Page 5 of Play It Off

Ouch. The thought of that hurts my brain. Gavin with another woman. I shove the vision out of my head as fast as I can.

“Because I like you,” he eventually says, and oh, my heart.

It’s currently racing. Galloping. Ready to escape from my chest and run straight out of this bar with those words.

“And I need to keep an eye on you. For Coop,” he adds.

I deflate like a balloon, my heart reinserting itself into my chest, where it belongs.

“He’s not even here,” I mumble, hanging my head in defeat.

“Even more reason to keep watch. Especially after what Sam did.” He sounds pissed, but not in my honor. More like he just knows Sam the bartender is, as he put it, a slimeball.

I am pathetic. Pitiful. This man is only here because he feels obligated to keep watch over me and not because he’s infatuated with my beauty and charming personality.

Not that I’m a great beauty, nor am I particularly charming. I get why he’s not into me. I’m not that attractive. Not in the traditional sense. I’m too tall and too pale, and I’m a redhead, which only a small percentage of men seem to be drawn to. I have boring brown eyes and freckles everywhere that get worse during the summer until it seems like they cover every inch of my exposed skin. And I’m a little too loud sometimes.

Okay, most of the time.

I had to be the loud one growing up because my brother is so damn quiet. Someone had to talk for the both of us, and it sure wasn’t ever going to be Coop.

“Here you go!” Our adorable server is standing in front of the table, placing a giant glass of ice water in front of me. “Drink up, sweetie. Maybe take a Liquid I.V. when you get home, or else you’re going to be feeling it tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Vanessa.” Gavin smiles at her, and it’s the first time I’ve realized he knows her name.

“Anytime, Gav.” Her eyes flash when they meet his as she hands him a glass of water, too, and I note the way her fingers brush his. How they almost tangle for a moment before she pulls away.

Oh God. I think ...

I think he’s fucked her.

The moment she’s gone I’m chugging the water, then slamming the glass onto the table so hard, I worry it might smash into a bazillion pieces. Luckily for me, it stays intact.

Unlike my ego. My feelings. My head. Those all feel smashed to bits.

“I need to go,” I announce, scooting in the opposite direction of the rounded booth so I can escape out the other side. “Thanks for babysitting me, Gavin.”

I’m fast. I used to be in track during high school, and I can run a one-hundred-yard dash like no other, but this guy, Mr. Football himself, is on me in seconds. His fingers curling around my upper arm and holding me back before I can make my escape.

“What the hell, Sienna? Where are you going?”

I glance over my shoulder and pretend for a moment that he actually cares. That he doesn’t want me to leave. That he sees me not as Coop’s baby sister but as a beautiful, confident—if a little drunk—woman.

But all I detect is brotherly concern in his gaze. His grip doesn’t feel possessive or intimate. He’s just trying to stop me from leaving in case I’m going to hop into a car and drive drunk or whatever.

Not that anyone drives much in this town. My dorm building is literally five blocks away, max. I can walk home easily.

“I’m leaving,” I tell him, lifting my chin, trying to look strong.

But then my feet seem to be on top of each other, and I stumble. Right into him.

He catches me, cradling me in his arms, and I find myself staring at his face. Into his eyes. God, he’s handsome. Too handsome. It’s too much. He’s too much.

“I’ll walk you home,” he murmurs, and I swear I see amusement on his face. In his eyes. Like I’m a joke to him.

“No.” I shake my head and try to disentangle myself from his grip, but he won’t budge. The guy is just way too strong. “It’s not a long walk. I’ll find Destiny.”

He frowns. “Who?”

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