He was so gone for her it was amusing to watch. Olivia was it for him, and although she was beautiful and a great person, Wilder could have had any girl he wanted on campus. But he was the one worried he wasn't good enough to keep her. Anyone with eyes could see she was just as crazy about him.
"I'm going to head out," Scarlet said, slowly starting to stand up.
I stood up too, wishing I could walk her back to her dorm, but knew it would be better to stay here. Things were good between us right now, a little too good, dangerously good.
"Yeah, okay, well," I said, stumbling over my words. "Thanks again for being my partner tonight. I had a lot of fun."
"Me too," she said softly. "See ya around, Rush."
"Good night, Scarlet."
I stood there until I watched the door close behind her, wanting so badly to go after her. Instead I made myself walk to the kitchen to grab a drink.
It was no surprise that I found Wilder had Olivia up on the counter, their bodies pressed tightly together and their mouths refusing to break contact.
"You know that your room is literally down the hall," I said, opening the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water.
They broke apart abruptly, Olivia looking flushed.
"Oh, sorry, Rush," she said, looking embarrassed. "We didn't notice anyone had walked in."
I looked past them into the very visible living room full of people but didn't say anything about how we were all practically in the same room together.
"It's fine." I tried to assure her, but my voice came out bitter. "It's just not all of us get to be with someone so freely." I took a big gulp from the water bottle and then screwed the cap back on.
My good mood had instantly soured. Yes, I'd had a great night with Scarlet, but nights like this were the most we could ever have.
Olivia's eyes went wide, looking at me and then at Wilder.
"Don't," Wilder warned her, but with no real threat in his voice.
Olivia ignored him, her eyes going back to me. "Are you talking about Scarlet?" I could hear the obvious hope in her voice.
Wilder must have not told her about Coach Matthews's rule. It was a rule that Coach liked every footballer to know but not tell. He didn't want it getting back to Scarlet. I'd assumed that Wilder would have told Olivia by now, but then again if he had, maybe she would have told Scarlet. That's probably why Wilder hadn't mentioned anything.
"I was talking about people in general," I said, motioning my hand around the open room. "I'm sorry I interrupted. You two lovebirds have a good night."
I left the kitchen quickly to avoid any more probing from Olivia and had every intention of mingling but made my way to the front door instead. It was time to go home and go to sleep in hopes that I could stop thinking about tonight and how much I'd enjoyed spending time with Scarlet.
I got in my car and before turning my car on decided to call my parents. Talking with them would help me remember exactly why I didn't have Scarlet up on some counter kissing her senseless.
6
Scarlet
Putting my suitcase in the back of my car, I waited for Olivia to lift her suitcase in with mine. Slamming the trunk close we both got in the car and started to head toward our first overnight away game. Wilder and the rest of the football team had already left early this morning on the team bus, and so Olivia and I had designated girl time, which we were both excited about.
"We've got three hours of just us, and I feel like we have so much to talk about," Olivia said, as we turned out of the parking lot and onto the road. "But first we have to talk about game night the other night. OMG, as you would say," she teased. "Oh wait, I didn't say it loud enough. O-M-G!"
We both laughed.
"What's wrong with being a little animated?" I said with a smile.
"Absolutely nothing," she said. "It's one of my favorite things about you. Although lately, you haven't been your normal self. Which is totally understandable," she added. "What with breaking up with Mick and then all the contact with Rush, plus your dad continuing to call you, it's a lot to deal with. Game night was the first time I got a glimpse of the old Scarlet."
I sighed, continuing to look out at the road in front of me as I drove. "If I'm being honest, I haven't felt like myself either."
"Is there anything else going on?" she asked, and I could hear the concern in her voice.
