I barely keep the growl out of my voice. “We agreed to keep things casual—your suggestion, in fact—but if I’m being honest, I’m not getting that vibe from you anymore. So I’m respectfully bowing out, okay?”
We drive in silence until we get to her place, where she slides out and slams my car door behind her.
I’m so relieved to have her gone, I almost laugh, which should tell me all I need to know about that relationship. It’s a liability. And I can’t afford any more of those.
When I hit the gas, I know I need to track down Gabby. Lucky for me, I know exactly where she lives.
15
RIDER
After what happenedat Archer today, I’m anxious to talk to Gabby. I drop off my gym bag and books in my room and beeline for the door when Tank tells me to hold up.
“Where you headed?”
“Across the street. You need something?”
“Didn’t you get Gabby’s text? She’s on her way here.” He pauses, lifting his brows. “With the results.”
The results?
Holy shit, the paternity results.
Sweat breaks out on my body as I pull out my phone. Sure enough, there’s a group text to meet here in ten. I don’t have time to marvel over being unblocked because Gabby might be deploying an atom bomb in my life in a few minutes.
“Did she give you any details?”
Tank motions to Bree, who’s on the couch, bouncing Poppy on her knee. “She’s printing everything.”
My heart wants to beat out of my chest. “Is there a match?”
Bree nods slowly. “She doesn’t know which one of you, though, because you’re only identified by a number. She told me she isn’t comfortable knowing the results before the father, so she hasn’t looked to see whose name matches.”
Within the next five minutes, all of my roommates are sitting in the living room, even Trevor and Johnson. They might not say it, but since they’re not cracking jokes and cutting up, I’m guessing they’re here to offer support. Ben’s texting on his phone, being his usual closed-off self.
Someone cracks open a box of donuts, and suddenly this reminds me of that group my father meets with once a week. Well, when he goes.
I glance at Poppy, who giggles, totally unaware one of us is about to get slammed with a life-altering tidal wave tonight.
Guilt builds in my chest. I’ve barely spent any time with her. Bree’s cousin took my babysitting shifts this week in return for some signed football swag for her brothers.
But there’s a good chance she’s not mine, I remind myself.
I’ve seen the one friend I was hooking up with roughly around that time, and I don’t think she could’ve popped out a kid and still walked around campus looking like a Barbie doll.
Besides, Knox told us the other day he’s wondering if he knocked up this chick he’s been calling Supergirl Big Tits since he hasn’t seen her around school in a while. She’s blonde and fits the timeline.
Except…
I watch Knox shove half a donut in his mouth, and I still.
Something about my teammate shoveling chocolate in his pie hole like he hasn’t eaten in a week reminds me of…
Reminds me of…
Damn.
I close my eyes and sink back on the couch and try to think back to that summer. I was pissed at my dad and came back to do some conditioning with the guys who were around.
