His gaze moved behind me. The way his eyes lit up told me who was here. I stepped back, watching him pick up Sen, who looked a little panicked by his exuberance.
Some of the guys were talking about going out to celebrate, but I wasn’t in the mood. Yeah, I carried us through three quarters of the game but right now, they were all trying to talk to Kai. I’d gotten us this far and in the end, I wouldn’t get the glory for it. They liked him better anyway. They always had.
I didn’t want to be negative today, but it was hard not to. While they were all busy talking about the last play, I headed to the locker room. As soon as I was behind the door, I stripped out of my jersey. My ribs felt like shit and I was under no delusion that I’d sleep well for a while. Even though I should, I didn’t think I’d go get checked out.
In just a pair of jeans, I sat on one of the benches. I was breathless from the exertion, made worse by the injury. I bet the bruise was gonna be cool, though. A few pictures were in order to commemorate this moment- the day I almost earned my team a win for the first time.
A few people filtered into the room. When I spotted Lincoln, I waved him over. He looked uncertain as he stopped in front of me. His eyes went to my side and his lips pursed.
“That favor,” I began.
“I knew that was a mistake to offer.”
I breathed a laugh. “Probably.” Glancing around, I made sure Kai wasn’t here to bitch about it. “I need a bottle of vodka.”
The request seemed to surprise him. “Uh, okay. Having a party?”
“Pity party of one.”
His brow furrowed. If he said no, I’d just have to turn in early and hope that I could force myself to sleep. Thankfully, it was the start of my weekend, so I could relax. We were moving on Saturday, but it wasn’t like we had a lot of shit, and the things I ordered would be carried in by the delivery people. It was pretty perfect.
“You shouldn’t drink when you’re injured,” he said finally.
“You gonna treat me like a child or let me cash in my favor? Either way, I’d like to get back to my dorm. I have to move shit on Saturday, so I’d like to sleep all the way through tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
He didn’t sound sure about it, but he’d agreed, which was good enough for me.
“You can drop it off at my dorm. Thanks.”
It’d be nice if I had some prescription strength painkillers, but alcohol would have to suffice. If he didn’t end up following through, I wouldn’t be surprised.
I slung my duffel over my shoulder with a pained grunt. Nodding at Lincoln, I headed for the side door. I heard Kai’s voice somewhere and I didn’t want him to fuss over me right now, so I picked up the pace.
I was barely out of the locker room when soft laughter reached my ears. Turning the corner, I found a few of the cheerleaders smoking. From the smell, I was one hundred percent sure it was weed. Their eyes widened when they saw me.
“Don’t worry, I’m not a narc.” With a sly smile, I stepped closer. “Actually, that might be just what I need. I got messed up on the field tonight.”
“We saw,” a blonde said. I was pretty sure her name was Jessi. Her lip jutted out slightly and my gaze snagged on her mouth. “You need something to make you feel better?”
Cheerleaders weren’t exactly my style, but this was supposed to be a celebratory night, right? I held out my hand and Jessi threw a look toward her friends before she took it. After plucking the joint fromher fingers, I pulled her toward the path that would take us to Marshall Hall.
“You’re the starting quarterback when Lincoln leaves, right?”
I flashed her a grin. “Hell yes, I am.”
“That’s so exciting. We’ve all seen you out there. You’re gonna be a legend.”
She may have been trying to feed my ego, but I didn’t mind. It was what I needed tonight. There were far too many months before I’d get to play another game, so I’d soak this up now. Besides, when a beautiful woman threw compliments at you, it’d be dumb to brush them off, especially when you were in need of something to lift your mood.
We’d barely made it to my room before I turned and kissed her. My roommate wasn’t here again. He spent most nights sneaking into his girlfriend’s dorm and since we didn’t really get along, I wouldn’t complain about it. I could almost imagine I lived in this place alone.
Jessi gripped the back of my neck, rising on her toes to get closer. Thrusting her against the wall, I pressed my body up against hers. In her short skirt, it was easy to move my hands underneath to grab her ass.
Agonizing pain or not, this was a good idea.
Chapter 6