Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Graham
Waking up with Sterling in my arms immediately brightened my day.
If I got to wake up like this every morning, I could definitely become a morning person.
The alarm would have to go though. Alarms automatically dimmed my mood a bit.
There was just something about waking up to an annoying blaring sound that automatically made me grumpy.
“Turn it off,” Sterling muttered, rolling away from me and shoving his head beneath a pillow.
I quickly grabbed my phone and cut off the alarm before dropping it back onto the nightstand and rubbing my gritty eyes.
Fuck, I was tired, but it was Saturday morning, which meant I had hockey practice.
Every Saturday, I wondered if hockey was worth getting up at this stupid hour—six A.M.—but normally by the time I was done with warm-ups, I remembered why I was okay with six A.M. hockey practice on a Saturday.
I loved being on the ice, and this was my future. If I wanted it, I had to fight for it.
Sterling’s snore met my ears, and I quietly chuckled before I rolled out of bed, planting my feet on the comfy rug between our beds.
When we’d been partnered up freshman year as dorm-mates, I’d come with the bare necessities—clothes, laptop, school books, and bed sheets.
Then, Sterling had shown up with all kinds of shit—this fuzzy rug, lamps, two laptops (one to remain in the dorm and one to carry to classes), a mini-fridge, a microwave, and a toaster.
His mom had spoiled the hell out of us, and I was proud to say she considered me to be her other son.
I didn’t take that kind of welcome lightly, especially when I knew just how cautious Sterling’s parents were about letting people in.
For them, Sterling always came first, and if someone didn’t check off certain points in their books, then they were just kind of kept at arm’s length.
I’d, thankfully, passed all of their little tests without even knowing they had any.
Moving quietly, I grabbed a pair of socks and slipped them on my feet before tugging a shirt over my head.
After grabbing a hoodie and tugging it on over my t-shirt, I grabbed my bag, shoved my feet into my shoes, and quietly slipped out of the dorm room, already thinking about where Sterling and I could go for breakfast after practice.
Sue me—I was hungry. And Sterling’s mom and dad always made sure Sterling had more than enough money for us to eat at places other than what was served on campus because they knew how Sterling’s eating habits were.
Again—they spoiled the hell out of us. It’d been hard to get used to at first, but I’d finally come around. And I knew my parents were more than thankful that I was getting to experience other things, even if they couldn’t be the ones to provide it for me.
Coach’s whistle blew, signaling a break so we could hydrate. Despite the cooler temperature of the arena, I was sweating, as were most of my other teammates. Collin was one of the lucky few who hardly ever sweated unless a game was particularly grueling.
“You good, man?” Collin asked, clapping his hand to my back as I poured water into my mouth.
I looked over at him, lowering my water bottle as I did so. A frown tugged at my lips. “Yeah, I’m good,” I assured him. “Why?”
“You’ve been kind of quiet. Not normally like you.”
I had a lot on my mind—particularly the man still sleeping in my bed.
I couldn’t stop thinking about him—how he was now my boyfriend, which was surreal in itself, that he’d kissed me even if I’d sort of initiated it to begin with, how he’d allowed me to touch him and hold him while he had so much turmoil inside of him last night.
That last one was a huge step of progress. Even now, my throat tightened at how much that meant to me. It meant he trusted me more than he trusted anyone else in the world—even his own parents because he still wouldn’t let them touch him when he woke up from nightmares and flashbacks.
I knew how fragile that trust was, and I also knew how easily it could be broken.
“Just thinking about some stuff,” I told him. “Nothing to worry about, man. My head is still one hundred percent in the game.”
“Probably more up Sterling’s ass,” Darren muttered. I didn’t think he meant for me to hear it, but I did regardless. I swung my glare to him, and Collin quickly put a hand against my chest.
“Watch your fucking mouth,” I warned him.
“Not today,” Collin said just as another teammate stepped in front of Darren, saying something to him I couldn’t quite make out. “Let it go. He’s bitter as fuck. That’s it. Let him stew in his own shit.”
I rolled my shoulders and stiffly nodded my head. But if Darren thought he could continue to be funny, I’d show him I was fucking hilarious.
I could take any other shit. I could let just about anything else roll off my shoulders if I really wanted. But not when it came to Sterling.
I’d start a fucking war over my man.
“Bro,” Dash, one of my teammates, said quietly as he quickly made his way over to where I was pulling my shirt over my head.
I was more than ready to get back to the dorm and go get breakfast with Sterling.
I’d already showered after practice because there was no way in hell I was taking the short ride back to our dorm building with my sweat clinging to my skin.
That was just fucking gross. Besides, it meant that once I saw Sterling, I didn’t have to let him out of my sight again to shower.
“Yeah?” I asked, turning to face him.
My impatience must have shown on my face because he winced. “Look, I know you like to get out of here as quickly as possible to go get breakfast with Sterling, but you need to see this.”
Oh, this couldn’t be good. My gut told me so, and it was hardly ever wrong. And I also had a feeling it had to do with Sterling. Because if it was about me, they’d have been ribbing me over it.
Dash held his phone out to me, and I took it, glancing down at the social media post. My teeth audibly ground together when I saw the picture of Sterling.
He was shirtless, sweat clinging to his skin as he ran on a treadmill.
I could see rain sliding down the window behind him, so it hadn’t been taken today.
And right next to that picture, someone had posted another picture that was zeroed in on his crotch.
The caption read, When you can’t get your dick up.
Snarling, I pushed past Dash, shoving his phone against his chest as I did so. Darren was closing his locker when I walked up to him. Gripping the back of his neck, I shoved him against it, my muscles bulging with the urge to bash his skull into the metal.
“Did you fucking do that shit?” I barked, tightening my hold when he tried to push back. “You post that bullshit on social media about Sterling?”
“What? No!” he shouted. “I don’t even know what you’re talking about, Graham! Fucking let go of me, dammit!”
“Don’t fucking lie to me!” I yelled at him. Our teammates were trying to tug me back, but it was a fruitless cause. “I know it was you! You just had to go running your mouth and starting fucking rumors!”
Collin and Dash finally yanked me off of him.
My chest was heaving. I tightened my hands into fists at my sides, baring my teeth at Darren when he turned to face me.
With a shaking hand, I pointed my finger at his face.
“You shut that shit down now, Darren, or so help me God, I’ll break both of your fucking legs and ruin your entire hockey career.
” I yanked myself out of Dash’s and Collin’s grips. “Fucking let go of me,” I snarled.
I stormed back over to my locker and slammed it closed before storming out of the locker room, not even bothering to grab my gym bag. I’d come back for it later.
Right then, the only thing on my mind was getting to Sterling as fast as possible to try to brace him for the shit storm Darren had caused with his big mouth.
Fuck!
Sterling was MIA when I stepped into our dorm room.
His phone was on his bed, but his running shoes were missing.
Cursing and silently threatening to beat the fuck out of Darren for causing this mess, I turned and sprinted down the hall to the stairs.
Once I was back in my car, I quickly backed out—almost right into another car in my rush—and tore off down the street to hunt him down.
He couldn’t be far if he left on foot. That was what I was hoping anyway, but I had no way of knowing unless I went to the parking garage, which was where I headed first. The only time he used his car was when he had a therapy appointment or he went home to visit his family for a couple of days when he had breaks or on the weekends, which was rare in itself.
When I entered the parking garage, I sagged a little in relief when I saw his car still sitting in its usual spot. It hadn’t been moved since he parked it there last. It gave me more hope that I’d be able to find him easier—just needed to check his usual haunts first.
Sterling was a man of routine, and I had a feeling that wouldn’t change, even if he’d no doubt seen the social media post about him. I was pretty sure that was why he’d gone running. He wasn’t ready to face everyone knowing something so personal about him. And putting him down for it.
One would think being in college meant we didn’t have to deal with childish bullshit like this, but nope. If anything, it was even worse.
My hands white-knuckled the steering wheel as I slowly drove around campus where Sterling frequented.
Finally, I found him running laps around the track field.
He didn’t come here often, which was why it was one of the last places I’d checked.
And it was nearly empty, which explained why he’d come here.
Quickly, I parked my car and swung out of the driver’s seat before jogging into the entrance, running to catch up with him.
He looked over at me in surprise when I fell into step next to him, and then a sort of peace fell over his features, a small smile tilting his lips, the shadows momentarily disappearing from his dark eyes.
I returned the smile, ignoring the worry constricting my chest for the time being. For now, he just needed to know he wasn’t alone, that I wasn’t going anywhere.
So, for the next hour, we continued to jog around the track until he felt like he’d outrun whatever was chasing him.
Near the entrance to the track, he stopped, his chest rapidly rising and falling, sweat running down his face.
And surprising the hell out of me, he turned and wrapped his arms around my shoulders, burrowing his face in the crook of my neck.
My chest loosened as I quickly enveloped him in my arms, pressing a tender kiss to his temple.
“I’m always here, baby,” I said softly, the term of endearment slipping out before I could stop it. But the way he shivered in my arms and stepped closer, pressing us together, I knew it was the right thing to say.