Chapter 3
I wouldn’t mind being stuck in a sandwich between them
I fixed my ponytail and slipped my feet into flip-flops before shouldering my book bag and exiting my dorm room.
My roommate, Cassidy, had left early because her shift at Hot Shot, one of the coffee shops on campus, started at six in the morning.
I had planned to work there too, but two weeks ago, I had gotten a job at Lola’s, a pub a fifteen-minute walk from our dorm and one of the most popular hangout spots to enjoy cheap drinks and chicken wings in town.
On the weekends, they broadcasted college football, hockey, and basketball games, which attracted a crowd.
Once a month, they hosted themed nights like karaoke, open mics, or trivia, which meant it was always bustling with college students looking to have a great time.
The pay was decent, and the tips were good.
I loved my job. It was different from the movie theatre and much more entertaining.
In between swimming hours, training sessions, meets, and classes, it gave me some sort of pause where I could just be and enjoy the perks of going out without actually having to go out. A little escape from my everyday life and a step closer to gaining my full independence.
Classes for the fall semester had started three weeks ago, and I had yet to come face-to-face with the boy I’d chased away almost a year ago—the one I still found myself thinking about from time to time, but whom I refused to let take over my mind feed.
Mason had been recruited to play football at Crestwood University, which meant he was around campus somewhere.
Even though I knew for a fact he had received tons of offers to play college ball all over the country, he’d decided on CWU, though.
From the moment he confided in me about taking their offer last January, the thought had clung to me like a shadow, and it was one of the reasons my relationship with Jayden had been tense lately.
He knew Mason was around while he wasn’t.
He knew about our shared history, our old friendship, and was aware that, at one point, Mason and I were joined at the hip.
My boyfriend was a confident guy, but Mason and he had never had a simple relationship.
They were not enemies per se, but they weren’t cordial toward each other either.
“Here’s an orange and chocolate muffin I snatched for you,” Donovan, a student in my Introduction to Communication class, said, pushing a paper bag into my hand. “My roommate bought a whole box and decided he was in the mood for banana bread instead.”
“You’re a savior. I didn’t have time to eat this morning, and I don’t know why I’m running late, but it explains my ruffled appearance.
” I gestured at my outfit with a quick sweep of my hand, bringing attention to my hair tied in a messy bun, wrinkled white T-shirt with a band logo on the front belonging to my boyfriend, and a pair of faded-maroon ankle skinny jeans.
“You looking messy, girl? In your wildest dreams. You always look fabulous.”
Donovan and I were on the swim team together.
He was a freshman too, and we’d befriended each other on our first day of training and became instant BFFs.
With his dark-blond crew cut hairstyle and caramel skin, he looked nothing like Jayden or Mason physically, and his humor was more decadent than theirs.
While Mason could be a jokester when the situation called for it and had an easy smile—at least when it came to the people he cared about—my boyfriend was the opposite.
His smiles were a rare occurrence, mostly reserved for me, and he was even more serious than I was.
Unless he was playing football, which transformed him into a hot-tempered version of himself, he was pretty laid-back.
Sometimes, even though it sounded crazy, I wished we would argue more, just to add some spice to our relationship.
Jayden was nice to me, and we were getting along fine.
More importantly, my heart was safe with him.
I enjoyed his company and liked him a lot, but I wasn’t so head over heels in love with him that my heart skipped a beat every time he was around or I dreamed about our future babies.
“You heard from that boyfriend of yours?” Donovan asked as we strolled in the direction of Elizabeth Edison Hall. “Or are you two still on a break?”
I sighed and halted, rubbing the sole of my shoe against one of the concrete steps.
“No idea. We’re supposed to talk tonight.
With football camp, his training, my training, and the beginning of the semester, we’ve both been super busy.
Last night, we chatted for like five minutes before he had to go…
but he still sounded pissed. Jay is hard to read sometimes.
He doesn’t wear his emotions for everyone to see.
It’s easier to guess how he feels when we’re facing each other than over the phone. ”
Jayden and I had fought for the very first time a month ago.
He hated the idea of Mason and me spending time around each other on campus after I had opened up to him about our almost-dating kind of friendship.
Jayden and he couldn’t stand each other, neither on nor off the field.
It was a decades-old rivalry between the two high school football teams they played for—one I had no interest in.
Anyway, my boyfriend had ended up surprising me with a nice dinner after I’d sworn Mason wasn’t a threat to our relationship.
Still, I could tell his presence on the same campus as me affected him more than he’d ever admit.
“Well, if you guys call it quits, I wouldn’t say no to a romp between the sheets with your man, girl.
Just sayin’.” He fanned himself with a hand.
“I checked out some old high school footage of him the other day, because I was curious about him, and let me just say his glutes are to die for. And that attitude. I dig the whole bad boy temper he projects.”
“Don, are you fantasizing about my boyfriend? Huh…that’s troubling. And he’s so not a bad boy, I swear.”
“Sorry, girl. He’s hot. Bad boy temper or not. What can I say? Did I mention his ass in football tights?” He made a chef’s kiss gesture, bringing his connected forefinger and thumb to his mouth.
I burst into a fit of laughter. “I agree he’s hot. But stop.”
“Fine. Speaking of hotties, have you crossed paths with the new quarterback yet? Let me just tell you, he is what wet dreams are made of. He has a brother who’s as fuckable as him. I wouldn’t mind being stuck in a sandwich between them.”
Goose bumps spread all over my skin at the mention of the boys I used to hang out with.
No, I haven’t, was my silent reply.
On Saturday, I could have sworn Mason was standing behind me during my shift at Lola’s, but when I’d turned around, he was nowhere to be seen. For the next few hours, I kept an eye out for him, but he never showed up.
I slapped Donovan’s forearm. “Ugh, Don. Don’t ever say stuff like that to me again.
It’s…huh…I don’t have the words. What’s gotten into you this morning?
Stop objectifying football players. Please, spare me the images that’ll send me straight to years of therapy.
I don’t need to picture Mase and Craig doing the deed.
It’s disturbing and—” My hand flew to my mouth, shutting me up before my brain could catch up.
“Wait a sec.” Donovan stopped me, placing an arm across my chest, before turning toward me in slow motion. “You know these guys?”
I closed my eyes and counted to ten before reopening them, then winced.
Even Cassidy had no idea the Pierce brothers and I used to be friends…once upon a time. I hadn’t told anyone before it’d slipped out just now.
No matter where I went on campus, people always talked about Craig and Mason.
Every single time, my heart hiccupped in my chest at the mention of the latter, but I had grown a thicker skin over the last few months, and I was able to keep a straight face and avoid showing any emotion when it came to him.
“What? Noooo.” I tried to play dumb, but I was sure my friend could see through my fake innocence.
“You said Mase and Craig. You called them by their first names. Care to tell me how you know Mr. Football Hottie Number One and Mr. Football Hottie Number Two?” He angled himself until we fully faced each other. “Talk, girl. I’m all ears.”
I cast a glance down, pretending to be interested in the weathered stains dotting the concrete pathway.
Now that Mason was the starting quarterback for the Crestwood University Phoenix, his face was plastered everywhere all over campus.
All the girls wanted a piece of him, betting on his bed skills, and all the guys wanted to be him.
Even George, Lola’s owner, had named a drink after him. Pierce and Score. A mix of whiskey, orange juice, and a secret ingredient he wouldn’t reveal.
Just the idea of bumping into Mason sent shivers down my spine.
I had no idea if he would even speak to me if we ever crossed paths.
After how things had ended between us, I was certain I was the last person he wanted to run into, now that we’d be sharing the same university for the next four years.
“Melinda Shepard. What are you hiding from me? Who broke your heart? Number One or Number Two?”
I swallowed the weird taste coating my tongue. “It’s…huh…complicated. We grew up next door to one another. Craig used to date my best friend.”
“And?”
I huffed a long breath. “You won’t let it go, huh?”
“Nope. This is far too exciting a piece of information to just drop.”
“Mason and I, we…we were friends…until we weren’t anymore... It’s a long story, one I don’t wanna revisit right now.”
Donovan blinked and mimicked zipping his lips before pulling me into a half-hug. “From the look on your face, it’s a sour memory. I won’t talk about it anymore. Until you’re ready to confess it all.”