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Is she having a stroke or something? What the fuck is she talking about?
“Right. Cool. Thanks for that. I gotta go.” I grab my bag and head toward the door, but she follows me.
Outside in the hallway, Paul’s smiling face greets me. He opens his mouth, but I open my eyes as wide as I can and make a slashing motion by my chest where Nikki won’t see it. His smile falls, and he lifts an eyebrow at me.
“Lunch?” Paul asks, still looking very confused, but his soft, worn jeans that cup his thighs so perfectly are damn distracting. He always looks too good, put together even in just jeans and a hoodie and backward ball cap. The dude is sexy as fuck, and it’s rude. Glancing down at myself, I’m in baggy black sweatpants and a purple Darby Hockey hoodie. I run my hand through my hair, feeling a little self-conscious next to him.
My stomach grumbles loudly as I stop in front of him, and Nikki steps up next to me. Once again, Paul slides a blank expression over his face, but this time it bugs me. It’s so abnormal for him. I want his smile.
“Yeah, I think Carpenter said something about a team lunch?” I try to use our best friend mind powers to tell Paul I’m making it up but trying to make an excuse for Nikki to fuck off, but he looks at me like I’ve grown another head. Great.
“Right . . .” He nods slowly and pulls his phone from his pocket and turns on the screen. “We gotta hustle or I’ll be late to my next class.” He puts his phone away and nods at Nikki, then takes my arm and spins me around, marching me down the hallway.
“She just showed up in my class and started talking about Jesus,” I whisper to Paul. “She’s kinda weird.”
“You’re an idiot.” Paul huffs and shakes his head.
Once we get out of the building, he lets go of me, and we walk normally toward the dining hall.
“Well, you’re the one who loves me, so what does that say about you?” I pinch his cheek, and he jabs his fingers into my armpit, making me scream. “Asshole.”
Paul chuckles but grabs my arm and wraps it around his shoulders. I try to hide my smile but fail miserably since he mutters, “Shut up.”
“Aww, does someone need a hug?” I tease him, pinching his ribs and wanting nothing more than to interlace our fingers, kiss him right here in front of everyone. But I won’t. While I don’t care if everyone knows, I know he’s not ready, and I respect that. It’s taken me a long time to get to this point, and with Jeremy and Preston out to the team, I’m more comfortable officially coming out. Will anyone be surprised? Probably not.
As we get to the dining hall, a group of people come out and hold the door for us. Scanning the tables, Carp is sitting with the guy who showed us where to get good cinnamon rolls, Willis, and another guy I don’t know, but if I had to guess, also a jock.
Paul and I grab food and head to the table with our teammates. I drop my tray next to Carppy, and he gives me a nod.
“Hey, guys, how's it going?”
“Brendon has a stalker,” Paul says casually, and everyone turns to look at him.
“What?” Carp asks.
I shake my head and start to argue, but Paul puts his hand over my mouth and continues. No one looks surprised by this.
“Yeah, this little puck bunny pops up in his classes, shows up at our dorm, brings him shit. It’s creepy.”
I lick Paul’s palm, and he jerks his hand away from me with a glare.
“She is not stalking me.” I shove a bite of my chicken into my mouth. “She’s a little intense, I’ll give you that. But she’s not dangerous or anything.”
“The girl is weird,” Paul argues.
I pat his cheek condescendingly. “Don’t worry, buddy, she won’t take best friend status.”
“She’s following you?” Willis asks.
“I think she has classes near mine.” I shrug, shoving another bite into my mouth.
“Listen, if you’re jealous of my teddy bear, you can snuggle him too,” I tell Paul with a pat on his arm.
“Teddy bear?” the friend of Carp asks.What the hell was his name . . .
“Yeah, I found it on my bed,” Paul tells them. “With a note that said something about cuddling it when she’s not around.”
“I didn’t see a note,” I say around a mouthful of food.
