Hotshot (2 page)

“Tell me more about this girl giving you a hard time,” I ask gently.

“It’s stupid really. She’s a junior and thinks she’s hot shit. Apparently, she’s not over her ex-boyfriend. The day he asked me out, I was suddenly the focus of her nastiness. Even when I turned him down, she still found a way to label me a slut.”

There’s a bite in her words, reminding me how cruel and callous high school girls can be.

“I mean, really,” she continues. “I’m a cancer patient with a lot more on my mind than a stupid football game.”

“Hey!” Nick slaps his hand to his heart, acting hurt. “There is nothing stupid about football.”

“I may rethink my stance on the sport since my new BFF is a rising star.”

“That’s better.” He winks and reaches for the deck of cards. “Now, you can watch me beat this lug in poker.”

“No way! I asked him a question. It’s his turn to answer.”

I look at her, trying to remember her question.

“I asked you to tell me about yourself.”

“Not much to tell. Junior in college, pretty sure I’m going to law school. After that, who knows?”

“Snore-bore! Tell me something more interesting, like where you’ll take me on our first vacation together?”

I whip my head to her and then back to my brother, who is grinning like a loon.

“W-w-what?” I stutter.

“Where are you taking me? I hope it’s tropical. I love the beach.”

I suck in a breath, not sure how to respond. Is she serious?

Nick starts laughing and gives her a high five. “Well played,” he tells her.

“The look on your face is priceless!” She points to me.

“Don’t worry, Ren. She did the same thing to me. It’s her way of getting our minds off the cancer.”

I lean back and blow out a breath, then smile at her. “You’re a cool chick. Not many people can shock me.”

“Part of my charm. My parents are constantly rolling their eyes.”

“You do seem like a handful.”

“I’m blunt and spicy. It makes for more fun.”

“I bet,” I agree.

She chews on her lip and stares at me intently, her face now unreadable. Then she speaks. “I think I know what you should do after law school. Do you like sports?”

I shoot her my best ‘
are you kidding’
look.

“You should do the fancy law school thing, but afterwards come out and be a sports agent with the legal knowledge. You can manage Nicky’s career when he goes pro after college. But you have to make sure he gets drafted somewhere awesome, preferably close to home. He can kick some of his teammates your way. We live in Miami, so there are tons of athletes here. You can build a business close to us.”

Her statement surprises me again. She knows of Nick’s dream to be a professional football player? He’s very quiet about his goal, especially since he’s missing his freshman season because of the fucking cancer. I look over to him, seeing he’s now biting on his thumbnail, watching me.

But her idea sends a jolt of excitement through me. She’s laid out exactly what I want to do.

“I think you may have carved my career path,” I tell her and place my hand on Nick’s knee. “Your girlfriend is pretty smart.”

“Eww! Stop with the girlfriend thing. He’s not my type.” She sighs. “I’m into older guys.”

This time when she wiggles her eyebrows, I get her teasing and laugh with them.

We spend the next two hours joking around and playing poker. When I run out of money, I have to give my hat to Lizbeth as payment. She seems satisfied until she starts to pale, and sweat breaks out on her forehead. Nick leans over and looks in her bag then cusses under his breath.

“She needs a Coke,” he tells me. “She loves Coke.”

I jump up, ready to do whatever it takes to make her feel better.

“Shaw,” she says weakly. I turn back and suck in a breath at her now exhausted appearance. “I want a nickname, too.”

Without a beat, it comes to me. “Bizzy. You’ll be Bizzy.”

She nods and closes her eyes. Nick gives a small smile. “I like Bizzy. She’ll be our Bizzy, forever.”

I walk to the cafeteria with a heavy heart. My brother has had two days with this precious girl and has already shared his deepest dreams. I’ve spent a little over two hours with her, and she has suggested a path that will shape my entire life.

She’s sweet, funny, spunky, and gorgeous. The way Nick looks at her tells me this girl is going to be in his life forever, which means she’ll be in all our lives. She made him smile and laugh during this shitty time. She made me relax when I thought it was impossible. Just being in the room with her brought me happiness. She has a natural effervescence that eases anyone lucky enough to be in her presence.

A smile tugs on my lips as I think about her calling me sexy. She’s dangerous. If I was five years younger, I’d be crawling at her feet.

One thing’s for sure; Lizbeth “Bizzy” Hastings has left an imprint on my heart.

Bizzy

I should kill Nicky for neglecting to mention his oldest brother was the most gorgeous man to walk this planet. One look at him and my entire insides started to flutter.

It’s love… instant love.

Or infatuation. That’s probably it. Infatuation.

He’s probably got a girlfriend. A man like him can’t be single, and regardless of my age, I’ll never stand a chance with a man like Shaw. He’ll always remember meeting me during a chemo treatment when I’m bald and sick.

Not to mention, my stupid corny joke about taking me somewhere tropical. GAH! I’m such a dork. He probably thinks I’m a nutcase and will convince Nicky that I’ve got too many screws loose.

That body, that hair, those eyes… I could get lost in his eyes—the deep golden honey, the shades of green. Hazel is my new favorite color. And chocolate brown… his hair is chocolate brown.

He’s the opposite of Nicky in almost every way. Standing tall and built, the muscles of his arms bulge through his light sweater.

I tried not to stare, but when he looked away, I took the opportunity to size him up.

He’s perfect.

There’s no use fighting it. Even now, never having a boyfriend, or even a first kiss, I know…

I’m in love with Shaw Bennett.

10 years later…

Crenshaw

I open my eyes and immediately sense something’s not right. This is not my house, and the hint of stale perfume triggers my brain. My stomach twists at the stench, reminding me of the body lying next to me.

Sasha…

What the fuck was I thinking? I roll to my side and see the alarm clock reads four in the morning. Jesus, I fell asleep here? My head spins, trying to remember exactly how I ended up in this bed.

Last night comes back to me, and I swallow down the burn. Bizzy had a blind date, so Nick, Mathis, and I went to the bar to check out the man she was meeting. What kind of asshole plans a first date at a bar? She deserves a five star restaurant, where she can be wined and dined while the dickhead can appreciate being in her presence. We tried to explain to her he was already a douche for his choice of places, but she ignored us and agreed to meet him there. She told us we were being overprotective with pure defiance in her eyes, so I backed off. I didn’t have to worry long because Nick got us a table in the VIP section upstairs so we could watch without being noticed.

She walked in with her usual confidence, looking beautiful with her dimple popping and the smile that can stop hearts. Her date greeted her with a kiss on the cheek, and all three of us gave a low growl. He was dressed in a full suit… on a Friday night… in a beach bar. Fucking dipwad. They sat in a corner table, allowing us full view. She laughed often, but it never reached her eyes.

In all the years she has been in our lives, I knew how to read her.

“He’s going to slide and burn,” my brother, Mathis, predicts.

“He’s nowhere near good enough,” Nick claims.

“She’s going to be nice, but he’s toast,” I state with certainty.

Yep, we’ve done this before. Bizzy has no idea, but at least one of us is an invisible chaperone when she has a blind date. Tonight, we all three happen to be free.

We watch as she goes through the motions of laughing, smiling, and pretending to be interested in the conversation. Then she sends Nick a message, which is his cue to save her.

Nick chuckles as he calls her. She takes the call and does an Oscar worthy job of looking distraught before apologizing to the poor sap. He pays the bill and walks her out. When she gets in her car, she sends Nick a message that she’s safe and on her way home.

“Okay! Time to party!” Nick hands us shots. “This is my off week, and I’m fucking ready to get drunk with my brothers!”

Famous last words.

We partied into the night, knowing Bizzy was safe, and somehow I ended up with Sasha.

She was hot, horny, and easy. I’d made it clear the first time we hooked up that I was not looking for anything serious. She went along with that, but last night, she seemed different. I should have been more aware, knowing she was a bad idea, but I let my liquor and my dick make my decisions. Now, I have to live with them.

I move away, looking for my clothes. An empty condom wrapper lays on the floor next to her bra. Thank God I wasn’t drunk enough to forget that. Once I pull on my pants, she rolls over and gives me a seductive stare, her eyes screaming sex.

“You trying to sneak out?” She reaches for me.

“Need to get home.”

“You know it’s not unacceptable to stay over, maybe take me to breakfast. Ask me out on a real date.”

Shit! There it is. Fuzzy memories now become clear, and I remember her overly aggressive behavior last night. She wants more from me. Time to end this and get out now before it gets ugly.

“I’m not into dating right now. You know that.”

“Ren, cut the shit. We’re both adults here. We’ve been hooking up for a while. I think it’s time to take the next step. I want exclusivity.”

Chills run down my spine. The word itself has me wanting to hyperventilate. We’ve hooked up a total of twice, and both are hazy, drunk memories. I’m not opposed to the idea of exclusivity, but Sasha’s not the one to get it. The girl who gets all of me is going to be someone special, someone remarkable.

She stares at me with wide eyes, waiting for my response to her absurd demand.

I throw on my shirt and shuffle my feet into my shoes, praying my keys and phone are in my pocket. I need out of here immediately. Alcohol or not, this is the last time I’ll put myself in this position with her.

I do a quick memory check. My car is at the bar, which is about eight blocks from here.

“Sasha, I’ve told you before. That’s not what this was.”

“That’s complete bullshit and you know it. We’d be perfect together. We’re both driven and ambitious. We understand each other.” She whips around and gets up, reaching for her robe at the end of the bed.

I inwardly cringe at her words. Does she really think we’re anything alike? I’ve worked my ass off for everything I have. At the age of twenty, I was faced with losing my baby brother, and it felt like my heart was breaking every single second of the day until he went into remission. My family means everything to me.

Sasha is high-maintenance, demanding, and possibly one of the most spoiled women I’ve ever met. She was given a cushy job in her family’s law firm after graduation and doesn’t know the meaning of hard work. She’s never faced a problem head on.

I start toward her door, trying to make an exit before she really blows up.

“Don’t you walk out on me! It’s time you make a choice. I’m not a two-dollar hooker that’s satisfied with a quick fuck every few weeks.”

Few weeks? More like every few months.

“I’ve never treated you like a two-dollar hooker. Pretty sure we discussed my view on getting into a relationship before we ever had sex.”

“Obviously, that’s changed since you keep coming back for more.”

I really should have thought this through better. Coming home with her was a huge mistake. She’s been blatant about her attraction to me, but I’ve held strong on my refusal of getting into any kind of relationship.

“Sasha, I’m sorry if I gave you the wrong impression, but you and me? Not gonna happen.”