For the Win (Playing for Keeps Book 1) (5 page)

Cooper

After securing London’s bike to the top of the car, my cell buzzed inside my pocket. Before even looking at it, I knew who it was. I had been on my way to Calista’s when I saw London fall. It’s why I was driving through this part of town. This street was a shortcut between my house and Calista’s, and I knew if it took too long to get to her house my conscience would take over and I’d never make it there. After the game yesterday I’d ended up hanging out with the guys until late last night. But that didn’t stop Calista from texting nonstop. I knew it was a mistake to hook up with her again, but I hadn’t been thinking with my brain when I got in my car earlier. Calista was persuasive, I’d give her that.

When I saw the girl fall on her bike, I had no idea it was London. All I knew was that it was a nasty fall. I’d had a fall like that once, and if no one had stopped for me, I would’ve been screwed. The difference was that I had actually broken my leg. That’s why I pulled over. Several cars passed by as if they hadn’t even seen the crash. But it was impossible to miss, so I knew they had seen it. People’s ability to be selfish and ignore other people’s needs never ceased to amaze me. As badly as I was itching to get to Calista’s, I couldn’t pass by a person in need like that.

Now I was glad I had pulled over. London may be a total pain in the ass, but I would’ve felt like shit if she was stuck here all night with a sprained ankle. It was clear she was untrusting. And let’s face it, the chick was a mess. Who else would help her? Even though I was pretty sure she didn’t like me that much, at least I wasn’t a stranger. I had a feeling she would never let a stranger drive her home. It was like pulling teeth to get her to say yes to me.

As I walked toward the driver’s side door, I glanced down at my phone.

Calista: Where r u?

Me: Something came up.

Calista: U r still coming over, right?

I stared through the window at London sitting in the passenger seat. She was holding her ankle, her face contorted in pain. She’d taken her helmet off, and it sat in her lap. Her golden hair was disheveled, a sweaty, tangled knot at the nape of her neck. She must have felt me staring because she craned her neck, her eyes catching mine. Then she flashed me a pained, yet grateful smile. It was the most vulnerable I’d seen her, and it took me aback.

Me: I don’t think so.

Without waiting for a response, I shoved the phone back into my pants pocket and slid into the car. I needed to get London home so she could ice her ankle.

“Where to?”  I asked, after turning on the engine.

“Turn around,” she instructed.

I did as I was told, and slowly moved down the street.

“Then turn right at this stop sign.”

I flicked on my blinker and slowed. After turning, we passed an apartment complex and a few duplexes. Rarely did I come over to this part of town, and it was unfamiliar.

“My house is right here.” She pointed with her index finger at a rundown duplex. The paint was chipped, the grass yellow. By the way she bent her head and bit her lip, it was clear that she was ashamed of it. Now I wondered if her hesitation of me coming over had more to do with pride than fear.

As I pulled up along the curb, I nodded and pasted on a smile, determined to make her feel comfortable. The driveway was empty, the house dark. “Is anyone home?”

She shook her head. “I thought Dad would be home by now, but it doesn’t look like it.”

“Then I’ll help you inside.” After shutting off the engine, I maneuvered around the car, opened her door and reached for her. As I secured my arm around her waist, I caught a whiff of apple scent. It floated from her hair that was slowly falling out of the knot she had it in. Tendrils broke loose and whipped in the wind. Her fingers closed around my shirt, her eyes colliding with mine. They were light brown, the color of caramel, but with yellow flecks, like tiny pieces of gold. For a moment I was mesmerized by them. I paused, getting lost in them as if spellbound. A dog barked in the distance, and the spell was broken. Unsure what the hell happened, I averted my gaze and moved forward. She was walking a little more stable, her ankle able to support her slight frame better than before. But she still needed my support to get into the house.

The interior of London’s duplex was nicer than the exterior. It was cozy, even, with old fashioned furniture and warm paintings on the wall. After lowering London into the dark leather recliner near the front door, I asked her if she had an ice pack.

“You really don’t have to do all this,” she said, dropping her backpack on the ground. “My dad should be home any minute. Or I can text Skyler, my neighbor, and she can come over. You can go, really. You’ve done enough already.”

She was unlike any other girl I’d ever met. Most girls would be begging me for help and attention at this point. She was practically pushing me away. And her ankle was swelling by the minute. She must be in extreme pain, yet she was calm and collected. Not at all like someone who just had a crash on their bike. Not to mention the fact that she scraped up her hands pretty badly too. For some reason her insistence that she could handle this on her own only made me want to help her more.

“I’m not leaving you like this,” I said firmly. “You’re a mess.”

“Gee, thanks.” She stuck out her bottom lip in a pout. It was the flirtiest gesture I’d seen from her, and it stirred a strange feeling inside. One I didn’t want to have. One I refused to even acknowledge. “But since you insist on helping, there’s an ice pack in the freezer.”

Nodding, I walked into the kitchen. After locating an ice pack and wetting a rag, I headed back into the family room. Kneeling down in front of London, I untied her shoe and carefully slipped it off. Then I gently placed the ice pack over her ankle. Afterward, I asked her to hold out her palms. Her eyes grew serious as she extended her arms, palm sides up. Dragging the rag over her palms, I rubbed gently, erasing all traces of dried blood.

“Is that better?” I asked.

She nodded, her lips pressed together.

With my fingers around her wrists, I inspected her hands. “Do you have a first aid kit? You should probably clean out these cuts and put on some bandaids.”

“It’s fine. I can do that later.” In one swift movement, she drew her hands back. Tucking them up into her body, she lowered her head.

Taking my cue, I stood back up. It was probably time to go anyway. I did have somewhere to be after all. And I should have wanted to leave. I had a sexy girl waiting. A girl who had told me in graphic detail what she wanted to do with me. But for some reason I was hesitant to leave London. My gaze landed on her backpack, and I knew I was stalling.
What had gotten into me?

“Why did you have your backpack with you on your bike ride? Planning to take a break to do homework?” I teased.

She sighed. “Actually, I was on my way to the library to type up your article. Now it won’t be done in time.”

I felt like an ass. This girl lived such a different life than mine. I thought of my nice suburban neighborhood, and two story house. Of the two computers we owned and the laptop sitting in the backseat of my car.
My laptop.
Of course.

“Hey, I have a laptop in my car. Wanna use it?”

She shook her head. “Oh, no. It’s okay. I’ll figure it out.”

Her stubbornness was sort of endearing at first, but now it was kind of annoying. Why couldn’t the chick take any help? “C’mon. It’s not like you’re going anywhere on that ankle tonight.”

“God, you’re persistent. Anyone ever tell you that?”

I chuckled. “I have heard that before. Yes.”

She sighed. “Well, since you clearly don’t know how to take no for an answer, then I guess I have no choice.”

“Now you’re finally seeing reason,” I bantered back as I stepped toward the door. “I’ll be right back, and I’ll grab your bike while I’m at it.”

“You can leave it by the garage.” Her lips curved slightly at the edges. “Thanks,” she practically whispered the word, and I wondered why this was so hard for her.

“Sure.” Reaching for the knob, I turned it and stepped outside. As I walked toward my car, I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. A girl with dark hair stared at me through the neighbor’s window. Her jaw dropped as if she was in shock at the sight of me, causing my stomach to coil.

Before the interview I hadn’t remembered seeing London around school much. But the truth was, that I had. I just hadn’t noticed her. She was always kind of in the background. A silent girl, her head bent downward, her hair obscuring her face. But there were times when our paths crossed. We had English class together last year, even though I was a year ahead of her in school. One day she tripped and fell on her way into class, and everyone teased her. For days the whispers and smart ass remarks circled.

And there was the list that Calista and her friends made last year. It was the kind of list no one wanted to grace. One of those derogatory lists, filled with mean things like “ugliest hair” and “girl that no one wants to kiss.” London’s name had been on it in several different categories. And I had the sick feeling she knew it too.

The surprised expression of the girl in the window was etched in my mind, causing me to realize why London was behaving the way she was. It wasn’t pride or fear. It was uncertainty. It was doubt.

She wasn’t used to people being nice to her.

London

Cooper’s laptop was nice, all sleek and chrome. Envy cropped up when I opened it and ran my fingers over the keyboard. Cooper plugged it in, so I didn’t have to get up. A part of me wished he’d stop being so damn nice. Another part of me wanted him to stay here with me forever. I was so perplexed, my head spun. Trying to ignore the fact that Cooper was sitting on the couch in my living room watching me, I smoothed out my handwritten article and started typing. My hands trembled with each letter I touched. Feeling Cooper’s eyes on me, my skin buzzed, warmth skating right under my flesh. Biting my lip, I continued to type, forcing myself to remain calm. But it was a losing battle. Nerves rattling, I kept fumbling the words, having to back up and retype almost every one after botching it. And it didn’t help that my palms were covered in scratches. In order to not hurt them further, I had to hold my wrists up at a weird angle.

“How is your ankle?” Cooper asked.

“Better,” I answered honestly, glancing down at the ice pack over it. “Of course it’s numb, so maybe that’s why.”

Cooper chuckled. “Yeah, that’ll help.”

My hands stilled, pausing over the keys. What was Cooper still doing here? I couldn’t figure it out. The whole thing was baffling. It’s not like we were friends or anything. “Why are you being so nice?” I blurted out.

Cooper’s eyes widened, his mouth slacking. He looked stunned. The truth was, I sort of was too. I hadn’t exactly meant to say that aloud. But now that I had, I was interested in the answer.

“I didn’t realize I was usually such an ass.” One side of Cooper’s mouth curved upward.

“I didn’t say you were an ass,” I backpedaled, my gaze sweeping over the laptop covering my legs. I was the ass for putting him down when he’d rescued me today.

“Asking why I’m being nice today sort of implies that you don’t think I normally am,” he pointed out.

Unsure of what to say to make this better, I stared down at my hands. “Sorry,” I finally mumbled.

“No, it’s fine. I get it.” Reaching up, he tugged lightly on the rim of his ball cap. “It makes sense why you’d ask that. We’ve never really hung out before.”

His admission buoyed me. “We’ve never even talked before.”

“Unless you count the interview.” Cooper grinned. “Speaking of which, since I’m here, can I see what you wrote?”

“Um…sure. Let me just finish typing it. You’ll never be able to read my handwriting.” When I returned to the article, the sound of the garage door opening sounded behind me. Dad was home. Cooper must have heard the noise too, because he sat up straighter, his shoulders tensing. I typed swiftly, trying to finish fast.

The door leading from the kitchen into the garage popped open. “Pumpkin,” Dad hollered, and I cringed.

“In here,” I said between gritted teeth, unable to look up at Cooper. I was sure he was wearing a cheesy grin, laughing to himself. And I could hear the teasing at school tomorrow, everyone calling me pumpkin like it was the funniest shit ever. Why had I allowed Cooper to take me home? I wasn’t in his group. We weren’t friends. He was probably here to gain information to use against me. His damn dimples and easy grin had sucked me in. I was an idiot, plain and simple.

I heard the sound of bags being set down, and then Dad’s feet shuffled on the hard floor. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t know you had company.” I detected the wariness in his tone. Not that I was surprised. This was the first time a boy had ever been in our home. In fact, it was the first time anyone other than Skyler had been here.

“Uh…yeah. It was sort of unexpected.” I glanced over at Cooper. “Dad, this is Cooper. I fell off my bike, and he happened to be driving by at the same time.”

“You fell off your bike?” Concern filled Dad’s face. “Are you okay?” His gaze roved over my body until it rested on my ankle.

“It’s not broken,” Cooper interjected. “Not like I’m a doctor or anything, but I’ve broken bones before. She can bend it. I think it’s just sprained.”

I was surprised by Cooper’s nervous rambling. I’d only ever seen him sure and confident. Why was my dad making him anxious?

Dad lifted his head to Cooper. “Thanks for taking care of her.” Taking a step forward, he extended his hand. “I’m Dexter, London’s dad.”

“Nice to meet you, Dexter.” Cooper stood, took Dad’s hand and shook it.

It was weird seeing the two of them together. Almost like it made this whole thing too real. Fantasies unleashed, and my heart squeezed. I couldn’t allow my mind to go there. Cooper only felt pity for me. That’s all this was. Besides, it’s not like I’d ever want more from him. I wasn’t interested in guys. Not right now. I wanted to stay safe here with my dad and my books, and to focus on my writing. That’s it.

Dad’s eyes slid up to Cooper’s hat. “Oh, you must be the baseball player London was interviewing.”

“That’s me.” Cooper beamed. 

Hurriedly, I typed in the last few sentences. “All done,” I said, triumphantly.

“Great. Can I take a look?” Cooper asked.

“Sure. Do you want to read it before I email it to John?”

Cooper paused. “Nah. I can take a look afterward.”

“All right. Well, then I’ll send it to him and save it to your laptop. That way you can look at it whenever you want.” I told myself that I misread the look that crossed his face. It looked like disappointment, but that couldn’t be right. I was sure he was beyond relieved to finally be able to get the hell out of here. Cooper could find a lot more riveting things to do than hang out with an injured nerd and her dad.

“Sounds good.” He smiled, turning to my dad. “Looks like I’m outta here.”

“Well, you’re welcome to come back anytime,” Dad said, shocking me further. This whole afternoon had been like an episode of the Twilight Zone. None of it made any sense. I half expected to wake up and find it was all some bizarre dream. “I’m going to go put away the stuff I bought at the store.” Dad ducked out of the room. I heard the rustling of paper bags when he reached the kitchen.

After shooting off the email, I saved the document and then closed the laptop. Cooper unhooked the cord. Before picking up the laptop, his gaze landed on the framed picture of my mom on the wall.

“Is that your mom?” he asked.

I nodded, the air leaving me.

“You look exactly like her.”

“Thanks,” I muttered.

“Your dad seems nice. Too bad I didn’t get to meet your mom.” He reached for the laptop. “Maybe some other time.”

I knew these were benign words, a way to fill up the silence, but they were personal. Too personal. It was one of the many reasons I didn’t invite people over. Tears pricked at the corner of my eyes. I snorted. “Yeah, I don’t think so.”

“Why not?” With his hand on the laptop, his gaze slammed into mine.

Staring into his eyes, I exhaled.

“I don’t know if you realize this, but you have a pretty big chip on your shoulder. I’m trying to do something nice for you, and you’re not exactly making it easy.” After sliding the laptop off my lap, he tucked it under his arm.

“That’s not what I meant.” My eyes flickered to the picture. “She’s gone. That’s why you’ll never meet her.”

Cooper’s face fell. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. You couldn’t have known.”
And I wish he didn’t know now.
Again I mentally slapped myself for allowing him into my house and life like this. I’d done nothing but give him ammunition to use against me.
What the hell was I thinking?
As I said goodbye to him, the ramifications of what I’d done crashed over me. I knew it had been a mistake to allow him to come over.

And I had the strange feeling that nothing would ever be the same again.

A loud, repetitive screech sounded in the distance. But it was far away. So far I couldn’t reach it. My body floated in nothingness, like I was lying on a cloud.

“London? London?”

I stirred at Dad’s insistent voice. “Huh?” Groggy, I rolled over in bed.

The annoying noise ceased. “Your alarm was going off for like ten minutes. Are you going deaf?” Dad joked, his finger poking my ear gently. “Do you need to get your ears checked?”

“No, I can hear just fine.” I sat up in bed, reaching for my glasses. The edges of the bandaids on my palms caught on the nightstand, pulling at my skin. “I was deep asleep, I guess.”

“Don’t know how you could sleep through that awful noise. You feeling all right?”

“Yeah. Just tired.” I put on my glasses, and Dad came into focus.

His gaze landed on my Kindle. “Were you up late reading again?” He narrowed his eyes.

“There was never a good stopping place.” I bristled defensively.

Dad shook his head. “Well, I guess it could be worse.”

“A lot worse,” I reminded him, shoving off my covers. “You would die if you knew what other kids my age were doing at night.”

His eyes widened. “I don’t want to know.”

“You’re right.” I stood up, teetering precariously on my swollen ankle. Leaning over, I pressed a kiss to his cheek. “You don’t.”

A worried look crossed Dad’s face as he glanced down at my ankle. “Still hurting today?”

I waved away his concern. “It’s fine. Just a sprain. It’ll be better soon.”

“Are you sure? I can stay home and take you to the doctor if you need.”

“I can walk on it. See.” I took a few wobbly steps. “I don’t need to see a doctor.”

“You’ve always been stubborn,” Dad said, his lips curling at the edges. “Try to stay awake during class, okay?”

I shook my head. “I’ll do my best.”

“Skyler’s giving you a ride to school, right?” Dad asked.

“Yep.” Dad made me text her last night to ask for a ride. I hated doing it, but I knew if I didn’t Dad would insist on taking me, and I didn’t want him to go into work late.

“Good. I’m heading to work. See you tonight.”

“Yeah, see ya,” I called as he walked down the hallway. After opening my dresser drawer, I perused it for something to wear. My fingers fanned over t-shirts and jeans in search of something. Usually I grabbed the first thing I saw and threw it on.
What was my problem today?

Cooper’s face filled my mind, his blue eyes and dimpled smile. Chills skated up my spine remembering how it felt with his arms around me. I conjured up the memory of the way he smelled, of his kind eyes and caring demeanor. Chastising myself, I picked out a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Then I stalked across the hall to the bathroom. After stepping into the shower, I snatched up the soap and scrubbed my skin hard, hoping it could erase all traces of Cooper from my mind. The last thing I needed was to get all tangled up about Cooper Montgomery. Sure he was nice yesterday, but it meant nothing. I would’ve bet anything that at school today he’d completely ignore me. He would be too busy with with popular, gorgeous girls like Calista, girls who fit the mold. I was not that girl, and I never would be.

Besides, I shouldn’t want his attention. I’d already made a mistake I vowed I never would. Allowing Cooper into my home, especially when Dad wasn’t here, was stupid. No, it was beyond stupid. It was irresponsible. And it wouldn’t happen again. I wouldn’t have another error in judgment. Never again would I allow Cooper’s dimples and blue eyes to sway me. I’d stay strong. Strong like stones, like bricks, like nails.

Since I woke up late and then spent way too much time daydreaming, I didn’t have time to blow-dry my hair. Instead, I pulled it back into a bun at the nape of my neck. A few wet strands fell out while I limped over to Skyler’s house. I tucked them behind my ear before rapping on Skyler’s front door.

When she answered it, her black hair hung smoothly down her back, her eyelids shimmered, her eyelashes long and curled. For having to get up so early, she looked really nice. She’d been able to pull it together a lot better than I had, and I always got up this early. 

“Hey, I’m sorry about this,” I told her.

“No problem.” She looked at my foot. “I couldn’t let you ride your bike with a sprained ankle.”

“What are you going to do during zero period?”

“Hang in the library.” She walked past me, making her way over to her little red Toyota. “Don’t worry about me.”

Skyler used her usual speedy gait, her long legs moving swiftly and gracefully. I, on the other hand, resembled one of the Walking Dead. By the time I hobbled over to the car, she was already inside gliding on pink lip gloss while studying her reflection in the rearview mirror. When I slid into the passenger seat, she tossed the lip gloss to me. “Here. You could use some.”

Catching me off guard, I barely had time to react. However, my reflexes kicked in and I caught it.  “I’m good.”

“C’mon, put a little on. It won’t bite.” She turned on the engine and pulled away from the curb.

I stared at the lip gloss in my palm. Lifting my head, I caught my reflection in the side mirror. My skin was even more pale than usual. Maybe a little color would help. Shrugging, I smoothed a little gloss on my lips and then rubbed them together.

“So, you gonna tell me about Cooper or do I have to beg?” Skyler asked, as she turned the steering wheel, the car turning the corner.