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“I’m okay, thanks.”
“I got the sweet stuff too.” He pulled out a bag of brownie bites and added them to the pile.
“Really, I’m fine.” I gave him a tight smile, and he frowned.
“Why do I feel like I’m missing something?” He glanced between Rory and me.
“Harper is a celiac, remember?” she said. “She can’t eat any of that stuff.”
“Celiac? Like you shit yourself after eating pasta and stuff?”
“Seriously, Banks?” Noah grimaced, throwing me an apologetic look. “Sorry, he’s not house-trained yet.”
“It’s fine. It’s not a big deal.”
“Celiac?” Ward added. “That’s when you can’t eat gluten, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Man, I couldn’t live without carbs.” Leon rubbed his stomach. “They’re my main food group.”
“You get used to it,” I murmured. “Besides, there are pretty good alternatives out there nowadays.”
I peeked over at Mason, unsurprised to find him on his cell phone, completely ignoring our conversation. It was a mistake approaching him at the bar the other night. A bad idea fueled by vodka and false bravado.
The truth was, though, I didn’t want to lose my friend. So I’d thought maybe if me and Mason—oh, who was I kidding? We weren’t going to be friends. Let alonemorethan friends.
“What happens if you do eat gluten?” Noah asked, but he seemed genuinely interested.
“It isn’t pretty. Even the smallest amount can put me out of action for a few days.”
“Shit, that’s crazy. No pun intended.” His eyes crinkled with laughter. “I had no idea. Sorry about the snacks. I’ll make sure I get something Harper-friendly next time.”
My expression softened. He was a good guy. It was easy to see why Rory had fallen for him.
“Thanks.” I smiled, risking a peek at Mason.
He still hadn’t looked twice in my direction.
Asshole.
Maybe Rory was right; maybe I needed to leave athletes in my rearview. But usually, they were good for it—a quick tumble in the sheets with no promises of a next time. Most girls hated that. Not me. I liked to know where I stood. It was much easier not to be disappointed then.
“So are we going to talk about the elephant in the room,” Leon said around a crooked smile.
He was cute. With a deadly combination of buzzed dark hair and piercing blue eyes, he reminded me of a younger Jesse Williams, staring at me with mild amusement.
“Leon,” Noah clipped out.
“Come on, Holden. Surely, you’re dying to know how her old man ended up our new assistant coach.”
“I wish I could tell you,” I said with a half-shrug.
“Ah, it’s like that.” He grinned. “They make you sign an NDA or something?”
“What? No. My father didn’t think to mention it to me, so I’m as surprised as you are.”
“Why wouldn’t he tell you?”
