Playing Hard to Get(59)

Like tonight. I really hope Joanna didn’t mind. She seems like the type who doesn’t give a damn who I am or what I do, so she’d probably find the constant conversation about, well, me, exhausting.

I get it. Sometimes I find it exhausting too. Like tonight.

“It’s okay. I actually learned something about you.” She’s still watching the parking lot, the little red lights on the back of the Camry getting dimmer and dimmer, until they’re flat out gone.

“You did?” I glance down at her.

She looks up at me. “I found out all your stats, your chances to play in the championship game, and your NFL potential, all from a ten-minute conversation.”

“She knew a lot about me.”

“It was a little frightening,” Joanna agrees.

I smile at her. She smiles in return.

“Want to go up to my place?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

Taking her hand, I lead her up the stairs, pulling out my keys with my free hand. Within a minute, we’re inside my dark apartment and I sniff the air, grateful it doesn’t smell like a sweaty pit tinged with a hint of pepperoni.

Our usual apartment scent, if I’m being completely real.

“This is nice.” I turn on a lamp as she walks to the center of the living room, turning in a slow circle.

There’s nothing “nice” about our apartment. It suits our needs, it’s a roof over our heads. We have a giant leather couch that’s worn and even torn in a few spots. A seventy-five-inch TV hangs on the wall, a variety of game consoles sitting on a stand below it. A tangle of remotes and cords are scattered across the surface.

We’re not neat freaks like I’m pretty sure Joanna is. In fact, we’re kind of slobby, and I don’t think we’ve dusted once since we moved into this place. Which means there’s probably a thick coat covering all of our gaming equipment, and that can’t be good for the consoles.

Maybe we should hire a maid. One who doesn’t mind cleaning up after sloppy college students. I bet Cam would split the cost.

“It’s okay,” I finally say to Joanna when she’s facing me once more. “We’re close to the stadium.”

“I’m sure you like that.”

“We do. Cam and I were dorm roommates our first year here. We realized fairly quick that we can tolerate each other. Now here we are, still living together.” I spread my arms out wide for a brief moment before letting them drop to my sides.

“Same with me and Natalie. At first, I didn’t know what to think of her. She never stopped talking, had an endless rotation of people coming in and out of our dorm room, and it kind of drove me nuts.” Her expression shifts, her gaze growing distant. “I was also dealing with a long-distance boyfriend, and that was tough. I missed him.”

I hate hearing it. I don’t want her to talk about it. Talk about him.

“Once I got over missing Bryan and started to get to know people on campus, it got easier. A lot of that is thanks to Nat.” Her smile is small, her gaze not so distant any longer. “She’s a good friend.”

“She seems cool,” I agree.

“Derek isn’t going to break her heart, is he?”

“Probably.” I can’t lie. Not to this girl. “He’s not what I would call…monogamous.”

A sigh leaves her. “I know you already said that, and I said Nat was the same, but I don’t know. I get the sense that she really likes him.”

“I’m not considered monogamous either, you know,” I add, wanting to put it out there.

This is new territory for me, having a woman stay on my mind past forty-eight hours.

“I’ve heard.” Her tone is wry, and I know she knows, but still.

May as well lay it all out there. Somewhat.

“I’ve never dated anyone steadily in college.” I can’t even say I’ve taken a woman out on an actual date. I usually meet them after a game. At a party. At a bar. We get to talking, there’s heavy flirting, followed by heavy petting, and next thing I know, we’re off in some dark corner or bedroom or bathroom, hooking up.

I’m not necessarily proud of it, but what I was supposed to do? Turn them all away? You feel like a fucking superstar, having women throw themselves at you. Any average, horny guy in his late teens is going to take his opportunities when and where he can get them. And they just kept coming.

Over and over.

“I have, and it sucks.” Joanna’s voice is sweet, but her words not so much. “I’m not looking for anything serious, Knox.”

“You’re not?” She seems like such a committed relationship type of woman.

She slowly shakes her head. “I already tried, and it didn’t work. For once in my life, I want to experience something totally casual. Something hot and filthy and with no strings attached.”

I’m nodding. Yeah, I’m down.

Wait a second.

Did she just say hot and filthy?

I’ll show her hot and filthy.

I move fast, standing directly in front of her, my hands on her waist as I slowly back her up until her butt hits the wall. “No strings attached, huh?”

She tilts her head back, her lids heavy as she watches me. “That would be the one thing you pick up on.”