Page 13 of Players Love Hard
Jamie: You have mages to spell. Let me know how it goes.
Shannon: Thanks. You’re a lifesaver. See you tomorrow.
Jamie: Can’t wait.
I smile so wide my cheeks hurt.
Cameron notices and taps me with his elbow. “C’mon, sissy. Stop messing around. We don’t have a lot of time.”
I lift the controller from the mattress and hit the button to join the game. “I’m ready.”
Jamie saved the day.
Without the codes, I’d have spent days on one level with Cameron. As much as I like this game, I would like some time to myself for once. All I have to do is help him beat Mage Wars. And Jamie just gave us an advantage.
Chapter Five
Jamie
After hockey practice, I find Preston in the exercise room in the middle of a set. Pushing the hair out of my eyes, I approach the weight bench, staring down at him.
“Want some company?” I sit on the open bench next to him and tug at the string on the seam of my mesh shorts. “We could take turns spotting each other.”
“Yeah, I guess.” He lifts the bar above his body. “Think you can keep up? You looked like some washed-up has-been on the ice earlier.”
I roll my eyes at him and then help him set the bar on the rack. “I just need to focus.”
“It’s all the drinking you’ve been doing with Tuck and Trent over at Delta Sig. They can get away with having a few beers, but you’re not like them. Stay away from that shit during the week. If you guys spent as much time practicing as you do chasing around sorority chicks, you’d be giving me a run for my money at MVP this year.”
I lean forward, digging my elbows into my thighs. “I’ll be fine by the game on Friday. Stop worrying. You sound like my dad.”
He shrugs. “I’m the captain of the team for a reason. Someone has to keep your ass in line.”
I push out my hand to silence him. “Whatever. Don’t start with me. I’m not in the mood. I had two hours of sleep last night before I had to get up for practice.”
He wipes his face with his towel and then slings it around his neck. “I’m only looking out for your career. We can’t make it pro together if you’re too busy drinking and running around campus trying to get your dick wet.”
Preston couldn’t be more wrong right now. Just because he saw me talking to girls at frat parties doesn’t mean I did anything with them. Cece had me so fucked up over the summer. None of my friends know I allowed her back in my life. If not for Shannon, I doubt I would even bother with another girl. But she’s different. Shannon is nothing like Cece, which is why I like her so much.
“Says the guy who has a crush on Coach Bryant’s daughter,” I quip.
Preston shakes his head. “That will never happen.”
“She looked pretty into you last night. That eye-fucking I saw in Gio’s went both ways.”
We ran into Coach Bryant and his daughter, Bex, at the pizza shop on campus last night. Preston has a major crush on her. He doesn’t even try to hide it.
Preston swings his legs off the bench, and I follow him to a leg press machine. I stand beside him, moving my hands to my hips. “We should go watch Bex play sometime, maybe scout some of her teammates.” I wink at him, partially joking. “We can always use new recruits.”
I don’t mean a single word. The only girl I want right now is Shannon. Unlike my friends, I’m a one-woman kind of guy. I guess I get that from my dad. He was the same way before and after he met my mom.
Preston stops moving his legs and crosses his arms across his chest, smirking. “I was kind of hoping you would help me with Bex. I need you and the guys to make nice with some of her teammates, or better yet, her roommate. She said something to Coach about him having rules. I want to know what she means by that. It seemed like she was referring to his players and that being around us was breaking those rules.”
“Why don’t you stalk her online like any normal person?”
He laughs as if the idea is ridiculous. “I looked last night, couldn’t find her anywhere. I checked Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. It’s like she doesn’t exist.”
“Maybe she’s an android,” I joke.
