Page 7 of Hate the Game (Playing Dirty #1)

***Savannah***

Ihad to move onto phase two of my plan before I was ready to.

After exposing myself to Ryder I had to make sure the other two guys didn’t start suspecting me before I got more of their attention.

I wasn’t exactly thrilled to start one on one time with them.

It was nerve-wracking enough to pretend to be someone else in a group but on such an individual level, there was even more pressure to keep my act together.

I couldn’t simply follow them around anymore, though. It was time.

I was going with Cole first, for obvious reasons.

He was a player. He seemed to love the attention of women.

I had a feeling he’d let me flirt with him, even if he hated my guts.

It was so rare to find Cole alone on campus that when I came out of our dorm and found him leaning against the side of the building, I decided to just go for it.

I was supposed to be across campus, slipping inside a lecture hall to sit through a series of famous interviews.

What was another few minutes late, though?

Cole smirked when he saw me coming towards him.

He really was a beautiful man. He had wild, black curls that were just a little too long and dark, dark brown eyes that always seemed to be sending a message of promise or threat.

That day he was in a band t-shirt that clung to his strong body and a pair of ripped up jeans that had seen better days but made him look stylish and cool.

It was infuriating how effortlessly hot he was.

I’d wrestled my own curls into submission but only after thirty minutes of battling them.

I had on another sundress with my boots but I knew that particular sundress had a tendency to dance around my thighs as I walked.

There was no telling how many times I flashed my underwear on a slightly breezy day but it hugged my figure so well that I couldn’t get rid of it.

Cole seemed to like it as I closed the distance between us.

His eyes stayed on my thighs until I was closer and then they just moved up to my chest.

He bit his lip and finally met my gaze. “They really do make ‘em different in Texas, don’t they?”

I giggled and playfully swatted his chest. I felt the muscle flex under my touch and focused on not blushing. “I don’t hate the way they make ‘em in California, either.”

His lips tipped up in a smirk and he pushed off the wall to stand closer. His hand moved to my waist and stayed there as he looked me over. “This dress should be illegal, Sav.”

I grinned and twisted away from him so I could spin and show him how it twirled. I knew good and well that I’d flashed him my white lace panties but I was betting on it being a good thing. “It even has pockets!”

He groaned under his breath and tore his eyes away from my ass. “How is your article going? Do you need more time for interviews?”

I twirled my hair and pretended to think about it. “I guess I should interview y’all, huh? I’m so dumb. You’re literally my hero, Cole. Could I interview you first? I’d love some alone time with you. To interview you, I mean.”

He smirked even darker when I giggled like a fool. His hand went back to my waist and his fingers bit into my side as he pulled me closer. “Some alone time, huh? What would we-”

He was interrupted by another woman clearing her throat beside us. I felt like I’d been caught red-handed and tried to step away but Cole just stepped closer and rested his hand low on my back, pressing his luck with one finger dipping lower, on my ass. “Hey, Cass. Have you met Savannah?”

I’d seen the other woman with the guys around campus plenty but I hadn’t met her. I was pretty sure she lived on the same hall as us and was a cheerleader. I smiled at her, genuinely happy at the idea of a female friend. “Hi, Cass. I’m Sav. I’ve seen you around. I love your hair.”

Her upper lip curled slightly as she flashed a fake smile at me. “Thanks. Hey, Cole, are you ready to drive me to my appointment?”

Cole groaned and ran his free hand through his hair. “Yeah. I just forgot for a minute. We’ll have to reschedule that one on one, Sav.”

I felt Cass’ eyes burning a hole through me but felt like I could still save the chance of a female friend. “Don’t let me get in your way. Are y’all together? I have this dumb article to write and maybe I could talk about you in it, Cass.”

Cole put the nail in the coffin of my first potential friendship by laughing like I’d said the funniest thing. “Me and Cass? No. Cass was a childhood friend. She’s just one of the guys.”

I looked away, embarrassed as I saw a flicker of pain on her face. “Oh, sorry. I grew up with three brothers so I totally get-”

“We have to go, Cole.” She all but turned her back on me and gripped his arm. “Come on. Maybe we can stop at that place we like on the way back?”

Cole wagged his brows at me as he let her pull him away. “I’ll find you later, Savannah Lane. You owe me that one on one.”

I wanted to kick his ass for her. Instead of answering him I turned and hauled ass across campus. That interview opportunity had gone up in smoke but I could still get to class at least. Everything couldn’t be a failure in one day.

Even after getting to class and sneaking into a seat at the back of the lecture hall I couldn’t stop thinking about Cass.

I cringed as I imagined myself in her shoes.

I’d definitely been there before, crushing on a friend who didn’t see me as a woman.

In my normal life I wasn’t sexualizing myself so much.

I was normal and my love of football often got me placed in that crushing space of being just one of the guys.

I felt for her. I understood why she didn’t give me warm vibes.

I hoped that I could straighten things out with her and actually have a friend.

The loneliness was starting to become gut-twisting.

I was used to having my brothers all around me all the time.

I was used to having friends and people to talk to.

All of that would’ve been different if I’d stayed in Texas, though.

I probably would’ve been almost as lonely and alone.

Things hadn’t ended very well for me before I left.

Matter of fact, things had ended so poorly that I probably would’ve gone somewhere else even if I didn’t get the opportunity with Varsity Ledger.

“Hello? Earth to Miss Lane. Care to join us here on the P lanet E arth and answer my question?”

I went hot all over. It was one thing to look stupid when I was trying to but to do it accidentally? Humiliating. I cleared my throat and looked around desperately for a sign of the professor’s question.

“How about you excuse yourself from this lecture, Miss Lane? Clearly coming late and daydreaming about whatever silly thing you’ve got in your brain isn’t conducive for learning.

Try again next week.” The professor, a serious looking older man, just stood there and watched me until I grabbed my bag and hurried out of my seat.

“Let that be an example to the rest of you. This isn’t some class you can just pass with a smile and a late paper about why you’d like world peace.

Let Miss Lane be your motivation to be better. ”

I was fuming and so embarrassed when I left the building that I didn’t even bother stopping to get food before storming into my room and slamming the door.

I opened my laptop and went to the same place I often did when I was that angry.

The article I’d written that got rave reviews.

It was good. Better than good. It’d won awards.

Too bad it wasn’t my name under the title.

It was Professor Charles McGraw’s name where mine should’ve been.

Of course, I’d called him Charlie when I’d written it from his bed.