Page 11

Eleven

Colt

I returned Hailey’s bewildered look and switched to my messages. The sheer flood of unread texts made my eyes go wide and my stomach knot with anxiety.

As expected, Knox had opened his big, fat mouth. I just didn’t think it would cause such a huge stir. I hadn’t expected them to badger Hunter for information. Everyone on the team knew he wasn’t up for that sort of thing. The team’s group chat was completely out of control.

Knox Bradshaw: Yo. Am I the only one who didn’t know Michaels had a girlfriend? *exploding head emoji*

Asher Harris: Wait, what?

Jax Henderson: No way.

Ty McAllister: Fucking Michaels?

Asher Harris: You sure you got that right? *monocle emoji*

Jax Handerson: @Michaels, we need details, like yesterday.

Ty McAllister: @Michaels Yeah, exactly, when did this happen, dude?

Knox Bradshaw: @ Harris, considering she introduced herself as his girlfriend, I assume I got it right *raised eyebrow emoji*

Asher Harris: Holy fuck.

The conversation went on for quite a while, and they kept tagging me, then eventually switched their efforts to Hunter when they got no response from me. I scrolled through the messages, wincing here and there or shaking my head.

Sighing, I let my eyes wander back to Hailey. I had felt her gaze fixed on me, so when I met her gaze again, she gave me an expectant look.

“Knox has graciously informed the team about us.”

“Okay?” She raised her eyebrows.

“That’s what it was about. They all went totally nuts about it and tried to get details out of me. When I didn’t answer, they got on Hunter’s ass and, well, Hunter is … Hunter.”

Hailey nodded. “I can imagine.”

“They probably won’t shut up until I give them something.” I groaned.

Still between my legs, she leaned over my phone, looking at it contemplatively.

“Hmm.”

Ella chose that moment to burst back into the room with the force of a tornado. “Oh, look at that, you guys did it,” she said excitedly, pointing to all the boxes. “At the risk of being the third wheel, you want to grab a bite somewhere?”

Hailey looked at me with a quirked brow, and although I would love nothing more than to spend more time with her, I decided to clear the field. She needed friends here, and Ella seemed nice enough, so I wouldn’t fuck that up.

“You two go out and have dinner together, it’s your first night as roomies, after all. I still have to hit the weight room tonight anyway. I’ll see you soon,” I said, and slowly rose to my full height while maneuvering Hailey gently to the side. Her expression was difficult for me to read.

“Weight room?” Ella asked. “All that lugging around wasn’t enough for you today?”

I chuckled. “It’s about accountability. If one of us starts skipping, it sets off a chain reaction. So I’m taking one for the team.”

“Wow, you’re a better person than me. Then again, that’s probably one of the reasons I don’t play a team sport. I don’t know how you do it.” Ella tilted her head. “Anyway, I really appreciate you lettin’ me steal away your girlfriend.”

“No problem.”

I shoved my hands back into my pockets to keep from reaching for Hailey. As I was about to say goodbye, the slight tilt of her head and the subtly raised brows made me realize I couldn’t just walk out of the room .

With slow, deliberate movements, I slipped a hand under her chin, tilted her head up, and leaned down so our lips could meet.

I had no idea where this sudden confidence came from, but when it came to physical contact with Hailey, something in my brain short-circuited and my instincts took over. I was no longer an awkward, fumbling idiot but someone who knew what he wanted and went for it.

Her tongue tangled with mine in a power struggle. My free hand moved of its own accord and splayed across her hip, gently squeezing the supple flesh. When she briefly sucked on my tongue, my knees nearly buckled, making my cock throb in sync with my racing pulse.

My balls pulled up for a second, like they had back at the car, and pre-cum dripped down my shaft. Jesus Christ, this girl would be the death of me. When she bit my lower lip, I had to stifle a growl, then she pulled away from me.

I cleared my throat, noticing out of the corner of my eye that Ella had a shit-eating grin on her face, and put some distance between us.

“Well, I guess I’ll be off, then,” I said, walking backward before tripping over my own feet like an idiot, my cheeks burning red with embarrassment. “Ella, nice to meet you. Hailey, have fun, I’ll see you soon.” I saluted, and in the next moment wanted to punch myself for acting so awkward. The girls laughed a little and waved as I disappeared into the hallway.

As I walked to the truck, I pulled out my phone and sent a quick message to the group chat.

Me: Stop fucking harassing Hunter.

Asher Harris: Oh my God, he’s alive *celebrating emoji*

Ty McAllister: You want to fill us in so we don’t have to ask him again?

Knox Bradshaw: Dude, I told you, I literally saw them.

Me: Can everybody just shut the fuck up?

Jax Henderson: Oh, touchy *winking sticking out tongue emoji*

Elijah Steed: Bro, just tell us if Bradshaw is full of shit

I let out a groan. Why were they all so damn nosy?

Me: No

Asher Harris: No, as in, he’s telling the truth?

Jax Henderson: Yeah Michaels, please be very specific

Me: Fucking hell. Bradshaw ain’t talking shit. I have a girlfriend.

Done with this conversation, I shoved my phone back in my pocket and climbed into my truck. I usually avoided the weight room at this time of night, it was too busy, but I desperately needed an outlet for my sexual frustration and the frustration my team had caused with their bullshit.

Fortunately, none of the gossipy refrigerator-sized blabbermouths were in the weight room at that time, and I made it through my session undisturbed.

Once I was home, standing under the warm spray of the shower, I fisted my dick, which had been at half-mast ever since I left Hailey’s dorm, and jerked off to the memory of her lips and tongue.

God, the little sounds she had made . I pressed my forehead against the cold tiles, and it only took a few strokes before I felt the telltale twinge in my lower back and my balls tighten as my cum spurted against the shower wall in powerful jets.

Not that it did much good. By the time I was in bed, I was half hard again . My thoughts were consumed by her, even more than before. She’d probably run screaming the other way if she knew about all the things I was doing to her in my head. Or maybe not?

What the hell did I know, given everything that’d happened over the last twelve hours? I thought I’d never touch her again after what happened last year, maybe never even see her again, yet here she was, offering herself to me on a fucking silver platter. I couldn’t help but wonder if maybe I could convince her, trick her, into letting me keep her. Maybe, if I played my cards just right, I could turn this fake arrangement into something real .

The next morning, after fucking my fist twice more — my dick just wouldn’t go down — I ran into Hunter again in the kitchen while searching for food. We shared this more than spacious house, thanks to my parents, who loved Hunter like the brother I never had. As I tried to put off the inevitable conversation by sticking my head in the fridge, I felt his heavy gaze on me.

“What?” I finally asked, still not meeting his eyes as I placed a carton of eggs on the counter.

He said nothing as I made an omelet. Hunter loathed talking, and he knew me well enough to know that I wouldn’t last long in this situation.

Apparently, I was predictable. After I’d maneuvered my eggs onto a plate, I finally peered in his direction. He stood at the kitchen island, arms crossed, simply watching me.

“Just ask.” I groaned.

“You obviously know what I want to know. Spit it out.”

“Which part?”

“I know I told you to shoot your shot, but that was pretty quick, bro.”

Shoveling eggs into my mouth, I contemplated what to say. “Who says it’s Hailey?”

“Oh, please .”

“Okay, okay.” I threw up my hands defensively and rolled my eyes. “She’s not really my girlfriend. It’s just fake — for now.”

“How the hell did that happen?” His eyebrows knitted together.

“Don’t even ask. No idea how I could explain that without sounding like a lunatic. Something about her not wanting to get hit on constantly since she’s a cheerleader?”

“Hailey’s going to cheer here?”

“That’s what I just told you.”

“You do realize she’s going to be at all our games, right?”

“Yeah, thanks, Einstein. I figured that out myself.”

“So, what exactly is your plan?”

“Be the best fake boyfriend ever and hopefully get to keep her, I guess.” I ran my fingers through my hair and clasped my hands at the back of my neck. “This is probably my one and only chance. I would have been a complete idiot to say no after she offered me basically everything I’ve ever wanted. I just have to play my cards right and hope it’ll fucking work.”

“I got your back, no matter what you do.” He slapped me on the back with one hand.

I nodded. “Thanks. Appreciate it.”

Then he suddenly burst out laughing.

“What?” I asked, confused.

“I was just trying to imagine how the team will react when they see you together for the first time. Please make sure I’m there for it, it will be a sight to behold. There’s no way I want to miss that.”

I snorted. “You got it.”

Then I tilted my head back and looked up at the ceiling, pensive and somehow uneasy. “Think there’ll be a lot of shitty comments?”

Hunter was silent for a while, and when my eyes darted down to him again, his lips were pursed. “Nah. We’re not in high school anymore, and a majority of the team has a lot of respect for you. I’m sure most of them will just be surprised because you’ve never shown any interest in a girl before. But, dude … you know how some of them can be. One or two of them are bound to make some kind of comment, especially when they see Hailey. I have zero interest in her, you know that, but objectively, she’s a looker.”

“Yup. I know.” I blew out a breath. “At least that way, I don’t have to listen to how everyone wants to fuck her or how hot her ass is, like in high school.”

“Facts. Look on the bright side, bro. Just … don’t let her crush you. If she treats you like shit, let her go. Promise me.”

“Yeah, okay. I promise. ”

He turned and headed out of the room. “All right, enough with the deep talk.”

I barked out a laugh. For the second day in a row, I had apparently used up his daily supply of words with just one conversation.

***

I hadn’t heard from Hailey all day. Considering we weren’t really dating, that was to be expected. She posted a few Instagram stories, though, and as usual, I couldn’t stop myself from checking them out.

When she’d followed me after we first met, I’d miraculously found myself in her “close friends” story — don’t know how that happened — and I’d been obsessing over every new picture with a possibly unhealthy amount of attention.

The fact they were often quite provocative didn’t help. Not that I was complaining. The pictures alternated between precious glimpses of the things that made Hailey who she was and occasionally downright sexy selfies or close-ups. I’d be pretty fucked if she ever got her hands on my phone and found the folder of screenshots of her stories.

Sitting in the Jacuzzi on our deck, I was scrolling through my feed — yes, a Jacuzzi — trying to soothe my stiff muscles. I posted a picture of the bubbling water with the sunset in the background in a fit of optimistic wishful thinking that maybe she was also watching my stories.

Less than two minutes later, a notification suddenly popped up at the top of my screen. When I realized who I had received a message from, my heart began to race. I almost dropped my phone in the water out of elation.

TheHaileyBW: Nice view *heart eyes emoji *

Me: Could be worse. How was your first day?

TheHaileyBW: Meh. Freshman orientation week, nothing really exciting. I mean … My boyfriend wasn’t there, after all. How about you?

Me: Training camp. Yeah, imagine that. I would have stuck out even more among all those freshmen.

TheHaileyBW: I like that you stand out *monkey covering eyes emoji*

Me: If you say so.

TheHaileyBW: I do. By the way, in my capacity as your girlfriend, I expect to be invited to your next hot tub adventure

Me: Nothing adventurous about it. The hot tub is here, you’re welcome anytime.

TheHaileyBW: I can think of a couple of ways to make it adventurous.

I froze. Fuck me . There goes my dick again. The thought of Hailey in one of her tiny bikinis and within reach of me again was almost too much for me.

Images of her bare tits in my face and her hot pussy pressing against me flashed through my mind. I didn’t think I’d ever see that again. And now it was within my grasp .

TheHaileyBW: Did I go too far?

I hadn’t replied for several minutes, too wrapped up in my vivid memories. Cursing under my breath, I typed a response at lightning speed.

Me: Never. Is this a ‘I’ll have to wait until it actually happens to find out more’ situation, or are you letting me in on your plans?

TheHaileyBW: That is still under consideration. Maybe I’ll be persuaded if I get a little incentive *smirking emoji*

Me: Like what?

I nervously took a sip from my drink, which was sitting on the edge of the Jacuzzi, and ran my fingers through my slightly damp hair.

TheHaileyBW: The view is pretty nice, but I’d rather know what I’d be looking at if you flipped the camera *devil emoji*

Fucking hell. I didn’t know if I could do this. No girl had ever asked me for pictures; this was new territory. But this was Hailey, and we were having an actual conversation that bordered on sexting.

With my nerves completely shot, I took a few deep breaths, then snapped a selfie. My face briefly contorted into a grimace, unhappy with what I was seeing — a heavy brow, giving me a permanently brooding expression, with a crooked smile, and my face flushed from the steam — at least I was tanned.

Well, here goes nothing.