Page 33 of Going for Gold (Sweet Cravings 3)

I was embarrassed that Kristen told the whole table I was attracted to Bryce. But I wasn't upset with his friends for getting him to confess that he was attracted to me. This was definitely a date. I avoided Bryce's gaze and fidgeted with my hands under the table.

"The worst?" Tim asked. "You know that you're in love with me."

"I don't know how many times we have to tell you this," Alex said. "There's a difference between loving someone and being in love with someone. Bryce and I love you like a brother. But we aren't in love with you, man."

Tim shrugged. "I really don't understand the difference."

"Do we need to draw you a picture?" Bryce asked and started laughing.

His laughter was infectious. Soon I was laughing and couldn't stop. I thought that our friends announcing that we were attracted to each other would take the night on an awkward turn. But who was I kidding? I thought Bryce was hot. And sweet. And funny. It was nice to know that he was attracted to me too. I was still laughing when I looked up at him.

There was that twinkle in his blue eyes again. It took my breath away. And I knew I was in trouble, because I didn't ever want to look away from those eyes.

"Can I steal you for a second?" Bryce asked.

Kristen gave me two thumbs up, not subtly at all.

"Um, yeah, sure." I slid out of the booth after him. "I was hoping to get some water from the bar."

"I noticed that you weren't drinking any wine." His hand fell onto my lower back again. Those really big, manly han

ds. Stop it.

"We have a game tomorrow. I really shouldn't be drinking."

He nodded. "My race is on Wednesday. I'm going to skip the wine too." His hand left my back and he waved down the bartender. He ordered two waters and leaned against the bar. "Where are you from?"

That wasn't what I was expecting him to ask me. "Wilmington, Delaware. You?"

"Pasadena most recently. I've moved a lot. Did you go to school in Delaware?"

"I went to the University of New Castle for the last three years. I just graduated."

"What about for freshman year?"

I felt that familiar lump forming in my throat. I tried to swallow it down. "NYCU."

"Why'd you transfer?"

Our waters had arrived, but Bryce made no movement to head back to our table. He was staring at me intently, waiting for me to respond.

"You don't have to..."

"No. It's fine. It was so long ago." I smiled, pretending it was nothing. "It was silly, really. There was this girl who played the same position as me. She wasn't happy that a freshman was competing for the same spot as her on the team. And she didn't take it well. She hazed me. At least, that's how she put it."

Bryce lowered his eyebrows slightly. "How would you put it?"

"She bullied me until I broke and ran home. I don't know. Like I said, it was silly." I laughed awkwardly.

"It's not silly."

Something in my chest tightened. Chris had always told me it was stupid and that I should get over it. That it shouldn't bother me anymore. But he didn't understand. He didn't know what it felt like to be humiliated every day for months. To dread leaving your dorm room each morning. To always be on edge. Bryce wasn't looking at me like he thought I was ridiculous. He was looking at me like he understood. "And how would you know what it's like to be bullied? Bullies don't pick on guys that look like you."

"I didn't always look like this. I was a scrawny little kid."

"I can't picture you as scrawny or little."

He shrugged. "Let's just say that I run because I had something to run from."

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