“I’ll go get you some dry clothes.”
“Oh, come on, E. They’re just boobs!”
He rolled his eyes and then walked inside. All the humor of the moment was gone. What a buzzkill.
She grabbed her dress, downed her margarita, and then followed him inside a minute later. She walked right into the kitchen and refilled her glass. Eric was upstairs long enough that she finished half of another margarita before he returned.
He offered up a pair of sweats and an oversized T-shirt. “Best I could find.”
“Thanks. I’ll swim in these, too,” she joked.
He didn’t look at her once when she hopped off the kitchen counter and tugged on his clothes. Man, she would never have guessed that he was a prude. All the time, he was around sweaty football players who changed clothes in the locker room. This couldn’t be half as bad. Maybe it was the Texan in him.
He laughed when he saw her in his clothes. “You look ridiculous.”
“This is all your fault.”
“You’re right. I did not think this through.”
“Plus, now, I’m cold and tipsy.” She held up her half-finished glass. “I don’t think the margarita is helping with my body temperature.”
“Probably not.” He stood stiffly and shrugged.
She had given him the perfect opportunity to offer to warm her up, and he hadn’t taken it. Clearly, she was losing it if she’d thought for a second that he was acting this way because he was interested. Any other guy would have jumped all over her.
“Anyway, I’m throwing a party once I get the house furnished. A big kegger. We’ll invite the whole team.”
“Sounds like a plan,” he said. He leaned against the kitchen counter and seemed to relax more now that she had changed the subject. “We’re going to need a lot of booze to get them all drunk.”
“I think we can handle that,” she said with a smirk.
“THIS PLACE IS KILLER,” Trihn said.
Bryna smiled brightly. Yes, her new house had turned out to be incredible. She absolutely had to agree. She had spent the last couple of weeks furnishing the house until it was absolutely the most beautiful, elegant, and perfectly lived-in place she had ever seen. Hugh had even surprised her last weekend with a stunning Swarovski crystal chandelier.
Of course, she didn’t think people could tell quite how lavish it really was with nearly a hundred football players and the entire cheer team crowding into the house and her backyard.
“Yeah, I’m mad jealous,” Stacia agreed.
“As you should be,” Bryna said.
She was happy the weather was holding. They were supposed to have storms, but not a lick of water had hit the earth in more than a month. That meant the weather was gorgeous. It also equated to an even worse drought for the desert.
At least they got to benefit by using the awesome pool, which required wearing swimsuits. Bryna’s was a strappy blue-and-white color block that made her look exceptionally tan. Her hair was pulled off her shoulders and into a messy bun on the top of her head. She had a drink in her hand and was ready to party.
She would recognize the voice of the next person who walked through the door anywhere.
Eric was standing there with Andrew and a few other guys from the team. They were all in swim trunks. Andrew had already stripped out of his shirt—or maybe he had never worn one—but Eric had on a tight-fitting LV State shirt.
“Hollywood!” he cried when he saw her.
Then, he was barreling into her stomach and hoisting her over his shoulder.
She screamed and sloshed some of her margarita on the hardwood floor, “Eric! Put me down!”
He laughed even harder and twirled her in a circle. A bunch of people were laughing at them as she was being held helplessly in his arms.
“Anyone want a take?” he asked, offering her ass for everyone’s view.
“Oh my God! I will kill you! I will murder you and cut you up into little pieces!” she yelled.
“All right, all right,” Eric said. “No spankings for you tonight.”
“She clearly deserves it though,” Trihn joked.
Bryna was placed back on her feet, and she smacked Eric on the arm. “You ass!”
“At least I didn’t throw you in the pool.”
“Again!” she snapped.
“Right. Again,” he said, heading toward the back door with a big smirk on his face.
He was out the door with the team a minute later, and she was left there, shaking her head at him.
“And you think he’s gay?” Stacia asked quietly next to her.
Bryna gave her a fierce look. “Shh!”
“Sorry! Sorry!”
“And yes, I know he is.”
Trihn intervened, “Let’s go dance! Neal is already in a bad mood about coming to another party.”
“Why?” Bryna asked.
She shrugged. “No idea. He would rather be at home, sketching or something. We need to loosen him up with some liquor, and he’ll be fine.”
Bryna started drinking again when the girls disappeared to go dance. She had hired the DJ from the radio station for the party. Apparently, he did that kind of stuff on the side. So far, so good.
She was about to go join them when the last person she’d wanted to see breezed through the doorway.
Pace.
“Excuse me!” she snapped. “Who said you were invited?”
Pace smirked. “Hey, sis.”
“Don’t call me that.”
“Your boyfriend invited the whole team. Last I checked, I’m on the team.”
He seemed pretty pleased with himself.
Bryna looked around. “Who here has a boyfriend?”
“You, of course. Think you can hide that you’re dating Eric?”
“We’re not dating.”
“Sure,” he said disbelievingly. “How is it going though, really?”
“We’re not together, but it’s so cute that you’re clearly jealous.”
“I mean, at least you picked the complete opposite of the last one,” he said.
She knew he was referencing Jude, and she shuddered.
He leaned closer toward her. “Speaking of, does the new man know all of your deep, dark secrets?”
He looked like he had her there, and she stood her ground.
“Actually, he does. Not that it’s any of your business”—she pushed him away from her—“but we’re not together, creep.”
Pace looked genuinely surprise. She was glad she had thrown him off.
“He knows about Jude?”
“What? Like it’s a big secret? Yes, he knows. Now that the interrogation is over, you can leave.”
“But I’m just getting started,” he said. “How exactly did you get this house?”
“What does it matter? I’m away from you, and that’s all that’s important to me.”
Realization seemed to dawn on his face as he took in the luxury so many others had missed. “Slipping into old bad habits, are we?”
“Fuck off!”
She knew he loved riling her up, but she couldn’t help from getting upset. His very presence angered her. It made her think about her father marrying that whore who was now fucking pregnant. She hadn’t seen them since they moved Pace in, and she didn’t want to hear shit about the new baby they were having.
“You know I’m not leaving.”
“Then, stay the fuck away from me.”
Pace laughed and walked away. “I’ll find someone else to take home tonight,” he threw over his shoulder.
Bryna shuddered. Poor girl. Pace was awful. She hated that he was here at LV State. She had been avoiding him at all extremes, spending so little time in her condo, but still, he was around. The whole thing put her in a sour mood.