Beg You to Trust Me (Lindon U #2)(32)

Justin and Caleb both look over at me while Marks grabs the controller from our captain’s distracted hands. “This chick your girl or something?”

His question doesn’t sit well with me. It makes my skin itch. My hands fidget. “No. She’s a friend. Just…don’t act like assholes.”

“Wallace isn’t here,” Marks muses, shooting something in the game and whooping when the target goes down. “So, your girl will be safe. Though, I hear she can hold her own.”

My girl. I should correct him, but I don’t.

I also choose to ignore his little tidbit in the end, not meeting Caleb’s knowing eyes as if to say, see? What’d I say?

I gesture toward the TV. “Maybe put a movie on or something. You’ve probably been playing this shit for hours. Didn’t your Ma ever tell you it’ll rot your brain?”

Caleb laughs, standing up and stretching his arms. “Like any of us actually listened to our moms. Probably the reason they’re all going gray. I saw yours at the championships last year, Bridges. Poor woman barely had a streak of blonde left on that pretty head of hers.”

As we walk toward the kitchen, I shove him to the side. “Don’t talk about my mother.”

He elbows me before walking over to the fridge and grabbing a water. “You want a beer?”

“Nah, man. One was enough.”

Skylar appears at the doorway, sheepishly glancing between me and the team’s running back who’s taking a swag of his drink.

Caleb smiles at her. “Hey. You’re in luck. Most of the idiots we live with are out partying, so it should be pretty quiet tonight.”

She gives him a small nod, even though she looks uncomfortable as hell scoping out the place.

I grab the menu to the local pizza shop and drop it onto the counter. “Coach is going to have their asses if he finds out. Last thing we need is them coming to practice hungover.”

Caleb cringes. “Yeah, you’re not wrong. We have enough players out for…” His eyes go to my guest before stopping. “Well, let’s just hope they’re smart tonight.”

There were a few guys who got delivered the bad news and needed some heavy doses of medication and reality checks after the tests we had to take. I don’t envy any of them. Most of them were the newer rookies who obviously didn’t have the same wrap-it-before-you-tap-it lecture by parentals and school health officials.

I pull out my phone to dial the pizzeria and shake my head at the text message on the screen from my grandmother.

Grandma M: Your mom tells me you’re still single. Maybe you need to expand the age range you’re looking for. That JLo girl seems to date men a lot younger than her.





“Christ,” I murmur, unable to stop myself from chuckling as I thumb out a reply.

Me: I’ll take that into consideration





Caleb asks, “Grandma M?”

I nod. “She’s trying to play matchmaker. Again.” My sigh comes next before I glance up at Skylar. “You’d like my grandma. She doesn’t take my bullshit either.”

Pride swells in my chest when I get a small smile from her again. It’s tiny. Microscopic, really. But it still counts. The girl is too damn pretty to frown as much as she does.

Cute, I think to myself.

Shaking it off, I jab my finger toward the basement door. “Going to go see if Aiden wants any pizza before I call in. You and the guys good with your normal?”

The running back nods before going back into the living room where they’re hollering over something I have not the slightest clue about. I look at my new friend. “They’re passionate about their video games.”

“And what about you?”

I wink. “Nobody can beat my high score.”

That gets me a huff of a laugh.

“I’ll be right back. Help yourself to whatever you want. There’s water, beer, and juice in the fridge. Glasses are in the cupboard closest to the sink unless the lazy dicks didn’t do the dishes.”

I open the door to the basement that leads to where our tight end sleeps and call out, “Hey, Griff, the guys are ordering— Oh, shit.”

Nearly tripping on my feet when I jerk to a stop at the bottom, I take in the scene. The blue-haired girl with a feisty attitude, Ivy, is straddling the giant football player on the couch. And…

Is her hand clutching his throat?

Shit.

Wasn’t expecting that.

“We’re a little busy,” Ivy informs me, looking over her shoulder with a bored expression plastered on her face despite whatever kinky shit is happening between them.

“I can see that.” My eyes trail from her to him, eyebrows quirked up at the interesting position they’re in. Guess it’s always the quiet ones that’ll fool you. I start to back toward the stairs with my hands up. “It’s about time, Griff, that’s all I’m saying.”

Maybe once he gets his dick wet he’ll loosen up a bit. Door firmly closed behind me, I spot Skylar exactly where I left her. No drink. No snack. Same skeptical, wary expression coating her face. “So, Blondie, what kind of pizza do you like? Hope it’s not that pineapple shit, but I guess I’d order you a small if it’s a dealbreaker.”

“A dealbreaker?”