“My car is still on UF’s campus,” I remind him, and he frowns.
“Okay, then, we’ll go get my things from my dad’s, then I’ll take you to get your car,” he emends, and brushes his fingertips down my cheek. “But if we stay here, things are going to happen that you aren’t ready for.”
“Ethan,” I breathe out and lean forward to press my forehead against his.
“Don’t, Graycen,” he says softly and pulls back to kiss my forehead. “You don’t have to do anything you aren’t ready for.”
“I’m not ready,” I admit softly. “Not yet, anyway.”
“I know,” he tells me. “If I’m being honest, neither am I.”
“I do want another kiss though,” I tell him, and he smiles before he leans over and kisses me softly. He pulls back before it can get too heated, and I smile at him. “Thank you.”
“Anything for you, Graycen,” he whispers then brushes his lips across my forehead before rising to his feet and extending his hand down to me. “Come on, beautiful.”
I take his hand and let him pull me to my feet and straight into his embrace.
“Should I be nervous about meeting your dad?”
“No,” he answers as he releases me and picks up the blanket. “He’s not a bad person. He’s just made some bad decisions. Relax, baby. Dad’s gonna love you.”
“Okay then,” I mutter as he leads me to his car. Meeting his dad is the next step in our relationship, and I’m not nearly as confident as he is that I’m ready to take it.
Chapter Thirty
Rico
I walk into the bowling alley and am hit by the number of people already here. It looks like half of the UF swim team has taken over the tables behind the lanes we’re bowling on, and I have to stop the frown that wants to form on my face. They’re here to support Wes and Gray, and that should please me, but it does just the opposite. I don’t want Gray involved with the UF swim team. I don’t want Gray involved with any guy except me.
“There’s a lot of swimmers in here,” Ryder says from beside me, and I glance over at him. “They’re all wearing LPU shirts, too.”
I nod as I look over the sea of royal blue and bronze. Gray and Wes must have taken them to the bookstore because those aren’t just LPU shirts, they’re Rolling Ravens shirts. “They’re not just LPU shirts,” I point out and nod to where Ethan, Gabe, Mario, and Neo are sitting. “They have Rolling Ravens shirts on. Our logo is on the back.”
“Hey guys,” Gray greets from behind us. “What are you two looking at?”
“The UF swim team is here,” Ryder answers and nods toward where they’re sitting.
“Oh, wow,” she says, clearly as shocked as we are. “They have LPU shirts on.”
“You didn’t know they were coming?” I ask and look down at her. She’s wearing her uniform already, and I nearly gape at the way she looks in the little blue skirt that’s part of the women’s uniform.
“I knew Gabe and Ethan would be here, but not the others,” she says then her face lights up. “I’m going to go say hi.”
She walks off, and I hear Ryder gasp beside me when his eyes land on her creamy legs under that skirt.
“Those bowling skirts should be illegal,” he mutters, and as I notice the look on Ethan’s face, I have to agree.
“They’re perfectly decent,” Wren says from behind us. “Are you two going to stand there all day, or are you joining the team on the lanes?”
“I’m going to go say hello to the swimmers,” I tell them then walk over to the guys I’ve met while hanging out with Gabe and Wes. “Hey guys.”
“Hey, Al,” Ethan greets me then nuzzles into Gray’s neck. Her long red hair is pulled back into a smooth ponytail, and he seems to be enjoying her exposed skin. “My girl tells me she’s starting today.”
“She is,” Wren says and grins at the guys sitting at the table. “You must be Ethan. I’m Wren Myers. It’s nice to meet you finally.”
“Ethan Hartley,” he introduces himself. “You’ve met Gabe, I’m sure, and these other two bozos are Mario Ricci and Neo Ortega.”
“Nice to meet you all,” she says with a bright smile. “Gray’s starting because she’s damn good.”
“Thanks, Wren,” Gray mutters and dips her head down a little. She’s blushing, and I have to stop myself from reaching out and running my fingertip across the pink that’s heating her cheeks. She isn’t my girl, and from the looks of things with Ethan, she never will be.
“She’s better than I am, that’s for damn sure,” Wes says as he joins us. “I’m not starting.”
“How many of you start?” Mario asks, his eyes on Wren.
“Six,” she answers and looks over at the lanes. “Today’s starting line-up is Joy, Micah, Ryder, Jay, Al, and Gray. She’s the only one starting who isn’t a junior or senior.”
“How are the others dealing with that?” Mario asks.
“We’re all good with it,” Nadia answers as she joins us. “Gray is one of the strongest bowlers on the team, and we want to win.”
“How’s Xander handling it?” Gabe asks softly.
“He’s okay,” I tell them. Since he verbally attacked Gray after practice that day, things have been different with him. “He knows Coach is doing what’s best for the team.”
“Speaking of the team, it’s time to start warm-ups,” Gray says and nods to where the lanes have been turned on.
“Good luck today, baby,” Ethan says as he releases her. She turns and smiles at him as he pulls her into his arms and brushes a soft kiss across her lips. I look away as a bolt of jealousy shoots through me. I’m glad she has a guy who supports her, I really am, I just wish that guy was me.
“Let’s do this!” Micah shouts from the lanes and I grin. He’s very large, and very loud, and I’m going to miss the hell out of him when he graduates.
“Time to go,” Gray says as she grins over her shoulder at Micah before looking back at Ethan. “If coach pulls me out, I’ll be back over.”
“He won’t,” Wes says and winks at her then looks at Gabe. “I’ll be back over in a little while. I’ll be down on the warm-up lanes just in case I get pulled in.”
Wes brushes a kiss across Gabe’s mouth, then walks over to the lanes. We have a little team huddle before we break away to start warming up.
“Okay everyone,” Joy says in her smooth voice. “We all know how important every match is, but our opener just so happens to be against our biggest rival, and toughest competitor.”
“We got this, Joy,” Nadia says and looks at the six starters. “The starting line-up is strong, and no one will expect Coach to put a freshman in.”
“Some of them might,” Gray says as she peeks out and looks at the opposing team. They’re also a co-ed team, and she seems to focus on one of the girls. “I know one of the girls on their team. We went to high school together.”
“Oh?” I ask and glance over at them. I notice a girl with dark skin and long, nearly black hair looking at us intently. “Long dark hair, and death glare?”
“That’s her,” Gray answers and looks at us all. “She hates me. She was a junior when I joined the team, and she never could get over that even when I was a freshman, she couldn’t beat me. When I got MVP for our district as a sophomore, it pretty much clinched her hatred of me.”
“Jealousy is an evil bitch,” Brennon says, and I have to agree with him considering the green monster has been residing within me since Gray started dating Ethan.
“So is Malia,” Gray says, and our attention focuses back on her. “Just watch out for her.”
“Snide remarks and death glares don’t bother us,” Ryder assures her. “Besides, you two aren’t on the same team any longer, so you can truly kick her ass.”
“We’ll see,” Gray says, and I can hear her confidence waning.
“You got this, Graycen,” I tell her, and she looks at me. “Just do what you do best, and you won’t have any problems kicking her ass.”
�
��Y’all ready to do this?” Ryder asks, grinning at us all.
“Hell yeah!” Micah shouts, and Gray jumps a little.
“Rolling Ravens on three,” Joy says and sticks her hand out. We all lay our hands on top of hers and she grins.
Micah counts, then we all shout and break apart. This match is going to be a good one.
“Ready for this?” I ask Gray as we walk to the lanes.
“If being scared shitless is a sign of readiness, then yeah,” she answers and grin.
“You sound just like you did at Junior Gold when you were thirteen, and you kicked ass then. What makes you think you won’t now?”
“You’re right,” she says, and I grin at her. “We got this today.”
“Hell yeah, we do,” Micah responds from beside us. “And you have a lot of people back there rooting for you today.”
“How’d you manage to get so many UF swimmers here, anyway?” Wren asks as she looks back at them.
“I didn’t,” she answers. “Ethan and Gabe organized that. Ethan even bought them all the shirts they’re wearing. He said we needed to know that they have our backs.”
“Cute and thoughtful,” Wren says and grins. “Where can I find one like him?”
“I’m not even sure where I found him,” Gray says and chuckles before she walks away and grabs her Carnage. She rolls an easy strike, and I can tell she’s shifting into her zone.
“She’s damn good,” I hear from behind me and turn to see Ethan leaning against the counter behind me.
“Always has been,” I mutter and shift my focus back on the lanes. “Even when she was five, she could beat most of us.”
“I know we discussed you liking her last week, but I just want to say thank you for stepping back so she and I can see where this leads.”
“I will do anything to see her happy,” I tell him and glance back at her. She’s focused, and not paying us any attention. “Including seeing her with someone else.”
“You’re a better man than I am,” he tells me, and I shake my head.
“If you hurt her, you’ll find out just how bad I can be,” I tell him, and he nods.
“I’ll do everything I can to keep her happy,” he says, and I can hear the conviction in his voice.
“Then you and I will get along just fine,” I tell him then walk off. I need to warm up, and I need to get away from him before I tell him what I’m truly thinking.
****
Gray doesn’t lose her focus during the match, despite the best efforts of Malia, who Gray is bowling head to head against. It’s the end of game two, Gray is throwing her final ball in the game, and is beating Malia by twenty pins already after beating her by nearly thirty the first game.
“Still carrying that ball around, I see,” Malia says as Gray picks up her Tribal and takes her stance. “Bowling with her ball won’t bring her back, you know?”
“Shut up,” Ryder says from beside her. “You’re a pretty sore loser if you have to bring shit like that up to try distracting her.”
“Focus, Gray,” I say then turn to face Malia. “Unless you want to be thrown out of this match, I’d suggest you keep comments like that to yourself.”
“And just who’s going to throw me out of the match?” She asks, glaring at me.
“One more comment like that, and I’ll have your team disqualified,” Coach M says from behind her. “You just violated two NAIA rules with that comment.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said innocently.
“You want to play it that way?” Coach asks with a raised eyebrow. “Then we’ll play it that way.”
When he walks off, she looks at me and sneers. “We’ll see who gets disqualified.”
“Yeah, we will,” Ryder says and nods toward the guys standing behind Malia. “Because all those guys back there heard your comment, too.”
“They’re LPU students, it’ll be their word against mine,” she says and shrugs.
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Mario says and lays his UF student ID in front of her. “We may be here supporting LPU, but we aren’t students at LPU.”
“Why are you here then?” She asks with a raised eyebrow.
“My boyfriend bowls for LPU,” Gabe speaks up and looks over at Wes, who is on the warm-up lanes and has no idea what’s going on. “So we came to support the team.”
“And, seeing as we don’t attend LPU, we will be asked to testify in a hearing should there be one,” Ethan says and looks at Gray as she’s walking back toward us.
“I heard your little comment, Malia. As you can see, it backfired,” she says and steps back so Malia can see what’s going on. Her coach and Coach M are on the lanes and her coach looks pissed.
“Malia, you’re out,” he shouts over to her and shakes his head. “We’ll discuss this on the ride back to the school. Pack up your gear.”
“I’m out? Why?” She asks, feigning innocence.
“You’re going to be brought up on an ethics violation,” he responds, and she gasps. “You know better than to say things like that.”
“Coach, I didn’t mean anything by it,” she says, almost franticly. “Gray and I went to high school together. It was just an old jab between friends.”
“We were never friends, Malia,” Gray says and looks at Malia’s coach. “And the jab, was a comment about my dead sister.”
“Coach Matthews explained everything,” he says then looks at Malia. “I suggest you do as I said, or you’ll be off the team before an investigation can happen.”
“But,” she starts, but he shakes his head at her and turns to Gray.
“Miss Kelley, I want to apologize for Miss Garrett’s comment,” he says and Gray shakes her head.
“Not necessary,” she tells him. “She and I were rivals in high school, then when I beat her at state when I was a sophomore, she swore she’d never forgive me. Plus, you didn’t make the comment, and you handled it once it was brought to your attention.”
“Still, I apologize if her comment hurt you in any way. I’ve checked your stats from high school and am surprised I didn’t try recruiting you myself.”
“We’re glad you didn’t,” I say and grin at Gray. “Graycen has been a wonderful addition to our little team.”
“I can imagine,” he says and smiles at Gray again. “Now, let’s finish this match.”
“Yes,” Coach M says and walks over to Graycen. “Show em whatcha got, kid.”
As Malia walks off the lane, she glares at Gray, but Gray just shrugs and looks away from her. “We’re up on matches and pins, but not by enough that we can slack off this game.”
“We won’t,” Ryder says and lays a hand on her shoulder. “What she said was out of line.”
“What she said was bitchy,” Gray responds, but shrugs. “It doesn’t matter though. She made jabs like that all the time when we bowled against each other. Her comments and opinions don’t bother me any longer.”
“Good,” Ethan says from behind her. “You look sexy as hell out there, and your bowling skills intimidate me a little.”
She flashes him a grin and blows him a kiss before turning back to Ryder. “You’re up. Let’s do this.”
We all watch in awe as Graycen rolls strike after strike in this final game. Our bowlers who were on the warm-up lanes have moved over behind our lanes, and everyone is watching with bated breath as she enters the tenth frame.
She releases the ball, and I know she has her tenth strike of this game. She’s shooting to roll a perfect game, and I cannot be prouder of her. She walks back to the edge of the approach as the members of the other team gather beside our team members.
“Damn, she’s good,” someone whispers, and I glance over my shoulder to see one of the guys from the opposing team watching her in awe.
“She is,” Ryder answers as Gray takes her stance. Five quick steps and a perfect release.
“Eleven,” I hear Wes whisper and I can hear the pride in his voice. He’s became
her best friend over the past few weeks, and I am thankful he has her back in everything.
Silence descends over us all as we watch Gray pick up her Tribal and take her stance. She’s in her zone, and I know we could be yelling uncontrollably, and she wouldn’t even hear us.
I watch as she releases the ball right on her mark. Unless something happens in the next three seconds, she’s bowled her third three hundred game.
When the ball connects with the pins, I hold my breath. The ten pin wobbles for a second before it falls, and I exhale loudly as cheers erupt around me. Graycen did it. She bowled her third three hundred in her first match as a collegiate bowler, and from the look on her face, she’s shocked by the outcome.
“That was beautiful,” Wes says as he picks her up and spins her around. For a smaller guy, he’s surprisingly strong.
“She’s beautiful,” I hear Ethan say from behind the counter. “That game was truly amazing though.”
“Put me down, Wes,” she chuckles but when he goes to set her on her feet, Micah takes her from his arms.
For the next couple of minutes, she’s passed round the team as we all congratulate her on the perfect game. When she’s handed off to me, a jolt of electricity shoots through me, and from the look on her face, she feels it too.
“Great game, Graycen,” I mutter softly then kiss her cheek. I hold her against me a little longer than I should before I release her and take a step back.
“Thank you,” she whispers in a strained voice, and I know our contact affected her just as badly as it did me.
I take another step back before I turn and start packing up my gear. I need to put some distance between us before I do something I swore I wouldn’t do.
“We’re meeting for pizza to celebrate,” Micah says loudly. “Half an hour, everyone, and the UF swim team is invited to join us.”
I finish packing up my gear, and head for the exit. I’m not going to join them for pizza, I can’t be near her at the moment.
Happy voices follow me out of the bowling alley, and I shake my head. I love my team, and I love that we won, but I know things are going to get worse before they get better, and I need to get my head straightened out before I can face Graycen again.
Changing Lanes (Lake Park University Book 1) Page 18