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I nod.
Kit whistles, low and amused. "I thought he was going to ream your ass."
I smirk. "Not a chance. I'm needed." Although a small part of me had worried that he might also hand me my balls.
And then another whistle catches my attention. My boys instantly step beside me as Zac and his crew row slowly past our house. Zac smirks. I still see trepidation in the storm clouds, and it makes me grin. The rocks in his jaw get to work. There’s definitely a storm brewing, I’ve survived them before, and Zac doesn’t even hit a Cat 1.
"You get your fill last night, Whitlock?"
I push forward as a hand holds me back. I don't look to see who is stupid enough to stop me from getting to Zac. Coach’s threats already falling on deaf ears.
Sawyer steps to the side of me. "Say that again, but on dry land, Hall."
Zac lifts his oars, assessing whether he wants to take me on.Really?How many times can I beat his ass and hand it back to him? I'm fully prepared to dive into the water and drag him out of the boat if I have to.
"One night in your sheets doesn't take her off the market, although she doesn't make it sound all that enthralling."
I clench my fists. The night in question has been taken out of context. I know she’s pissed about it, but I hadn’t expected her to talk around campus. That’s something I will discuss with her. The smug smile he's sending my way doesn't sit well. It never does. "You'll want to stay away from her," I spit, my gut rolling in the fire that's filling my body. I’ve felt the way she’s reacted to him, she’s afraid, and that ensures that I hate him even more than I had before.
"And if I don't?"
His crew look nervous as I step closer to the water. "That night at Dexter's won't come close to what I'll do to you next." It's a promise I make to myself, and to Mia.
"You'll risk losing your place at the regatta?" One of his friends calls out.
Dark hair with a strange name I can't remember. I choose not to remember. The Bay Scullers aren’t competition, and Zac isn’t when it comes to Mia. But now her distrust of elite makes sense. What the hell has Zac done or said to her?
I’ll just have to get her to trust me, which is easier said than done.
I shrug. "If I'm out, he's out." I flick my head in Zac's direction.
Zac scoffs. "Yeah, how are you going to do that?"
"We can find witnesses from the bar, we're well known, and people, especially the ladies, like to talk to us. Your coach won't appreciate the bad press. Our coach already knows about it," Sawyer states, each word uttered with a barely contained anger.
"What is this?" Coach chooses the perfect moment to step outside. Everything Coach does is always thought out. I know he will have been standing off to the side, listening in.
"We were saying good morning," Zac retorts, sarcasm dripping in each word.
"I suggest you work on your stroke. Your right arm isn't working enough." Coach nods, Zac's attitude not lost on him.
Zac growls as he signals his crew to make a move. His eyes remain on me until they are too far away. I need to nip that shit in the bud, but in doing that, in acting like elite, I risk pushing Mia away. I’m hardly making headway as it. I think I need to push my way into her crew a little more, gain their trust and she will get dragged along with them. I want to protect her, that’s been the aim all along. Yes. She’s sexy as fuck, with a bite, and she’s exactly the type of woman that holds my interest. So, if she falls for me then that’s an added bonus.
"Rowing machines! Again!"
We don't groan. When he's pissed, he gives orders, and we get on with it, without comment.
I pump through my sets, feeling the burn in my muscles asRoyal Bloodhounds my ears. I must have heard this song a thousand times, but only now do the lyrics stir something deep within me. Should I send her it? Like a little 'hey, made me think of you' note? No. She might think I've lost the plot. I have. She just doesn't need to know that.
A tap on my shoulder halts my stride, I glance at Kit, pulling my buds out.
"There's a problem."
I grit my teeth and nod. "What's happened?" He hands me his cell, and I see the title straight away.
Off Topic:'My night with Austin Whitlock.'
I should be used to things like this causing roadblocks, but what follows stills my heart. 'Secret conversations with Mia Hark, the elite's newest squeeze!'
