Distraction (8 page)

My once racing heart plummeted to a standstill. My fingers,
hands, every part of me felt numb. I could see his lips moving, but couldn't
hear his words. His face lit with such emotion it hurt to see it, hurt to feel
it, and then sadly, sound made its way to my ears again.

"You know, she kind of reminds me of you. She
'
s sweet, but
infuriatingly stubborn at times." He peered down at me with a crooked
grin. The gesture usually melted my heart, but not now. Instead, all I felt was
heartache. "She has a great personality and she
'
s hot, but that
'
s not why I love
her." He searched my face, his brows furrowed. "Hey, Spud. What
'
s wrong?"

The concern in his deep voice nearly did me in. He used the
pad of his thumb and wiped the escaped tear falling down my cheek. I forced my
lips into a deceiving smile, hoping my heart wouldn
'
t break into a
million pieces with what I intended to say.

"I
'
m just so happy for you, and I
'
m glad you
'
ve met someone
so special. You deserve all the happiness in the world, Tristan. She
'
s a lucky girl."

Tristan devoured me in his arms, squeezing me tight. I
allowed his embrace, wanting to hold on to the moment before it was gone...lost
to someone else.

"You know, I was more nervous telling you than my
parents. At first they were pissed, or actually, my mom was. After a while
though, she gave up arguing with me. Plus, Kellie
'
s enrolled here
at Tech. She's the reason why I decided to move here."

His words sunk in and suddenly his strong arms felt
suffocating. I pushed myself away from his hold, needing to create as much
distance as I could.

"Hey, I
'
m kind of tired. Do you mind if we call it a night?"

Tristan agreed, completely unaware of the wound he
'
d cut in my
chest.

* * *

Tristan left early Sunday morning, wanting to help Kellie
move the rest of her furniture. He said she
'
d started
classes already, but hadn
'
t finished moving her stuff in. He also asked if we could
hook up later in the week so I could meet the girl who stole him away from me.
I added that part, obviously, but it was more or less true.

What a great start to a new semester. Maybe if I had
confessed how I felt then I could have what this Kellie chick had, but I lacked
bravery. I was just as weak as my mother, which I swore I would never be.
Obviously, the apple didn
'
t fall far from the tree.

Speaking of family, I emailed my sister. I usually emailed
her once or twice a week, hoping she
'
d come back home. I missed her so
much, and after Tristan left, more than anything I missed the way she and I
used to talk to each other. Her silly faces always made me laugh and then we
'
d eat a bowl of
ice cream watching girly movies together until we fell asleep. Now, I just
wished to see her face, with or without the silly faces.

Chapter
5

Tristan

By Sunday morning, the way Elle smelled, seeing her innocent,
beautiful face...well, I couldn't take being around her anymore. Last night,
seconds before I confessed, a warm breeze blew pieces of hair in her face,
hiding her bright eyes. Without thinking, I brushed my fingers across her
cheek, warm and soft, as I tucked the loose strands behind her ear. I
'
d planned to
rush the words out, but after I said I was in love, I hesitated.

There was a moment–though brief–when I thought she wanted me
to say I was in love with her. A ridiculous conclusion, and immediately I
squashed the pathetic thought. When I finished, and stared into the pool of
green forming in Elle
'
s eyes, I swear to God my throat felt like my air supply had
been clamped off. Never in my life had I wanted to take my words back.

Afterward, I thought I
'
d feel free, but freedom didn
'
t come close to
how I felt. Fucking miserable described me perfectly. I needed to get my shit
together, and every minute I spent alone with Elle reminded me of what I wanted
but would never have. So I left early, using Kellie as an excuse. I
'
d be early, but
figured the hour or so long drive to her parents’ place would help clear my
head.

Kellie and her parents were just finishing loading their
truck when I got there. They'd be following behind on the way to Kellie's dorm.

Before we took off, I tried calling and texting Elle, but
without success. I went against my better judgment–I called Alyssa. Alyssa said
Elle was out, but would relay the message. When Kellie jumped into my car, I
put my phone up and tried like hell to push Elle out of my mind.

"You
'
re awfully quiet," Kellie said after we
'
d been on the
road for a while.

"Just thinking about football," I lied.

The trip back to Lubbock dragged while listening to Kellie
talk colors and shit for our engagement party. A fucking party. Why couldn't
she plan this shit by herself? I worked my way around her questions until
finally my relief came when her phone rang. I prayed whoever she talked with on
the opposite end of the line would keep Kellie occupied until we made it to
town.

* * *

When Kellie
'
s dad and I finished unloading the last piece of heavy
furniture, I ducked into a bathroom and dialed Elle
'
s number again.
Thankfully she picked up, agreeing to meet us Wednesday night for dinner.
Hearing her voice made the sick feeling in my stomach ease up. Satisfied, I
walked outside.

"All right, kids," Mr. Williams said, wiping sweat
from his brow. "We
'
re gonna head out." He gave me a stern look.

"Bye, Daddy," Kellie said, giving him a hug then
turned and pulled her mom in for a final goodbye hug as well. "Y
'
all be careful
on your way back."

"Get to sleep early," Mr. Williams said, eyeing me
again then looked back at his daughter. If he only knew, I thought. "Don
'
t forget you
have an early class tomorrow."

"I know. I love you."

"We love you, too," Mrs. Williams added, pulling
out a tissue to wipe her eyes. I understood they wanted to stay, but sweat was
rolling down my ass standing outside in the fucking heat. I wanted them gone.

Finally, fifteen minutes of tears and hugs later, they left. Kellie
and I grabbed a quick dinner, and then headed back to my place.

When we were inside, Kellie followed me to my bedroom.
"Did you and Elle have fun?"

"Yup, what about you?"

"I missed you," she said, peeling out of her shirt.
Distraction. I had to remind myself, being here with Kellie was real. What I
wanted. What I chose.

"Really?" My lips turned up into a hell-bent grin.

"Uh, hmm." Shirtless, she walked over to me. I left
my arms hanging at my side, waiting to see what game she wanted to play, though
it didn
'
t take long before our clothes were off. Kellie kneeled
between my legs. Oh yes, Kellie was very distracting indeed.

* * *

"I
'
m meeting up with some guys from the team. We
'
re watching the
game. Do you want to come?" She rolled her eyes, stepping into her jeans.

"Tristan, you know I hate sports, besides you
'
ll end up
ignoring me the whole time anyway." I didn
'
t argue; she had
a point. I hated explaining plays to her. The sport didn
'
t matter,
football, baseball, she never understood any of it.

“All right, I
'
ll talk to you in the morning." We finished dressing,
and just in time. One of Kellie
'
s annoying friends pulled into my driveway to pick her up.

As soon as they left, I took off to the same frat house I
went to with Elle the other night. Most of the guys from the team pledged
there. The second I walked in, I had a beer in my hand and a hot chick next to
me.

"
Thanks,
"
I told her.

"No problem. My name
'
s Jenny. You
'
re cute."
She smiled back, the intent in her light blue eyes clear to read.

"Daniels, get your ass over here,"
Jarred
hollered.

"Comin
'."
I grinned down at the girl next to me. "Thanks, you
'
re not bad
yourself, but sadly, I
'
m with someone." The heated look in her eyes faded.

"Lucky girl. I guess I
'
ll see you around."
She smiled and walked away. I laughed quietly and headed over to the couch.

"What
'
s the score?" I sat back, relaxed into the cushions and
took a long, satisfying drink.

"Two to zip, Yankees," Bret answered from behind.

I turned around. "Hey, man."

He nodded.

Robbie walked over with a big-ass grin. "Who's up for a
bet?"

"Who you going for?" I usually rooted for NY, but
would gladly bet against Robbie if need be. I still didn
'
t like him.

"Bro, Rangers all the way." Robbie shook his head.

I smiled. "I
'
ll take your bet. Twenty on the
Yanks."

The dick tilted his head back and laughed.

"Pussy, fifty." Bret jumped in. "Fifty on the
Yankees too, dickhead." Bret
'
s tone hardened, making me wonder if he had the same vibes I
did. "Rob, I
'
m gonna love taking your money." From the heat in Bret
'
s stare, I knew
some sort of history had gone on between them.

"Whatever, man," Robbie countered.

"I
'
m in. Fifty bucks says Yankee
s kick ass,
" I said.
We threw our cash on the coffee table.

"Jarred, you in?" I turned, waiting for his reply.

"Nah, not my thing." He shrugged.

A few others from the team joined in on the action before all
bets were closed. Surprisingly, more guys rooted for Texas than New York.
Stupid asses.

Conversations drifted from one topic to another. Everyone
from the team was pretty cool, which made switching easier than I
'
d expected.
Changing teams gave me more experience with other players, and these guys
kicked ass.

Not long after I joined this summer, Jarred asked if I wanted
to pledge. I turned him down. My dad pledged here back in the day, and I
refused to be a part of his legacy. But I had to admit, being in a brotherhood
with these guys would be cool.

By the end of the third inning, NY took the lead. More people
showed up, and when I say people, I mean hot sorority girls. Gotta love the
female population in West Texas.

I had finished off my second beer when a cute blonde walked
over to me on the couch.

"Hi. You
'
re new here, right?"

"Yep."
I stood.
"I need
another beer, you want one?" I may not be able to play, but harmless
flirting I could do.

"Sure, I
'
ll follow you."

Just before the doors swung closed in the kitchen, I heard
Robbie holler. Apparently Texas scored. Shit. I opened the fridge and pulled
out two cold Buds. When I turned back around, the blonde pushed herself on me
and grabbed my junk.

"How about we ditch this place." She smiled, then
licked her plump, pink lips. Dammit, did I say harmless? I smiled back, trailed
my hand down her arm and carefully removed her hand.

"Sorry, but I
'
m with someone."

"So," she inched closer, pressing her firm tits on
my chest, "
I won
'
t tell if you won
'
t tell." Temptation was a
bitch.

"As appealing as your offer is," I sidestepped her,
"I
'
m afraid I
'
ll have to turn you down."