She’s probably right, but how do I trust any offer of friendship now? I step back and Luke draws me back down beside him. Penny and Nat wave as they disappear into the crowd.
I lean my head against Luke’s shoulder. It’s hard to be strong all the time. He weaves our fingers together and holds my hand on his lap. This is still part of the plan. Being seen as strong, as connected.
But I also just want to take a nap.
“Kitten, do you want a drink?” Eli slides his hand along my thigh, sending a shiver down my spine.
“Water, please.” I smile up at him. He heads off into the crowd.
“Hey.” A football player stops in front of Luke. I recognize him from the team, but don’t know his name.
“What’s up, Brett?” Luke’s fingers tighten on mine.
Brett Adams, I remember from the stat sheet, runs his hand through his hair and looks around the party. He steps closer and glances at the couch. “May I?”
Luke nods and Brett sits on the edge with his hands clasped between his knees. He looks like he’s ready to bolt.
“I came to apologize.”
I cock an eyebrow and wait to hear about what.
Brett’s hazel eyes glance at me. “I was talking shit about your girl at the game. I don’t know if that’s all Ethan did, but I didn’t really mean it.”
Luke just sits back and waits.
Brett pushes his hand through his hair again. “I have a girlfriend and if she found out I was disrespectful like that, she’d be pissed.”
“I’m not the one you need to apologize to.” Luke squeezes my hand.
Brett blows out a breath and looks me in my eyes. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have run off at the mouth about you. No girl deserves to be talked about as an object.”
I’m sure my shock is on my face. I didn’t even know this guy talked shit about me or even what shit he said. “Uh, thanks.”
Nodding, he turns his attention to Luke. “You guys don’t include me in stuff, which is fine. I like to keep my nose clean. But Ethan’s been talking a lot of shit lately, not just about your girl.”
“You heard something?” Luke straightens.
“Yeah, man.” He glances around the room, but the music is loud enough that no one can overhear us. “There’s some unhappy people trying to get others to join them to bring you guys down. At first I thought it was a lot of smack talk. You know guys beating their chests type thing, but then she became a target.”
He means me, but I’ve been a target since almost day one.
“Do you know who the guys are?” Luke shifts forward a little.
Eli walks over to us. Brett sits back while Eli resumes his seat and hands me a bottle of water. He takes off the lid and sits back, watching Brett warily.
Brett nods to Eli and shifts forward. “It’s not just Ethan. Some guys in my P.E. class were talking in the locker room.”
“What are you saying?” Luke asks.
“It’s almost an uprising. Someone is calling the shots. No one is making a move without being told what to do.” Brett runs a hand through his hair again. “I didn’t know if I should tell you. But after what you did to Ethan, I figured it would be in my best interests to come clean.”
“Do you know who’s calling the shots?” Luke rubs his thumb across the back of my hand.
“No, man. I wish I had more. I can give you a list of guys I’ve heard talking, but some of them might not be involved.” Brettsmirks. “You know how guys get, like they want to impress their friends and other guys.”
“Text me the list.” Eli meets Brett’s eyes.
Brett nods and rubs his hands together. “I can do that.”
