Page 66 of Call the Shots
There were only two things I had to look forward to: hockey and the party Xavier invited me to. It was suit and tie, sponsored by some organization on campus. In the bathroom, I slicked back my hair, listening for the sound of June, but when she finally opened her door, she left without looking back.
Iced out.
It’d been like that since I yelled at Montoya, and it was so much worse than June just ignoring me.
Stomach sinking, I drove to the party and idled outside the house. It was my first night in a while without the team and June. It felt weird without them.
My palms were sweaty, so I rubbed them on the back of my jacket. It wasn’t the nicest suit jacket, but it was the only one I owned. I hoped I wasn’t underdressed. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect. All I wanted was a night where I could forget about everything.
I knocked on the door and smoothed back my hair again.
It opened to reveal a guy in aBig Trouble in Little Chinatank top and shorts that looked like swim trunks. He blinked. “Uh…what’s up? Did your car break down or something?”
“Erm, I…think I’m lost? I’m looking for a volunteer organization?—”
“That’s us. What’s up with the tie?”
I didn’t have a good answer, just a mumbled one, and when I walked inside, I was more confused. It was a basic snack night with a bunch of board games being ignored for glasses of wine. Eyes darted to me and the room fell silent.
I cleared my throat. “Hey, I’m—uh—Bear.”
Tepid laughter met the introduction and my face burned.
“Bear!” The shout came from the kitchen and Xavier emerged, beer in hand. “Why are you dressed like that?”
“I—uh—you said this was formal?—”
“Dude, no, that was for the next—oh, man.”
“I can—uh—go change?—”
“Don’t worry about it. You look great. Look at your hair, I could take a hammer to it.” He burst into real laughter that everyone joined in with. “Everybody, this is Bear. Do you want to introduce yourself? Don’t let me take the spotlight.”
“I, uh…I’m Xavier’s brother.”
“You have a brother?” someone asked.
Everybody was clearly surprised. Another girl shook her head. “You don’t look like Xavier…?”
“Stepbrothers. My dad married his mom,” I explained. “It’s great to meet you guys.”
“Oomf, you looksofamiliar. Like a lost face in a painting. Where…?”
“I’m on the hockey team.”
A guy snorted into his cup of beer. “We have a hockey team?”
“These aren’t hockey people,” Xavier chuckled. “No, you guys probably know him from the leaked nudes, but Bear doesn’t like to talk about it so no questions.”
I stared, flaming so fucking red I could feel it. Did people know?Here?My stomach clenched as faces of confusion melted into recognition.
“I need a beer,” I muttered, walking to the kitchen. There were only warm drinks, but I scored a cold soda in the fridge. The screen door called to me, and I headed outside which was still hot because it was Houston and known for being fucking warm and I was a goddamn idiot for wearing a suit.
Shrugging off the jacket, I pressed the soda to my forehead.
I felt sick.
A pretty redhead inched her way out of the house. “Hey?”
