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Mr. Prim-and-Proper stood in the rec room doorway.
“Move,” I growled.
His arms, crossed at his chest until now, dropped after an infuriating beat of indecision that reflected on his face. He moved the great length of three inches to the right and I stepped through, brushing my shoulder against his.
Caden huffed.
“What is it, sweetheart?” I mock-worried. “Did I bruise you? You’re ever so tender.”
“Fuck off, Partridge,” he said through clenched jaws and inhaled. “And maybe take a shower while you’re at it.”
Anger flared through me like a malfunctioning rocket. A disaster course was inevitable. “Are you serious?” I spun to face him fully, my hands balling into fists so I wouldn’t grab him by his worn-out T-shirt and rip it to shreds. “You smell funny? Is that where we’re at?”
Nah. His words weren’t the source of my annoyance with him. Words couldn’t hurt me at this point. It was the cool, calculated tone he always used. It was the way he held all his cards so close to his chest. It was the stubbornness of a boulder that Caden Jones was.
His expressionless face didn’t twitch because this guy was made of marble and some magical fucking fairy had brought him to life without bothering to make him convincing. “I said what I said.”
I scoffed. The fucker was right. I’d gone on a long run in the cold and muggy weather to clear my head of Coach Murry and Caden Jones, but it had all been futile. Caden was standing right in front of me and no amount of head clearing could change that. Also, I smelled like sweat. Asshole, I thought. “Fine,” I said and raised my hands in surrender. “A guy can’t have a can of beer with his friends after a run around here, I guess.” I made a step out of the rec room, brushing against his shoulder again on my way out. “Wanna watch me shower, sweetheart?”
His nostrils flared for a split heartbeat. “No,” he said flatly.
Ugh. He was no fun at all. Of all the people I had to have infinite mutual hatred with, I got stuck with one who was as creative as an overturned oak. He couldn’t even come up with something like, “I’d rather claw my eyes out, put them on a stick, and make marshmallows out of them.”
Okay, that was maybe a bit of a stretch. It was also beside the point; Caden Jones thought he was too good for the rest of us.
I shrugged. “Your loss.”
“I’ve seen you shower already,” Caden said in that steady voice of his. “It takes more to impress me.”
The jab caught me off guard and laughter ripped through my constricted throat. It almost came out as barking. I shook my head at him, oddly proud that I’d gotten him to lower himself to my level. Because that was the way he saw things, right? I was down there in the mud with the common students, while he was up in the heights of self-made glory.
I showered begrudgingly. It hadn’t even been that bad; active guys like us got sweaty, nobody batted an eye. I should have just kicked the fucker in the balls and slammed the door in his face, but I’d felt merciful, I guess. Or, just maybe, provoking his annoyance was the only fun I’d had all day.
When I returned to the rec room, wearing gray sweatpants and a black T-shirt that made my dark eyelashes pop and emphasize my blue eyes, Caden was leaning against the wall, watching table soccer play out a few paces in front of him.
He didn’t notice me until my arm was above my head and my armpit an inch away from his face. “Is my rite of passage good enough?”
Whatever I’d done, it caught Caden just enough off guard that he let the solid mask of tranquil hatred slip for an instant. He stiffened, shocked by my presence, and pressed both hands on my broad, hard chest, pushing me back until I bumped into the large table soccer setup. Protests of the two guys playing went over my head and I leaped for Caden, grabbing that worn-out T-shirt with both my fists and nearly lifting him off his feet.
Before I could utter a word, my co-captain Jarred, or captain now, stepped in. Known for his strength, Jarred shoved his arms between us and separated me from Caden within a heartbeat. “Will you two just stop it already?”
“He pushed me,” I said.
Jarred turned on me. “You asked for it.”
“Seriously, dude? You too?” I groaned in disbelief. “This is bullshit.”
The facade rebuilt itself on Caden’s robotic face. He looked like he wanted to say something, but I couldn’t even begin to imagine what it was.
“Guys,” Jarred said sternly. This whole captain thing had really gone to his head, it seemed. “I think I speak for everyone here,” he said and looked around the rec room. Ten other guys directed their attention to the three of us. “Everyone’s sick of your petty bickering. If you have to kill each other, could you do it outside? If not, then hash it out already.”
“Yeah, fuck already,” added Trent from the background to an uproar of laughter. “Wait, that’s what we’re talking about, right?” He gave a guileless grin and sank into his armchair.
Jarred cleared his throat and rolled his eyes a little. “I mean it, Beckett. You too, Caden. Sort this shit out.”
Carefully, Caden opened his mouth. “I think I’ll draw the line on pushing an armpit into my face.”
Jarred shot me a look that was supposed to make me feel guilty. It failed. “Whatever,” I muttered.
