Page 26 of This Is War: All's Fair Duet
“That chick?” He glances down in the general area of my dick, which is mildly disconcerting. His eyes flick back to mine. “The one you’ve got the hard-on for? She’s home. Looked flustered. Thought you’d want to know. She stopped in front of Logan’s door for a sec, but then kept going like her sweet tail was on fire.” He shrugs,then turns and walks away without any further explanation.
Frowning at his description of Rya’s ass as much as what went down, I shut the door. No time to waste, I work the buttons through the holes of my shirt, then roll up the sleeves. From the bathroom counter, I pick up the chunky rings I like to wear when I’m not playing ball and slip them onto my fingers, then glance into the mirror, pushing my hand through my hair. It falls haphazardly, the pieces in front drifting back into my eyes. Gripping the back of my neck, I let my mind meander as it forms a plan of attack.
Socks and boots on, I hurriedly lock up and stride down the hall, passing a pair of girls from the women’s track team. My lip twitches as the whispering starts. Who the fuck knows what that’s all about. So long as they don’t need me for anything, I don’t give a flying fuck. Swinging my gaze back toward my destination, I lock eyes on my stepbrother and stop short.
Logan stands in Rya’s doorway, a bit stiff and furiously whispering. I strain to hear what’s going on, unconcerned with giving them any privacy. Let’s face it, odds are good this has something to do with me. Logan shakes his head, and though I can’t hear Rya either, it’s obviously not a one-sided conversation. Finally, I catch a snippet of her words.
“I don’t want to talk about it, Logan. I’m fine. Just really fucking confused. I’m well aware that we have a lot of shit to talk about, but right now, I can’t.”
“Why not?” A sigh billows from him as his apparent frustration mounts.
Easy, dickweed. I’m the “why not” in this equation.I snicker to myself, then move to intercept, creeping along the hallway as quietly as I possibly can. Logan still hasn’t noticed me, but when I come into Rya’s field of vision, she freezes. Her face visibly pales, and she swallows hard.
I give her a little wave. “Hey. You ready, Rya?”
Logan pushes away from the door frame, pivoting on his heel. His eyes connect with mine, and he blinks hard. Once, twice, then a third time.
“You okay, there,little bro?” I put the emphasis onlittle broknowing it’ll piss him off. Fucker. It’s not my mother who broke up a marriage, so I don’t know why he’s always such a douche.
Without answering me, his head swings back to Rya, and I feel theWhat the fuck is happening?rolling right off him. I guess she hasn’t mentioned going anywhere with me yet. I take another step toward the door to her room, which also, coincidentally, puts me shoulder to shoulder with Logan.
Rya chews hard on the corner of her lip. She only lets up on it long enough to murmur, “Let me grab my keys,”then it’s right back in there. It distracts me for a full ten seconds, too, because damn, I want to be the one nibbling on that skin.
His voice hoarse and rough, Logan drags my attention back to him as he grits out, “Where are you going?”
Rya turns toward both of us, her eyes flicking back and forth between Logan’s blue eyes and my brown ones. I almost feel bad for her getting stuck in the middle like this. She pins her gaze on Logan as she murmurs, “Jaxon asked me to hang out tonight.” Taking a deep breath, she continues, “So, that’s what I’m going to do. We should talk later. I mean… I know we need to.” Her face flushes, and Logan grabs at his neck, yanking on it like it’ll somehow make him feel better.
His jaw twitches, and I feel the anger rippling through his body, though he doesn’t turn to look at me at all. He can ignore me all he wants, it won’t make me go away. He swallows, and his eyes pinch closed for a brief second before he mutters, “I hope you know what you’re doing.”
Rya wets her lips, bringing her focus to me. “Could you wait for me by the elevator? I’ll be right there.”
Grimacing, I side-eye Logan. “You sure you’re okay, Rya?”
“She’s fine,” he bites out, aiming his glare at me.
I almost laugh right then, but it won’t get me anywhere with Rya if I do, so I patiently wait for her to respond.
With a worried glance at Logan, she firmly states, “Yeah. I just need a minute.”
I incline my head. “Fair enough. But don’t be too long. I’ve got something planned.”
A quick smile reaches her lips. “I’m looking forward to it.”
I shoot her a wink, then place my hand on the shoulder of Logan’s pitching arm and squeeze hard. “See you around, bro,” I quip. I’m being a dick and I know it, but the truth of the matter is I could be doing so much worse to him.
Oh, who am I kidding?I totally still plan on it. As I stroll away from them, I can hardly hold in my chuckle. The continuation of their argument reaches me—not so much the actual conversation, but the heat of it—and I smile even wider.
It’s not more than thirty seconds before Rya joins me, tucking her hair behind her ears. She’s arranged it in an updo tonight—not in a tight ballet bun, but in a much looser, messier version. It’s sexy as hell. My gaze drops down to the purple cropped sweater and ripped skinny jeans, and I have to stop myself from licking my chops like a fucking dog. Because damn.
After she slips into her coat, I reach out and take her hand, threading my fingers carefully through hers, then check in to make sure it doesn’t wig her out. She glancesover her shoulder. Nervous for the boyfriend to see her? I did notice she said we were hanging out. She didn’t tell him it’s a date we’re going on. Can’t say I give a fuck, though, so long as she’s with me.
Time to up my fuck-with-Logan ante.
17
JAXON
Unfortunately,it becomes very apparent a few minutes into our date that Rya’s mind is elsewhere. The bite in the evening air also means she’s shivering. I exhale hard, and my breath visibly puffs out. “Fuck, it’s cold. I thought we’d get ice cream, but what about trying that new coffee shop off campus? It’s actually closer, anyway.” When she doesn’t respond, I squeeze her hand and pull her to a stop.
