Chapter 3
Vee
Fourteen Years Ago
The house off Burley Avenue reeked of stale beer, marijuana, and sweat.
I moved my feet, my sandals sticking to the kitchen floor from the runoff of the keg.
Or maybe it was from spills, no one seeming overly stable.
Every square inch was occupied, people standing against walls while others sat on the dirty sofas and even on the questionable carpeting.
During my one trip to the bathroom—which was disgusting—I saw bedroom doors open and others closed.
Scanning the faces, there were few I recognized.
The music blaring from hidden speakers and shaking the walls made my temples pound.
I was half expecting the Lexington police to be the next guests through the door.
With my wildcat t-shirt sticking to my skin and perspiration dripping down my back and between my boobs, I reevaluated my current life choice.
Emma, my roommate, had spent the better part of last week talking about a great off-campus party, one we couldn’t miss.
She’d been told about it in her economics lecture.
Honestly, that should have been the first red flag. It wasn’t like economics majors were known for their epic parties. The sheer number of cars required us to park multiple blocks away.
Swiping loose tendrils of hair away from my face, I shook my head at Emma. “Let’s get out of here,” I shout-whispered.
“I want to stay and see if Aaron makes it.” Her large blue eyes were open wide. “He was the one who told me about the party. He even asked me on Friday if I’d be here.”
Friend code meant that if Emma stayed, I stayed.
“Fine. I’m going outside. I can’t breathe in here.”
Emma reached for my hand. “Don’t leave, Vee.”
“I won’t. You either.”
She nodded as I turned in the direction of the front door. A quick assessment let me know that I couldn’t forge a possible path through the crowd of bodies. Instead, I headed toward the glass doors off the living room, in the other direction.
The door was open, mixing the outside heat with a sad attempt at air conditioning.
Looking beyond the windows, I saw that since we’d arrived, the sun had made its descent.
The sky wasn’t quite night, but also, no longer day.
One light on the side of the house illuminated the cement patio.
Stepping out, I took a deep breath, trying to fill my lungs with fresher air.
A group of guys sitting around a resin table turned in my direction. “Hey, sweetheart,” one in a blue UK shirt said, his words slightly slurred.
“Hey.” I sidestepped the table, heading out into what was supposed to be a back lawn.
“If you’re looking for a place to sit?”
I turned to see that the blue shirt had pushed himself back, offering me his lap. “No thanks.”
My response got laughs and comments from blue shirt’s friends.
“If you change your mind—”
“There you are, Abby,” a deep voice called from the dimness beyond the bubble of light.
“I was afraid you’d left.” The holder of the voice materialized—tall, muscular, with short dark hair, a sharp, chiseled jaw, and eyes whose color I couldn’t define.
He came to my side and spoke to the table.
“Tell me which one of you assholes was making a play for my girl, and I’ll kick your ass. ”
Everyone else at the table laughed and pointed to blue shirt.
Blue shirt stood, albeit wobbly. “Seriously, Fin. I didn’t know.”
The mysterious Fin turned, looking down at me. “It’s up to you. Do I kick Sean’s ass?”
I took a moment to consider my answer. “I think you should let him off this time.”
Fin pointed at Sean. “You heard the lady. She saved your ass this time. She won’t be around to do it the next time.”
Sean lifted his hands in surrender and retook his seat.
Fin and I turned away from the table and began to walk through the backyard. “Abby?” I asked.
His cheeks rose. “Abby or Emma. I swear every girl in every class has one of those names. Sorry, are you Emma?”
“That’s my roommate.” I worked to conceal my smile. “Two strikes. One more and you’re out.”
We’d come to a side street. Across the street was a park. The sign read Burley Park. I lifted my face to the summer breeze, taking in the fresh air.
Fin stopped and offered me his hand. “I don’t want to be out, so I’ll try this. Hi, I’m Fin Graham.”
I laid my hand in his, a spark of sensation coming to life within me. “Hi, Fin Graham. I’m Maeve Hubbard.”
We released one another’s hands.
“Maeve.” He hummed my name. “I should have known you were too unique to be an Abby or an Emma.”
“Most people just call me Vee.”
“Fin is short for Griffin. Only my grandma calls me that.”
“Fin it is then. Thanks for coming to my rescue. Honestly, I’m pretty sure I could have taken Sean. It’s being outnumbered that I didn’t appreciate.”
The sky grew a darker shade as we continued walking into the park, my shoulder rubbing against his arm.
“I don’t doubt you could kick Sean’s ass,” he said. “I would have been happy to do it, but that could have fucked up my scholarship.” He smiled. “It would have been worth it.”
I bumped against his arm. “And I thought chivalry was dead. Tell me about your scholarship.”
Time lost meaning as we sat, the two of us, on a park bench just outside the globe of a tall streetlight and talked. During that conversation, Fin asked if I knew anything about football.
Starting a conversation with ‘my dad owns an NFL team’ wasn’t my go-to. Instead, I nodded. “I know some. My major is sports management. I’ve volunteered with the athletic trainers to help with water for the team.”
“A water girl.”
“A water person,” I corrected. “I’m hoping that next year I’ll get an internship with the football team, working with the trainers.”
“We may have a problem.”
“A problem?”
“Sean and those other assholes at that table…”
I was listening.
“They’re on the football team. So am I.”
My eyes opened wide. “You are? I guess without the jersey…”
Fin shook his head. “You wouldn’t remember me. I’m a transfer this year. I played two years at Kentucky State.”
“Division II.” I’d heard about this new quarterback. “Are you the redshirt I heard people talking about?”
“That would be me. I’m a junior in credits, a sophomore on the team.”
“I’m a sophomore in credits.” I recalled what he’d said earlier. “What’s our problem?”
“I just told that table you’re my girl.”
“Oh,” I said with a laugh. “And that my name is Abby.”
“Those assholes won’t remember your name. However, they’ll remember you when they see you on the field. You’re too pretty to forget.”
Warmth filled my cheeks. “So should we tell them we had a big fight over them and now it’s over?”
Fin reached for my hand.
His touch was warm and secure.
“I’d rather we stick with our story.” He tilted his head. “Unless there’s someone else. I mean, I could kick his ass.”
I shook my head. “No one else. Besides, we don’t want to jeopardize your scholarship.”
“See, my girl is looking out for me already.”
As my phone in my back pocket began to vibrate, I pulled it out. The name on the screen read Emma. “I need to get this. It’s my roommate. She’s back at the party.” I hit the green icon. “Emma?”
“Where are you?”
“I’m not far.” My forehead creased. “Are you okay?”
“I’m out front. Aaron finally arrived with a blond bimbo on his arm.”
“Ugh. I’m sorry. Stay there. I’ll be there in a couple of minutes.”
“Vee, I want to get out of here. Tonight was a disaster.”
“Be right there,” I said, disconnecting the call while at the same time, certain she was wrong about tonight’s assessment.
“Is that our cue?” Fin asked. “You need to go?”
“Yeah, friend code. Emma wants to leave.”
Fin turned his hand palm up. “Can I see your phone for a second?”
A warm tingling fluttered through my nervous system as I handed him my phone. Fin took it and turned away. When he turned back, his smile was even larger than before. “I just sent myself a text. Now we have one another’s numbers.”
I retrieved my phone and stood. “It will make it easier to continue our charade.”
Fin stood, his wide chest before me. Craning my neck, I looked up. Under the streetlight I could see his eyes were blue, a striking shade reminding me of sapphires.
“I was thinking maybe we could see one another again, not on the football field.”
My lips pressed into a straight line. “I suppose I do owe you for saving me.”
“Nope. Talking to you was the best part of this night. I only went to that party because the team would be there. I’m no saint, but I’d rather not get caught with alcohol and weed before my first game as a wildcat.”
“The only beer I got was what’s stuck to my shoes.”
Fin laughed as together we walked back to the party house.