Chapter Three
Macallan
“What is with you today?” One of my teammates, Joey, jogs up next to me where I’m sweating and breathing way heavier than I should be given my ridiculous effort on the field.
“Didn’t sleep well.”
It’s not a complete lie. I didn’t sleep well. Mainly because I was out most of the night and spent what little time I should have been sleeping hugging the damn toilet. If I never drink tequila again in my life, it’ll be too soon.
I wasn’t planning on drinking at the party. But then I saw her there, with Lana Crawford of all people, and the sudden urge to drown my irritation was just too strong to ignore.
Maisie Rose.
Every time I think that woman can’t irritate me more, she finds a way to do just that. Like she knows exactly how to get under my skin and will exploit any weakness of mine she can find.
I was right to cut things off with her early on. Of that, I’m sure. But I won’t deny a small part of me kicks myself in the ass for it every single time I see her. How could I not?
She’s beautiful in a way that is undeniable.
I can still see her eyes, so blue they practically glow against her light brown skin. The look of irritation on her face plain to see as I asked her about Lana.
I wasn’t lying when I said she should stay away from her. I went to high school with Lana Crawford. She was a quiet girl. Pretty enough. Nothing special. We hooked up at a party my senior year. She was a junior at the time. I was drunk. She was willing. There’s really not much more to the story.
Until, that is, she started telling people that we were dating. I told her, in no uncertain terms, that we were most certainly not together and that what happened at the party was a one-time thing, but it did little to deter her.
She started showing up at my football practices.
At my work. She even transferred into some of my elective classes that juniors could also take.
I ignored her the best I could, but her advances only got more extreme.
My breaking point was when I found her sitting in the back seat of my car after one of my games. .. naked.
Now, normally, I wouldn’t complain about finding a naked girl in my back seat, but not Lana. If things were this bad after sleeping with her once, I can’t imagine how much worse they would be if I were ever tempted to sleep with her again.
Luckily, that wasn’t an issue. Her behavior was enough to turn me off from her, but as it escalated, I found myself hesitant to get involved with anyone. Mostly because she had made my life so miserable that I was afraid to add a further complication to the mix.
Graduation couldn’t come fast enough, and when it finally did, I bolted, thankful that I had to report to campus early for football.
One-year reprieve, that’s all I got. I’ll never forget walking into my Calc class to find her sitting in the front row.
She smiled the instant I walked in the door, and I knew with complete certainty that her being in my class was no mere coincidence.
After some of the shit she pulled in the past, I would put nothing past her.
To be fair, I did try giving her the benefit of the doubt.
UVA is the biggest university within a fifty-mile radius, and since our hometown is only about forty minutes away, it’s totally feasible that she chose to come here, as many of my other classmates had.
But then she started showing up everywhere I was and it became apparent very quickly that whatever obsession she had with me in high school had not lessened.
I’ve spent the last two years, now going into my third year, trying to manage the situation the best I can.
And while I can deal with her being in a class of mine here and there, or running into her on campus, or even seeing her in the stands at my practices, what I can’t deal with is learning that she’s now living with Maisie. ..
Maisie Rose. The only woman I’ve ever met who made me feel, well, anything.
I knew the first night we met she was something special.
I can still picture her beneath me, her blue eyes hooded in pleasure.
Her perfect skin velvety against mine. I didn’t have to wonder if I could get lost in her.
I had only just met her and already I felt like I was walking around in a haze.
“Earth to Mac.” Joey waves a hand in front of my face, drawing my focus to him. I blink slowly, wondering how long I’ve been standing here, lost in my thoughts. “Fuck, dude. You are seriously out of it today.”
“Sorry, man. What were you saying?” I force an easy smile to my lips.
“I said your girlfriend’s back.” He gives me a knowing look, jerking his head toward the stands without looking in that direction.
“Fuck me,” I grumble.
I don’t even have to look in the stands to know he’s talking about Lana.
“Why don’t you just tell her to go away?”
“You think I haven’t tried that?”
“Then get a fucking restraining order. That bitch is crazy.”
“Nah. It’s better to ignore her.”
“If you say so. She’s starting to creep me out, and I’m not even the one she’s stalking.”
“I’ve got, what, roughly eight months left before graduation? I’ve managed her for two years. What’s eight more months?”
“If I were less of a man, I might be scared to stick my cock in another female out of fear that she’s going to go all Sharon Stone in Fatal Attraction on me.”
“She’s harmless. No matter how irritating her lurking is, she’s never done more than that. At least not since she’s been here.”
“Dude, you can’t even date. I think calling her harmless is a bit generous.”
“You say that like I want to date.” I snort out a laugh.
“I don’t know. I can think of one bombshell that you would most definitely lay claim to if it weren’t for psycho bitch up there.”
“Stewart. Haggard. Get your heads out of your asses.”
“Sorry, Coach, Joey grumbles, picking up one of the footballs on the rack next to him. “Delta five, high tap, left, one two punch.” He calls a route and I nod in acknowledgment. “Set. Hike.” I take off down the field, cutting to the left before coming up two yards to catch a quick slant pass.
“Run it again,” Coach calls from behind us.
With a nod, I join Joey back on the line, waiting until he calls hike before running the pass a second time. This time, the pass is too wide and slips right through the tips of my fingers.
Snagging the ball off the ground, I jog back toward Joey, ready to run it again.
It’s nearly an hour later when Coach finally calls practice, by which time I’m exhausted and dripping with sweat. I chance a glance toward the stands as I jog off the field, blowing out a breath of relief when I see that Lana is no longer there.
With my focus elsewhere, I don’t see the women’s soccer team entering the field until I damn near take two of them out.
“Shit, sorry.” I step to the side, confusion tugging at my brows.
“What the fuck are they doing here?” Joey slides up next to me, whistling in appreciation as some of the girls run out onto the field.
“No idea.” A smile tips the corner of my lips as I see Maisie enter through the tunnel, her dark brown hair braided into two identical braids, sporting nothing more than a pair of athletic shorts and a sports bra, her light brown skin seeming to glisten in the sunlight.
Fuck me, she’s beautiful.
The instant she spots me, a scowl takes over her face, which only has my smile spreading wider. For as much as she hates me—and make no mistake, she definitely hates me—I still don’t miss the slight hitch of her shoulders at the sight of me, like her breath has caught.
Yeah, Maisie is not nearly as unaffected by me as she’d like me to believe.
“Come to play with the big boys today?” Joey asks as she passes.
She stops mid-stride, her lean, muscular legs flexing as she spins around to face us.
“I would say yes, but I don’t see any big boys around.” She pouts. “Sadly, only little ones.” Her gaze slides to me for a brief moment and the look of pure loathing in her eyes makes me chuckle in response.
“Ouch.” Joey presses a hand to his chest. “But let’s not forget, this is our field.”
“Actually, it belongs to the school,” she corrects. “And not that I owe you an explanation, but there’s some work being done on our field, so we’re forced to practice here today.”
“I suddenly feel in the mood to watch a little soccer.” Joey grins, smacking me across the chest with the back of his hand. “What do you say, Mac? You feel like hanging around and enjoying the show?”
“Tempting.” I give Maisie a once-over, letting my eyes travel from her face, down to her feet, and then back up again, slow and appreciative.
“Go on then, perv. Might do you some good to see how real athletes do it.” She lifts both hands and flips us each the bird.
I bark out a laugh, watching her spin and jog off moments later.
“Man, she’s a spitfire. Too bad you couldn’t lock that one down when you had the chance.
” He clasps my shoulder as we turn toward the tunnel, making our way inside.
“Tell me, does she fuck as good as she looks? Because if so, I think I might be willing to take your seconds just to get a taste of that delectable little flower.”
“Maisie is no flower, even if her last name is Rose.” I snort at the irony. “And she’s off-limits to you.”
“Why? You made it pretty clear you didn’t want her.” He knocks his shoulder against mine as we enter the noisy locker room.
“You know damn well that wanting her was never the problem.”
“Ah, and the plot thickens.”
“Fuck off,” I grumble, heading toward my locker where I shuck off my pads and guzzle half a bottle of water in one drink.
Two years. It’s been two years since Maisie and I... And while I’m no stranger to letting girls down, letting her down was harder than even I would like to admit.
Truth is, I wanted her... Fuck, I still want her.
I shake off the thought, turning my focus to Coach as he goes over the schedule for practice and team meetings for the week ahead. At least we have tomorrow off.
But right now, I need food, sleep, and getting laid wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. Maybe it would help relieve some of the stress weighing on me like thousand-pound boulders sitting on my shoulders.
Maisie’s face flashes through my mind, but I don’t let it linger. It would be so easy to let myself have her. To take what I so desperately want with no fucks to be given.
I think back on her new roommate, shaking my head.
No matter how much I tell myself that their housing arrangement for this year is a coincidence, I can’t ignore the nagging feeling that tells me Lana somehow made this happen. I wouldn’t put it past her. Hell, I wouldn’t put anything past her.
The only real question I have is why. Why set her sights on Maisie? Sure, she saw us kissing that night nearly two years ago, but we’ve barely spoken since then. I’ve made sure of it. So why, out of all the women I’ve hooked up with, is she focusing on her?
Because she knows...
I dismiss the thought as soon as it enters my head.
There’s no way she knows how I felt about Maisie or why I chose to blow her off two years ago when she was standing right in front of me, offering what I so desperately wanted.
I told myself it was my lame-ass attempt to protect her, but really, I know it was to protect myself, and that’s just the lie I tell myself so I don’t feel like the biggest fucking asshole.
Who am I kidding? I am an asshole. I’ve always been an asshole. Always cared more for myself than I do for others. Isn’t that what got me in this Lana predicament to begin with? That I fucked her without any thought about how she might feel or how she might interpret it?
Perhaps if I had made my intentions known up front, perhaps if she knew going in that it was only sex, she wouldn’t have latched onto me the way she did. A part of me can’t help but feel sorry for her. Though the larger part of me just wishes she would go the fuck away and never come back.
Eight more months, I remind myself.
Eight more months and I’ll be free.
Graduation can’t come soon enough.