48. king
CHAPTER 48
KING
SHORT-LIVED RELIEF
Ditching to see Willow’s show didn’t work. I tried a dozen times. My friends should’ve let me go, but instead I sat there, irritated, for hours.
"King?" Piper pressed her hands against my face, smushing my cheeks together. "I'm super worried about you."
I grunted.
"What’s wrong? "
"If you keep this up, you’re not invited to the wedding," Adam slurred.
"He’s joking?—"
"I’m serious!" Adam slumped into the booth. "You’re not freaking out about that girl. Man, stop being the side chick. Don’t hurt somebody like that."
I shot him a look. "You used to go to couples therapy offices to pick up girls."
"Before Piper. Before Piper."
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and headed to the bar. A couple other Romans tried to motion me over, but I pushed to the counter.
The bartender smirked. "What’ll it be, handsome?"
"My girl, but she’s not here," I muttered. I slid my card over as people jostled behind me, dancing to the music. "Ginger ale."
Fuck, this was a repeat of the beginning of the summer, but now I knew my angel was on stage somewhere and I wasn’t there. This was miserable. I would’ve taken sparring with her if it meant she was at the bar with me.
"King!" Ryan shoved his way through the crowd and scowled at the people who snapped at him. "I want to talk to you."
I grunted, holding up my ginger ale. Not in the mood.
"I don’t know why Adam has such a problem with your situation," Ryan said. "Don’t listen to him."
"Adam isn’t cool with it because Piper was cheated on," I replied. "Now that he’s confronted with the consequences of what he did to all those other relationships, he feels shitty about it." I took a drink. "He’s worried that’s going to happen to him, and he’s putting that on me because he doesn’t know what else to do about it."
"What? He told you that?"
I shook my head, downing the last of the ginger ale.
"How…?"
"Piper helped him file a dyslexia accommodation for his classes, and you would’ve thought I hit someone with my truck. Adam was on my ass the whole day, trying to convince me to block my girl."
"Shit."
I grunted in agreement.
Ryan shrugged. "Whatever. I thought about it. If Kassie had a boyfriend when we got into the fake relationship, it wouldn’t have stopped me."
I paused, mid-drink.
"Yeah. I would’ve paid him off or waterboarded him or some shit. I don’t know. Wouldn’t have stopped me. You should go call your girl. If she can talk to you with a boyfriend, he’s not doing enough anyway. Kick him out, King. You deserve it."
"Thanks but…I already fucked it up."
Ryan took a swig of his beer. "Be upfront about what you want."
Being upfront about what I wanted…that was where all of this was heading. I rubbed the back of my neck. "What if…I said I have a thing for Willow?"
Ryan froze. "What? Willow who?"
For long seconds, he and I looked at each other.
Fuck. Well, the words were already out there. I grabbed his shoulder and directed him towards the hallway separating two parts of the bar. "Ryan?—"
"I’d say that’s a direct betrayal to Coach. I’d say you’re no different than any of the other single idiots on the team?—"
"It’s not like that?—"
"You don’t know Willow like Kassie does. I’m saying this because I know you won’t tell everybody, but this kid’s going through it. She found out her mom cheated on her dad with Lawson so she’s got this whole situation where she’s trying to keep everyone happy, but she feels like she’s betraying her dad."
"I know that?—"
"Then why are you trying to fuck? She’s going through it, King."
I tossed my empty cup in the garbage. "I want more than sex with her."
"We’re the only ones she has right now." He gave me an exasperated look. "Why would you try to mess up the group like that? I know you like Willow, but don’t use her while you can’t have the other girl. Go send that girl a message. Goddamn."
Both of us fell silent.
He sighed. "I can help you put together your list. You helped me with mine for Kassie."
The longer the silence lasted though, the more I couldn’t shake the feeling that Willow and I needed to have a real conversation. We had to talk. In a public place where the sexual tension wouldn’t break us.
I pulled out my phone.
Me
I need to talk to you tomorrow
The angel
Fine.
June had her eyes planted on me the entire drive back to the hotel, biding her time to strike. But I didn’t want to talk anymore.
"Let’s discuss the truth of this whole thing," June whispered once we got Adam and Piper in their rooms. I didn’t hang around, I made my way to the front desk to grab my bag, June following. "King? King? "
I grunted.
"The only reason people don’t know you have a thing for you-know-who is because you are you and no one would think you’d ever do that. That’s it . Now that I know, I thought you two were going to have sex at dinner. Right on the table!"
"It wasn’t that obvious."
"She called you a whore, and you said you dress like her favorite porn star."
Were we that obvious? It was hard to judge. Because all the blood left my head when I stared at Willow. I couldn’t remember what anyone said at dinner. I wracked my brain, trying to remember what we ate. Or where we went.
"King." June stopped me. "It’s bad. Aren’t you supposed to be hiding it?"
"I’m trying."
"That can’t be trying."
I started towards the elevator. I ended up on the seventh floor with Syair, and if I knew Syair, he was still out partying. I could crash before he inevitably brought a girl, or five, over.
In the elevator, June held out a room key.
I frowned. "What’s this?"
"Cleo and I were supposed to bunk together but Miles stopped by to pick her up for the night and Kassie’s staying with Ryan, he ended up with his own room. There’s two empty ones. Take this one. It’s a king bed."
That was better luck than I ever had on one of our trips. I hesitated.
"Take it."
"Thanks, June," I said, and meant it. Getting a quiet room never happened. Maybe I could take a cold shower and actually get some sleep. That’d definitely help. I cleared my throat. "Sorry about all of this."
"Remember when you drove from Louisiana to get me Plan B when I was stuck in that cabin with my drunk ex? Trust me. It’s the least I can do."
The hotel room was great, and I had it all to myself. I should’ve been satisfied. But after the shower, I was restless. Tomorrow was going to be a long day, and I couldn’t help but pace in my towel, gazing at my phone.
No doubt, Willow’s new picture was up.
If I jerked myself off, it would be goddamn unsatisfying, the new normal for me. Finished and still hard. Finished and pissed off about it. If I jerked off, I’d regret it, and that wouldn’t help me fall asleep.
I dried my hair with the towel, debating.
Fuck it.
I thumped back onto the bed, succumbing at last.
The brand-new picture loaded instantly. It was a snapshot of her on stage, in that purple dress that only went down to her thighs, showing off her shapely legs that I had to hold myself back from touching in class.
The way her dress snapped at her chest, pushing her breasts together… fuck . It was hot. My cock throbbed under the towel. Wrapping my hand around the shaft, I stroked, breathing out in the short-lived relief before I’d inevitably, unsatisfyingly cum.
I didn’t want to lay down.
I sat up and swung my legs over, cock in hand, scrolling through her pictures. God, she was so beautiful. There she was, legs crossed by the Romans statue at Marrs. Rolling her eyes for the camera, with those white boots that she only wore with that skirt.
That skirt…it’d be so easy to tug that up and feel her panties.
I pumped my cock, drinking her in.
That was the part that actually felt good. Piecing together the daydream. I could see it, picking her up from one of her shows, taking her to my dorm. Kissing her, unbuttoning her clothes. Putting my hands on her hips, guiding her until she sat on my face.
My hand worked faster, and I had to force myself to slow down. This was the only good part.
I squeezed my eyes shut. "Fuck, Willow."
I was close. So fucking close. I didn’t want to be but I couldn’t stop. Her name kept bursting out as I struggled not to finish, to hold out a little longer to the image of Willow in my lap, with those dark whiskey eyes…
Two more minutes, two more fucking minutes…
" Willow, " I groaned as the card reader beeped. I lurched forward, fumbling with the towel, to see her walking right through the door, staring right at me.