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“That’s right.” Mark whistled. “You’ve got some major talent in your family. Are you aiming for the draft?”
“That’s the plan.” That was the goal, and I would make it happen. The NFL had always been my end game.
The waitress brought our food, and the conversation shifted.
“Are you still surfing, Aspen?” her mom asked. “Or have you given up that dream?”
Aspen furrowed her brows. “I’m not giving anything up. I was out this morning.”
“Why would you say that, Brittney? There’s no reason she has to give up surfing to get a degree. And you haven’t quit on whatyouwant.” The last statement dripped venom.
Brittney snorted, her red lips pulling into a sneer. “You know all about giving up on things, don’t you, Mark?”
Not good. I steered the conversation back to football, reengaging her dad until Aspen’s leg bounced again, and I felt the shift in her.This is it.
“I don’t want you guys to freak out.” She had their attention now.
I grabbed her hand and held it, offering support.
“I’m having a baby.”
No one said anything for a solid and uncomfortable minute. Then Mark and Brittney turned to face one another, and the insults flew rapidly.
“This is your fault,” Brittney hissed. “It must be genetic. You ruined my life. Why not our daughter’s too?”
“Bullshit. If anyone’s life was ruined, it was mine.” Mark’s face turned an alarming shade of purplish-red. “You probably told her to do it. Why use a condom? Why not skip classes and make the idiot who gave in become a patsy to her every whim?”
The fuck?Heads turned as their voices rose. Our table was the center of attention. They seemed oblivious that we were even there with them. I eased out of the booth, tugging Aspen’s hand for her to follow. We slipped away without them even noticing. Outside, we each took a deep breath.
“What the hell was that?” Because it wasn’t about us.
“Ah. Welcome to my life.” She scrubbed her hands over her face before walking toward campus, and I fell into step beside her. “That was tame. I knew telling them I’m pregnant would cause an argument. I’d just hoped to soften the blow with you being there. Guess that wasn’t a good idea.”
“Parents are just as screwed up as we are. Some of them just hide it better.” Since she’d given me a window into her world, I decided to share a little about mine. “Shane and I only have our mostly easygoing mom. Our dad walked out on us when she told him she was pregnant. They’d been together long enough to buy a house. He left her that, thinking it was enough compensation. He never gave her a dime of child support.”
She shook her head. “Wow. That sucks, but I wish one of my parents would have left. Living with both has been miserable since I was ten and Dad caught Mom cheating.”
“Financial issues or not, there’s no way I could imagine staying in that marriage. Not that I want to get married.” I blew out a breath.
“I’m right there with you. My parents cured me of that. When they fought all the time, it got lonely.”
“My mom’s an ER nurse and works long hours. Without Shane, I don’t know if I would have made it this far. Our dad abandoning us taught me a lot about what not to do. I’ll never let my kid feel unwanted or lonely.”
If she keeps it. But I couldn’t ask. Handling that on top of everything else was more than I could shoulder.
We slowed at her dorm, and I had the oddest urge to follow her back to her room—and not just for sex. There was something there, an undeniable connection, and I didn’t like it. I was in college for one reason—to get into the NFL. Not to fall for the surfer girl with sun-streaked hair and a background as painful as my own.
“Keep me in the loop.” I dropped the statement and walked backward as she rolled her eyes and went inside. It should have been simple, but I felt the invisible pull of her like a rubber band, trying to snap me back to her side.
“Phoenix.”
I whirled around as Damon fell into step beside me. Good. I needed the distraction. I clapped him on the shoulder. “Anything going on this weekend with your dad and Riley’s mom coming?”
“They couldn’t make it, which is fine by me.” He glanced back at the dorms. “What’s going on with you and that chick? Shane said something…”
Damon and Cole were family, and I needed their support more than I cared to admit. The weight of what was going on with Aspen and the pressure of passing classes was almost too much. “Remember that party at the cove over the summer?”
“The one after Shane got dumped by Tracey in a text?”
