My Lucky Catch (University Park #6) (14 page)

“Just tell Collin and Lexi, and quit sneaking around.”

“It’s more than that. I’m tired of seeing her hanging all over guys. It’s always a different one, and I know she’s fucking them.” Thinking of the guy I saw her with last night at a bar on West 7
^th
Street made my stomach turn. He had a long beard, was covered in tattoos, and looked like he belonged with Smokey Bear, chopping wood or stopping forest fires.

“But you’re not with her, so what does it matter? Unless you’re in love with her.” He did a double take, his eyes going wide. “Oh, shit. Are you in love with her, dude?”

“Fuck no.” I wiped my head and put my hat back on. “I just like her.”

“Whatever.” He pushed me to the side. “Has to be more than liking going on. I mean, you’ve been seeing her for how long?”

I had to think a moment. “Since the start of fall semester, last year.”

“Shit. It’s been a whole year, and you guys are still fuck buddies?”

“Shh.” I looked around, hoping no one heard us. I didn’t like the guys on the team meddling in my business. “Someone’s going to hear you.”

“It’s the truth, isn’t it?”

“Yes, but everyone doesn’t have to know.”

Riley caught my line of sight. “What are you two doing? Making out?” He started kissing his hand, running his tongue over it and petting it like it was a hot girl.

“Fuck you.” I told him and looked away as Forbes shot him the finger.

Riley knew how to rub me the wrong way. What pissed me off the most was he had an interest in Delaney. Every time he saw her without me, he was right next to her, flirting with her. What could I tell him? She wasn’t my girlfriend, and we almost got in a fight at Mateo’s birthday party.

“Look, just because you and Jordan are a couple,
doesn’t mean Delaney and I have to be.”

He inclined his head. “Then why does it bother you if she’s with someone else?”

“I don’t know.” Despite what I said, I couldn’t explain the agonizing pain in the center of my chest.

“Yes, you do.” He took off his ball cap and rubbed his short crew cut with the palm of his hand. “Think about Steph.”

“Why?” A cold shiver shot up my back.

“Exactly. So when it comes to Steph, do you care who she screws?”

“Hell no. She can do whatever the hell she wants.”

“And that’s my point. You don’t have any feelings for Steph, but you do for Delaney. That’s why it hurts you,” he pointed to the center of my chest, “right here.”

I had a feeling I was going under fast. Forbes was right. There was no denying the feelings I had for Delaney and what they were turning into. The truth was that I had felt them a long time ago, but when I tried to tell her, she refused to acknowledge them. I went along with doing things on her terms and buried my true feelings.

But things can only stay buried for so long.

“You need to tell her, dude. Quit being a pussy, and just tell her how you really feel.”

“Easy for you to say.” I flipped my hat around, sending the bill to the back. “Jordan is the exact opposite of Delaney. Delaney’s tough, with no emotions. Almost like a dude.”

“No girl can be that cold. She’s not a robot or alien. Women need love. They need attention and want to be spoiled.”

“Not Delaney.”

“That’s what she tells you, but I guarantee she wants someone to love her.” He winked. “There has to be something bothering her or preventing her from wanting more from you.”

“I guess, but she won’t open up to me.”

“That’s your task.” He placed a hand on my shoulder, giving me a hearty shake.

“I know she’s holding back. The question is why?”

“Exactly.” He grinned. “Find that key to her heart, and unlock it.”

***

Delaney

“Is she coming?” Luke glanced over my shoulder getting a glimpse of the text message between Lexi and me.

“Yeah, she just got out of class.” I set my phone on the table.

“Ok. Did you want to order now or wait until she gets here?” Luke’s hand inched closer to mine. His fingers skimmed over my skin with light feathery strokes, causing me to squirm in my chair.

“I guess we can wait.” I pulled my hand from under his and dropped it under the table, giving his crotch a nice little rub.

“Hey, watch it.” Luke shifted to the right, trying to escape my wondering hand.

“I want to do more than watch it.” I dragged my palm away slowly, giving his thigh a nice squeeze.

“You’re such a tease.”

“Maybe so, but I deliver.” I latched on to my bottom lip, allowing my eyes to survey him purposely. I was playing with fire, despite knowing I shouldn’t be. When I was next to Luke, he was just too irresistible.

“You sure do.” He reached over and tickled my crotch, causing me to squeal.

“Luke, stop.” I pleaded, latching on to his arm.

“Are you sure you want me to stop?” His warm breath spanned across my face and down my neck while his fingers searched for the zipper on my jeans.

“What if your sister walks in?” I eyed him, even though I didn’t want him to stop. He had me too excited, and I was ready to mount him right there in the booth and ride his ass. I hated that I couldn’t get enough of him. Because when it came to Luke, I kept finding myself giving into what I wanted most.

Him.

I continued my rotation of guys so I wouldn’t fall completely for him. It was the only thing I knew to do because as much as I hated to admit it, I was falling in love with him. My head just hadn’t accepted what my heart already knew.

“I better stop while I’m ahead.” His fingers pulled away, and he increased the space between us.

“I guess you’d better.” I agreed verbally, even though my body protested silently.

“Let’s go ahead and order.” Luke reached over and grabbed a menu stuck between the saltshakers. “What do you want to eat?” He opened it and skimmed over it.

Without glancing at the menu, I said, “I’ll take a cheeseburger and fries.”

“And to drink?”

“Coke Zero or Diet Coke, whichever they have.”

“Alright.” He laid the menu on the table and adjusted himself before getting up. “I’ll be right back.” I released a slight giggle, feeling bad for leaving him that way. “You’re laughing now, but just wait.” He pointed at me. I watched him pensively as he got up and headed to the order line. His ass looked perfect in his tight skinny jeans, and I was anxious to run my hands under his shirt. Taking a few deep breaths, I calmed my raging hormones.

A few minutes later, Luke returned with our drinks. “Coke Zero, as you requested.”

“Thanks,” I said, scrolling the latest feed on Instagram.

“So, what are you doing tonight?” Luke grabbed a lock of my hair and twirled it around his fingers.

Placing my phone on the table, I said, “I don’t know. Studying and doing some homework.”

“Need some help?”

“No, thanks, I’m good.” I shook my head, even though my body language said
yes.

Luke’s grin turned solemn. “You might not need help, but I do.”

“You do?” I shifted closer to him and brushed his loose waves with the tips of my fingers. Luke had the messiest, but prettiest hair for a guy. Dark brown with golden tips from the sun gave him the perfect model-like appearance. Not to mention his blue eyes that could undress me with just one glance.

“Yeah.” Luke’s hand dropped to my leg, and he rubbed it with a vigor that told me what he wanted. “Why don’t you come over tonight around ten?” His head inclined, and his lips lingered on the edge of mine.

“Okay.” I found myself captured by his charm and agreeing to his request with little resistance. The door opened, and out of the corner of my eye I saw Lexi walk in. I quickly pulled away, hoping she hadn’t seen us nearly kiss.

“Hey.” I cleared my throat and picked up my phone, trying to act like nothing was going on between us.

“Hi.” Lexi dropped her backpack on the bench across from us with a loud thud.

“Hey, Sis.” Luke turned slowly in her direction. I elbowed him when I realized his hand was still on my thigh. If he didn’t want Lexi to find out about us, he was doing a shitty job of it.

“I was beginning to wonder if you were coming.” I glanced at my phone. “You sent a text about twenty minutes ago.”

“Sorry, I had to call the writing center. They want me to tutor someone, and we were trying to coordinate schedules.” She pulled out her wallet. “Did you two already order?”

“Yeah, about five minutes ago.” Luke lifted his hand from my leg and rubbed his chin in a smooth move. The look on Lexi’s face told me she sensed we were up to something. I wasn’t sure how much longer we could hide our friends-with-benefits status.

“I need to hurry. I have to meet this student in forty-five minutes.” She got up and immediately bumped in to Collin.

“Lexi.” He caught her between his arms, steadying her.

“Sorry, I didn’t see you.” She placed her hand on his chest and stared into eyes, as though trying desperately to connect to him. “Aren’t you supposed to be in class?”

He released her from his embrace, not bothering to kiss her. Disappointment painted her faced, and her body slumped forward. For these two to be getting married, they sure were acting like strangers. “Professor cancelled it. I sent you a text, but when you didn’t respond, I figured you might be here. Thought I’d eat lunch with you.”

“Great.” She smiled, but I could see right through the pained expression. “Unfortunately, I have to be at work in forty-five minutes.”

“That’s fine.” He shrugged, placing his backpack in the booth. “What do you want to eat?”

“I’ll have the chicken and roasted green Chile burger, no fries, and water with lemon.”

“Okay. I’ll be right back.”

Collin took off toward the back to order, not bothering to say hi to either of us. It didn’t bother me because he rarely talked me when I saw him. I wasn’t sure if he didn’t like me or had something against me. I thought of asking Lexi a time or two, but figured it was just his personality and let it go. Lexi slid into the booth, took in a deep breath, and then released a soft sigh.

“You okay, Sis?” Luke placed his hand on hers.

“Yeah,” she nodded, “just a lot going on.”

“She’s stressing about the wedding,” I said, recalling how Sunday’s dress fitting session went. I felt bad for her. No way would I allow Veronica, or my mom, if she were alive, to tell me what wedding dress I would wear. Luke and Lexi’s parents won the award for
Helicopter Parents of the Decade
, times two.

“And school.” He released her hand, and she grabbed a few napkins from the holder. Folding them neatly, she placed one for her and one for Collin.

“The ceremony is in June. Of next year. Isn’t it a little early to be worrying?”

“Yes, but there’s so much to do and—”

“I get it.” Luke motioned for her to stop. “Please, spare me the details.”

Collin set their drinks on the table and then turned to Luke. “Is she obsessing about the wedding again?”

“What do you think?” Luke smirked.

“I told her not to worry about anything. We have plenty of time to get things in order. Delaney, you’ll be helping as the wedding planner, right?” Collin asked, totally catching me off guard.

“Yes, and I told her this should be fun. But you know Lexi—”

“She wants everything to be perfect,” Luke added.

“No, I don’t.” She pounded her fist on the table, and I arched back. “And will you stop talking like I’m not here?”

Luke shot me a look that said
don’t say anything else.

“I’m sorry.” Collin kissed her cheek, and I did a double take because I swore that was the first time I’d ever seen him kiss her. “I didn’t mean to be rude. I was only trying to be supportive.”

Apparently, Lexi was stressed about the wedding more than I realized. I’d never seen her so uptight. And Collin’s way of showing support wasn’t what she needed. A weekend alone with him would be the answer to her prayers.

“I know. Forget about it.” She touched his hand and then skimmed her fingers along the curves of his bicep.

“Lexi, stop.” He brushed her hand away, and she retracted her arm like a wounded puppy. I immediately covered my mouth, preventing any words from escaping. What the hell was wrong with this dude? Why didn’t he want her touching him? Hell, Luke and I weren’t even boyfriend and girlfriend, and we couldn’t keep our hands off each other.

The waitress arrived with our food, and I watched Lexi take her plate and move as close to the wall as possible. Instead of these two being close together, they were distant. If they were in love, I didn’t see it. Something was definitely wrong with this relationship.

“Are you headed to the gym later on?” Luke asked Collin.

“Of course,” Collin replied, waiting to take a bite of his burger. “I can’t slow down even if it’s the off season.”

“Me, either. Spring training kicked my butt last year. And Coach will be all over my ass.”

“I don’t want to see you sitting on the bench again.”

“Yeah, me, either.” Luke agreed. “But I think taking a little time to get my head together has helped.”

“That’s good.”

Collin and Luke continued chatting about baseball, and I thought of how to get my friend away from all this as I ate my burger. I considered a trip to the nearest nail salon, but seeing how her nails were already perfectly shaped and painted with a clear gloss, I knew she’d probably say no.

“Hey, Lexi, wanna go workout with me tonight, too?” I figured letting go of this frustration would be good for her.

“Lexi?” I waved a hand in front of her face, but her eyes glossed over as if she was in another world.

“Huh?” She stopped chewing for a second and looked at me, clueless.

I shook my head. We definitely needed to have a woman-to-woman chat about Collin.

“So, do you want to or not?” I said, with a mouthful of food.

“Do what?”

“Seriously?” I placed my hand on my forehead. “You didn’t hear me?”

“Sorry,” she mouthed.

I took a quick sip of my soda. “I asked if you wanted to go to the gym with me.”