Page 23 of All In

“Well, fuck, get up here before you asswipes get the cops called on us.”

The guys start to climb the stairs. A few of the girls are with them, too, and I see Tiffany and a few cheerleaders climbing out of her little Porsche convertible at the end of the street. She’s smoking hot, but there is a train wreck hidden underneath. There’s a ton of backslapping and bro-shakes over the next few minutes.

The keg gets tapped, the music gets turned up, and before I know it, I’ve lost Nat in the crowd.

13

Natalie

The party isn’t waiting for Friday night. It looks like half the school is here now, and it’s not even ten. I didn’t realize when Brady walked away earlier that I was losing him for the night. He’s been making the rounds for the last hour. Talking to everyone and moving from group to group with ease.

When I see Brady, Murphy, Bash, and Cooper together, everyone seems like they are on equal footing. The rest of the guys and most of the girls at this party treat Brady and my guys like football gods among mere mortals. Especially Brady. They are hanging on his every word.

I’m standing by the fireplace, surrounded by a group of girls I met tonight. Chloe told them that I dance, so they’re all trying to talk me into trying out for the squad.

“Sorry, guys. I’m just not sure if I want to do that or not. I promised my dad I would take a few classes at a local studio and want to see how that goes first.”

Kristy, a pretty brunette, nods her head enthusiastically. “Totally understand. You gotta let us know if you change your mind, though. We lost a few good seniors last year and only filled half the slots for the football season. We should still have slots open for basketball season.”

“I will,” I answer as my eyes drift back to Brady. The possessiveness I feel annoys me when a beautiful girl with hot pink hair, legs twice as long as mine, and boobs I’d die for catches my eyes. A few minutes ago, she came up the stairs, gave Brady a huge hug, and is now his beer pong partner.

It looks like pink-haired Barbie is hanging on his every word and his every muscle.

My phone pings, and I pull it out to check.

Darby: Just pulled up to Ryan’s house. You here?

Nattie: Yeah. Just heading inside.

Darby: Good. See you in a min.

Chloe gives me a questioning look.

I give her a quick nod back, telling her I’m fine and then heading for the kitchen.

Deciding to make a pit stop, I run upstairs into my bathroom to touch up my hair and makeup before heading down to the kitchen. As I am coming back down the stairs, I collide with Darby.

“Hey, are you okay?” he asks as he catches me by my upper arms, making sure I don’t topple over.

“Thanks for the save.”

“Happy to help. You and Chloe have fun today?” The guy has a great smile. He’s not quite as big as Brady or as broad as Murphy. He’s built more like a shorter version of Bash. Maybe 6’ tall and lean with chiseled features. His dark brown eyes are so dark I can barely see his irises.

“We did have fun. It was a perfect beach day before the storm hit.”

“You ever sit on the beach after a storm? The waves are something else right after the rain stops. Grab a towel. Let’s go check it out.”

“Sure. Why not.”

There’s a gleam in Darby’s eye. It’s a little sexy and a little unsettling.

We walk onto the porch where the party is in full gear and grab my towel from earlier today to sit on. Everything is still wet from the rain, and I don’t want a wet ass. “Just let me find Chloe real quick to let her know where I’m going.”

“Chloe.” She looks around until she finds me in the crowd. “I’m going to go for a walk

on the beach.”

“With Brady?” She looks triumphantly at me.

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