phil bought that excuse.”
“That’s going to be awkward later in their room.” Just like it will be in our house. I’m so screwed.
“No shit. I’m glad I don’t have to worry about you poking my sister.”
Guilt claws its way up my spine as every fiber in me tenses. He’s going to fucking kill me when he finds out. I need to spin this conversation toward my direction. My laugh sounds off, but I roll with it and act as if what he said is the most ridiculous thing ever. “Come on. I wouldn’t be that bad.”
“The fuck you wouldn’t.”
That drops all humor in my voice and irritates the fuck out of me. “What do you mean?”
“Seriously? You know damn well you’re a commitment-phobe.”
I scoff, looking indifferent, but inside, I’m reeling. I can’t believe my best friend thinks so little of me. There are reasons behind me never settling down—ones I don’t expect anyone to understand—but it’s not the commitment I’m afraid of. The reservations may still be in place, but I’m willing to try with Shannon. She means too much to me to not try. “I could settle down.”
“In all the years we’ve known each other, how many girlfriends have you had?”
“None.” Until now. Would Shannon be considered my girlfriend? We haven’t labeled our relationship, but she means far more to me than some hookup. Yeah, we’ve had one date and screwed each other, but our long history negates any time requirements. And forget dating anyone else. That’s not going to happen. The mere thought of any other guy going near her makes me see red. She’s definitely my girlfriend.
“My point exactly. You’ve never settled down with anyone.”
“And neither did you until you found Cara.” I remind him of his practices before heading to the showers. He’s dead wrong about me. I just need to come up with a clever way to convince him before we end up like Phil and George.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Shannon
Waiting is the worst. The afternoon sun filters in the windows at Captain’s Cup, casting a glow on the white shiplap siding. I find the nautical theme odd for a college-based coffee shop, but the decor does have a calming effect. Somewhat. I sip my coffee while Lexie and Cara discuss their workload for the year. I’m barely listening. All I seem to focus on is my test result that, according to the professor, should be posted anytime. The wait is grueling. I have to slay this test this time. If not, not only will I kiss my contest chances goodbye, I won’t pass. Never has a test been so crucial in my life.
“I’ll be glad when this semester ends. The workload is killing me,” Cara says. “I’m slammed especially after going to the playoff game this past weekend. But I have no regrets. The time away was a much-needed break.”
“Plus, your precious Phillies just had to win.” Lexie mocks being offended, much to Cara’s amusement.
“I was rooting for the Dodgers.”
“Just because your brother plays for them, but you’re not fooling anyone. We know who you root for deep down.”
“I plead the fifth.” Cara sips her blueberry tea through a grin.
“Uh-huh, but yeah, getting back to your original statement, this semester has been rough,” Lexie says. “My study days are all messed up working on this senior project. I just want it done.”
“Oh, did you hear about Marla?” Cara’s eyes widen, taking on a sparkling gleam.
My ears perk up at the mention of her name. She doesn’t prove too much of a threat anymore, but I still don’t like her. She flaunts the fact the teacher gives her encouraging statements all the time. Yesterday, Marla told me the professor said she was a shoo-in. I’m pretty sure Marla’s reading too much into whatever the professor said, but she never turns down the opportunity to prod me.
“She’s the one who’s been with Noah off and on, right?
” Lexie asks.
I grip my coffee cup tighter. The drawbacks to keeping your dating life a secret is getting people’s brutal honesty without their knowledge.
“Yes. Although Noah hasn’t been with her in quite some time. Anyway, Isabella started dating some guy on the hockey team, and Marla slept with him.”
“Isn’t Marla one of Isabella’s best friends?” I ask. Lord knows, there’s no love lost between Isabella and Cara. I can’t say I’m sad my brother has dissolved his friendship with Izzy, but I personally don’t hold any grudges against her. She deserves to be happy.
“Yes. It’s not like Marla didn’t know what she was doing when she went out with the guy. Who does that? I swear, the girl has no boundaries.”
Lexie shifts in her seat and starts picking at her cuticles. Her uncomfortableness makes no sense. Lexie hasn’t dated anyone in a while. She flirted with Kyle, but nothing ever became of them that I’m aware of. Still, something is off with her. I, on the other hand, know precisely why I’m upset. Knowing Marla won’t stop at anything to get what she wants is unnerving. What if she starts texting Noah again? Or has she even stopped? He may still be texting her. No! I stop that line of thinking. It’s my insecurity talking. I have no reason not to trust Noah—especially after last weekend.
“Maybe, Marla had her reasons,” Lexie says faintly.
“What?” Cara asks, disbelief dripping in that one syllable. “There’s no excuse for sleeping with a guy you know is dating someone else. I’m sorry, but that doesn’t fly with me.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” Lexie’s gaze drifts toward the window, her back ramrod straight. “I just hate feeling sorry for Isabella. She’s such a bitch.”
My eyes narrow as Lexie sips her latte. There is definitely something upsetting her other than Marla and Isabella’s drama.
“How’s algebra going? Noah says you’re doing really well with the tutoring sessions. Did the midterms go okay?” Cara’s question pulls me away from my thoughts.
“Noah’s been a huge help. He’s teaching me so much.” I mask the heat flaring on my cheeks by sipping my coffee. Did I have to make that statement sound suggestive? “I finally understand the concepts, but I’m still waiting for the test result.”
“She’s taking her sweet time.”
“Tell me about it. All my other classes have posted their results.”
“Oh, like your design class? I saw some of the designs you’re working on for the contest. They’re awesome.” The sincerity in Cara’s voice tells me she’s not bullshitting.
“Yeah, thanks. It’s a lot of fun turning a concept into reality. I’m really enjoying the classes related to my field.” I laugh to play off my words, but there is a lot of truth to this. The humanities and other electives aren’t as much fun, but they’re doable. It’s the math that stumps me. Correction. Used to stump me. I wasn’t lying when I said Noah has really helped.
“I can’t believe we graduate this year,” Cara moans. “I still have so much to prepare.”
“Have you applied to all the colleges yet?” Lexie asks.
“Yeah, including the school back home.”
Lexie stills, her cup half way to her mouth. “The one you transferred from?”
“Yep.”
“I didn’t think you’d ever go back there.”
“Neither did I, but who knows where Braxton will end up. I may as well go home.”
“Long distance, huh?”
“It’s not going to be easy, but I love him.”
My stomach twists. My relationship with Noah is way too new to think that far ahead, but it still doesn’t change the fact I have two years of schooling left. Whether he gets drafted or not, if we’re still together, we’ll have to be in a long-distance relationship.
“I’m just waiting until December to hear back. Fingers crossed. How about you? Still thinking about attending CU for grad school?”
Lexie nods. “I did apply to a couple other schools, too, but staying at Cessna U would be the cheaper route.” She sighs. “I could still live at home.”
“You guys are talking grad school, and I’m just hoping to get through my undergrad. I suppose I need to check my latest test.” I whip out my phone to pull up the website. After logging in, I search for the blackboard and hold my breath until the class loads. “Oh my God, I got an eighty-nine percent. I’ve never gotten anything higher than a C.”
“See, I knew you would do it,” Cara says.
“Yay, congrats.”
“Thanks. I’m so excited.” These points help so much. I pull up Noah’s name and shoot him a text without giving it any thought.
Me: Guess who got an eighty-nine percent on her test?
I lay the phone between Cara and me, not expecting a reply. The team should be out of practice, but Noah was going to check if he could be cleared to work with Harry. The buzz startles me, but I don’t pick the phone up in time.
Noah: (Kissy face emoji.) That’s awesome, but not surprising. I knew you could do it. (Heart emoji—the red one.)
Cara’s eyebrow raises as a half-grin slides into place. “You’ve got a text.”
I snatch the phone up and curse at myself for leaving it screen side up. What the hell was I thinking? If we’re going to keep this charade up, I’m going to have to become better at sneaking around.
Me: Yes, sir. Does that mean I get a prize?
Noah: Be right there… After supper. ;)
I can’t wipe the goofy grin from my face when I look up at the girls. They stare directly at me wide-eyed and half-dazed.
“Um, Noah’s coming over to study the next section tonight.”
The corners of Cara’s mouth lift to a smirk. She gives Lexie a side glance before returning those chocolate-colored eyes to me. “I’ll grab a few things and stay with Braxton tonight.”
My mouth drops. “That’s not necessary.”
“Oh, I think it is.” She places her hand across her heart. “I’d hate to interrupt.”
“Whatever, it’s not a big deal.” Deny. Deny. Deny. I repeat this mantra when all I really want to do is confess what happened over the weekend. If they didn’t suspect anything before, they definitely do now. What they don’t know is the extent of our relationship.
Me: I’ll see you then!
Noah: Can’t wait.
I look at the time and wince. I probably shouldn’t have had the cup of coffee right before my run. The last thing I need to do is stimulate my heart right before exercising, but missing my run time with Dalton isn’t an option. It’s kind of him to meet me after his practice as it is. “I need to take off. I’ll catch you gals later.”
“Where are you going?” Lexie asks.
“To grab something to eat and then map out the evening. I have some other homework to catch up on before Noah comes over.” I hate lying about working out, but after Braxton’s slip the other weekend, I’m not bringing up anything remotely close to exercising.
“Have fun.” Cara’s singsong voice carries behind me.
I really need to learn how to disguise things better. But holy cow, I didn’t expect to see Noah tonight.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Noah
The guilt from lying to my best friend fades the moment the door swings open to a bright-eyed blonde with a smile directed straight at me. I don’t wait to step inside before I pull Shannon next to me. Any worry over being caught died the moment Cara showed up at the house carrying her overnight bag. I rather like the fact Braxton has a girlfriend. She keeps him distracted and a hell of a lot happier.
“How’s my star pupil?” I ask as Shannon wraps her arms around my waist. I lean down and place a quick kiss against her lips, keeping her body next to mine.
“Mmm, I’m doing better now that you’re here.” The lust-filled sparkle in her eye says I’m the sexiest guy on the planet and makes me feel invincible. It also drives home the belief that what we have between us will work. That her brother will eventually come around.
“Isn’t that supposed to be my cheesy pickup line?” I ask.
“Not at all since it’s the truth. I was missing you.”
“I missed you too.” More importantly, I miss not being able to parade her around. Not that I want to display her like a prize, but I want the simplicity of being able to walk hand in hand in the open. I want to be able to hold her in my arms, like we are now, without the fear of being caught hovering above us.
“Hey, Shannon. There’s a mixer at the Pi Beta Phi house this Saturday. Are you going?”
We draw our attention to the voice behind me. The girl’s eyes widen when she notices who I am and then dips to where my hands are located. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t realize you were busy.”
Shannon forces a smile and takes the flier, creating distance between us. This move is exactly what I was talking about. We shouldn’t have to hide our feelings for each other. Pi Beta Phi sounds familiar. I try to think about why the sorority sticks in my mind. Then, it clicks. It’s the sorority sponsoring the color run I’m not thrilled she’s participating in. Another secret I’m hiding from Braxton. I’m scoring a hundred percent on the shitty friend barometer.
“That’s okay. Thanks for letting me know. I’m thinking about pledging.”
“I think you should. I’m going to pledge this spring. You should join me.”
“I’ll check this out. Thanks.” Shannon waves the paper, but her tone is dismissive. When the girl leaves, she pulls me into her room and shuts the door.
“Do you think Maggie will tell Braxton?”
“Why would she tell? Does she even know him?” I hate the fear in her eyes. This isn’t right. Being with me shouldn’t come with strings and stipulations.
“Maggie’s in the same biology class as Braxton. She’s talked to me about him before. I think she has a crush on him but not enough to act on it. She knows he’s with Cara.”
Behind the Count: Cessna U Wildcats Book Two Page 17