Chapter 51
GAbrIEL
“Anything?” I ask.
Julio shakes his head. “Not that I’m aware of.”
I mutter a curse and scrub my hands over my face. “What’s taking so long?”
“Should we deliver them ourselves?” Felix asks.
“No,” Julio answers. “Let’s give it a few more days.”
A couple of days is all he’s going to get. Holt has been a complete asshole at practice, not giving a shit about any of our upcoming games. He’s turned into a cancer for the team. His piss-poor attitude soaking into the other players in his fraternity like a disease.
“He’s ruining morale,” I say.
Julio’s expression is grim. “I know. Coach does too. But there’s not much we can do. He lost his spot, but until Jameia delivers the photos, that’s as much as we’re going to get. Not gonna lie,” he tells me. “I’m surprised you’ve managed to hold the position.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I ask, irritation lacing my voice. “Do you honestly think that asshole is a better striker than me?”
He shakes his head. “No, you asshole. Calm down.”
Mollified, I grind my teeth and let him speak.
“Holt’s parents made at least two visits to Coach’s office that I know of.”
What the hell?
Julio raises a hand, halting all of our comments. “There’s always yelling. Threats. Once there was an offer of more money,” he shrugs. “But Coach is holding his ground. For now.”
It’s the, for now, that worries me.
Grabbing my phone, I shoot Cecilia a quick text. We saw one another earlier in the day, but that was only during our classes. It’s been close to twenty-four hours since I was inside of her, and I think my dick is going through withdrawals.
Me: My place tonight?
Her response is quick.
Cecilia: Can’t.
I scowl down at her reply.
“Who pissed in your cheerios?” Felix asks, dropping down onto the seat beside me.
“What?” I glare up at him. “Go away.”
He spoons some of a Duvalín into his mouth, eyes dancing. “Nah. I think I’m good. What’s our girl saying?”
My expression darkens. “She’s not our girl,” I snap at him. She’s mine. What the hell is wrong with people these days? I’ve made it really fucking clear that when it comes to Cecilia, I’m not fucking sharing.
Felix leans back in his seat, pulling out his own phone. His fingers flutter over the screen. “You sure about that?” he asks.
The phone chimes with an incoming message, and he flashes me a grin before showing me the screen. My eyes scan both his original message and the response.
Felix: Hola pequenita. You going to come hang out with us today?
I’m really starting to hate that fucking nickname. She’s not his little one. Cecilia isn’t his anything.
Cecilia: Can’t. We have a swim meet in Sun Valley and the team is getting a hotel for the weekend. Raincheck?
My eyes narrow, and I reach for the phone, but Felix pulls it back, fingers flying as he types out another response.
“What did you say?”
It chimes again with her response.
“What did she say?” I ask, leaning into his space.
Felix hugs his phone to his chest. “Relax,” he says. “I’m just making plans to—”
To hell with that. Grabbing the phone from his hands, I rise to my feet. My eyes scan over the messages before Felix has a chance to steal the device back.
Felix: Suncrest U! I’m coming. I know how badly you want to see my handsome face cheering for you in the stands. And Deacon is excited to visit his home turf.
My head lifts, eyes seeking Deacon out. “You’re in on this?” I ask, waving Felix’s phone in the air.
His mouth twists in confusion. “In on what?” he asks.
“Going to Sun Valley for Cecilia’s swim meet at Suncrest U? When the hell did you and Felix talk about this?”
Deacon shrugs his shoulders. “Yeah. I’m down. I don’t have anything else planned this weekend. You?”
Hold up. “Is this a prearranged thing or are you just agreeing on the fly?” I ask.
Felix snickers, his ass still seated and relaxed as can be on the couch.
“First, I’m hearing of it,” Deacon says. “But I’m still down.”
I turn to Felix and throw the phone at his chest. “You’re an asshole,” I tell him.
His phone chimes again, and his smirk spreads into a wide grin. “Take that back or I’ll tell Cecilia you don’t want to come with us. She’s asking about you.”
“She is?” I lunge for his phone again, but this time, he holds it out, keeping it away from me.
“Yeah, cabrón, she is. So what’s it going to be? You coming or not?”
“Obviously. You’re not going to my girl’s meet without me.”
“Ooooh!” He drags out the sound. “It’s like that now, huh? You’re calling Cecilia your girl.”
“You know what I mean,” I snap, punching him in the spot I know will give him a dead arm.
“Sonova—”
“Don’t pretend you didn’t deserve that.”
Felix sputters, eyes flicking around the room in search of allies. “Don’t look at me,” Julio tells him. “I’m with Gabe. You had that coming.”
Felix pushes out his bottom lip, pouting like a freaking toddler.
“You just wait,” he grumbles. “When Cecilia’s around, she’ll make you assholes be nice to me.”
Flipping him off, I level Felix with a glare. “Keep pushing,” I tell him. “See where it gets you. Cecilia’s off limits and I’m only going to warn you once. I don’t play around when it comes to her. Got it? No jokes. No funny business. Keep it in check. She’s not a game.”
Felix must hear in my voice how serious I am because all humor falls from his face and he nods. “Yeah. Alright. I’ll back off.”
“Good.”
“But we’re still going to her meet,” he tells me. “She deserves our support.”
With a nod, I exhale a loud sigh. “Fine.” Because he’s right. She deserves that and more.
The roar of my bike sweeps through the air as we pull onto Suncrest U’s campus. The ride over gave me a lot of time to think. To really mull things over between Cecilia and me.
My plan’s always been to get her back. But I’m starting to question if I’m going about things the wrong way.
We’ve been screwing like rabbits. No complaints about that. But Cecilia and her stupid rules make it harder to go any deeper than that. She’s keeping me at arm’s length, and no matter how thoroughly I pleasure her body, her heart and mind are still a million miles away.
Pulling into a parking spot, I kill the engine as Julio, in his car, pulls into the spot beside me. He drove the rest of the guys over, aside from Atticus, who needed to stay behind and study for some big test he has on Monday for one of his classes.
Eyeing the large brick building marked Aquatics, we fall into step with one another.
“Are we late?” Felix asks.
I glance at my phone and shake my head. “Shouldn’t be,” I tell him. “Start time is in ten minutes.”
“Sweet,” he whistles. “Right on time.”
Deacon surveys the scene, his eyes quickly cataloging the surrounding faces. “Looking for someone?” I ask.
He nods, but before he can speak, a tiny blond comes barreling toward him. “You’re here!” she screams, throwing herself into his arms. He lifts her up without effort and her legs wrap around his waist before he gently places her back on her feet.
She punches him in the arm, and I wince.
“I missed you, you jerk.”
Finally getting a good look at her, my lips split into a wide grin. “Damn, Kasey. No love for me?”
She rolls her baby-blue eyes but offers me a smirk. “You,” she says, shaking her finger at me, “Are trouble. No hugs for you.”
I chuckle. “I don’t know what you’re talking about?”
“Mmm Hmm,” she mutters, folding her arms over her chest. “You mean you never intentionally antagonized Dominique with me just to get a rise out of him?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
She quirks one blond brow. “Really? A certain birthday barbeque seems to come to mind.”
I raise both hands in mock surrender. “Okay, okay. You got me. But in my defense, that asshole had it coming.”
Deacon grumbles beside me. “That asshole is my brother,” he says, and all three of our collective gazes snap to him.
“No shit?” Felix asks.
He nods, expression grim. Poor guy. I’d be a little grim if that broody fucker was related to me too.
“Stop it,” Kasey admonishes. “Dom’s not all bad.”
Deacon quirks a brow. “You two better?”
Her face falls and something that looks a lot like pain flickers across her face. “Of course,” she shrugs, brushing Deacon’s question off. “It’s just a rough patch. We’re fine.”
He scrutinizes her. “If you say so.”
The two share a couple of minutes of small talk, Julio and Felix joining in, but my attention keeps wandering. I can’t help but look around in the hopes of catching a glimpse of my girl before her competition.
Felix told her we’d be here, but still, I want her to see us. To know we showed up for her big day. Every athlete wants to know they have people behind them, cheering them on. And we—me and the guys—we’re her people.
I’ve never been to a swim meet before, and I’m intrigued by the energy in the air.
It’s much more charged than I anticipated for this kind of thing.
The pool area is bustling with activity, swimmers stretching beside the lanes, coaches giving last-minute pep talks, and spectators slowly filling up the stands.
Cecilia arrived earlier in Sun Valley with her team—catching the team bus—while we left later in the day. I’d have met her sooner, maybe explored the town a bit with her if I’d known about the meet in advance.
An oversight I plan to rectify in the future.
Scanning the crowd, my heart pounds with anticipation. I spot Cecilia near the pool, chatting with her teammates, her eyes focused and determined. I swallow hard, gaze trailing from the top of her swim cap covered head down to the tips of her bare toes.
She looks good. Better than good.
“Come on,” Julio says, drawing my attention. “We should grab our seats.”
Nodding, I keep an eye on Cecilia as I follow J and the others to the bleachers. We find seats to the left in the fourth row, and I brace my hands on my knees, shoulders forward as I give Cecilia my full attention.
She still hasn’t seen us yet, but as the whistle is blown and the swimmers are called to attention, her eyes glance one last time over the crowd.