Hail Mary: An Enemies-to-Lovers Roommate Sports Romance(13)

“Damn. Wouldn’t want to be the man to compete with that,” Kyle said with a smirk.

“Does that have multiple rotating levels?” Giana asked with an arched brow. “I think I read about one of those in a motorcycle club series last year.”

I let out a frustrated growl before slapping Leo’s shoulder with the only weapon in my hand before I realized what I was doing. “See what you did now?”

“What I did?” His mouth was hanging open. “You just hit me with your dildo.”

That made everyone down the hall burst into a fit of laughter, but my cheeks only burned more. Normally, I’d have something to shoot back at him and deflate his ego, but I was currently going against every fiber in my being and moving into the same damn house with the one boy I hated. Add in the fact that, although I knew this teasing was harmless, it also poked the very sensitive bruise left behind after years of being bullied in high school.

My nerves were frayed. My brain was scrambled.

I was quite possibly making the worst decision of my life.

It was an easy one to make when the alternatives were so depressing — live in a hotel until I ran out of money, sleep on someone’s couch, or, the worst of all, move home.

I swallowed, not even wanting to consider that a viable option.

But this…

This didn’t feel like the right one, either.

“This was a mistake,” I said, my voice a bit too quiet, and already I was marching down the hall. “I can find a hotel. I—”

My sentence was cut short when I was wrapped up from behind, and I squirmed in Leo’s grip pointlessly as he carried me back toward the bedroom.

The fact that he could even lift me like this made it hard to say a word — I was not tiny the way Riley and Giana were — but the fact that I was pressed up against every inch of him with his arm porn wrapped around me sealed the deal. I felt those biceps like a straitjacket and a warm hug all at once, his chest and abs pressed against my back and ass in a way that made it impossible not to blush.

“Relax, roomie. We’re just giving you a hard time.”

His voice was right in my ear, his breath warm on the back of my neck, and I hated how chills broke out over my skin at the combination.

“Not as hard of a time as that guy in your hand, I imagine, but— oof!”

I cut his smart-ass remark short with a drive of my elbow into his gut.

“It’s how we show love,” Kyle added with a grin when I was carried through the threshold of my room against my will.

“Put me down,” I said through my teeth.

Leo carefully set my feet back on the ground, my backside running down the length of him in the process. I ignored the heat crawling over me as I put distance between us and crossed to where my new nightstand was. I opened the top drawer and shoved the hot pink monster in there before slamming it shut and turning to face the room.

“If this is going to work, we need rules,” I said.

“Rule number one: No hitting roommates with supersized sex toys.” Leo held up his pointer finger with a mischievous smirk on his lips.

I ground my teeth, fingers curling into fists. I was ready to pull my toy back out and hurl it at his head before calling a moving company regardless of whether I could afford it or not. There had to be a seedy hotel in this city that could serve as a makeshift home for a couple of months without bleeding me dry.

Anything was better than this.

It was a mistake, one I made in a moment of desperation when it seemed like there were no other options. I was already moving to grab the first box off the floor and hike it back across the street when Braden put a hand on my shoulder, stopping me.

I looked up to find his soft blue eyes under bent brows, and I couldn’t explain how or why, but just that one look made me release a slow, easy exhale.

“Hey,” he said, squeezing where he held me. “Don’t let these clowns get under your skin. Their humor off the field is almost as bad as their game on the field.”

That earned him a snort from both the guys.

“We want to help,” he said loudly enough to drown them out, and at that, he stood and pinned his roommates with a glare. “And if setting some ground rules will make you feel more comfortable, we’re all ears. Right, guys?”

Kyle’s cocky grin faltered a bit, and he nodded. “Of course. He’s right, Mary — we don’t want to make this any more difficult for you than it already is.”

I relaxed a bit, and then all eyes were on Leo, who was watching me with an unreadable expression. It was almost like… studying me.

Like he just realized I looked familiar, but he couldn’t place why.

“Leo,” Braden scolded.

Leo shook his head, like he’d been snapped out of a daze. But his eyes wouldn’t leave mine. He cleared his throat and then swept his hand over the room. “The floor is yours.”

I straightened, smoothing my hands over my jeans. Then, I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose as I closed my eyes. “I’m sorry. I know you guys were just joking around. And normally I’d be firing it right back, but I’m just… a little stressed.”

“Understandably so,” Riley pointed out.

I nodded, dropping my hand to my thigh. “We don’t need rules. Well,” I amended. “Maybe a couple. Like… just don’t come in my room without my permission. Don’t touch my stuff. Don’t hit on me, even if it’s a joke. Clean up after yourselves, especially in the common areas.”