Chapter 32
Randy
“Hey, man, what are you doing?” Christian asks me as he makes his way into the living room.
I remove one of the earphones from my ear so I can hear him better. “Laundry, what does it look like?” I deadpan as I sit on the couch playing the PlayStation.
“Well, good to know you’re doing something with your hands other than jerking off.”
I flip him the bird. “Here’s another thing I can do.”
“That arm definitely looks more defined than your left one,” he jokes.
I keep shooting as I take cover behind a building, right in the middle of a massive fight. “I played with your girlfriend last night while you studied,” I say as seriously as I can muster.
“Did she kick your ass again?” he replies, knowing full well I meant online. He falls onto the couch beside me, his mouth pulled upward. I don’t answer him; instead, I run back out and start shooting at the men with the red markers above their heads.
“Ha, she did, that’s my girl,” he chuckles.
“She probably just wants to see me naked again…who can blame her,” I say with a shrug, knowing I’ll never live that down.
“At least someone will see you naked,” he replies.
Dick.
“So how long has it been?”
“Four weeks.” Since her and no one who mattered before her.
“Ouch, man.”
I shrug. “It’s cool,” I say, trying to play it off at the same time Seth walks in the front door. He talks with Harper as she giggles behind him. They completely ignore us as he drags her toward his room.
“Oh, come on!” I groan out to them. They continue to blatantly ignore us, slamming the bedroom door behind them.
“Well,” I say, shutting off the PlayStation. “I’m not staying here and listening to that. Between him, and you and Shelby getting back together, my noise-canceling headphones are practically worn out.”
Christian stands at the same time I do. “I’ll buy you a new pair because there is not a chance in hell you won’t need them again….and again and again.”
“Perfect, that’s just what a sex-starved guy needs to hear right now! You want to grab a drink at the campus bar?”
“Let’s go,” he says as we both head for the stairs.
Grabbing a clean shirt and shoes I head back downstairs a few minutes later.
Christian spins his keys in his hands reaching for the front door as I hear a moan coming from Seth’s room.
Not a moment too soon as my dick stirs; seriously, it just wants to stand at attention at literally everything at the moment.
The bar is half full as we head in and grab a seat next to the pool table and big screen television.
NFL playoffs are in full swing as we sit down on bar stools to watch the latest game.
With three-dollar jugs of beer and five bucks for a massive plate of chicken wings, it’s hard to beat on a lazy Saturday.
Christian: *added Seth to group*
Christian: Randy and I are at the campus bar.
Walsh: Is that wise 4 Randy 2 be there around half-naked women?
Christian: Seth isn’t alone at home.
Walsh: Ahhh.
Seth: Shower and shave and I’ll head over.
Walsh: Seth can have the whiskey, and Randy can have the sour.
Christian: I was going to get him a cocktail. Sex on the beach, orgasm, or they have liquid pussy shots for only 4 bucks.
Me: U guys are great friends. I’ll stick with beer. Thanks, Cap, I’ll take another.
Two hours in and several games of pool and I’m getting a little buzz. Some girls have joined us for a few games of pool, and Christian has sent off text messages to our friends.
Seth, Harper, and Walsh walk through the door making tracks toward us. Shelby, Letti, and Travis join soon after, and before long, twenty of our friends are here, buying jugs, playing pool, and watching the playoff games.
“What’s wrong with you?” Jaxson, another fellow Raptor, asks as we sit at a large wooden table and I watch Seth and Harper enter the room and head over to Christian and Shelby.
“What do you mean?” I ask, my fingers tightening around the cold glass as I take a slow sip of beer, noticing how relaxed Seth and Harper look. The bitterness lingers, though not as heavily as the weight of where this conversation is headed.
“We have women hanging all around us, you’re half drunk and haven’t even tried to flirt with anyone. It’s Saturday night in our off season, and you should have nothing on your mind but pussy.”
“He’s gone over to the other side,” Walsh answers for me before I have a chance to reply.
And here we go. I throw him a knowing glance as he leans casually on the cue, waiting for his next shot. It has me thinking back to Rachel and how incredible she is at pool. I would love her to be here right now, destroying all my teammates; that would shut them up.
Jaxson raises one brow to me in response, surprised by the news, his brown hair swept over his forehead as he scratches at his 5 o’clock shadow. “Well, well, well. Would you look at that?”
I flick a sharp glance between them, willing them to drop this before my patience runs out.
“Where is she?” he asks.
“She’s giving him the cold shoulder…doesn’t want anything to do with him,” Walsh answers. Look at the person who all of a sudden has the big mouth.
“He’s sex starved,” Seth cuts in, joining the conversation that just won’t end.
“Sounds like you’re already married to her,” Jaxson laughs. “Sounds exactly like my parents’ relationship,” he says, turning his head to the DJ setting up in the corner and downing the rest of his beer.
Several hours later, we are all properly smashed, the kind of carefree, messy fun that comes with fake IDs, cheap beers, and countless cocktails.
Everyone has spilled onto the dance floor, caught in whatever rhythm the DJ sets.
The space hums with music and laughter, a steady, buzzing energy, all while I stay back at the table, watching my friends, soaking in their joy.
It’s enough to sit here, to smile to myself, content from the sidelines.
“Will you dance with me?” the Aussie voice comes up from behind me.
“Where did you come from?” I ask in surprise.
“Bathroom,” she says, holding out her hand.
I nod and accept her hand as she leads me out to the dance floor. We make our way to the center and move our bodies around to the music, her hands resting on my shoulders as mine rest on her lower back.
“Heard from Rachel lately?”
“I actually took her and Sam to the stadium to kick the ball around.”
“Really? That’s fantastic!” She looks at me as I push her backward, holding one hand and spinning her around. “It’s progress,” I say.
“Keep at it. She’ll come around.”
“Well, I have you to dance with, so it’s not a total loss.”
“A charmer, as always.”
"Well, you’re pretty, as always. Like a southern belle, but take that and shove it as far south as it can go. Past the Equator. Into the land down under, kangaroos, and Vegemite territory. That kind of southern belle."
She laughs just as a girl edges closer, her arm brushing against mine and nudging Shelby in the process.
Shelby tightens her grip on my hand, shifts her stance, and positions herself firmly between us, throwing a sharp, unmistakable look over her shoulder.
The girl reads the message loud and clear, hands raised in surrender before she spins away into the crowd. “Feisty Shelby has entered the chat.”
Shelby is gorgeous and sweet, so seeing her throw some sass around makes me drunkenly laugh.
“Rude,” she says back. “I don’t care if everyone knows I’m with Christian and everyone thinks you’re single, we are dancing here…no cutsies.” She frowns trying to seek out the girl once more.
“I think you frightened her off.”
She sighs. “After the year I’ve had, I’m done with people controlling me, even her. This is my dance, and she can bugger off. Which, honestly, is why I asked you to dance.”
I let the words settle for half a beat before flashing a lazy, knowing grin. “Ooh, alternate motives, you say? Because I was under the impression it was my devastatingly good looks and undeniable charm that had you begging me to dance.”
She laughs at that. “Well, there was that! But I just wanted to check in after…everything?” She smiles, but a shimmer of unshed tears begins to appear in her blue eyes.
“Don’t do that,” I warn, brushing my thumb over her cheek and wiping a tear that just escaped. “I’m fine, you’re fine. Christian, Seth, and Walsh are all perfectly fine.”
“But…”
“But nothing, Shelby. None of this is—or was—your fault, and no matter how many times I replay that night in my head, I still wouldn’t have done anything differently.”
She sucks in a deep breath and nods her head, letting my words sink in, but I see the doubt still lingering. I grasp her face with both hands, firm but careful, forcing her gaze to meet mine. “Okay?”
“Okay,” she answers with a nod.
“I mean, next time, if you want me to tackle you to the ground, something less dramatic would be good. And grass…grass would be favorable; hell, even that stupid air mattress would have been softer.”
“The one with Letti and Dani’s drool on it?”
“That’s the one. Which also after deflating on me is now safely in the trash.”
She laughs and I let go of her face and wrap her in a hug, then pull her back into a spin, catching her, and pulling her back into our dance pose.
“I’m glad you stood your ground with that chick just now. You’re doing me a massive favor. The last thing I need is a drunk girl grinding up against my junk when I haven’t had sex in a month.”
“That’s kinda gross, but I’m also very proud of you.” She slaps me on the chest. “And on that note, we need another drink,” she says, looking around for an escape route.
“Damn straight,” I yell over the music.
I follow her through the crowd, making our way to the bar, where we order more shots, cocktails, and beer.
A few hours later, when I shoulder the door and stumble out into the cool night, I’m floating on air. My friends trail behind me as we wait for our Uber to take us home.
Tonight was fun. Good times and amazing company, and there is only one thing that could have made it better…Rachel…with me…and in my bed.