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Cade grins. I can tell he’s getting a kick out of all this. “Are you saying you predict you two standing as king and queen at the end of this?”
I lift my chin. “Yep. We’ve totally got this.”
Cade laughs, then glances at Aidan. “I like her, dude. She’s a keeper.”
Preening under his words, I smile at Aidan. He’s got a slight grin on his face now as he watches me. “You’re into this, aren’t you?”
I shrug. “If we have to do it, we might as well try to win it.” Plus, it’s different and new. Things I am absolutely here for. A skills competition. A ball. Sounds…exciting.
“Come on, Aidan,” West implores, “a bunch of us are doing it. It’ll be fun.” He waits a beat. “Especially when Kenna and I kick your asses.”
I burst out laughing, and Aidan is right there with me. “Oh, it’s on, Big Man. You know I can never back down from a challenge.” He wraps his arm around me again and nearly hauls me onto his lap. “Bailey and I are in. We’ll thank you during our acceptance speeches.”
“You keep thinking that.”
Kenna rolls her eyes with me, but she looks at West so affectionately. She’s secretly loving this, too.
“We’ll give you the proper king and queen wave from atop the podium.” Aidan waves his hand with a stately flourish.
“Uh-huh, sure.”
“You may have opened a can of worms,” Kenna tells West.
“I’m not worried.” He grins at Aidan. “As couples go, we’ve been together much longer.”
He draws the words out, and my stomach squeezes thinking he knows something. But he couldn’t possibly… Right?
Cade calls West out. “Please, you guys are still in the gross touchy-feely phase, too.”
Aidan shakes his head at his friend. “New or not, it’s on.”
“You know it.”
Over my head, they touch knuckles, but I can’t get West’s words out of my mind. They feel like a lead balloon in my stomach. He and Kenna have been together much longer. Actually, they’re together period. Aidan and I can’t even say that, and I hate the way the lie bothers me right now.
Regardless, we’re not backing down from the competition, so we’ll just have to be the best couple we can be.
7
AIDAN
I tuckmy notes into my notebook after Professor Huron’s brain-melting lesson. I don’t mind History, I actually enjoy it, but not the way he teaches it. He makes it as one-dimensional as his monotone voice.
I nod at a defensive player who mopes up to the professor’s desk at the end of class. It’s no wonder he’s having trouble passing this one. He can probably barely stay awake. I pat his shoulder as I make my way around him, sending him condolences that he has to deal with this.
Exiting through the doors, I pull out my phone to see if Bailey’s reached out. I don’t know what I expected, but she seems to be doing well in her first week of classes. I had visions of her blowing up my messages with all these questions about campus or college or coursework. But it’s the exact opposite. She’s fitting in great, and when we see one another, it’s all smiles and chaste kisses for show, keeping the jersey chasers at bay and her brother in the dark.
It’s going so smoothly, I’m wondering why I never thought about a permanent cockblocker before. Genius idea.
The sidewalk leads me out onto the quad where old trees cast enough shade that there are only a few places to get sun. Students are out enjoying the warm weather, and I stop when I spot Bailey’s golden halo of hair. She’s sitting cross-legged, her blonde tresses falling over her face while writing intently.
Changing course, I walk that way. She doesn’t notice me coming until the sun at my back makes a shadow across her. Her face changes from annoyed to smiling when she sees it’s me. “Hey, stud.”
We both chuckle. She has such a nice laugh. Dainty, almost. But I’ve heard her roar one out that would rival Farmer’s. Either way, it’s nice to hear it.
The sun catches on her fingers, and I notice she’s taken off her nail polish. She’s deglamorized her look from when she first got here. Today, she’s wearing a pair of capris and a simple shirt. Honestly, the transformation is sexy as hell. A girl in a beautiful dress with lipstick and the whole nine is gorgeous, but that gives off these unattainable vibes. Right now, Bailey is the epitome of the girl next door. An innocence that is somehow sexy.
Not that my mind should be going there.