Wanna Bet? (4 page)

“
Tell me about
it” She whispers back wincing slightly.

“
What the hell
happened to you two?” Matt asks when we take our seats at our usual
table.

“
Shh
, don’t shout”
Sophie says.

“
You’re hung
over?” he asks us both when we wince he lowers his voice “I thought
you had a date Brooke?”

“
I did, but we
went out when I got back” I tell him barely above a
whisper.

“
Anyone told
you that you both look like shit?” Tucker inf
orms us cheerily as he joins us, he put his
hands up in front of him when we both glare at him “Okay, never
mind”

“
Where did you
go and what happened to you both?” Matt asks.

“
I got tickets
to watch a fight”

“
Were you both
in the fight?” he asks looking pointedly at the cuts on our
faces.

“
Umm not
exactly …” I glance at Sophie wondering how we explain it but she
just busts out laughing taking me along with her.

“
Ah don’t it
hurts” she gasps holding her head.

Tucker clears
his throat and I look up to see Matt watching us
unimpressed.

“
Okay
, so a few guys I
know gave me tickets to go watch a fight in the next town over,
after the fight we went back to the house party and things got …
out of hand and we all drank a bit much and passed out” I tell him
skipping a few details.

“
The cuts?”
Matt prompts.

“
We woke up in
a bush
outside the house …
two hours ago” Sophie grumbles.

Tucker bursts
out laughing and Matt gives Sophie the best disapproving look I
have even seen but I’m surprised when she doesn’t cower away like I
would have.

“
Why didn’t
you invite me?” Tucker asks when his laughter is slightly under
control but not completely.

“
You wouldn’t
have like
d it” I tell him but
Sophie snorts.

“
If we’re
going to be doing this friends thing Brooke, you need to invite me
to things like this, you can’t leave me out” he pouts at
me.

“
You didn’t
look like this when I left you last night” Jason notes slipping
into the seat next to me
,
cutting off my reply to Tucker.

“
I went out
after” I tell him smiling at seeing him again so soon.

“
What
? Didn’t enjoy
your self enough with me?” he asks pretending to look
wounded.

“
No I had a
great time” I assure him when he puts his arm around the back of my
chair.

* *
*

Over the next
three weeks I see Jason every night and it is going good apart from
all the gossip about Tucker and I having an affair. I have no idea
where the rumo
urs are coming
from because I’ve hardly seen him apart from at lunch and a few
times he’s spent time in our room with Matt and Sophie.

“
I heard
you’re boyfriend stayed over Megan’s last night”

I look over at
Cassie who
’s sitting behind
me. I heard the rumour as well and Jason hasn’t turned up to any
classes yet today so I haven’t had his reassurances about
it.

“
G
ood for them” I
shrug, not showing how it bothers me.

“
You’re going
to let him get away with it?” she asks raising an
eyebrow.

I open my
mouth to reply but she cuts me off “Oh yeah that’s right, you’re
playing away too” she smirks.

I see Tucker
out of the corner of my eye as he sits in Jason’s empty seat “What
you talking about?” He asks me looking back at Cassie.

“
All the mind
blowing, sweaty, wild sex that me and you have every night” I make
a point of sighing and turning to face him “We should really try
and keep it a secret.” I roll my eyes when I hear Cassie
gasp.

“
Want me to
move?” he asks starting to stand up from the seat next to
me.

“
Don’t be
ridiculous. I’m sure we can keep our hands off each other for a
whole hour”

“
Brooke…” he
shakes his head at me letting me know that he isn’t going to play
my game.
Okay so maybe I get
a little carried away when the rumours are brought to my attention
but considering no one has any proof of what’s supposedly happening
behind closed doors, they are all quick to believe it.

“
They’re going
to say it anyway as long as we are in the same room, we don’t even
have to be sat next to each other Tucker” I grumble.

“
Lover
s tiff?” Cassie
asks and we both turn to look at her “Is it the ‘did you come’
argument?” she smirks at Tucker.

“
Honey, if a
guy has to ask ‘did you come?’ after sex you should be
worried
. First of all because
you obviously didn’t fake it good enough if you couldn’t fool him
and second of all, what the hell were you thinking getting it on
with him in the first place, he clearly doesn’t know what he’s
doing”

She narrows
her eyes at me and Tucker snorts but I turn my attention back to
the front of the class as the lecture starts wondering if the
rumours about Jason are true or not.

“
What do you
want?” Tucker groans when he finally answers his door.

“
Come on. Get
dressed!” I push passed him and turn the coffee machine on to make
up two cups to take with us.

“
Hey Matt” I
grin at him when he walks out from the bathroom in just a
towel.

“
Good morning”
He sings back to me just as cheerful.

“
Don’t talk to
her she’s evil” We both turn to see Tucker pulling a pillow over
his head grumbling about death threats.

I walk over
to his bed and pull the blankets off him.

“
Get up!” I
say in my best soldier impression.

“
Why?” he
moans back pathetically.

“
We’re going
out” I go back into the kitchen area and fill the two cups plus a
normal mug for Matt.

“
I hate
you
.” Comes from the
bed.

“
Well I guess
that I’ll just take Matt instead then” I wink at Matt and he grins
at me

“
Where are we
going
Brooke?” he asks
playing along, of course he already knows the plan because when I
told Sophie I had the tickets she convinced me to take
Tucker.

“
It was
supposed to be a surprise … I’d invite both of you but I only have
two tickets and I thought with Tucker being such a fan that he
would enjoy it but if he wants to stay in bed instead of going to
see
Heaven’s Devil’s
then I guess you can take his
place”

At the sound
of Tuckers favourite band being mentioned he flies across the room
and pushes Matt out of the way to grab both my arms looking me
straight in the eyes.

“
Tell me now.
Are you lying?”

I shake my
head and gesture with my head to the table where I put the two
tickets when I came in.

“
Oh my god I
think I love you!” he shouts making me wince and then he kisses
me.

“
I take it you
want to come with me?” I ask smiling.

“
Definitely”
He grins

“
Only if you
promise not to do that again”

“
Are you
serious
? I could fuck you ten
times over for this” he says seriously.

“
Umm … Matt
are you sure Sophie doesn’t want to come with me? It’s not too late
for her to change her mind” I ask Matt pleadingly.

“
You were
going to take Sophie before me?” Tucker asks looking
offended.

“
Of course,
she’s my best friend and I didn’t even know you liked the band,
she’s the one who convinced me to take you, it took some doing by
the way but she said you would kill me if I took her and not you” I
roll my eyes at how dramatic it all was.

“
Damn straight
I would have!”

“
Tell him the
rest” Matt smirks at me obviously enjoying Tuckers
reaction.

“
I’m not sure”
I say nervously trying to get out of Tuckers grip that has just
tightened.

“
What else?”
he asks looking back and forth between me and Matt.

“
The concert
is tonight, we’re staying in a hotel and then Sophie and Matt are
joining us tomorrow” I try again to get out of his grip.

“
Why? What’s
happening tomorrow?” he asks narrowing his eyes at me.

“
Ummm well I
know the drummers fiancé and they are having a joint hen/stag night
tomorrow, I got the three of you invited with me” I close my eyes
tightly when I say it but to my surprise Tucker lets me
go.

“
Tuck …” Matt
frowns watching him walk around the room.

“
Are you okay?
Do you not want to go?” I ask him nervously.

“
I’m thinking”
he waves a hand dismissively at us so we both sit down at the table
and I pour myself a coffee to drink while I wait.

“
I told you
this was a bad idea” I tell Matt.

“
He’ll be
fine, just give him a minute” he assures me “Do you know what we’ll
be doing tomorrow night?”

“
I’m not sure,
there’s a few clubs we’ll be going to but most likely we’ll end up
at a house party to be honest. That’s what has happened when Sophie
and I have gone in the past”

“
You’ve been
out with them before?” Matt asks me surprised.

“
Yeah I …” I’m
cut off by my phone ringing.

“
Hello?”

“
How’d he take
it?” Sophie asks excitedly.

“
Umm well he’s
pacing” I answer watching Tucker still silently walking around the
room.

“
Have you told
him where you are taking him after the concert?” she asks
laughing.

“
Not yet no,
I’m thinking that’s not such a good idea” I say quietly so he wont
here me.

“
You have to
do it; just don’t mention it until you get there. Can I speak to
Matt please?” she asks still laughing. I hand the phone over to
Matt and stand up to sort Tucker out.

“
We really
have to leave if you’re coming” I say stopping him with my hand on
his arm. He just nods at me and starts getting ready.

“
Is he ever
going to talk again?” I ask Matt once he’s hung up the phone; he
just shrugs at me smiling.

Half an hour
later I finally get Tucker into my car, he still hasn’t said a word
to me. I settle in for a silent journey really wishing I had just
surprised Sophie instead of telling her so she had time to change
my plans.

“
Does Jason
know?” he finally breaks the silence an hour later.

I look over
at him and he’s looking out the window, “Does Jason know what?” I
ask frowning.

“
That you’re
going with me?” he turns to me expectantly.

“
Umm ... no,
he thinks a few of us are just going out of town for the weekend” I
tell him honestly.

“
You lied to
him?” he asks turning back to the window.

“
No, Sophie
did, I was going to tell him but she said not to, with all the
rumours and everything already, she said it would just make it
worse”

“
Sorry, I
don’t want to put you in an awkward position”

“
You’re not.
He shouldn’t believe the rumours anyway, it’s not as if he doesn’t
expect me not to listen to the rumours about him. Why should it be
one rule for him and another for me?”

“
What do you
mean?” he asks turning back to me again.

“
Some people
have been saying that he’s sleeping with a few girls behind my
back, he denies it”

“
I heard about
that” Tucker admits sighing “Don’t think that I’m not grateful
because I am, more than you know. I just don’t want to make it
harder for you around the uni”

“
Forget about
them, let’s just have a good time okay” I pat his leg to reassure
him and he seems to accept it because he grabs my hand and doesn’t
let it go for the rest of the drive.

* *
*

If I ever
doubted my decision to bring anyone but Tucker this weekend then I
take it back now. He has been the best company; he’s been
enthusiastic about everything. He walked around sightseeing with me
all afternoon, we checked into the hotel – separate rooms – and we
had a lovely dinner together in a quiet pub before hitting the
show. He was energetic, laughing and cheering with the crowd,
signing along and even lifted me onto his shoulders at one point.
When I took him backstage to meet the band he was polite and funny,
they all loved him. He waited while I caught up with the
girlfriends that I have known since I can remember and then even
suggested an early night but didn’t complain when I told him I had
plans. We went to a pub first that Sophie and I had been to before
and we got a little drunk but then he really started to enjoy
himself when I took him to the club that Sophie and I stumbled upon
accidentally the last time we were here.