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CHAPTER SEVEN

CHARLIE

“I spoke to the school, and they can get you into the freshmen dorms. It would be a double, but at least you’d have your own place.” Mom’s suggestion echoes through the phone, making me groan.

“Thanks for trying, Mom, but I’d rather not take a chance on having an awful roommate again. In the meantime, I have a place to stay.”

“I know. I just want you to be comfortable.”

I smile as I balance the phone on my ear while sliding my jeans on. “If you’re worried about me leaving Walker because it doesn’t feel right, you’re wasting your worries. I am not transferring schools again. Even if I have to sleep on a cot for the next three years, I’m finishing my degree at Walker.”

She lets out a relieved breath. “That makes me so happy. I’ll be even more pleased when this room situation is resolved.”

I button my jeans and put the phone on speaker so I can slide on a tank top. “Same. Living with guys was not on my bingo card.”

“How has it been, staying with those boys?”

How has it been?

The first few days of classes are always a little chaotic, and I’ll be honest, I was a little worried that living in a house with four guys would make it even worse. But if anything, it’s been really great. Archie walked me to the bookstore to get what I needed for my classes, Pitz showed me how to access the student portal from my laptop, and Casey has been my chauffeur since he’s been pretty tight-fisted with the car keys. Beck, on the other hand, has been quiet. I haven’t seen him around much the last few days, and when I have, he’s kept to himself. Even at bedtime, he seems to stay in the living room until I’m asleep and then comes up to bed.

“It’s been great, Mom. Really good so far.” I wrap my hair into a ponytail and walk out of the bathroom, ready to start my morning.

“I’m glad. Well, I was just calling to wish you a great day. Tell your brother that I love him.”

“Will do, Mom. I love you.”

I shove my phone into my back pocket and walk over to my side of the room. You can easily tell which side is mine compared to Beck’s because while mine has bags and boxes stacked haphazardly, his side is OCD central, where everything is in its place.

I’m placing my laptop in my bag when I notice a pink peony on the top of my comforter. I lift it to my nose and inhale the sweet scent. The stem has a jagged edge, like it was hand-picked.

Beneath the flower is a note. Short. Simple. Handwritten.

Have a great first day.

—Becks

To say I’m surprised is an understatement. It’s something he used to do. Back when we were together. Back when we didn’t screw the whole thing up.

My stomach does a flip as I try to sort out in my head why he would do this. I can’t help but wonder what it means.

I tuck the note in my bag and leave the peony on the bed as I head to the kitchen.

“Morning,” Casey says from his place at the table.

Beside him is Beck, dressed in jeans and a henley, looking too delicious for words, as usual. His head is down as he eats and skims through his phone at the same time. He doesn’t look up or acknowledge my presence at all. It leaves me feeling a little confused and feeling more unsettled by this shift from hate to … friend-ish … to ignoring me. The problem is, I don’t think I could ever just be friends with Beck. Once he kissed me behind the tree all those years ago, I was his.

It’s just always been more.

The Walker University horseshoe is the central part of campus, not only where most of the class buildings are located, but also where you can find a minute to yourself on the lawn or to hang out with friends between classes. I’ve spent some time there this week, getting organized and just catching up on my reading. I’m trying to take advantage before the Oklahoma weather turns and it’ll be too cold to be outside.

Today, there’s an impromptu football game going on. Instead of lingering, I have to head over to Dell Hall, where I have a late afternoon class. It’s in a building I have yet to be in, and based on the tour Archie gave me last week, it’s supposed to be on the far side of campus.

Problem is, I can’t remember exactly where he said it was.

I stop and look up at the name of the building in front of me and down at the syllabus on my phone. The names don’t match. I scroll through my phone to call Casey. He doesn’t answer. Figures. He’s probably with Noelle again, per usual. Just like they were in high school.

I place my hand on my head and start walking farther down the brick path that leads to the next building, but I stop short when I recognize that building is an all-girls dorm. I remember that because of a funny story Archie told me about sneaking out of the third-story window last year, wearing nothing but his boxers because the girl he had hooked up with happened to be the roommate of another girl he had hooked up with. The girls called their resident assistant on him as an unwanted intruder, and he’d hauled ass down a water pipe before getting caught and subsequently losing playing time.

So, now, I’m standing on the back side of campus, lost and laughing to myself like a crazy person.

“You okay over there?” a male voice says behind me.

I turn to see a guy with brown hair and blue eyes. He has on a hoodie and oversize headphones around his neck. He looks kind of familiar, but I can’t place him.

I drop my hand from my forehead and explain, “Can you tell me where Dell Hall is?”

He smiles. It’s a sweet smile. The kind that makes you want to trust him.

“You must be headed to Robertson’s lecture on Human Sexuality and Religion,” he surmises.

I lift a brow. “How did you know?”

“Only beautiful, smart, and absolutely awesome women take that class,” he quips.

I roll my eyes even though I’m totally flattered by his compliment. “That was cheesy.”

“Cheesy usually gets me laid.”

I let out a bark-like laugh. “Yeah, I don’t think it’s the lines.”

He is drop-dead gorgeous. He wouldn’t need lines like that.

“Didn’t work on you?”

“Not one bit.”

He laughs as he nods his head. “Figures. For the record, my lines never get me anywhere. I need to work on my game.” He holds out a hand. “I’m Bo Callaway. I had that class but had to drop it because of football practice.”

I take his hand with a smile. “That’s how I know you. You’re the rookie on the team. Heard you’re gonna give Pitz a run for his money as QB.”

“I’m flattered you’ve heard of me.”

“Only because I’m Casey King’s sister, Charlie.”

“Ahh. Your brother’s a cool guy. I’m sure he wouldn’t like me too much if I left you here, stranded. Here, I’ll show you where your class is.”

Bo and I start walking. There’s a path between the two buildings I was standing in front of. He leads me down to a third building situated behind them. I never would have noticed this path if Bo hadn’t shown me.

“Where you from, Bo?”

“California. Pretty crazy, being so far away from home.”

“You homesick?”

“Not yet. Coach keeps me busy, and I get to meet pretty little ladies like you.” He shoots me a wink and a smile.

I laugh at his comment. He’s a cutie.

“Trust me, Bo, I’m not your type.”

“Guess I shouldn’t be hitting on my teammate’s sister. He’d kick my ass, I’m sure.”

I give him a smile as he grabs the door handle and pulls it open. “Flirt away, friend. It’s good for the ego.”

“In that case, are you free this weekend? There’s a party after the game. I’d love to hang out for a bit.”

Just as the words are out of his mouth, Beck comes walking out the door. Yes, Beck, the man who left me a flower and a sweet note on my bed yet acts completely indifferent to my existence. And he’s looking at Bo like he’s going to tear his head off.

“Hey, Beck!” Bo says as he steps back, not reading the room. “This is Charlie, Casey’s sister.”

“I know Charlene— well ,” Beck drawls, and I narrow my eyes at him.

Bo smirks and nods his head. “Ah, okay. Well, I was just showing her to her class. She has Robertson’s?—”

“Go to practice, Bo.” Beck’s words are a command. “I got her from here.”

Bo laughs and clasps a hand on Beck’s shoulder as he walks away. “See you on the field, Linson.” He looks at me with a smile. “Charlie, it was nice meeting you.”

“See you around, Bo.”

Turning to face Beck, he holds the door with his back as I walk through. My side brushes up against him as I do, and I notice the hardened muscle beneath his shirt.

Okay, fine, I might have purposely shifted my weight into him because, honestly, I’ve been dying to run my hand down his chest. And then down his abs and into his?—

Focus, Charlie.

I saunter past him and stop because I don’t know if I’m supposed to go right or left.

Beck places a hand on my forearm and pulls me to the left. “You’re over here.”

I follow him down the hall and to a stairwell at the end.

“I can find it from here. You can go to practice.”

“I’m fine.”

“Won’t Coach be upset if you’re late?”

“I said, I’m fine. I’ll walk you up.”

We take one step at a time. Beck is clearly not in a rush.

“It’s quiet in here compared to other buildings.”

“This is the only class in here right now. It’s crowded before three.”

“You have class in here a lot?”

“I have, uh, class on the second floor.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize you were taking any psychology classes. Do you have to take that for your engineering degree? Or are you taking it for funsies?” I laugh to try to lighten the mood and catch his gaze.

His eyes are locked straight ahead, but I see a smirk on the side of his mouth.

“No, not any classes toward my degree, but I took a class last year and hit it off with my professor. I go in to help him from time to time between classes and practice.”

“Ah, that makes sense. Do you know anything about Robertson? Is he good, or will the next hour drag on?” I grimace.

“Which class is it?”

“Human Sexuality and Religion.”

“Interesting. I have only heard good things about Robertson, so I’m sure it’ll be good. Is that something you’re interested in studying, or is it a requisite for your major?” he asks.

“Yeah, it’s in my field of study, so I need to take it in order to get into Women’s Sexuality in Modern Culture next year.” I blush a little, not because I’m embarrassed, but because I know that particular class is whispered about around campus. It’s pretty graphic from what I hear.

“So, you definitely decided on a psych degree? You’ll be great, no matter what you do, but this fits you. You have great intuition, compassion, and curiosity about people.” He mumbles a little at the last part as we reach the top of the staircase.

I look at the number next to the nearest door and see it’s the room I need to be in. “Well, this is me.” I turn to Beck and see he’s already looking at me.

“Have fun, Charlene. I’ll come get you after practice.” He smirks.

“Oh, no, you don’t have to do that. I can find my way back to the house now. I just couldn’t find the building and happened to run into Bo.” I don’t know why I felt the need to add that.

“I don’t doubt you can get back to the house, but I don’t want you walking home by yourself as it gets dark. I’ll pick you up, and we’ll go home together.”

We’re locked in a stare, but I break first and look down at my shoes. “Okay, that’s fine.”

Beck nods, then turns and walks away. And I watch until he’s out of sight. I mean … that ass deserves to be admired.

Class passes by quickly. The professor’s presentation for the course is fascinating, but I also love that he’s engaging with the students. It’s not a big group, so I think it’ll be fun and interactive.

And when I walk out of Dell Hall an hour later, just like Beck said, he’s standing by the door to take me home.