Distraction (38 page)

"Fuck." I noticed a defensive end tailgating him. I
took off, dodging another lineman. Butts was gonna get his ass tackled. I
picked up my speed and ran. Instead of tackling the defensive end on his ass, I
pushed my teammate over the line.

"Texas Tech, takes the victory."

"
Thanks
, man," Butts said, breathless. I couldn't talk, and
just nodded.

Back in the locker room, Coach gave us his usual good job
speech followed by his “don
'
t let this win get to your heads." After a hot shower, I
headed straight to our bus, ready to sleep like a baby on the drive back.

My phone buzzed, I opened the text.
Great game! And nice
push ;) I
'
m doing a piece for the paper. Give me a quote...

I smiled. Elle had told me she'd be doing a piece for today
'
s game, with the
usual sports writer still being out. I typed in
I love you…choose me.
Then deleted
the text.

Write
what you want. I
'
m sure whatever you come up with would be better than anything
I could say.

Whatever.
NERD! I
'
ll think of something. How about this: I was the man of the
hour and Tech is lucky to have me kicking ass and taking names. ;)

I laughed. Yeah, that was not going to go in the paper.

How
bout this: Sexy Tristan Daniels took Oklahoma State by surprise with his swift
foot action. He scored two touchdowns and helped push his teammate over the
line for the final win. Daniels is ready for their next game. Kickin
'
ass and takin
'
names. ;)

I hit send.

Sexy,
hmmm. I
'
ll give that to you ;)

I stared at the text for a full minute, smiling like a moron.
Elle thought I was sexy. I could only imagine the sweet color covering her
cheeks right now.

Stop
blushing. Keep the sexy comment about me to yourself.
I paused
mid-text. Yeah, Elle knew how I felt, but I needed to up my game…give her a
little something to think about.

Wanna
know what I find sexy? Lets see…the pressure of your pouty lips on mine.
Caressing, tasting, every inch of your naked body. Making love to you and
hearing you scream, begging for more. Making you mine. Still waiting...

I hit send. Elle didn'
t respond, but I
'
d given her something to think about. Me.

Great fucking end to a great day.

Elle

I watched Tristan's game with Eric at a local sports bar not
far from campus.

Being with Eric today just didn't sit well with me,
especially when he brought up his family during the second half of the game.
That hadn't bothered me, except that he expected me to pay attention instead of
taking notes for the school paper.

"Come on." Eric chugged the last half of his beer
and then slammed the glass down. "We're winning, it's not like you can't
get a detailed play by play from your
friend
."

His suggestive tone nearly pushed me over the edge. Had it
not been for our last play, when Tristan literally pushed Butts in the end
zone, I would have lost my composure. The other bar patrons jumped to their
feet. Their claps and whistles carried heavily around the room.

"So, it's settled then?" His excitement was easy to
read, only I didn't quite understand the reason.

"Yeah, I'm excited," I said, with hesitation.

Eric chuckled and shook his head.

"Don't worry about meeting the rest of my family.
They're going to love you."

"Yeah, um, I can't wait." I could have face-palmed
my forehead. "I think I should probably get back home. I want to get a
head start on this story."

"Sure, no problem." Eric's blue eyes sparkled with
such emotion after I'd accidentally agreed to meet his family. Our relationship
just morphed into a place I didn't feel one hundred percent about.

I listened more carefully during the ride home, afraid I'd
get engaged next…which didn't happen. Thank goodness. Eric parked in the
driveway.

"So, I'll call you tomorrow."

My stomach knotted with unease.

"Yup, sounds great." My phone buzzed, saving me
from further awkwardness. "I bet that's Alyssa wondering where I am."
I opened the car door. "Thanks for the ride home."

Eric supplied me with a weak smile, the excitement in his
eyes dimmed. I didn't kiss him goodbye. Instead, I rushed inside, fishing my
phone from my purse. Once I'd settled in my room, I texted Tristan. No big
deal, we'd text after his away games all the time. Only the texting turned into
something…more.

I'd read Tristan's text at least twenty times before finally
putting my phone away. Of course the ass knew I
'
d be blushing. I
mean, holy shit. I'd never been more turned on and by words no less. He'd
heated my skin, sent my pulse into overdrive, and well, basically, flustered the
hell out of me. All without ever touching me. I needed a fan or an iced latte
or something.

But his last words, still waiting, tugged at my heart.
Feelings for Eric and Tristan turned my stomach into a bundle of fire. I hadn't
a clue what to do about them. The only thing I did know for certain, Tristan
didn't play fair.

* * *

My chin slipped from my palm and my eyes shot open. I blinked
several times, adjusting my eyes to the brightness in the classroom.

"Ms. Richards, please see me after class." My heart
hammered in my chest. I looked ahead at Mr. Edwards. His stern gaze woke me up.

Sleep had evaded me. I was pretty sure a person couldn't
continue to survive on coffee alone for longer than a week.

"Yes, sir,"
I answered, worried
I'd missed
something important. A few people next to me chuckled, but I ignored them. I
shifted in my seat, attempting to keep awake until class ended.

The wind hissed through the windowsill causing goose bumps to
form over my skin. Slowly, I directed my gaze outside, thinking back to me and
Tristan's last phone conversation.

"Hey, Spud. Are you and Alyssa driving home for
Thanksgiving?"

My throat felt dry, my tongue thick.

Tristan continued, "If not, I thought we could ride
together…" His voice trailed off, still hopeful.

Tears misted in my eyes. I couldn't answer him.

"Why the silent treatment?"

"I…"

Tristan blew a heavy sigh into the phone.

"Never mind, just forget I called."

That was a week ago. The wind picked up again. Bits of leaves
and dead grass drifted in the breeze. I blinked the dryness from my eyes. Mr.
Edwards’ voice lingered in the background of my thoughts. Tristan. Eric. I
never wanted to hurt anyone. Maybe I should let them both go?

My stomach squeezed. Tristan. No, I couldn't leave him…not
entirely. We'd always be friends, right?

"
Ms. Richards
." I heard my name and looked up, only to find an empty
room.
Perfect. I
'd
spaced out during his entire lecture.

"Sorry, Mr. Edwards." I quickly collected my stuff
and then headed to his desk.

"Did you enjoy the lecture?"

I stopped in front of Mr. Edwards' desk, nervously biting my
lip. He shook his head and grinned. I exhaled slowly.

"You said you needed to see me?" I hoped to
redirect him.

"Yes," he replied, sitting straighter in his wooden
chair. "It seems I may need you to continue writing in my sports writer’s
place."

"I…I mean yes. I
'
d love to," I admitted,
shocked. I thought for sure he'd fire me.

"
Good.
" Mr. Edwards turned his attention to his desk,
collecting papers. "And Ms. Richards, I expect you to pay attention during
class." I blushed. Of course he
'
d noticed.

"Yes, sir," I said, glad that I hadn
'
t
stuttered.

"That will be all,
Ms. Richards.
"

"Thank you." I sighed and walked away.

When my morning classes were over, I headed to work for
another pick-me-up and my work schedule. The shop appeared pretty empty when I
walked in.

Dawn greeted me from behind the counter. "
Hi, Elle
."

"Hey, yourself. I came by for a strong cup of coffee,
and was hoping to pick up my schedule for next week."

"One strong white chocolate mocha coming up, but our
schedules aren
'
t ready." Dawn turned to get my order ready.

"I thought Karen said she
'
d have them
ready by today?" I really needed my schedule so I could let Eric know when
I needed to be back.

"Karen said she
'
d be back later today with them."
Dawn turned around. "Two or three shots?"

"Three," I said, feeling withdrawals.

"Coming up."

I felt antsy waiting for my coffee and decided to check my
phone since I kept the volume on silent during class. I also hoped I'd missed a
call or text from Tristan. Nothing.

"Here ya go." I shoved my phone back inside my
purse, gladly took my caffeinated lifeline, and took a big gulp. Mmm. Heaven in
a cup.

"
Thank
s. You
'
re a life saver." I smiled.

"No problem. Hey, I can text you our schedule when Karen
stops by. That way it'll save you a trip back."

"
Thanks
. That'd be great." I dropped an extra few dollars in
the tip jar. "I
'
m gonna get back. My next class is in twenty minutes and I
could use some extra study time."

"Sure, I
'
ll talk to you later."

Once inside my car, I turned the heater up and took my phone
out, contemplating if I should call or text. I went with the phone call.

I hit call and waited for him to pick up. Several rings
later, I was greeted by his voice mail. I hadn
'
t realized how
much I missed him until I heard his deep voice.

"Hey, Tristan. Haven
'
t talked to you
in over a week. I miss you. Please call me so we can talk." I waited a
second and then hit end.

The ball was now in his court. The only thing left for me to
do was wait.

Chapter
26

Tristan

I hit the showers after practice, and then hurried the hell
up so I could get to class. I had fifteen minutes to get clear across campus.
Good thing my teacher had a thing for me. I
'
d been late or
missed more times than I should have.

I pulled into the parking lot, but didn
'
t see any
available spots. Shit, I was going to be late. Just as I was backing out, a
small beaten up Honda left. I circled back around, cutting off some dick who
thought he could beat me.

Grabbing my keys, phone, and books, I dashed out and hauled
ass. Mrs. Powers had barely begun her lecture when I snuck in.

"Nice for you to join us today, Mr. Daniels." Shit.
Busted.

"I
'
m here to please." Mrs. Powers scowled. A group of girls
behind me laughed when I winked back at her. She shook her head and blushed,
but went back to the screen.

"You were great on the field last week,"
Bridget
said,
damn
near hovering over me. I gave her a small smile back.

"
Thanks
, Bridget."

"Do you need a study partner?" She trailed her red
painted
finger
nails down my arm. Not enough to hurt, but enough she left
red marks. "I take great notes. We could stay up all night going over,"
she paused, dropping her eyes to my lips, "my notes."

I bent forward. "I
'
ll be sure to keep that in mind."
I winked, and then moved away.

"Fine." She huffed and crossed her arms over her
chest. I laughed under my breath at her attempt to reel me in. If we were lost
at sea, I'd be sure to keep her around as a life preserver.

Throughout class, I'd catch a glimpse of her chewing the end
of her pen, her legs crossed, all the while staring at my package. Bridget
wasn't the type to embarrass easily and winked back when I caught her.