Rounding Third (9 page)

“Excuse us,” I tell the blonde while her tongue hangs out like a dog after a walk.

“What the hell?” The blonde steps forward. “I had dibs first.”

“No one had dibs before me,” Ella replies.

Damn, I wish I could hold in the smile begging to come out.

“Excuse us,” I repeat before trying to escort us through the people.

“She can’t come in here and steal you away.” The blonde obviously doesn’t take no for an answer.

I ignore her, but Ella turns around, her finger jabbing in the girl’s chest.

“Listen, he was mine well before he was ever yours. And licking someone’s neck does not stake claim on him.”

“How could you pass this up for that?” She looks at Ella like she’s a piece of gum on the bottom of her shoe.

I step forward, ready to defend, but Ella puts her hand out to stop me.

“You want to challenge me?”

“Aren’t you Liam’s lame girlfriend?” the blonde sneers.

I hold my breath, hoping that she’s not about to tell Ella that she’s nailed him.

“Yes, but—”

“Then, Third Base is up for grabs.” She pulls my hand, trying to get me to come to her.

I remove her hand.

“Third Base? Try Crosby Lynch. I know your brain is small, but repeat after me.
Crosby. Lynch
.”

A rupture of laughter leaves my throat before I can compose myself.

“You’re such a bitch. Have him. Lamest baseball player I’ve ever met.” She walks away, pulling her tight-ass skirt a little higher, revealing more than where her legs part.

Ella inhales a deep breath and lets it out in a slow stream. “Sorry,” she mumbles.

“I’ve always loved your jealous side,” I comment.

She narrows her eyes at me. “Did you do that on purpose?”

From the look of certainty in her eyes, we both know I did.

“Come on, I’ll make you a drink that you’ll actually consume.” I grab the empty glass out of her hand.

“What are you talking about?” She stops next to me by the hard-alcohol supply.

I grab a flavored vodka and a 7Up.

“Here.” I thrust the drink in her hand.

She slowly dips the glass to her lips. She swallows, and a small smile creases her lips.

“You won’t be dumping this one in someone else’s cup.” I cross my arms over my chest and lean against the counter, confident of my drink-making skills.

“Stalker.” She portrays she’s mad, but that smile speaks more than her tone.

“Observer,” I counter.

She doesn’t come back with a reply.

“So, what brings you to Kappa?” she asks, placing her drink down and grabbing an empty cup. Glancing at each bottle, she starts pouring alcohol it.

“I’m guessing that.” I point to where Saucey’s thigh is pressed between Jen’s legs, letting her grind against him.

“Yeah, not sure what they are thinking. Like we don’t know they planned this whole thing.” She glances over her shoulder and then focuses back on the drink.

“What the hell are you making?” I ask, sneaking a sip of the drink I made her.

“I’m going to make a drink for you, except I don’t remember you drinking anything but beer.”

She laughs, and I inspect the cup to find one mixed up shit drink.

“Well, try it.” She pushes it my way, and I warily pick up the glass.

I sip and barely swallow the rancid mix. “Um, I love you, but that’s a pass.” I place it down, and she laughs.

“I wish I would have had my phone ready to take a picture of your face.”

“Maybe I should stick to the girlie drinks?” I ask, taking another sip of hers.

She grabs it from my hands. “Mine.” She acts like a toddler.

These are the moments when it’s hard not to touch her. To hug her into my body. Saucey and Jen aren’t making it any easier for me to keep my hands to myself, having to watch them make out like teenagers in a dark movie theater.

“Shouldn’t you be with your boyfriend?” I ask.

Her eyes quickly scan the room for him. “Yeah, I should.” She stays next to me. “He’s probably upstairs, studying, or playing pool downstairs.”

She doesn’t seem worried, and I plan on taking advantage of every minute.

“If you were mine, I’d stick to you like glue.” I lean in close to block his dickhead friends from overhearing me. They’re too enthralled in the stock-market topic anyway. The last thing I need is to get into a damn fight my first week on the team.

“When I was, you did. Remember when we went to Brax’s cousin’s party?” She’s already laughing, remembering how the five of us showed up at a party in the next town over. The guys kept hitting on Kedsey and Ella the entire night. Finally, Noah and I sat them on a couch, and we stood in front of them like bodyguards to celebrities. “You both were way overly protective.”

“Still am. Well, I am.”

The conversation is about to take a plunge when she places her hand on my arm.

“Don’t. Just remember him for him.” Her lips turn soft, giving me the same feeling as a safety blanket did when I was a kid. Security.

I nod and sneak a hefty gulp of her drink. “I think about him all the time, both of them,” I admit.

“Me, too. Sometimes, when I’m with Jen”—she looks over to her roommate, who is practically having sex with Saucey against the wall, and then eyes me with a look that says,
Can you honestly believe they are doing that here?
—“I think,
What if Kedsey and I were in college together? What would it be like to go to games to watch you and Noah play?
I wonder how different the future would have been…” This time, she trails off, showing this grief thing still isn’t easy, even when you have all your shit handled.

“Not that we’d be together. We were all separating for college anyway.” She shrugs.

The hurt I originally damaged her with when I accepted the Vanderbilt scholarship is present. We broke up over it for a whole half of a day before I convinced her that our future was very much intact.

“Hey now”—I take my finger and place it under her chin to bring her eyes to me. Damn Liam’s friends and their prying eyes—“none of that matters now. We’re together.”

Her lips twitch to argue my sentence.

“At least at the same college.”

Our eyes lock, and it’s clear her resolve is waning. For the first time since I returned, she’s showing signs that the past isn’t fully healed with a new layer of skin grown over the wound. She’s moved on, and she hides it well, but there’s a big sore under the Band-Aid.

“Time for a shot.” I quickly change the topic so as not to turn our short time together into a boohoo party. Plus, Drunk Ella is usually fun, and I’m not wasting my opportunity.

I pour us each a shot of raspberry vodka and slide the glass over to her. “One, two—”

“Three!” She downs her shot and slams the glass on the counter. “Another?” A glimmer shines in her eyes, signaling that the old Ella—the fun Ella, the carefree Ella—is still very much alive inside her.

I pour another but switch it to Jäger. She frowns, but her fingers grip the glass nonetheless.

“I’ll count,” she demands.

“Be my guest.” I hold the shot glass, waiting for her cue.

“One…two…two and a half…” Her head falls back as she begins laughing uncontrollably. “Three.” Her head tips back, and she downs her shot without a grimace.

“Man, have you been practicing?”

She grabs the bottle and starts filling the glasses again. I cover mine with my hand, but she pours anyway. Alcohol drips down my fingers and onto the counter.

“Don’t be a pussy.”

“Pussy? It’s early in the night to start going there,” I argue.

She places her hand on her hip, jutting it out for emphasis. If she were mine, I’d prop her up onto this counter and show her the man I am.

“One more, but then I have to be done. I have a full day tomorrow,” I say.

She wiggles her whole body while her eyes circle around. “Turning the tables on me, Mr. Serious Third Base?” Her last word slurs slightly, signaling that she hasn’t been practicing. If a vodka and 7Up along with two shots get her a little loopy, this isn’t going to be a good night.

“Go!” she screams.

And we down another shot. This time, I turn my shot glass over, prohibiting her from refilling it.

“Pussy.” She grabs the bottle, and I swipe it out of her hand.

“You’re done for a little bit.”

“Okay, Dad.” She rises on her tiptoes, getting right in my face.

I look around, finding Saucey and Jen have moved their sexual exploration over to a chair in the corner. Brax and Oliver are nowhere to be found, and neither is Liam.

“Where’s your boyfriend?” I ask. As soon as I say the words, I wish I hadn’t reminded her that she has one.

She falls back to her heels. “Why do you care about him? You should be wooing me.” She steps closer, her finger trailing down the center of my chest.

I glance back to the stock traders next to us, and two of them have their eyes on us. Not willing to ride the bench for them, I grab her finger and bring her hand back down to her side.

“Let’s find him.” I link my hand with hers and pull her out of the room.

It took us one flight of stairs and one closed door.

“Liam?” Ella’s voice is soft. She’s unsure if she’s seeing her boyfriend with a blonde straddling him while his hands are on her tits.

Dickwad pushes the girl off his lap, and she falls to the ground. His eyes widen and case the room, as if he might be on
Punk’d
or some shit.

Nope, buddy. Not getting out of this one.

“
Liam
!”

I rub my ear from Ella’s screaming voice right next to me.

“El!” He scrambles to get up from his bed, and he zips up his pants.

The blonde buttons up her blouse as she scurries out of the room, her eyes not meeting anyone’s.

“Is this what you do when you say you’re studying?” El steps forward, breaking the distance between them.

I slowly back up to act like a fly on the wall while their relationship unfolds.

“Get out.” Liam nods his head my way.

I cross my arms, relaxing against the wall. “Nah, I’d rather stay.”

Ella’s head whips around, but she doesn’t ask me to leave, and until she does, I won’t.

“He stays.”

“You want your damn high school boyfriend here? Fine. Let’s start with that subject first then.” Liam stands, crossing his arms over his puny chest.

“Oh no, we’ll talk about you being a fucking cheater.”

“Can you blame me?”

I cock my head, wondering where he’s going with this one.

“Yes, I can.” Ella’s foot is tapping, and her nostrils are flaring.

I wait for her temper to hit the breaking point.

“You rarely show any affection toward me. Look at tonight. You kept pulling away from me.”

He’s calming, and I debate on giving them space, but with Ella’s request, I won’t.

“How many have there been?” Her voice is cool.

“That’s the first,” Liam lies.

But she shoots him a look that seems to affect him enough to clarify.

“Only this summer.”

“How many?”

“El.”

“How many?” Her voice shifts to urgent.

If I were Liam, I’d answer.

“I don’t know.” He shrugs while her eyes continue to laser into his. “Maybe five.”

“Five? In one summer?”

Her head falls, and she stares at the carpeted floor for a moment, as though she’s trying to compose herself.

I step forward since Dickwad is still standing five feet away, not moving.

I place my hand on her back and feel it shaking as she’s crying. “Are you okay, El?” I ask.

She looks up at me, tears streaming down her face, those broken crystal-blue hues gaze back at me.

Unable to stare into her eyes much longer, I give my full attention to Liam.

He’s narrowing his eyes my way. “You got your wish. I’m out of the picture.”

My vision shifts back to Ella, and confusion is now mixed with her sadness.

“You fucking prick, you hurt her.” I gently nudge Ella to the side, and my fist slams into his jaw, throwing him back in surprise.

“Crosby!” Ella’s voice rings behind me.

When I turn to her, Liam cocks his fist into my temple. The sadness deepens in her eyes, and my anger unleashes further.

“You’re a piece of shit.” One-two jab in the rib cage.

“Brax!” Ella screams.

My teammates’ heavy footsteps run up the stairs.

Next thing I know, Brax and Oliver are tearing me off Liam while I kick and scream.

“Let me go!” I demand, watching Ella stand in limbo between Liam and me.

“Promise you’re done. If Coach finds out—” Oliver says.

I shrug the two of them off, and their grips loosen. “I’m good.”

Damn the stinging in my knuckles feels good especially mixed with the blood dripping down his lip.

I look over to Liam and our eyes lock, waiting for him to antagonize me. One word will have me jeopardizing my spot on the team.

“Five girls?”

“Shit.” Brax stands by my side.

Soon, Jen and Saucey hit the top of the stairs, and Jen rushes over to Ella’s side. She puts her arm around Ella’s shoulders and pulls her in. Their height difference shows now more than ever. Jen is taller, the model type, and Ella is the sexy girl next door.

Ella’s head falls, and then she leans into Jen to tell her something. Jen nods, whispers something back, and then turns to us.

“Let’s go and give them time,” she says.

“Like hell,” I speak first.

Ella breaks the distance and heads toward me. Placing her hand on my stomach, she shoots those doe eyes that have the ability to hypnotize me to be her slave.

“Please, Cros, I’ll only be a little while, but I need to talk to him.”

“I don’t want to leave you,” I whisper.

“I’ll be right out.”

“Call me if you need me.” I hold up my cell phone, and she pulls hers out of her back pocket.

“I will.”

I nod, unable to be the demanding ape I want to be in this situation. I wish I could be King Kong and throw her over my shoulder and stomp out of this house to wash away the pain the jackass has caused.

The five of us slowly walk down the stairs, but I keep looking over my shoulder at Ella.