One of the Guys (20 page)

“
Actually, come to think of it,
Chase might just fit right in. She may be the kind of girl I’m
looking for.”

“
Don’t you fucking touch her.” I
growled.

“
Ooh! I totally get it now. You
have a thing for Chase, don’t you? Does she know?” He
laughed.

“
No, and don’t you say a fucking
word.” I said. There was no point denying it. It was pretty obvious
from my actions.

“
Or what?” He grinned.

“
Or I’ll break your fucking
face.”

“
I won’t, but if you even try to
do anything, I’ll tell her anyway.”

I knew I was stuck. If Carl told
Chase, I’d hurt him. If I hurt him for any other reason, he’d tell
Chase.

I couldn’t risk it.

She didn’t like me that way, and I
didn’t want to lose her because of it.

I had one weapon against Carl,
though.

“
I swear, Carl. If you say
anything to her, I’ll be telling people about the girl you have a
thing for. Do you think she’ll be happy about it?”

His expression told me everything.
He didn’t want everyone knowing at all.

“
Didn’t think I knew, did
you?”

“
She won’t talk to me because of
Chase.” He spat.

“
Chase isn’t the reason.” I said.
“That’s ridiculous.”

“
But, she’s not like her. She
won’t wanna hang out because they’re nothing alike.”

“
Bullshit!” I yelled, but trying
not to raise my voice too much. I didn’t want the other guys
hearing our discussion.

“
Yeah? We’ll see, Logan. Just you
watch.”

Carl was pulling the same shit
every week, since then. He’d ‘accepted’ Chase, but the sly comments
would slip in, and I couldn’t do anything major in front of Chase.
Just the same as Carl couldn’t say anything either. If he told… I
told.

Neither of us wanted the guys to
know; in case it got back to the girls.

I had to tolerate his shit because
I was afraid Chase would leave me.

I walked away from the guys to
clear my head.

I pulled out my phone, and called
Chase, hoping that she’d calmed down and would pick up.

It rang and rang.

If I could, I’d leave a voicemail.
I needed her to hear me out, but I didn’t want to say everything on
the phone. I wanted to see her face-to-face.

Before the call went to voicemail,
I heard the tone that told me Chase had declined the
call.

I tried again. That time, she
declined instantly.

Instead, I sent her a
text.

L: I’m sorry. Please talk to
me.

I paced back and forth, waiting for
a reply. It never came, and I knew she was still mad. I should give
her more time, like Lex had suggested. I didn’t want to, though. I
wanted to tell her; to make her understand.

“
Tomorrow.” I said to myself,
walking back to the cages.

Tomorrow, I was going to try again,
and if she wouldn’t answer I was going to call at her
house.

“
Diner?” Lex asked when we’d
finished out allotted time at the cages.

We’d been there for a couple of
hours, taking turns on the two cages we’d hired, and we were all
hungry.

“
Yeah. I need to shower first.”
Pike said.

“
Ok. We’ll meet in an hour. Is that
ok?”

“
Yeah.” I replied, even though I
wanted to just wallow in self pity.

We went our separate ways to get
cleaned up, and I didn’t look at Carl. It was possible I’d attack
him again. With the way I was feeling, it was very
likely.

I pulled up to the diner and walked
inside. Making my way to our table, I sat down next to Pike and
Stu. Carl wasn’t around.

“
Lex is on his way.” Pike said,
holding his phone up as if he’d just gotten the message from Lex.
“A word of warning, he’s bringing Sian.”

I groaned internally. The last time
I’d spoken to Sian, she’d been a bitch to Chase. I didn’t have to
say anything to her because Chase could hold her own. I was proud
of her for that, too. She wouldn’t take any shit off any girl if
they made fun of her. Chase always stayed quiet, almost keeping
herself out of the way of attention, but when she needed to… man
she could dish right back and then some.

“
Carl’s running late. He had to ice
his face.” Stu said, looking at me.

“
He deserved it.” I said,
quietly.

“
Maybe. I don’t know why he acts
the way he does, but you need to lay off of him, Logan. We can’t
have fighting within the team. It’s not good for the game.” Stu
added.

“
I don’t give a fuck about that,
Stu. You know how he was with Chase. There was no need for him to
be like that. None at all.”

Right then, Lex walked in with
Sian.

She sauntered over to our table and
sat down next to Pike, Lex sitting on her other side.

I saw her glance around and then
look right at me.

“
Wow, you look as though somebody
died. What’s the matter?” She asked, and I knew Lex hadn’t told
her. “Where’s Chase? You guys are practically joined at the hip.”
She snorted.

I had to bite my lip to stop myself
from telling her to mind her own Goddam business.

“
She’s not coming today. No
biggie.” Lex said, dismissing it.

I was grateful that he didn’t tell
her what had happened. The last thing I wanted was for Sian to go
gossiping with her friends. Even though the school year had
finished for summer, word could still travel fast in her
circle.

“
Why? Is she too busy deciding what
shade of boring to wear?” She chuckled.

I clenched my fist under the
table.

“
Sian, leave it.” Lex
warned.

“
What?” She asked, shrugging her
shoulders as if it weren't a big deal. “I’m just saying… Chase
doesn’t dress to impress at all, does she?”

“
She doesn’t need to.” I said,
before I could stop myself.

“
Logan, girls our age should dress
accordingly. How else do we get attention from guys?” She asked, as
if I were stupid.

“
Chase doesn’t
flaunt herself.” I snapped as I looked Sian up and down, not in an
approving way, but more to get the point across that Sian was
dressed for a
hell
of a lot of attention. Her blue pants that looked
as though they’d been sprayed on, and her tight, white vest top,
left very little to the imagination. Not that I wanted to imagine
Sian like that in any way. Not at all. I imagined Chase that way
though.

Chase.

Chase was perfect in every way. Her
slender, yet strong arms, evident of years of hard work. The way
her waist nipped in, and her tight stomach, showing the tone in her
muscles. Her narrow hips and pert ass that screamed out for me to
grip them. Her legs…

“
Logan?” Pike said, lightly
knocking into my arm to get my attention.

“
Huh, what?” I said, feeling heat
creep up into my face.

“
You zoned out for a while there
dude. Are you ok?”

“
Yeah. Just
thinking.” I said, trying not to give away
exactly
what I was
thinking about. If I stood up, it would be perfectly
clear.

I could hear Sian talking about the
cheer squad and other details, but I wasn’t listening. She’d turned
her attention away from talking about Chase and me, and I was glad
I’d zoned out when I did. I didn’t have to hear the crap that came
out of her mouth after what I’d said.

I thought things were going to
quieten down, but then Sian opened her fucking mouth
again.

“
So, Logan. Is Chase coming to the
movies later?” She asked with a sly smile.

“
Movies?” I hadn’t heard the guys
mention that.

“
Yeah. When you had your head in
the clouds, we organized a movie night. So, will Chase be joining
us?”

“
No.” I said, my voice
low.

“
How do you know? You haven’t even
asked.” She said, trying to hide a laugh.

“
Just leave it, Sian.” I said
between my teeth. I could feel myself reaching the limit on my
patience with the girl.

I didn’t care that she was Lex’s
girlfriend. He wasn’t even that into her.

“
What’s the matter? Lover’s tiff?”
She asked, then burst out laughing.

“
Sian!” Lex said with a
scowl.

“
You better shut up,
Sian.”

“
Or what?” She asked, her red curls
bouncing about as she flipped her hair back over her
shoulder.

I leaned in and spoke low, so
only
she
could
hear.

“
Or I’ll let Lex
know about your extra activities
without
him.”

Her face paled, and I smiled,
sitting back in my seat.

Yeah, that’s what I knew about
Sian. She wasn’t the girl that everybody thought she was. I’d seen
her getting up to no good, when she thought nobody was around, and
it wasn’t with another guy. Oh no, not at all.

I’d been driving back from Chase’s
house, after we’d visited Bren, and I’d taken a detour because of
some road works. Passing the road where Sian lived, I noticed the
red hair before I noticed the person trying to stay in the
shadows.

Sian.

If it weren't for her bright red
hair, I wouldn’t have seen anything, but what I
had
seen had taken me by surprise.
Sian was kissing a girl. Not just a kiss; they were making
out.

“
I don’t know what you’re talking
about.” She hissed, when Lex got up to go to the bathroom. Leaving
a big enough gap for her to talk to me without Stu and Pike
overhearing. They were talking about what movie releases were out
this week and weren’t paying us any attention.

“
Oh, yes you do,
Sian. I saw you and your
friend
hanging out by your house.
You didn’t do a very good job of staying hidden. A word of advice…
ditch the red hair. It’s too conspicuous.”

The look on her face spoke a
thousand words. Nobody knew she was into girls. Well, except for
the girl she was swapping saliva with. I wondered if Lex had any
idea that his girlfriend had a girlfriend.

“
Don’t you say anything!” She
whispered, frantically.

“
Don’t talk about Chase.” I
countered.

“
Fine.”

“
Good.”

“
What’s going on?” Lex asked when
he sat back down.

“
Nothing. Just discussing the movie
choices.” Sian said, plastering a huge smile on her
face.

“
So, what are we watching?” He
asked.

“
Seven shades of black.” Pike
answered.

“
Yeah, it’s supposed to be really
scary.” Stu said, wiggling his fingers in front of him.

Chase would’ve loved that movie.
She’d wanted to go see it and, judging by the reviews, she would’ve
hidden her face. Just the excuse I’d need to hold her close to
me.

Now, that chance was gone, and I
had nothing.

I felt the lump rising in my
throat, and I swallowed, clenching my fists under the table to get
a grip of myself.

I wasn’t going. Not without
Chase.

“
I can’t go tonight guys. I have
some stuff to do.” I said, digging into my pocket and putting a
twenty on the table for my share. “I need to go.”

The guys didn’t say anything and I
could see the understanding in their eyes.

I got up to leave, and just as I
reached the door, it opened and Carl walked in; a bruise and a lump
on the right side of his jaw. Without saying a word to him, I
left.

Driving down the street where Chase
lives, I stopped outside her drive. I gathered the courage to get
out and knock on the door.

The door opened, and her Dad stood,
glaring at me. I didn’t know whether Chase had told him what
happened, but I could tell he was mad at me too.

“
Hi, Larry.” I said, my voice
shaking. “Is Chase home?”

“
No.” He said, coldly. “Not that
she’d want to see you anyway.”

I knew Larry was lying. He kept his
voice low as if he didn’t want to be overhead talking to
me.

“
I know. I don’t know what she told
you, but I didn’t mean…”

“
Chase wouldn’t tell me anything,
Logan. All I know is that my little girl is upset with you, and
that doesn’t happen very often, if at all. Which makes me come to
the conclusion that you must have done something big to really
upset her.”