Chapter 4
4
LIAM
I wake up to the sound of my alarm screaming, but it doesn’t bother me. I’m well-rested, well-hydrated, and ready to get to work.
Brody, on the other hand, who I can hear groaning from the couch in the living room, is another story. If this weren’t such a frequent occurrence, I’d almost feel bad for the moron, but I’ve run out of give-a-fucks when it comes to Brody.
“Brody,” I yell as I get out of bed, stretching. “Time to get up. We’ve got practice.”
Unsurprisingly, he ignores me. He groans when I find him pulling a cushion over his face, even when I raise my foot to nudge him. “Fuck off, Liam.”
I chuckle. “Not an option, man. You already missed morning hydration. If you don’t get up now, Coach is going to run you into the ground.”
Brody lowers the pillow, looking green in the gills, his bloodshot eyes glaring at me. “I think I’m dying.”
“You’re not dying. You’re just hungover. As usual. You’d think by now you’d be used to it.” I grab a water bottle from the counter and chuck it at him. “Drink. Shower. We leave in fifteen.”
Brody grumbles but manages to sit up, taking a long sip of water before dragging himself toward the bathroom. While he struggles through his misery, I dress for practice, pulling on my compression shorts and team-issued gear. I should be focused on the drills, on the plays Coach will be running us through, but all I can think about is Anna. Anna. Anna.
Her mouth on mine, the taste of her skin, the way it felt to be inside her, and the noises she couldn’t hold back when I made her come.
Fuck.
I shake my head, trying to brush the memories off, at least for the moment. I can savor them later, but now there’s work to be done and a hungover best friend to babysit.
Once we get to the field, Brody simply looks sick, not like he wants to crawl into a hole and die anymore. It’s a slight improvement, at least. He’s wearing dark sunglasses despite the overcast sky, and I swear he winces at every sound. I, on the other hand, feel wired. Ready. More energized than usual, even though I barely slept.
Then I see her.
Anna is sitting in the bleachers, her legs crossed, a coffee cup in her hands. I invited her, but I wasn’t sure if she’d show up after how intense everything was last night. I wouldn’t have blamed her if she needed time to process, but damn, am I glad she came.
Dressed in skin-tight leggings and a red tank top, she’s fucking gorgeous. And even better, she’s watching me. Not a single other soul on the team, even her brother. Just me.
I’ve never been self-conscious about my performance on the field before, and I’ve played in front of Anna dozens of times already. Today isn’t any different, and I go through the motions like I always do, working myself to the bone in search of even the slightest edge of improvement.
It would be a lie to say she isn’t a distraction, though. Every time I meet her eyes, even at a distance, it’s like being hit by a truck. Our connection is so strong that it’s almost a tangible thing.
It pisses me off that Brody makes it to her first during the first water break, but he’s her brother, and I need to back off if I don’t want to raise suspicion. He talks to her for a few minutes, probably wondering why she’s even here, and by the time he’s done, the break is up. Dammit.
But then she smiles at me, and all is right in the world again.
I throw myself into the rest of the practice hard, burning off all the energy I can so I can stop fixating on rushing the bleachers and pulling her against me, crushing my mouth to hers, Brody be damned.
It works. Barely.
As soon as the whistle blows and practice is over, I jog over to her, ignoring all the chatter from my teammates about where they’re going for lunch.
“Hey,” she says brightly as I reach the bleachers.
“Hey. You’re still here.”
“Yeah, I figured I might as well stick around after all the hard work you put in today.”
I grin. “Well, I appreciate it. Come on, I’ll buy you lunch.”
She jogs down the few remaining stairs, and when she reaches the bottom, I offer my hand to help her down. The second she’s steady, her eyes flicker to where Brody is packing up, and she gives me an apologetic smile. I let the moment go, trying to ignore the disappointment I feel at the loss of contact with her.
She’d hold my hand if he weren’t here. Somehow that makes me more pissed off at Brody than dealing with his hangover.
We head to a cafe across campus, where Anna orders a chicken sandwich, and I get a burger, starving from practice. As we eat, the conversation drifts to last night.
“So...” I say, chewing and swallowing a bite before continuing. “Last night was pretty crazy, huh?”
She smiles, and color flushes high in her cheeks. “Yeah, crazy is one word for it. I definitely didn’t plan it.”
“Neither did I,” I admit quickly. “I mean, don’t think I wasn’t thinking about it, but I just didn’t expect it to happen like that.”
“Me either.” She takes a bite of her sandwich, chewing slowly. “Is this going to be awkward?”
“It doesn’t have to be.”
“Yeah, but...”
I finish my burger and lean back, eyeing her carefully. She makes my chest ache. I want to fuck her, obviously, but I also want to hold her, care for her. All of the things I’ve denied myself over the years. “It doesn’t have to be,” I repeat. “We can just do whatever we want. And if you want to have sex with me again, then yeah. We’ll do that.”
Her eyes widen slightly, her voice high and breathy, “And if I don’t?”
The answer is simple, although the possibility makes me want to punch a hole through the wooden table we’re sitting at. Somehow, I don’t let a bit of that emotion show. “Then we won’t. It’s your call, Anna.”
“That’s what I wanted to know.” She grins, looking more confident now. “Good. Glad that’s settled.”
I laugh. “Good. So, um, you should come over tonight.”
She hesitates, and I know why. “And how do we accomplish that without Brody catching on? Even having lunch without him is already suspicious. If he catches us, I mean.”
The sun catches on her dark hair and her beautiful face, and suddenly I don’t really give a fuck about my best friend. At least as far as his sister is concerned. “You’re an adult, Anna. We both are. You don’t have to sneak around or explain anything to him.”
“Sometimes I forget that you’re an only child.” A small, sad smile tugs at her lips. “You don’t know what it’s like.”
I nod, realizing she’s right. “That’s fair.”
“I also think you underestimate how overprotective he is of me.”
“Maybe. Or maybe you just need to stand up for yourself a little more.” I pause, looking at her, my voice softening. “Anna, I like you. I’ve liked you for a long time. You deserve to be happy, and you deserve to live your life how you want.”
She looks away, her expression shifting, and I realize I might have pushed too far. I don’t want this to turn into some big thing. Not now. I don’t know how long she’ll be in town, and I don’t want to ruin whatever this is between us by moving too fast.
“I know that.” She sighs. “I’m working on it, all right?”
“Okay.” I want to say a whole hell of a lot more, but I bite my tongue.
“I’ll text you if I manage to get free.”
It isn’t good enough, but it will have to do. For now.
We finish lunch, and I drive her home in near silence. When we pull up in front of her brother’s apartment, she starts to get out, but I stop her.
“Anna,” I say quietly. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to fight. We’re supposed to be having a good time, right? Just forget about what I said.”
She smiles, leaning over to give me a quick kiss. It’s too short, too restrained, but I take what I can get.
Then she’s gone, disappearing into the building, and I’m left sitting in my car, wondering how long I can keep pretending that this is just a casual thing.