“I suppose we could call it, though other than lover boy over here, it’s not like we’ve anywhere to be.” Cassius flicked his gaze to me as he spoke, but it still took me a second to realize I was apparently lover boy.
I rolled my eyes at him, not bothering to put him straight, though from the challenge in his gaze, he was really hoping I would.
“What?” he said with a grin, prodding me for a reaction. “You’ve got the cute journo whose chain you’re yanking and the hot DILF on speed dial. Lover boy totally fits.”
“Whatever, man, you know it’s not like that.” I clamped my mouth shut when a spark of satisfaction registered on Cassius’s face. The asshole knew how to push my buttons, and he sometimes wore his douche label with pride. The annoying thing was, he didn’t even try to get a rise out of me with venom. This was just a game we played. Him teasing, me playing pranks on him.
“Joel, what do you think? Who’s going to eventually win our boy’s heart here, get him tied down? The DILF or the journo?”
Shaking his head, Joel started putting away the pool balls. “Well, since Eddie isn’t a DILF for me, MILFs all the way, I couldn’t possibly comment.”
“Bullshit.” Cassius smirked. “Your five hundred bucks says differently.”
I groaned. “Seriously. This is the latest bet in the team?” I wasn’t sure why I was so surprised, since I’d been super active in other bets. Hell, I’d won a tidy sum with the whole Jayden-and-Sutton saga.
“Latest?” Cassius shook his head and snorted. “Hell no. Well, since you hooked up with the local journo, the odds changed a little, but the one with Eddie, yeah, that’s been around since the moment you returned from Montview like a lovesick puppy talking about the legendary Eddie Phelps in every other sentence.”
I dropped my head and rubbed a hand over my face. I could do the generous thing and tell them me and Eddie would never happen. I’d tried to start something up with the man once, but his resolute no, alongside his determination to stay friends, had been my clear answer. And since he was absolutely my best friend these days, I had no doubt that was the way it would remain.
No way I’d be telling the guys Eddie had rejected me a few years back. Screw that. These friends of mine didn’t need more ammunition.
The guys weren’t wrong, though, about how I talked about the man. Eddie was important to me, as was his daughter. Our friendship had grown exponentially over time, and I’d pretty much cemented myself into his and his daughter’s lives. Would I risk it all if Eddie and I had a chance to be more? Fuck yes. The man was lodged in my soul, and whether he knew it or not, when I’d fallen for him, I’d given him a piece of said soul in return.
“Whatishappening with the journalist these days?” The question came from Ollie, surprising me, as he didn’t usually pry into my personal life—or anyone’s as far as I was aware. To be clear, he was a kick-ass captain and we spent a lot of time together, but personal sharing was minimal.
“Tony’s a good friend.”
“Yeah he is.” Cassius bounced his brows, and if the pool table wasn’t between us, he would have earned himself a shove. “The whole friends-with-benefits thing still working out for you, huh? Nice. I knew you were downplaying at the bar a couple of weeks back.”
Somehow I kept my eye roll at bay. “We’re more like just friends these days. Life’s busy, you know?”
Joel frowned. “What, too busy to get your cock sucked? Dude, something’s seriously wrong if that’s the case.”
“Not wrong. It’s just… he’s a good guy, and I don’t want to lead him on.”
“He wanting a relationship or something?” Curiosity colored Ollie’s words.
“Jesus, what is this, get-the-dirt-on-my-sex-life question time or some shit?” My chuckle sounded awkward, which pretty much was accurate. We never talked about stuff like this, so I had no idea what sparked this conversation now. “What’s with all the questions?”
Cassius shrugged. “The pot’s big and things seem, I don’t know, a little stagnant.”
Incredulous, I laughed. “The hell? So this is your intervention to get the dirt and give me a shove so someone can win the pot?”
“Well, when you put it like that, then yeah.” Cassius’s grin was far too self-satisfied and ridiculous to ignore. Genuine amusement bubbled in my chest. These guys, though I expected Cassius mainly, were dicks. But they were my… uhm… dicks…. Of the nonsexual variety.
“How about you just use the fund to take us all out after the season’s over?”
“What?”
“Hell no.”
“No chance.”
They all spoke at once, so I had no idea who said what. “Guys, you’re being extra, and I’m not even going to ask how much money’s riding on this bullshit with that sort of reaction. And on that note, I’m going home.”
“For phone sex?”
I snorted at the hope in Cassius’s voice. “To sleep and get a good rest before tomorrow’s game, god of alligators.” I followed up with a back slap, and after saying goodbye to the guys, I headed out, chuckling loudly at Cassius’s, “God of sticks. Jesus. How hard is it to get right?”
