Page 18

Chapter 18

Aiden

“Are you going to stop sulking or help me think?” I ask Cameron.

A slight shift on the couch is the only acknowledgement that he heard me. From my seat on the other side of the living room in the pool house, I rest my laptop down. My network security project can wait until later. “Cam.”

“What, dude?” he asks impatiently, still staring at the TV. Cameron hates reality TV, so I know for a fact he’s not watching that train wreck on the screen. Reaching for the remote, I turn it off.

“Hey!”

“What’s bothering you?” I ask him.

Cameron tries swiping the remote and I tuck it in my pants. “Gross, you asshole.”

I stare at him patiently.

He sighs loudly, throwing his legs over the arm of the couch. “Why didn’t you tell me about Scarlett?”

“What about her?”

“There’s something going on between you two—and before you deny it, we’ve been friends for sixteen years, remember that.”

“There’s nothing going on with me and Scarlett.”

He slides me a skeptical stare.

I throw my hands up. “Fine. We did kiss, but it was a spur of the moment thing that can’t happen again.” My eyes dart to the pool that immediately stirs the memory of her legs wrapped around my waist.

“Why?”

Shaking that blood-heating thought away, it takes a moment of contemplating before I reply, “What I’m about to say can’t leave this room, understood?”

Cameron sits up with a slight frown. “What’s going on, dude?”

“Promise me.”

“Hand to God,” he vows, raising his right hand.

Resting my butt on the edge of the center table, I tell him about my dad’s infidelity to my parents’ plans to use Casey’s dad for business. He scrubs his face when I finish. “Wow.”

“Wow indeed,” I sigh, rising up and heading toward the kitchen. Cameron stands facing the pool when I return with two bottles of water.

“So, have you thought about it? Going back to Casey, I mean,” he says, taking a bottle from me.

I shrug. “Either that or lose three million dollars.” The less people know about my true intention concerning Casey, the better. Besides, I don’t want Cameron judging me for using her.

“Well, you could dump her after getting the money. It’s what she would deserve, anyway.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right about that.” Taking a swig of the bottle, I stare out at the pool again. All I’m thinking about now are Scarlett’s soft moans, her lips crushing mine, how her body shuddered as she came. All I want is to experience the rush that moment gave me.

“But you don’t want to.”

Silence.

“Because you want Scarlett,” he presses.

I tear my eyes away from that spot. “It doesn’t matter what I want. What I need is more important. Three million dollars can tide me over until I get settled in the league.”

“There’s nothing wrong with what I suggested. Date Casey, get the money, then dump her ass. Simple.” He frowns knowingly when I don’t answer. “Of course, six months is a heck of a long time to date someone just for money. It’s also a long enough time to lose someone for good.”

“Don’t pretend like you know what’s in my head,” I snap, irritated at him for knowing exactly what’s in my head .

Cameron snorts. “I’ve never seen you look at Casey the way you did with Scarlett and you claimed to have loved Casey. You’re worried that dating your ex could fuck up your chances with Scarlett, aren’t you?”

“You watch too many romance movies.” I push past him.

“And you are in denial for no reason, my friend.” He follows me back to the couch. “Especially with me. I like Scarlett for you. She’s not like the airheads you mess around with. Casey included.”

I scoff with amusement.

He pats my knee. “It’s up to you to decide if she’s worth more than three million dollars. Good luck—”

“That night the Wolves slashed those tires,” I interrupt. “Besides Scarlett, did you notice anyone else?”

Cameron narrows his eyes at my obvious attempt to change the subject, but he still replies, “No, but that doesn’t mean anything. It was pretty dark. Someone could’ve been lurking anywhere.”

“Not could’ve. They were lurking somewhere,” I reply.

He considers my response for a moment, then snaps his fingers. “Security cameras. They’re literally everywhere.”

“Yeah, but how are we going to get access to them? The security team wasn’t exactly forthcoming with that information.”

“Because we’re not going through campus security, dude. I know a guy who works in the IT department. A couple thousand and we could get that information by the end of the week.”

“Do it,” I reply at once. “Hit him up and let me have the cost.”

Cameron nods and as he lifts the phone from off the couch, it rings loudly. He frowns and stares at the screen.

“Aren’t you going to get that?” I ask, curious.

He shakes his head. “I don’t know why the fuck she’s calling me.”

“Who?”

“No one.” He rolls his eyes as it starts ringing again.

“‘No one’ is making you quite upset. Your entire face is red,” I observe with slight amusement. Cameron doesn’t crack a smile. He turns the ringer off and throws the phone on the couch.

I tap my fingers patiently on the arm of the couch, waiting for him. He finally sighs harshly. “It’s her.”

The emotional edge in his tone makes me understand at once. “The same girl you won’t tell me about.”

“There’s nothing worth telling. She’s a skank.”

My brows raise at him. “You seem pretty upset over a skank. Are you ever going to stop being so secretive? Who is she? What did she do to you?”

He brushes off my questions with a wave of his hand. “I don’t want to talk about her. Scarlett; now, she’s someone worth mentioning.”

“I don’t want to talk about her .” I gesture to his phone. “My only aim is to get Noah off her back for good. Call your IT friend.”

Cameron grabs the device but doesn’t dial. He plants a firm stare on me. “I get it. You want that back-up in case your career doesn’t take off right away, but I have faith in you, my friend. You won’t need that money.”

“Either way, it’s mine. Walking away is not that easy when I know it exists,” I reply defiantly.

“Which means losing out on an incredible girl. Choosing Casey means losing Scarlett, you understand that, right?”

“I can’t lose what I don’t have,” I throw back. “Besides, Scarlett and I are from different worlds. We’d never work.”

“The pending valedictorian of Hempton College, future orthopedic surgeon? Your worlds might be different now, but not for much longer,” Cameron points out.

A deep frown settles on my face. “I don’t understand why you’re pushing me toward Scarlett.”

“Besides the fact that I can’t stand Casey?” He laughs. “Dude, one of us deserves some kind of happiness in the love department and from the way your face lights up whenever Scarlett gets mentioned, it seems to be you.”

I shake my head, staring down at my hands. “A relationship is not my focus right now; you know that—”

“Take things one day at a time, at least,” he prompts me, standing up. “There’s a lot of shit going on in your life. You need something to create a balance, someone who’d make you happy.”

My head lifts. “And you think Scarlett can make me happy.”

He shrugs. “Probably. She’s the perfect distraction, that much I know. Especially that body…” He sighs harshly, shaking his head. I frown at him.

“What? Dude, I’m simply spitting facts. Your girlfriend-to-be has a banging body. Do you know how many people are still talking about her in that black dress?”

I know how often I’ve fantasized about ripping that black dress off her .

Cameron squeezes my shoulder. “Bottom line is, if you snooze, you lose. The guys now know what’s under those baggy clothes and they like it very much.”

Scowling, I shake his hand off me. “Fuck you. I know what you’re doing.”

“Stopping you from making a silly mistake? Right on, dude.” He types something in his cell phone. “I just sent Stanley a text to call when he’s done with work. By tonight, I’ll have his price. You, my friend, have got work to do, too.”

I stare at him blankly.

“Call Scarlett,” he enunciates like someone talking to a two-year old. He laughs when I flip my middle finger at him. The door shuts on his departure and I drop back on the couch with a sigh.

Here in the silence, I admit what I’ve always known. I’ve been drawn to Scarlett since third year calculus and even now, after that moment we shared, I don’t know why. Sure, she’s attractive under all those clothes, but so was every girl I’ve been with. What is it about her that makes it hard to breathe? Why do I feel this insane urge to be around her? Why am I so obsessed with ensuring that she’s safe? It’s more than my guilt for throwing her under the bus. Even after I clear her name, I’d want to always know she’s okay.

Standing, I grab my phone from the center table.

Maybe it’s time to find out.

No one has to know.