Go Deep: A Bad Boy Sports Romance (8 page)

S
unday morning came around
, and I read Slade’s text from Saturday night after the game, probably while he was pissed drunk at the after party. I didn’t reply because I wasn’t sure how to respond. We had moved into uncharted territory, and there was no guide book for this transition.

Miranda was missing in action all day Sunday, so there was no one to talk to about what seemed to be happening here. Not that I was ready to tell her, but I thought for sure she’d be around to try and drag it out of me. She was probably crashing somewhere after the frat party. I didn’t understand how she was able to maintain it, or how she didn’t get herself in trouble. Neither of us were old enough to be drinking, not that being underage ever stopped anyone on campus. Then again, maybe that was why she always went to parties instead of bars. It was easier to score drinks underage if no one was inclined to card her. That still didn’t explain how she was able to manage a double major while getting sloshed every weekend. But she wasn’t my problem, I reminded myself. Slade, on the other hand, apparently was.

We’d crossed a line when we slept together, and even though I’d had a couple of college one-night stands before, this was the first one to haunt me every day since. I’d managed to keep my distance since that night, but some unknown force made me go talk to him after last night’s game. I guess I felt bad for him, with the crowd practically ready to string him up to a light post for his choices. Seeing him looking all defeated didn’t help either.

I spent Sunday failing in my effort not to think about it and trying to ignore his text message that was still unanswered on my phone. After a while, I did my best to get through my other coursework and prepare myself for the week ahead. By the time I went to bed Sunday night, Miranda still wasn’t back. I was concerned, but only slightly. She had a way of getting carried away with her paranormal buddies at times.

Monday morning rolled around and Miranda was back in our dorm as usual. As was our usual start of the week routine, we got dressed and headed to the coffee shop down the street from our dorm.

“That was some game Saturday night,” I said over my coffee, as this was the first real block of time we’d had to chat since then.

“It was. What the hell was going on out there on the field?” Miranda asked. “It was like they forgot about their plays and were just scampering around the field aimlessly.”

“I don’t know.” I caught myself defending Slade again. “They tried. There was some fierce competition from the other team too.”

She looked at me, eyebrows cocked and head tilted, as though I’d grown an extra head while we sat there. “Have you gone crazy? Or are you making excuses for your boyfriend?”

“Please, Miranda.” I tried to dismiss the boyfriend part, but she was right that I was making excuses. I really was going soft on him.

“Slade could have done more to help win that game. Evan was standing there wide open.
Wide open
,” she stressed again, shaking her head. “If he’d just passed the ball to Evan, the game would have ended differently.”

“You don’t know that, Miranda.”

“Nope. I’m sure of it. Slade got spooked by how aggressive the defensive line had become, and made a bad call when he decided to run the ball. Dumbass.”

“I don’t know,” I continued holding out. Something was going on with Slade. He’s missed our project meetings, and lately he looked tired and preoccupied all the time, even on the field.

My phone buzzed on the table, and Miranda looked over at it.

“Maybe that’s him now, calling to let you know he won’t be in class. Something’s up, Cassidy. You should keep an eye on him.”

“Since when is he my responsibility?” I picked up the phone and checked the number. “And it’s his brother, Shawn, for your information. I’ve got to take this call while I head to class, hun. See you this afternoon at practice.” I got up and walked outside, keeping my eyes open so I didn’t run into anyone again.

“Hi Shawn,” I answered, curious. He’d never call this time of day normally. “Is everything all right?”

“Hey, Cassidy. Yes, everything’s fine. I only have a minute, but I wanted to ask you something.”

My heart sank into my stomach. Shawn was my best friend, and all the other times when he’d started a conversation with
‘I wanted to ask you something’,
it meant
‘we need to talk’
. Whatever it was, it couldn’t be good.

“Okay.” I swallowed hard.

“Did you sleep with Slade?” he asked flat out.

“What?”

“Come on, Cassidy. Did you sleep with Slade?”

“Where is this coming from, Shawn?” I had to say something to avoid a direct answer. And really, I was curious about why he’d called out of the blue and only to ask me about whether I’d done the nasty with Slade.

“Answer the question.”

“You know how I feel about your brother, Shawn.”

“Yeah, I think I do. I think I’ve known for a long time. And you’re still not answering my question, which makes me sure the answer is yes. Look, you told me you two were working together on a project, and then you started defending him on that very same call. So, tell me, have you slept with my brother?” I could hear in his tone that he wasn’t about to back down until I answered.

I took a deep breath. “Yes.”

“I always knew you had a thing for him, Cass. It was always obvious to everyone but the two of you.” I could hear the disgust in his voice.

“What? No way.”

“Admit it. You’re in love with him.”

“What the fuck, Shawn? I’m not in love with your brother, and I didn’t sleep with him because I
have a thing for him
. It just happened. I can’t explain it other than to say it just happened…like…”

“Like you’d been wanting to for years. Is that what you were about to say?”

It was, but I stood there with my cell phone up to my ear on the sidewalk in silence as other students walked past me. This was not the time or place, and what I really wanted to know was why he was asking about this now.

“I’ll take that as a yes, then,” he snapped. “Look, I have to go.”

“No no, Shawn. You don’t get to ask a whopper of a question like that then hang up without telling me why or waiting to hear my side of it.”

“Watch me.”

“Wait,” I protested, but he hung up.

I immediately got a text, and I checked to see if it was Shawn spewing more anger-filled rebukes via written word.

It was Slade. Speak of the devil. And I hadn’t responded to his last text. This message was to ask if I wanted to meet tonight and prepare the script for the pitch and plan the write-up. Even though I would see him in class in a few minutes, I texted him back and told him fine. I figured I just had to accept that he’d be late again getting out of whatever it was he was doing after practice these days. He texted back that he’d see me soon, and I knew then that his texts meant he’d be at this morning’s lecture.

* * *

T
he day went
by and after cheerleading practice, I went back to my dorm for a nap in before Slade was ready to meet up. I woke to the buzz of my phone as he texted me.

‘Meet me at the house?’

I replied with,
‘On my way.’

I grabbed everything for the project and headed out to the car. I put the key in the ignition and turned it. Nothing.

“Dammit,” I yelled at the car. My piece of shit beater car was on its last leg. Every time I really needed it, this would happen.

Still sitting in the car, I texted Slade.
‘Car trouble again. Pick me up?’

He texted back,
‘We can use your place. Be there in ten.’

Miranda wasn’t home. I didn’t know where she was or how long she’d be gone, though it could turn into an all-nighter with her. Whether she came home or not wouldn’t make a difference, and actually, it was probably better that Slade knew she could show up anytime. The way things were going between us—the making out, that night in his room, my defending him, and the fact that Shawn knew now—it was probably for the best that we had a talk once we got the project work out of the way.

I answered with.
‘Sure’
and took my things from the car to wait for him at the front door.

His final reply was ‘
I will be on my best behavior’
and a smiley face.

I didn’t want to know what that meant. Of all nights for Miranda not to be here. I needed her to do me a favor and run interference to make sure Slade and I didn’t have a second alone. Some friend.

I talked myself down from my frenzied state, reminding myself he was less of an ass around me lately, and hadn’t hit on me for a solid few weeks now. That was a good sign, a definite improvement on how things were before I jumped his bones. Maybe some of the mystery was gone for him. Either way. It was good not to deal with that side of him anymore.

I looked up and down the laneway to our dorm, wondering where he was. I was going crazy, left alone with my thoughts like this and nowhere to direct that energy. If I’d had any more time alone in my thoughts I’d probably end up admitting that I wanted more of him, and I was pretty sure I knew which part that was.

My greedy, greedy core.

He was that good in bed, even if our little tryst was as vanilla as they came. If it were up to that one body part and logic was not a factor, we’d end up in a purely sexual relationship, and it would have been perfect. I’d let him come over, he could fuck my brains out, and then I’d send him on his merry way. A few times a week would do the trick.

Except there was logic staring me in the face. And I still had no idea what caused Shawn to phone me about it. None of it made sense at the moment, so it was probably better for us to keep our hands off of each other until we straightened out a few things.

“Where the hell are you, Slade?” I asked the night. The air was starting to get chilly, and I was down here in hardly any clothes and no fall jacket. I looked down at my phone to check the time. If he waited much longer I was liable to call the whole thing off and go to bed. Alone.

I
pulled
up outside Cassidy’s dorm and as soon as I saw her I thought this was probably not a good idea. She stood outside under the old yellow streetlight in black shorts and a baby blue tank top. She had legs for days, and I took them in from her ankle all the way up to the shorts that were barely hiding the prize between them. I had to rearrange myself in my pants, remembering that I’d been there.

Her little top waved in the gentle breeze, hanging off of the swell of her breasts, her stomach flat enough that the bottom of her tank top didn’t have anything to rest on. Something about her had definitely changed if she was comfortable enough to dress that way around me, knowing I wanted her. I’d never kept my lust for her a secret, and now she was letting me see that much more of her, literally.

“Geez. I was wondering if you’d ever make it over here,” she said when I walked up from the car. She crossed her arms in front of her from the cold, and maybe to let me know she was upset about waiting too.

“There was some traffic tonight on the way back.” She gave me no resistance when I put my arm over her shoulder to warm her up.

“Back from where?”

“Stuff I needed to take care of,” I told her. I still kept my little part-time restaurant gig under wraps, intended to keep it that way until my debt was paid. I didn’t mention that I’d gone home and showered to get the smell of the place off of me this time.

“Well, let’s get upstairs before curfew,” she said. “It’ll be easier to keep you up there if I don’t have to sneak you in.”

“Right. I forgot about that. No guest of the opposite sex after midnight, or something like that.”

“Exactly.”

“Lead the way, then.”

As I followed her up to her room, it occurred to me that her roommate might have been home. That would explain her willingness to let me come over, and the outfit too. The door to her room swung open to show a dorm room with no roommate.

Good.

Coming to this tiny space reminded me of why I enjoyed the frat house, and needed to keep working my ass off so the landlord would let us stay there for the rest of the school year. These on-campus housing units were so small. Here in her two-person room, there was just enough room for two small beds, one shared desk, a side-by-side closet for their clothes and a small bar fridge. Above the computer desk was a makeshift vanity, which was basically a mirror hanging on the wall. Both sides of the room were identical, until the girls started decorating. Miranda’s side was immediately obvious with its dark tones, while Cassidy’s was covered in university memorabilia. It could have belonged to one of the guys on the team.

We sat down and got to work. Well, the desk was too small for us to actually work side by side. Cassidy sat at the desk and took out her laptop, while I sat on the corner of the bed admiring her. My eyes followed the way her back arched as she used her keyboard. Every curve of her body was perfect, but my eyes kept coming back to those legs stretched out under the desk. I felt my cock stirring as I watched her begin to work. I didn’t know how much longer I could keep my hands off of her, but I did my best.

She pulled up her draft speaking points and we got right to it, deciding how best to cover each section. She tweaked the pitch as we talked it out, and in less than two hours we were close to wrapping up the work. I admit, I may have reached out and slid my hand down her leg once or twice.

“Slade,” she whined out, pushing my hand off at one point so she could finish typing.

“Yeah, sorry. I’m having trouble staying focused right now.”

“I can see that. Let’s finish this up. I’m pretty beat too.” Was she just trying to be understanding, or was she telling me that my
distraction
was welcome? I couldn’t tell, but I figured it was best to get down to work so we could finish up and I could find out for myself.

I hadn’t realized how much work went into it. I figured we’d do the business plan, have a discussion with the investor or a business owner in town, and turn in a final report. Cassidy was going all out, trying to make sure we were prepared for each step of the way when it was time to move forward.

“So, do you think we should both deliver a part of the presentation?” she asked.

“I’d like that.”

“Or do you think one of us should handle most of the talking while the other just provides support?”

The topic really was my idea, and I was already a natural when it came to addressing any size audience. I also knew that she wanted to contribute as much as possible. She was strong and independent that way, and could have easily knocked this whole thing out herself, so she deserved the chance to do some of the talking.

“Let’s split the time,” I told her. “You start, and I’ll drive the idea home.”

“That could work.”

I watched her fingers click-click-click away on the keyboard, and a few minutes later she turned the screen towards me.

“The way I’ve got it arranged now,” she started, “it works if we just walk through the pitch. I also added a section that anticipates some common investor questions.”

“That sounds great,” I said, a little more absently than I’d planned. All these long hours made it near impossible to avoid being distracted, or to keep my hands to myself, let alone the fact that I’d started to see her in a different light. I didn’t just want her the way I did with the other girls I banged before her. That was what I couldn’t handle. Before this, my college priorities were simple. Football came first, then coursework, and then the girls.

Cassidy wasn’t
just a girl
anymore, and that was ruining everything for me. I was starting to feel things for her, and more than a few times I was ready to call off the bet I’d made with the guys. I’d already slept with her anyway, but no one knew yet. That wager loomed over my head now, and now more than ever I didn’t want the news getting back to her.

“All right. This pitch is ready to go,” Cassidy said cheerfully. “I’ll do a proofread tomorrow, and we can check this off our list until it’s a few days before we have to present.” How could she be cheerful at this hour? It was practically the middle of the night.

“Awesome.”

“So all that’s left is our summary assessment of how we rate our pitch performance, and the final write-up.”

“You’ve got to leave me something to do too.”

“I don’t mind. Plus you gave us a great head start.”

“Still, how about you send me a copy of everything, and I’ll start on the final write-up now. After the pitch all we’ll need to do is add the assessment.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

“Okay,” she said hesitantly. “Give me two seconds, and I’ll email it all now.”

When she was finished, she logged off her laptop and got to her feet. “All set. We should probably call it a night.”

“Yeah. Long day.”

“We got a lot done,” she said, placing a supportive hand on my shoulder. “And you look so beat right now. Get home and make sure you sleep.”

There was that concern for me again. I had planned to use this convenient partnership to get her alone to finally get her where I wanted her, but I got something more than just a piece of ass. I never thought it would feel this good to know that someone was genuinely concerned about me.

“Yeah, I need to do that. Thanks for waiting up tonight. We’re in the home stretch now with this project.”

“Pretty much,” she agreed, about to turn to show me the door.

I couldn’t leave like this, so I didn’t, opting to grip her tiny bare waist and pull her to stand between my legs. My eyes didn’t leave hers as my hands slid up under her tank top along her sides until I was cupping each breast over her bra. She didn’t stop me either, but closed her eyes and started running her hands through my hair. My hands reached around to her back and unclasped her bra, and Cassidy pulled it off with her tank top, exposing her perky breasts and soft pink nipples.

I was about to tug those short shorts off her body, spread her out on the bed and finally feast on her center when my phone rang. I should have ignored it, given the time, but I knew that ring tone. It was my brother, Shawn.

“I’ve got to take this,” I apologized, reaching into my pants pocket as she found her top and put it back on. I held a finger up to my lips before I answered to let her know I needed it to be quiet while I took the call. She didn’t seem to mind.

“Your timing sucks ass, Shawn. This had better be an emergency. What’s up?”