I bite the inside of my cheek to stop my laugh at his clearly not “merry” voice. But I don’t really care if he’s happy or not. I mean, should I?
“Perfect. Let’s go. Keanu is riding with us, Max with them. Am I driving or you?” I demand his answer at the same time I realize that I’m already ten steps ahead of him.
I spin, and my ponytail whips around.
Austin is just standing there, eyeing me up with the slightest hint of disgust etched into his perfect features. “Oh, yeah, sorry. Um, you can drive ifyouprefer.”
There is this undertone to his words that I can practically taste in my mouth, a mix of gasoline and burned toast. But he should know it’s a dangerous game to play with fire. Especially when it’s impossible for me to get burned. He might think he’s holding the match. But if you look close enough, you might catch the sight of the inferno that already roars behind my eyes. I don’t get burned, but he might.
I think this might be his first time dealing with a girl like me. A girl who takes absolutely no one’s shit. Who controls everything, every second of every day. Because when control passes over to someone else, it either ends in pain, or blood, or both.
I don’t respond to him as Keanu and I lead the way out of the building to one of my SUVs, Austin close behind.
Reminding myself that this relationship with Austin is purely a means to mislead Callum, I paint the sweetest smile on my face and prepare for an hour or two of fake laughs, plastic smiles, and delicious, delicious food.
ELEVEN
Callum
The next two weeks go by in a haze. Practices have been extended, and any free time I have is spent in the hot tub to relax my muscles from the exhausting hours spent on and off the field. I’m pretty sure Coach is trying to kill us.
Thank God we have the next two days off. I need to fucking decompress and get out of the same routine I’ve been stuck in.
My phone beeps.
Stella: Hey, Cal! We just got to my mom’s. Come over!
My heart fucking swells. I have missed Stella so much. I don’t even think I realize the extent myself. But in all honesty, she’s the only person besides Becca and Gran that I’ve ever really let myself get attached to.
I quickly type my response.
Me: Changing quickly. Then, I’ll be there!
The doors open on my floor, and I step out, fidgeting with the room key card in my pocket. Dawson walks out of his room, looks up, and nods his head.
“What’re you up to?” he asks.
“About to go meet up with a friend of mine. You?”
He follows me to my door. “What kind of friend? Does this friend have tits? I might want to meet her too. Meet her in all kinds of ways.” Dawson smirks.
My eye twitches with irritation at him talking about Stella like that.
I turn, looking down into his eyes directly. “She is in fact a girl. Refer to her like that again, and you’ll be out of practice for a few weeks while your broken fingers heal.”
His smirk only grows to a full smile. “Ooh. Does Callum Jones have a little girlfriend?”
I clench my teeth, taking a long, slow breath. I watch as his eyes quickly fall, and he swallows the lump in his throat.
A brilliant idea flashes through my mind. “Actually, Dawson, you’re coming with me. I think you guys might hit it off after all.” My ulterior motives dance in my mind.
His eyes light up. “Deal. When?”
“Now.” I slide the key card into the door. “She is actually a big fan of surprise hugs. It’s kind of her kink.”
I laugh to myself. Cade is going to do all the dirty work for me and beat Dawson’s ass. I quickly change, and then we are out the door and on our way to Dawson’s funeral.
When we pull onto Stella’s street, my heart is literally pounding. I never knew that she would become this person to me, someone I look forward to talking to every day, someone I can’t imagine my life without.
