Page 34 of Scoreless Nights

I leaned across to hug her awkwardly, and then cried. “Love you back.”

“Keep me posted on those interviews. I bet you get them all, and get to choose where you want to be. We will celebrate next week when I get time off again.”

Shoving the door open and climbing from the car, I started walking into the random building that wasn’t Cruz’s, just so I could keep up my lies. When I was sure Angel had pulled away, I left the building and walked down the sidewalk, tears soaking my face.

Maybe lying wasn’t worth all the pain.

ChapterEighteen

Cruz

“Estoy lista, Papacito. Déjame mamar tu bicho.”

“Siempre.”

Fuck, that was a lie. Not only did I not want to be with whatever her name was, but I didn’t want to be out at all. I wanted to track Lily down and rip Tripp’s jersey off her, then nail mine to her skin.

Not sure why I even agreed to a repeat with last week’s fuck. She was just there, and I was desperate to feel something other thananythingI was feeling for Lily.

“Let’s go,” I decided, grabbing her hand and pulling her toward the back of Mangos where I knew we could fuck in private.

She giggled, and pressed her tits into my arm as we walked. When I pushed her against a wall, I turned my head away, avoiding kissing her on the mouth. Grabbing onto her tits over the tight dress she was wearing, I closed my eyes, and willed my dick to get hard.

But it didn’t. I just kept seeing Lily’s bright eyes, and Tripp’s jersey covering her body. Just like I knew she would from the day my dad called, she broke me, and I wasn’t sure how many random fucks it would take to forget her again.

“Ahora, Papacito,”she moaned, knowing that a club fuck had to be quick.

“No puedo,”I mumbled, before backing away.

“Are you kidding me?” It was the first time she used English and her voice was loud and shrill. She was pissed, and I guess I couldn’t blame her since I made promises, and couldn’t follow through. Not until Lily was out of my life again.

“Nine more scoreless nights,” I groaned, but no one was around to hear me anymore. I rested my forehead on the wall and resisted the urge to bang it until I was unconscious.

When I felt like I had my bearings again, I made my way back to the table, but I immediately stopped when I saw who was sitting in my seat with Tripp.

What the fuck?

Slowly I approached the table and narrowed my eyes. “Hunter Ward?”

“You two know each other?” Tripp asked as Hunter stood up.

“Sorta,” I mumbled, then cleared my throat. “Coach Crazy? Right?”

Hunter smirked but I could tell he was annoyed. He was the assistant coach for the girls’ college team that Erin played on, and all the girls thought he was a tad crazy. Erin told me they were calling him Coach Crazy behind his back, but it wasn’t much of a secret.

“Hunter and I played against each other in college, then with each other in Lexington League One,” Tripp explained.

“Just came to say hi,” Hunter added.

Hunter had tried going pro, but I hadn’t realized he had made it to League One. That was one step away from the MLS. The way Erin described it, Hunter barely made it out of college. But then again, she admitted to not knowing much about him. He had been keeping himself a mystery, which was why they all thought he was crazy.

What I did know was that Hunter had taken a leave of absence from the team after their tournament win a few weeks ago. I expected him to be in a straightjacket somewhere working his problems out. Definitely not in one of the hottest clubs in Miami on a random Wednesday night.

“Is this a coincidence?”

“It's easy to run into people when I spend every night out like this.”

“Sounds pathetic,” I goaded him, knowing I was no better. I prowled every club in Miami, every chance I got, looking for something, or someone, to lose myself in for a while.

---