CHAPTER TWO
MASON
Rowan Hayes looked at me like she wanted to put my head through drywall.
Which, unfortunately, was doing something for me.
“Stop smiling like that,” Eli muttered beside me once she disappeared into the crowd.
I grabbed the beer someone shoved into my hand.
“Like what?”
“Like you found a new bad decision.”
Across the kitchen, Rowan was talking to Serena near the staircase, one hand moving while she argued about something. Black leather jacket. Dark hair falling over one shoulder. Meanest fucking eye contact I’d seen in months.
She glanced over.
Caught me looking.
Didn’t look away immediately.
Interesting.
Jace slid up beside me already grinning. “Oh, you’re screwed.”
“I’ve said six words to her.”
“And she already looks one inconvenience away from climbing you.”
I snorted into my drink.
“That girl hates me.”
“No,” Jace said. “That girl wants to win.”
That was probably true.
And somehow worse.
Daniel cornered me near the fridge before I could respond.
“You’re doing the interviews.”
“I hate interviews.”
“You’re doing them anyway.”
“Get someone else.”
“No.”
I looked at him flatly. “Compelling argument.”
Daniel lowered his voice. “The draft rumors are getting bigger. Sports media’s already circling. We need one controlled story before outside press starts making shit up.”
My jaw tightened automatically.
There it was.
Always.
Basketball.
NBA.
Draft projections.
Legacy.
Future.
Every conversation eventually became about my father or my career.
Never just me.
Daniel noticed the mood shift immediately because everyone fucking noticed eventually.
“That’s why Rowan’s perfect for this,” he continued carefully. “She writes real pieces. Human pieces.”
“Cute. Still hate it.”
“You hate everything.”
“Not true.”
Jace appeared over Daniel’s shoulder. “He likes tequila and emotional repression.”
“Thanks,” I said dryly.
“Anytime.”
Daniel sighed like he regretted his entire career path. “Just cooperate with her for one semester.”
Then he disappeared back into the chaos.
I took another drink.
Jace bumped my shoulder. “You’re absolutely flirting with her tomorrow.”
“I absolutely am not.”
“You looked at her ass twice.”
“I looked once.”
“Liar.”
Eli climbed off the counter finally. “Can we talk about literally anything else?”
“No,” Jace said immediately. “This is the most personality Mason’s had in weeks.”
I flipped him off.
He looked delighted.
Unfortunately for me, he wasn’t wrong.
The past month had been brutal.
Practice.
Games.
Media.
Classes.
Scouts.
My father calling after every performance like he still owned part of me.
Bad game?
Lecture.
Good game?
Still a lecture.
Nothing was ever enough.
I hadn’t slept properly in days.
Hadn’t really felt like myself in longer.
And somehow the first thing that cut through the numb routine tonight was a pissed-off journalism girl looking at me like she’d rather commit murder than flirt.
Fucking concerning.
Niko stumbled into the kitchen already drunk. “Mason!”
“What?”
“Some freshman asked if you’re coming to Sigma tonight.”
“No.”
“You didn’t even think about it.”
“Because I said no.”
Jace gasped dramatically. “He’s growing.”
“Shut up.”
My phone buzzed in my pocket.
One glance at the screen immediately ruined my mood.
Dad.
Of course.
I stared at it for a second too long.
Eli noticed.
“You gonna answer?”
“No.”
Buzz again.
Then another.
Jace saw my expression and went quieter instantly.
That was the thing about them.
They acted like idiots ninety percent of the time, but the second something actually mattered, they noticed.
I shoved my phone back into my pocket.
“Practice tomorrow at nine,” I said.
“Wow,” Jace muttered. “That subject change was subtle.”
“Fuck off.”
The back door slid open suddenly, cold air spilling into the kitchen.
Rowan stepped inside again alone this time, rubbing her hands together from the night air.
She stopped the second she noticed me still there.
Then visibly considered turning around.
I almost laughed.
“Relax,” I called out. “I’m not contagious.”
“Debatable.”
Jace looked between us like Christmas came early.
“Oh, I’m staying for this.”
Rowan ignored him completely and walked to the fridge.
I watched her longer than necessary.
Couldn’t help it.
She moved like someone permanently braced for disappointment. Sharp edges everywhere. Guard up even when she was standing still.
But she wasn’t shy.
That was the interesting part.
Most people either tried too hard with me or avoided eye contact entirely.
Rowan looked directly at me every time like she was daring me to become a problem.
Which obviously made me want to become a problem.
She grabbed a water bottle from the fridge.
“You know staring is creepy, right?” she asked without looking over.
“Depends.”
“On?”
“If the person staring is attractive.”
That finally got her attention.
Rowan slowly closed the fridge door.
“You recycle lines often or is tonight special?”
“Not a line.”
“Right.”
“It’s observation.”
Jace made another choking sound behind me.
Eli looked exhausted already.
Rowan twisted open the bottle. “You flirt like someone who’s never been told no.”
I stepped closer before thinking about it.
Not too close.
Just enough.
“Maybe I just haven’t heard it from someone interesting yet.”
Bad idea.
Immediately bad idea.
Because her expression shifted for half a second.
Not soft.
Not flustered.
Something worse.
Interested.
Then it disappeared.
“That sounded rehearsed,” she said.
I grinned. “And yet you’re still standing here.”
For one tiny second, I thought she might smile.
Instead she took a slow sip of water without breaking eye contact.
Jesus fucking Christ.
Jace leaned toward Eli behind us and whispered loudly:
“They’re either gonna hook up or stab each other.”
“Both,” Eli said calmly.
Probably fair.
Rowan looked over at them finally. “Your friends always this annoying?”
“Yes,” I answered immediately.
“Funny,” Jace said. “I was gonna ask if your face always looks this judgmental.”
“It’s genetic.”
I laughed before I could stop myself.
Real laugh too.
Not the fake easy ones I gave reporters and cameras and every other person constantly trying to take something from me.
Rowan noticed.
Her eyes narrowed slightly like that reaction surprised her.
Then my phone buzzed again.
Dad.
The good mood vanished instantly.
Rowan caught that too.
Sharp as hell.
“What?” she asked before I could hide it properly.
“Nothing.”
“Your face disagrees.”
I shoved my phone deeper into my pocket.
“Interview starts Monday, Hayes.”
She crossed her arms. “Excited already.”
“You should be.”
“Why?”
I stepped around her toward the hallway, stopping beside her shoulder long enough to say quietly:
“Because eventually you’ll realize you were wrong about me.”
Then I walked away before she could answer.
Mostly because I had absolutely no idea if I believed that myself.