Chapter 8 #3
“Fine,” I said, shrugging indifferently and setting aside my confusion for the time being. “But you can’t deny that people listen to you around here. Your support and the support of the entire men’s team would help influence the school to make a change.”
“No can do,” he replied, that obnoxiously smug tone back in action. “Coach has strictly forbidden us to comment on the matter.”
Did Sebastian not realize that I had the upper hand here?
He was the one who sounded like a sexist asshole in the school paper, not me.
And it was his reputation on the line, not mine.
“I don’t need your support, Sebastian. It would be nice, of course, and it might even help clean up your muddied reputation, but it isn’t necessary. ”
“You don’t want me as an enemy, Grace,” he warned.
I cocked my head as I peered up at him. “Do you hear yourself when you speak?”
“I—”
“That was a rhetorical question. Clearly, all you do is listen to the sound of your own voice.” We were past the point of playing nice. Right now, I needed him to understand that I wouldn’t give up or buckle under his threats.
Slowly, Sebastian leaned down until his face was close enough that I could feel the warmth of his breath. “If you don’t leave me out of this, I’ll make you regret it.”
Without another word, he spun on his heels and stormed away. I didn’t take my eyes off his retreating form until he disappeared down a bend in the path.
>> <<
Sebastian
The thorn in my side that was Grace Gillman continued to inch deeper.
Things only seemed to get worse in the days following the article's publication and the poster campaign. I could feel the student population slowly turning on me. Not a single person had the nerve to say anything to my face, but that didn’t stop the glares and whispers.
The basketball players were smug, even more so than usual, class was getting harder to keep up with, and Kate was radio silent.
We had never gone this long without seeing each other—almost a full week—but I couldn’t bring myself to reach out again.
A part of me was afraid that if I heard from her, it would only be more bad news.
“Please collect your papers from my desk before leaving today. And remember, we have an exam in two weeks. I’d like to remind you all that you should already be preparing for it.”
After gathering my things, I stopped in the small line of students waiting for their papers. Professor Lang handed me a folder when I got to the front.
“Not your best work, Mr. Evans. It seemed a little rushed. Your thoughts were all over the place.”
I peeked inside the folder and found a large red D staring back at me. Shit. It was a long jump from the B- I’d gotten on my first paper. The entire thing was marked with corrections and comments. Even my professor had joined the “I hate Sebastian” bandwagon.
“If you need help, visit during my office hours.”
Fantastic. I’ll get right on that. Except it was impossible for me to make his office hours because they overlapped with practice.
I barely had enough time in my schedule to complete the basic coursework he assigned.
Chest tightening, I tore out of the building and toward my next class, nearly running over several students in the process.
They glared after me, and it took all of my restraint not to growl at them like a wild animal.
I felt like I was on the edge of going rabid.
I needed some kind of release before I snapped.
“Sebastian, wait up!”
The sound of Kate’s voice was such a shock that, for a moment, the simmering rage beneath my skin was forgotten.
As my eyes settled over her familiar features, I couldn’t help but think her appearance was some sort of sign from above.
Without thinking, I lurched forward and swept her into my arms. She seemed startled by the sudden movement but melted into my body all the same.
“I can’t tell you how good it feels to see you,” I murmured into her ear.
Kate pulled away first. “Is now a good time to talk?” she asked, and I couldn’t decipher the expression behind her eyes. “About us?”
My instinct was to say yes, but something stopped me. Just over Kate’s head, I could see someone pointing in my direction. There was a group of students hovering around a tree, one covered in blue and pink posters hung courtesy of the women’s hockey team. Anger flared deep in my stomach.
“Sebastian?”
I focused my attention back on Kate, unable to keep the frustration from my voice.
“I want to talk to you more than anything. But right now, I’m five seconds away from blowing a gasket.
I need to let off some steam, and I don’t think we should talk until that happens.
I want to be levelheaded when we have this conversation. ”
Her brow furrowed. “Let off steam?”
Usually, Kate was my outlet for letting off steam. But I couldn’t ask her to help me like that, not before we had a real conversation.
“I’ll go to the gym and beat the shit out of a punching bag after my next class. Or maybe run, I don’t know.”
Kate studied me for a moment longer before she grasped my hand and pulled me in the direction of Nelson Library. I let her lead me into the building and through the winding bookshelves before voicing my concern.
“Where are we going? I have class in ten minutes, and I really think we should talk after—”
“We don’t need to do any talking,” she insisted.
My brain stalled as she slipped into an empty study room and motioned for me to follow.
I was still trying to figure out what the hell she was doing when Kate closed the door and placed a soft kiss along my jaw.
She reached for me slowly, dainty fingers catching on the top button of my pants.
My body caught on before my brain, cock twitching to life.
She undid my pants and pulled down the zipper.
“Kate, you don’t have to—”
A hiss of relief slipped from my throat as her hand slid into my boxers and gripped my aching cock. Meanwhile, her lips found a sensitive spot on my neck.
I knew I should stop her, but I couldn’t resist the feel of her silky hand. Who was I to get in the way of a sign from above, anyway?
“Don’t be gentle, baby. Grip me fucking tight,” I instructed, allowing myself to give in to the temptation.
Rather than gripping me harder, she removed her hand from my pants and dragged her tongue across her palm.
I focused on the blue in her eyes—blue, not brown—and watched in anticipation as her hand disappeared into my pants.
This time, when her fingers wrapped around my cock, they slipped easily from tip to base.
Kate repeated the motion, grip tightening until the slightest pain accompanied the pleasure.
It was just what I needed.
A half groan, half hiss escaped me as she continued to move her hand up and down, squeezing tighter and loosening her grip again and again.
It didn’t take long for me to begin thrusting into her touch, gripping her shoulders for support as I rocked into each of her movements with a powerful roll of my hips.
My eyes fluttered shut, and I attempted to paint a picture of Kate laid out before me, dressed in one of her sexy lingerie sets.
But when the image came into focus, it wasn’t Kate on my bed, it was Grace.
She was stretched out along the mattress, tan legs on full display, figure hidden underneath one of my jerseys.
Seeing her drowning in a uniform that had my name etched across the back was more erotic than any lingerie.
Her hands were tied to the bed; she was left completely at my mercy.
The thought of her bowing to my will was enough to push me over the edge.
Normally, I might have been embarrassed at finding my release so quickly, but nothing could have been worse than the whispered name that fell from my lips as I did.
“Grace.”
It took a moment for the room to come back into focus.
When it did, I was too slow to dodge Kate’s blow.
Her hand met the side of my face with a loud clap that echoed through the space.
I was at a loss for what to say; I couldn’t even look her in the eyes.
Instead, I reached down to tuck myself back into my pants.
My fingers met hot, sticky fluid, and I cursed at the mess.
There was no way I could go to class now.
“It’s not what you think.” I winced at my own words, knowing how stupid they sounded. There was no possible explanation that could make her understand why another girl’s name was on my mind when she was getting me off.
“It’s not what I think?” Kate’s voice jumped an octave, her face reddening with every word she spoke. “How could it not be that when you’re saying another girl’s name?”
“I know it looks bad—”
“Isn’t she the one behind the posters and the article?” she blustered on, looking angrier by the second. “I saw you two fighting at the gala! What the hell is going on?”
“We did fight at the gala, and yes, she’s the one behind the bad press.
” I tried to choose my next words carefully, knowing that I was one mistake away from making things worse than they already were.
“She’s why I’ve been so angry lately. That’s the only reason I said her name.
I can’t think of anything else when the girl is hell-bent on ruining me. ”
“So you can say her name when my hand is on your cock, but you can’t use it in a regular sentence?
” Her head shook as she stepped backward, her arms snaking around herself.
“I can’t do this anymore. It’s hard enough competing for your time and attention with hockey. I won’t compete with another girl.”
Kate unlocked the study room and propped open the door. She glanced back over her shoulder at me, eyes shimmering with tears, and said, “We’re done. For good.”
She left without another word, the door slamming shut behind her. Silence blanketed the room, and I fell back against the table, pressing a hand to my stinging cheek. I felt defeated. In the absence of Kate, my fucked-up mind turned to the one person I wanted to forget.
Grace had burrowed deep under my skin. If I didn’t do something to get her out of my head or off this campus, I was going to lose more than my girlfriend.
The realization elicited a spark of anger, and I latched on to the feeling with all of my strength.
I wasn’t sure how to solve the problem that was Grace Gillman, but in the meantime, I needed her to know that I didn’t make empty threats.
If she thought McKinley Rink was bad now, I was going to make practicing there ten times more miserable by tomorrow morning.