Pinching the bridge of my nose to prevent an impending migraine, I glanced at Blake out of the corner of my eye. He looked as weary over what she implied as I did, but since she hadn’t come outright and said it, I stayed silent.
She jerked her thumb at Blake’s room. “Or is that just a room with strings attached…”
My eyebrows flew skyward. I prayed she wasn’t dumb enough to finish that question.
“Since your parents pay the bills?”
Oh…she had not just said that.
Adam’s jaw dropped. Mine and Blake’s followed, but no one said a word.
As a long beat of silence fell over the apartment, the three of us took in her accusation and shared a heavy look between us.
I tightened my grip on the arm of my chair, ready to push myself to my feet.
Blake got there first.
“That’s enough, Becky.” His firm tone cracked like a whip through the quiet. “It’s time for you to go.”
“Excuse me?” Her head snapped to him so quickly, I thought she might break her neck.
She didn’t.
And my admittedly dark disappointment over that must’ve shown on my face because her glacial blue eyes latched onto me, narrowing on the space between my seat and Blake’s.
I tensed, suddenly aware of how I’d leaned closer to Blake to help him understand part of his assignment. I froze there awkwardly, flicking my gaze to Blake.
When he stared down at me, his expression softened.
It was a fraction, barely noticeable, and I knew better than anyone that it didn’t mean anything. My hopes for things changing between Blake and I had been swiftly put to bed right when I thought they might change—the night he planned to join me for the Glow Party.
Blake disappeared instead.Footballstuff,he’d texted Adam.
Then,shehappened.
And just like that, Becky Summers became Blake’s first college girlfriend.
Of the string of blonde-haired, blue-eyed cheerleaders and sorority girls I’d seen him flirt with over the years, she’d been the first to sink her claws into him and stick around.
I couldn’t stand her, and it wasn’t because she’d been blowing the guy of my dreams’ mind in ways I didn’t want to think about.
She had Blake in ways I never would, that was bad enough. But I suspected she thought she was better than him—and us—from the minute I met her.
I hated that more.
Tessa reaffirmed my dislike of her every time they had to be in the same room, but I still tried not to judge her. I told myself not to be the girl hating on another for no reason but jealousy, but her face, her grating laugh, and her superior attitude rubbed me the wrong way.
While Blake had claimed it was casual, he still gravitated toward her every time we went out with him after his games. He started the night with us, riding the high of his big win while surrounded by teammates and our friends, but once the sea of girls swarmed in, I usually escaped. Nobody needed to see Becky kissing his neck and whispering dirty things in his ear.
Especially not me.
But, like a glutton for punishment, I watched every time, hating when he inevitably slung his arm around her instead of pushing her away. And the first time he invited her to go to the partywith usinstead of running into her there, it crushed me.
He chose her right after I’d let myself hope again.
And I’d been so scared of rejection, I didn’t tell him any of that.
I just told myself it was for the best. He was on top of the world, and I couldn’t begrudge him any happiness—or easy orgasms—because I loved him.
