Page 17 of Resist Me

He chuckled and sauntered into the darkness like the ugly cockroach that he was, leaving me there to ponder the decisions I’d made. I’d been petty by taking myself out of the game, sure, but it was meant to be harmless, overall. It wouldn’t be the first time Drake was flagged for unnecessary roughness, but I didn’t think he’d go for the jugular just because I’d bitched about West. That’s what I got for trying to be social.

Whatever. It didn’t really matter. We were done with football and for the first time in a while, I could have some peace.

I swung my leg over my bike and pressed the ignition. It roared to life underneath me, sending a rush of excitement down my spine. This never failed to make me feel better.

“Linc!”

God damnit. I considered pretending not to hear him and speeding off, but I made the mistake of looking up and meeting his eyes.

Kai jogged toward me with a smile on his face. He wasn’t overly bubbly most of the time, but he was a very positive person from what I’d experienced. He had darkness, though. I’d come across him crying on the field one time. Nobody else was there until I decided to get in some practice and I’d found him throwing a ball. He’d sent it flying with a strength that came from somewhere raw and deep, then fell to his knees and dropped his face into his hands. When I asked him what was wrong, he didn’t tell me, but he also didn’t appear embarrassed to be found like that, which made me like him more. He was one of the most authentic people I’d ever met.

With a sigh, I cut the engine and leaned my elbows on the handlebars. “What’s up, Kai?”

He looked at the bike appreciatively. “You were supposed to give me a ride.”

My cheeks heated and I hoped it was too dark for him to notice. From the glint in his eyes, I knew I wasn’t so lucky. I’d been interested in him before and almost dipped my toe in, but with how close he was with West, I didn’t think I’d be able to do it, so I never pulled the trigger on asking him out.

Kai was attractive- ridiculously so- in a dark and mysterious kind of way, even though his personality didn’t match the brooding anti-hero he looked like. Even though he’d seemed to return my interest, I knew that West’s rivalry with me would've stopped him from pursuing anything too, so it was a wash on both sides.

I was happy to just be casual acquaintances, plus he had a boyfriend he seemed obsessed with now, so good for him. I was lucky if I managed to go on a date without hating the person within the first five minutes. Maybe it was time for me to realize that was a ‘me problem.’

“Getting hit by a jealous boyfriend isn’t my idea of a good time,” I joked.

He laughed. “Touche, but I’m the feral one, not Sen.”

“I believe it.”

“So, we’re moving on Saturday,” he began. “We don’t have a hell of a lot of stuff yet but hey, college life, right?”

“Right.”

“We want to do a sort of housewarming thing crossed with a last hurrah with the team. It’s last minute, but all of this has been super quick. Think you can make it?”

I took a moment to consider it. My plans had consisted of spending the weekend alone, but he was right. Doing something with the team was a good idea considering I’d spent the last four years working with a lot of them.

“I guess I can put aside my misanthropic tendencies for you. Just this once, though.”

“Awesome.” His smile wavered and he rolled his lip between his teeth for a moment. “I know West starts shit with you, but do you think you can just ignore him or something? I’ll talk to him, but he’s not exactly easy to manage.”

“Ignoring him makes him try harder,” I pointed out.

“Shit, you’re right.”

Watching him run his hand through his hair, I sighed. “I’ll be as amicable as possible. Maybe he’ll give me a break since I bought him that booze.”

Kai’s lips parted in surprise. “He’s drinking right now?”

“Uh, I assume so. Is that a bad thing?”

“No, it’s fine.” He waved a dismissive hand, but the look in his eyes remained. “I’ll shoot you the address.”

I lifted my fingers off the handle in a wave as he started walking backward. A moment later, he turned and headed in the direction of Marshall Hall. The tight set to his shoulders told me that things weren’t as fine as he claimed they were.

It must’ve sucked to have West as his problem. I had a feeling they weren’t going to have a great night.

I started the bike again and pulled out of the parking spot before anyone else could come along and rope me into social situations.

Chapter 7

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