“Yeah, right,” I say, my teeth chattering. There wasn’t a lot of water left in the container, but it was cold, and I think most of the icy droplets landed on me.
“Oh shit. I’m gonna kill those assholes,” he says, his eyes darting around the room. “You need another shirt.”
“I’ll be okay,” I assure him, although he’s probably right. The jerseys Mel found online are more like glorified t-shirts and mine is soaked through.
“Santos!” Will’s voice booms from across the room as he calls my boyfriend over. “My mom wants pictures.”
I turn to head in that direction because even though I’m not here as Howler staff, I’d like to get some pictures, too, but Pete stops me with his hand on my shoulders.
“Like hell you’re going anywhere near a camera right now,” he says, his voice low and commanding.
It’s kinda hot…
But also, what the hell? “Um, I’m sorry, did I miss thepart where you’re in charge of where the fuck I go and what the fuck I do now that we’re officially official?”
Pete tips his head down and captures my mouth again. If he’s trying to distract me, it’s working. “Your shirt’s completely see-through. And while I fucking love that white cotton bra you’re wearing, I don’t really want Will’s mother to post pics of your barely covered tits all over the internet. And she’s crafty. You and your wet t-shirt could be on a t-shirt by the end of the weekend.”
I take a step back and look down. Pete’s right. My white shirt is like wet tissue paper clinging to my skin. And damn, I’m still cold.
“You can call me a possessive asshole all you want,” he says. “You’re not wrong. But this hot fucking body is mine, and I don’t want to share it.”
Well, that’s interesting. Everybody’s favorite teddy bear has a possessive streak. Honestly, with the way his eyes are eating me up, I don’t even mind.
“There’s got to be a box of t-shirts around here somewhere. I heard Liza say we should all grab some. Let me see if I can find her,” he says, looking around for the one of the equipment managers.
“I’ll find her,” I say, crossing my arms because I’m not really in the mood to flash my tits in a room with this many cameras. “Go take pics before Will’s mom loses her mind.”
Pete grumbles something, but when Will calls again, he heads in that direction while I duck out one of the interior doors. It leads to a small hallway and I’m betting there’s a stash of merch around here somewhere.
I hear loud voices around the corner, and then the sound of a door slamming shut. Without thinking, I flatten myself to the wall. I love my tits, but I get to pick and choose who sees them, and the hotheaded randos in the hallway don’t make the cut.
“It’s fucking bullshit,” the one whines.
“Yeah, but what do you expect? We do all the fucking work, and he gets to call all the shots.”
Their voices trail down the hall and when I peek around the corner, I watch them walk out of sight. I stay still until they’re gone. Judging by their conversations and their builds, I’m guessing they’re pissed off Bushtits. It sounds like their coach is making calls they disagree with. I should probably feel a little bit bad, but this is the team of the guy who tore up Van’s knee. They get no sympathy from me.
I walk down the hall they just vacated and try the door handles. Most are locked, but one is open. I push on it, praying there’s something in here I can wear.
There’s a shirt all right.
But’s not a championship one. It’s a jersey I recognize. It’s nearly identical to the one I’m wearing, except for the size and the name on the back. “Sophie?” I call but get no answer, which makes sense. The room is small and mostly bare.
I look down at her shirt. I really don’t want to put it on and not just because it’s about four sizes too small. Maybe I can just hold it in front of myself until my own jersey dries out a little. I scoop it up off the floor, because at the very least, I should return it to her, although I have no clue how it ended up in this room. There’s not much else in here—a few chairs and a long table. I’m guessing it’s used for press conferences or meetings, but when I see Sophie’s sexy and very expensive lingerie on the floor, I realize this must be a multi-purpose room.
Huh. Maybe that’s why she was gone for the last period of the game. And did Kaden sneak back here with her? He didn’t play in the game, but I think he still had to sit on the bench. Or maybe she was back here waiting for him.Maybe they’re behind one of the locked doors in this hall? That doesn’t explain why her shirt and underwear are here, but that’s nothing I can worry about. I set her things back down, figuring she’ll find them when she and Kaden are done.
Since this hallway was a bust, I head back in the direction of the locker room and that’s when I see Liza handing out regional championship t-shirts. Thank freaking god.
“Could I grab one of those?” I ask, sidling up next to her.
“Yep,” she says, “What size do you—oh my god, you’re soaked!”
“You should have seen me five minutes ago,” I say, laughing. “I got a little water cooler love, but now I’m shivering, so if you’ve got an XL handy, I’ll take it.”
She hands it over with a warm smile. “Pro tip: there’s a bathroom on the other side of that office if you want to change.”
“Thank you!” I say, taking the t-shirt and the tip. I’m freezing and the quicker I change, the quicker I can get back to the celebration.
