“Burdens.” Elliot murmured, stopping me. “You agreed to let us shoulder some of it, remember?”
“I don’t remember agreeing to your plan.” I deadpanned, and he leaned up off my body as he turned to face his friend.
It was then that I noticed Travis had my bag and jacket in one hand, the other one shoved in his jeans pocket in a fist. His face was shadowed, and I couldn’t quite see the intensity of his eyes, but I could feel it.
“Here.” Travis handed my stuff to me and then turned away.
“Thanks.” I whispered, falling on deaf ears as he was already walking away.
“Wait.” Elliot called, looking down at me. “I’m going to regret this.” He whispered to me before cracking his neck and talkingto his friend. “I have to get to the station. I forgot I picked up an extra shift.”
“It’s fine,” I ran my hand through my messed-up hair. Elliot must have pushed his hands into it when we were—well, anyway. “I’m fine to drive.”
“Meh,” Elliot whistled, “I’m not willing to risk the wrath of Mrs. Blake by disobeying her direct orders.” He winked at me, “You know she’s my end goal, anyway.”
“What are you doing?” I asked, confused as Travis hovered in the doorway.
“Trav will drive you home.”
“He what—?” I shook my head, “No, I can drive.”
“I’ll drive you home.” Travis stated authoritatively before pushing open the door. “Let’s go.”
Without another glance back from him, he walked out, letting the door swing shut behind him, leaving a confused me and a smirking Elliot back in the darkness.
“What the fuck?” I whispered to myself.
“Do me a favor.” Elliot said, walking deeper into the equipment room towards the secondary entrance to the locker room. “Think of me when you kiss him goodnight.”
I scoffed at the absolutely ridiculous alternate universe I fell into when I walked into the dark room in the middle of a mental breakdown moments ago. “Sure. Whatever you say, lunatic. Where are you even going?”
He hooked his thumb over his shoulder with that signature pretty-boy smirk. “To go jack off in the shower before I lock myself away in a bunk room with a bunch of other dudes for the night.”
“Ew.” I grimaced dramatically as a joke and then decided to play dirty and try to remember who the girl was from so many years ago that he talked about. “Think of me when you do it.”
“Oh, baby.” He purred, “You’re the star in all of my one-handed daydreams lately.” Elliot smirked and disappeared through the door, leaving me alone.
And suddenly, I was trying to decide which door I wanted to walk through more at that moment.
The one to a steamy shower with a naked Elliot, who kissed like a God. Or the one to a cold, tense ride home with an unmovable brick wall that excited me just as much as his flirty friend.
Decisions, decisions.
She kepther head down as she jumped up into my truck, closing the door next to her with zero strength behind it. Which meant it didn’t latch.
My classic square-body pickup truck was a collector's item, but that didn’t mean it worked perfectly all the time.
“What’s the trick?” She asked, pulling on the useless handle that didn’t work right all the time either.
“Here.” I leaned across the bench seat and yanked it just right and then slammed it shut. “Like that.”
I could smell her shampoo when I leaned across her, and I hated that I liked it. I shouldn’t fucking like it.
Liking it felt wrong now. Since seeing her with Eli a few minutes ago. Kissing him. Damn, she was really fucking kissing him. When I first walked into the dark room, I thought maybe he had been pushing her into it, using her emotional distress to get her to finally fold to his charm. But that had only lasted a moment, because in the next she moaned, and pulled him closer, gripping his shirt and leaning up on her toes to kiss him back.
Deeper.
Harder.
