Chapter 52 Everett
EVERETT
“Rett, when the fuck did you get this good?” Killer shouts through my headset as I sit beside Bea and watch her kick ass on screen. She’s playing as me—her idea—as we play with Killer, Linc, and Handsy.
“Fuck you, I’ve always been good.”
Beside me, Bea’s body shakes with laughter. She’s also wearing a headset, but we turned her mic off to stop from giving us away.
Am I pissed at not being the best person in the room at something?
Obviously. I don’t do second best very well.
But when the person coming in first is as hot as Bea, it’s a little easier to accept.
Well, that and the fact that she’s about a million times better than me.
Once this is over, and Monroe has left, I want to know where she learned to play like this. She’s better than all of us.
“Killer’s got a point; something is going on,” Hansdy agrees.
“Maybe I’ve been practicing.”
“Nah, you’ve been far too busy for that,” Linc says confidently.
“Oh yeah? Been on any more dates recently?”
Monroe shoots me a look from the other couch. He looks so much better now he’s got a distraction. Some of his worries have vanished—for now, at least.
“A gentleman never tells,” I deadpan.
“Fuck off. When have you ever been a gentleman?” Handsy teases.
“Since your girl started teaching me,” I shoot back, earning myself a deep growl.
“Keep your filthy hands off my girl, Donnelly,” he warns, despite the fact he knows it’s not necessary. I would never, ever do anything to piss our goalie off that badly.
“He’s too busy getting his own girl hot and bothered with those filthy hands,” Killer mocks.
I keep my eyes on my lap for a few seconds, but eventually, temptation becomes too much, and I glance at Bea.
She might be fully focused on the screen as she bosses this map, but her glowing cheeks confirm what I already know. She’s listening.
Sensing my attention, she glances over, and her breath catches at whatever she sees.
‘You’re killing it,’ I mouth.
A smile twitches at her lips before she turns back to the screen.
As discreetly as I can, I tug at my sweats so it’s not obvious just how hot watching her take down the enemy gets me.
Is it wrong that I want to watch her play against my teammates just so I can watch her win?
“What the fuck? When the hell did you learn that trick, Donnelly?” Handsy demands, and this time, Bea can’t contain her laughter.
Silence falls before Killer asks, “What was that?”
“What was what?” I ask innocently.
“That laugh. It sounded too girly even for you.”
“It was Monroe,” I deadpan.
“He might be a baby, but his voice has dropped already,” Killer confirms, much to Monroe’s irritation.
“That was a girl,” Handsy states. “Donnelly, is your girlfriend playing for you?”
“The fuck?” I bark. “A girl couldn’t play like this. Ow, what the fuck?” I cry when the pillow Bea was resting against hits the side of my head.
“Hey, Bea, how’s it going? You know, you could really teach that boyfriend of yours a thing or two,” Linc says.
Monroe laughs, and I groan.
“The game’s up, man. Time to introduce the new boss of CoD, because everyone knows it’s not you,” Monroe says.
Bea reaches for her headset and turns the mic on.
“Boys, how’s it going?”
“Holy fuck. She’s a real person,” Killer states.
“Of course she’s fucking real.” I scoff. “I’m not dating a fucking blow-up doll.”
“We can’t believe you’re dating anything full stop, real or not,” Hansdy adds.
Bea continues to snigger.
“She’s real, and she’s hot as fuck.”
“I can confirm, Rett’s got good taste,” Monroe says, forcing me to launch the pillow at his head.
“What? I was giving Bea a compliment,” he argues.
“Don’t be looking at my girl and thinking she’s hot.”
He lets out a heavy sigh as the guys continue to rib me.
“So just to confirm, Everett sucks at CoD, right?” Bea asks, speaking for the first time.
A chorus of agreements fills my ears.
“This is bullshit,” I state, jumping to my feet. “Monroe, you need to go home so I can prove my worth.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea, bro,” Linc teases. “You don’t want to show yourself up in front of your girl.”
“She isn’t with me for my skill in CoD.”
“She isn’t with you for the size of your cock, either,” Killer deadpans, making the others roar with laughter.
“They’re just jealous, sweetheart,” I tell Bea. “Their girls even more so.”
“You’re aware that one of those girls is your sister, right?”
“Yep. Poor thing is suffering through life with my best friend, who is very much lacking in that department.”
“Oh, did you want to talk about all the ways I make your sister scream my name?” Linc asks, making my teeth grind. “It’s a shame we’re in the off-season right now; you should see the way she’s shredded up my back.”
I shudder. “Seriously?”
“What? You started it,” Bea points out.
“She has a point,” Monroe agrees.
The banter continues, as does Bea’s killing spree.
“I should get going,” Monroe says an hour or so later, after both Linc and Handsy have logged off to spend some time with their girls.
“You just can’t handle this pace,” Bea mocks, as if they haven’t all been playing for hours already.
“You’re not wrong,” he says as he places the controller down on the coffee table and picks up his cell. “Thank you for tonight. I really enjoyed it,” he says, looking between the two of us.
“Here whenever you need us, man,” I confirm, getting to my feet when he does and following him toward the front door so I can lock it after him.
“She’s awesome, just in case you weren’t aware,” he says, spinning around after he’s opened the door.
“Yeah,” I say, looking back over my shoulder despite the fact that I can’t see her from here. “She’s…something.”
“If you’d have asked me a month or so ago if I thought there was a woman out there who could handle you, I’d have said no, but Bea is perfect. It’s like she was made for you.”
Unease ripples through me.
If only it were really like that.
“How are you doing?” I ask, turning the conversation back on him.
“Uh…” He hesitates, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, things are…well, shit, if I’m being honest, but there’s fuck all I can do about it. I’m heading home the week after next, hopefully until the season starts.”
“What about Linc and Parker’s wedding?” I ask, although I’m not sure why. I have no doubt that whatever his issues are, they’re more important.
“Oh, I’ll be back for that.”
“Yeah?”
“Well, hopefully, yeah.”
“You’ll still be here for their engagement party?”
“Hopefully,” he repeats quietly before he takes off, leaving me standing, watching after him.
After a few seconds, I shake my head and close and lock the door.
Despite only being gone a few minutes, when I get back to the couch, I find that Bea is already fast asleep on her side with her hand resting under her cheek.
She looks so peaceful. I wish I could leave her there. But she’ll wake with a crick in her neck, and no doubt needing to vomit. The closer she is to the bathroom, the better.
I make quick work of tidying up, but when she doesn’t so much as twitch, I know I need to take matters into my own hands.
“I’m going to take you to bed, sweetheart,” I tell her as I slide my arms beneath her.
She moans as I lift her and immediately cuddles into my chest.
My heart slams against my ribs at seeing her looking so at home against me.
She was incredible tonight. And I don’t just mean her CoD skills.
I mean how she was with my teammates. It didn’t matter that she’s never properly met them.
She fit in as if she’s been a part of our group forever.
Something tells me it’ll be the same when we’re all together in a couple of days.
She just…she fits, and it makes me want to keep her even more.
“Everett,” she mumbles as I carry her to her room.
“Yeah, sweetheart?”
“I like you.”
Fuck.
“I like you too,” I confess, confident that she won’t remember this in the morning.
“I wish you’d see yourself how everyone else sees you.”
“What do you mean?” I ask without meaning to.
“You’re deserving of all the good things in your life.”
My chest tightens, but no matter how sincere she sounds, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to believe the sentiment.
“If only that were true.”
Kicking her bedroom door open, I carry her to the bed before awkwardly pulling the sheets back and laying her down. I take a step back, but before I can pull my arms from beneath her, she reaches out and wraps her arms around my neck.
“No,” she cries, holding me tight.
“Baby, I need to go to bed, too. Let you get some beauty sleep.”
“Don’t go.” I search her face, looking for signs that she’s awake and aware of what she’s saying right now.
Her eyes are closed, her long, dark lashes resting against her cheeks, and she’s breathing steadily.
I wrap my fingers around her wrists, ready to detach her from my body, but that all changes when her eyes suddenly open, locking on mine, and she whispers, “Please. I don’t want to be alone.”
Motherfucker.
A heavy sigh passes my lips as I lean forward and press a kiss to her forehead.
“Why is it that I can’t say no to you?”
“Because you love me,” she mutters sleepily.
My breath catches, and her arms fall to the bed as I stumble back, my chest heaving.
Could I? Could I fall in love with this woman?
It’s a question I don’t really need to ask myself, because I already know the answer.
Without putting much thought into it, I pull my T-shirt over my head, abandoning it on the chair in the corner of her room. I leave my sweats on—it feels safer that way—and crawl into bed with her, both hating and loving every single second of it.
The second I’ve settled on my back, Bea snuggles closer, resting her head on my chest and wrapping her arm around my waist.
My heart continues to pound as her breathing evens out and her entire body relaxes against mine.
I’ve never slept with a woman before. I’ve always made a point of showing them the door once I’ve gotten what I wanted.
Allowing them to snuggle, or even worse, sleep, gives them false hope that there could be something between us.
The last thing I’ve ever wanted to do was lead women on and then ultimately hurt them when I can’t give them what they want.
But sending Bea away, putting space between us, is the very last thing I want to do. If anything, I want to drag her closer. And the problem with that is that I think the only one who will be hurt at the end of it all will be me.
This might have started out as being together to fix my reputation, but somewhere along the way, it’s become so much less about what I can get out of it.
It’s become all about what I don’t think I’m going to be able to live without.