Page 18 of Call the Shots
“You need a certain IQ to understand him.”
“Ha. Funny,” Bear muttered until King left again to get more stuff from my car. Then Bear thumbed towards the closed door. “What’s up with him?”
“He only talks to people he wants to,” I explained. “Something I should’ve learned.”
“What if I throw something at him? Will he talk then?”
“If you throw anything at him, I’ll match it with a brick, and you’ll wake up in the hospital.” I seethed, hands balling into fists. “Don’t even think about it.”
“What is he, your fuck buddy now?”
“I don’t see how that’s any of your business.”
“Does he know you’re on hookup apps?”
My face was edited out of those profiles for a reason. If my parents found out I was onthoseapps, I’d never hear the end of it. I froze. “How did you…?”
“Give me a break, June,” he scoffed. “I know that’s you.”
We stared at each other, and I knew this would be the worst part about working for the Gladiators. My ex’s brother living with me, only one bathroom between us.
Now,it couldn’t be worse.
Unless it meant I’d see my ex too.
“Bear? I don’t want Xavier in here.”
“He’s my brother?—”
“I don’t care. He’s not allowed.”
“What if I want to bring him over for a gaming session?”
Bear might as well have said ‘what if I want him for a crab fishing expedition’ and that would’ve made more sense. “Xavier hates video games,” I said, genuinely confused. “He bannedMinecraftfrom the student Wi-Fi, he considers gaming a waste of time.”
“He doesn’t like video games?”
“No.”
Bear hesitated. “Really?”
I thought about how often Xavier complained when it came to Bear. Xavier’s disappointment, his mood swings, his rants in the car, about how often Bear flaked out on plans, leaving me to deal with the fallout. I dealt with that for years, but I didn’t understand. Why was Bear so out of the loop?
How much of what Xavier said was true?
“In January, you were supposed to go to a party in Oklahoma with Xavier,” I said.
“Uh, no I wasn’t.”
“Xavier said you were there for a game.”
“Oklahoma isn’t part of the USAC?” he explained, equally as confused. “I mean, I’ve played there before but that was for juniors—why would Xavier be in Oklahoma?”
“For our work trip—you really don’t know anything about him, do you?”
A beat passed between us.
Bear pushed towards his room. “I don’t have time for this.”
