Page 37 of Obligation
“Seems like she might want to be more than your friend.” Jeremy suggestively nudged Bradley and waggled his eyebrows. “Know what I’m saying?”
“Everyone knows what you’re saying.” Bradley laughed. “And she may want more than friendship, but she’s not getting it from me.”
“Why not?” Garrett leaned to the side in a dramatic way, making his actions clear—he was watching the girl walk away. “She’s cute.”
“She’s not my type.” Bradley crossed his arms, suddenly very uncomfortable with where this conversation was headed.
He shifted on his feet and let out an aggravated sigh, hoping he could divert attention to the fact that they’d only moved three places in line and still weren’t any closer to getting food and drinks.
“Hey.” Tiffany joined them in line—alone—hands shoved into her pockets.
“Where’s Carissa?” Garrett asked.
Relief flooded Bradley that Garrett had asked so that Bradley wouldn’t have to. The last thing he needed was for Garrett or Jeremy to learn about his true feelings for Carissa. The situation was complicated enough without his friends giving him shit about liking her.
“She needed a few minutes alone. She’ll be back soon,” Tiffany said with a small frown. “Any idea where Danny went?” She twisted around as if looking for him.
“Nope. He complained about Carissa thinking everything else is more important than him, and then he took off,” Bradley said with a biting tone.
Tiffany rolled her eyes, but she didn’t say anything further. Bradley wasn’t sure if he was pleased or pissed with her silence. He wanted to know more, to know that Carissa was okay and to know what was truly going on between her and Danny. But he also didn’t want to know, because if he found out Danny was treating Carissa poorly, Bradley might not be able to stop himself from giving Danny a major attitude adjustment.
By the time they reached the concession window, placed their orders, and returned to their seats, Carissa still hadn’t come back. Worry nagged at Bradley. Had she decided to leave? If so, why hadn’t she told anyone? Or had Danny found her? Were those two off arguing somewhere?
Bradley set his food next to him on the bleacher and pulled his phone from his pocket. No message from Carissa. He frowned, disappointment landing in his gut. Unease filled him, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that Carissa was in trouble.
“Hey, Tiffany.” Bradley leaned closer to her. “Has Carissa contacted you? She’s been gone a long time.”
Tiffany eyed him, and he held his breath, waiting for her to question why he was so concerned about someone he barely knew. But she didn’t. Instead, she checked her phone and shook her head.
Bradley opened his messages and sent a quick text to Carissa to ask if she was okay. Then he stood, slipped his phone into his back pocket, and said, “I’m going to go look for her.”
“Look for who?”
Bradley whipped around at the sound of Carissa’s voice. “You,” he said, concern furrowing his brow. “We’ve been worried. Are you okay?”
Carissa nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
The fear squeezing his chest loosened, and he took a deep breath. Thank God she was okay. She certainly didn’t look so great, though. Her face was red, and her eyes were puffy. Clearly she’d been crying. Again.
“What did I miss?” Carissa smiled as if nothing was wrong, and then sat on the bleachers in what was his spot a second ago.
He didn’t mind, though. Sitting beside her, he reached for his food—two hotdogs, a bag of chips, and a cup of beer. He held a hotdog out to her. “Want one?”
She graced him with a breathtaking smile, her face lighting up. “You sure?” she asked as she reached for the food.
“Yeah, I’m trying to watch my figure anyway.” He winked, and her face flushed.
Carissa rolled her eyes and took the hotdog. She took a large bite, her tongue peeking out to lick the ketchup from the corner of her mouth. Watching her fascinated him, and he’d sit here all night and watch her if he could. But the whistle blew to signal the start of the second half, and his attention was drawn back to the football field.
Halfway through the third quarter, she poked his arm. “Can we switch spots?”
He tilted his head, confused. “Yeah, sure. Why?”
“I need to talk to Tiff, and I don’t want to shout over you,” she said.
Bradley stood so Carissa could scoot down the bench toward Tiffany, and then he sat back down. But as soon as he did, the crowd was on their feet, cheering on the team for running another touchdown.
“Our team isn’t half bad.” Jeremy laughed. “Wonder if the basketball team is just as good.”
