Beg You to Trust Me (Lindon U #2)(35)

“Marks,” DJ warns under his breath.

His teammate smirks. “I’m making conversation with your girl, not moving in on her. Calm your brovaries. Plus, I just want to know what her friend’s deal is.”

I blink at his inquiry, having a hard time ignoring the fact DJ didn’t correct his teammate when he called me his girl. “My friend?”

“Tall. Hit-me-red hair.”

Becca. “Oh.” That’s the best I can do.

I don’t want to tell him anything, which would make me petty. But would that make me any better than her if I held back simply because things aren’t great with us? I don’t make any of our friends pick sides like she seems to. I don’t make derogatory comments about her weight, exercise routine, or clothing choices. And I’m not about to lie to a guy that’s interested in her just because I can.

Nibbling my lip, I release it and say, “I don’t know if she’s seeing anyone if that’s what you’re asking. I think she has her eye on somebody from the fire station in town, though.”

His brows go up. “Is she their receptionist or something? Why would she know anyone there?”

“Dude, that’s sexist,” Justin pipes in. He’s been so quiet I almost forget he’s sitting in the same room. His braced leg has been propped up on the ottoman in front of the armchair he’s sitting in. His attention has mostly been on the textbook on his lap.

“She volunteers there,” I correct him, agreeing with their captain. I may not like my roommate that much, but that doesn’t mean I want to set women back fifty years by letting his comment slide. “Women can be firefighters too in case you didn’t know.”

He holds his hands up. “Shit. Fine. So, she’s not seeing anyone? I see her around parties a lot. Seems like she’s the type to know what she wants. My kind of girl.”

As much as I wish I could be excited for my roomie, I’m not. In fact, I secretly hope he forgets all about this conversation and seeks out someone else instead of her. “Yep. That’s Rebecca. Fun, fun, fun.”

“Rebecca…” He cocks his head as he repeats her name, making me share a look with DJ before shrugging.

“Um, anyway, she seems into the sports stuff, so maybe you have a shot.” The information isn’t a lot, but it seems to perk him up. “Can’t be sure though. I’ve seen her reject guys pretty openly for weird things, so don’t get your hopes up.”

Stephen laughs like I’m joking. “Babe, don’t worry about that. I can handle her.”

I murmur, “Don’t call me that,” the same time the guy beside me snaps the same exact thing leaving his friend gaping at the both of us.

He stands. “Christ. Just bone already.” His eyes go to me before they roll at whatever he sees. “Nice meeting you. Thanks for the info on your friend.”

“Rebecca,” I remind him, ignoring his ‘boning’ comment while fighting a furious blush.

He nods once before disappearing upstairs too.

Danny is quiet for a moment. “Sorry about him. A lot of these guys aren’t used to having girls over to hang out. Except for Raine.”

“Raine?”

“Caleb’s girlfriend.”

Ah.

“Anyway, you want to watch another movie or are you ready to head out? Cal told me I could borrow his truck to take you back whenever you were ready.”

I look at the time on my phone and frown. It’s getting late. If we start a movie, I won’t get back to the dorms until at least one, and I don’t feel like fielding all the questions that I’ll get from Becca or my suitemates. Not that they usually ask me much when I come back to our place. Sometimes I’ll get smiles from the upperclassman and a few “how was your day” or “how are classes going” from one or two of them, but I usually keep to myself the best I can.

It’s my roommate who hangs out with them the most while I stick to our room doing whatever it is I feel like. Homework usually. Mindlessly scrolling through Facebook to see what my sisters are up to. If I’m daring enough, I even text them and get a firsthand play by play.

I wouldn’t be surprised if my suitemates dislike me for not trying more to be their friends. They all seem nice enough. One of them works at Birdseye Diner that Becca, Dee, Ali, and I go to every so often. And another suitemate offered to buy us alcohol anytime we wanted because she’s old enough to purchase it. It’s hard to figure out where they stand with me when Becca openly talks bad about me in front of anyone who’s around. What has she been whispering to them about me?

It’s a few seconds longer of me debating my options when I decide, “I think I should head back.”

Saying goodbye to Justin, I follow Danny out to the truck in the driveway. “You should probably convince Stephen not to try anything with Becca.”

His brows go up as he unlocks the doors for us. “Why?”

“She’s…” I pause with my hand on the door handle. “Look, I don’t think she’s a very good person. You’ve said you thought so too, and you’ve barely talked to her.” I hope. God knows what he’s heard if they’ve had more than one conversation. “Her attitude is mostly just to me. We’re too different and she doesn’t like that. And I guess I could—well, I know I could try harder. It’s difficult for me to be social like her, though. It gives me anxiety to put myself out there. But it wouldn’t be fair if Stephen had some preconceived notion about her that isn’t true.”