AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Something on your mind?”
He rubs his cheek against my chest a few times before he speaks. “Why did you want to know what I did last night?”
I sigh but let the words out instead of keeping them in. He deserves my honesty. If I want this to work, really fucking work for the long term, I have to talk to him even if it hurts.
“I saw someone I thought was you go into one of the frat houses and get a BJ.” My face heats and tears sting the backs of my eyes. “I couldn’t believe it, so I followed him in to get a better look at his face, and I still thought it was you.” A tear falls, trailing down my temple into my hair. “It hurt.” That pain starts in my chest again, and I rub at it. Brendon shifts to look up at me. “I tried to walk away, but I couldn’t. It wasn’t you.”
He’s quiet again, and I don’t know if he’s processing what I said or working himself up to tell me off.
“I’m sorry I disappeared on you and made you doubt me.” He burrows into the blanket, covering most of his face. “I hope you know I would never do that to you, doesn’t matter how drunk I was.”
“Logically, I know that.” I’m trying to keep my body relaxed, but something he said is circling my head.I’m a shitshow. You could do a lot fucking better than my pathetic ass.
“Has someone told you you’re hard to love?” My words are quiet in the dark of our room, and Brendon tenses against me. I don’t push him for an answer. His reluctance to respond is a resounding yes.
“Yeah.” He takes a deep, shuddering breath.
“Hey.” I reach into the blanket and lift his chin so he’s looking at me. “Whatever was said to you is not true.”
Tears spring to Brendon’s eyes, and he chokes on a sob. I wrap my arms around him as he cries, his body shaking from the emotional release, and I run my hands up and down his back while I murmur to him.
I love this guy more than I thought was possible. He fills the holes in my heart that my parents left, completes a part of me that I didn’t know was incomplete.
“I love you,” I murmur into his hair, and he falls asleep wrapped around me.
29
Brendon
After workout the next morning, I’m feeling better, less vomit-y, and on my way to the dining hall for breakfast with the guys before class. I’m digging in my bag, not paying attention, when I run into someone and knock them over.
I reach for her arm to keep her from falling to the ground.
“Shit, I’m sorry,” I say in a rush. When she straightens up, I recognize Nikki and force myself not to groan. Jeremy pats me on the shoulder, and he walks off with Preston smirking at me. Paul looks between us, then shakes his head and follows, leaving me alone to deal with her.
“You okay?” I ask her as she straightens her backpack.
“Yup.” She watches Paul for a second, then cocks her head and looks at me. “Have you ever thought about doing porn or OnlyFans? I’m betting you could make some cash, especially if you have apartner.”
I jerk back and stare at her. “What the fuck? Who asks that?”
She shrugs like it’s a very normal question. “OnlyFans is a thing these days.”
I swing my bag over my shoulder and start toward the dining hall again. “Pretty sure my contract with the hockey team, and my scholarship, says no sex work.”
“Hmm . . . I could read through it for you if you want.”
What the actual fuck is this conversation?
“That’s all right, thanks.”
I open the door, and she steps through ahead of me. Of course I was hoping she would bug off, but I’m not lucky. After filling my tray, I head to the table where the guys are sitting and drop down next to Paul who’s clearly annoyed with Nikki if his expression is anything to go on.
She sits next to me at the table and leans into my space, snapping a selfie with me while I’m trying to eat. It’s annoying, and I’m tired of getting tagged on social media with her.
Paul grumbles something under his breath that I don’t catch and stabs his eggs harder than necessary. I loop my foot around his ankle where no one is paying attention and encircle his leg with both of mine. He takes a deep breath and relaxes some, which makes me feel better.
I know having Nikki show up all the time is annoying as fuck, but I can’t just tell her to fuck off.
