She ducks her head. “Sorry. I didn’t—”
“It’s fine.” And it is. I don’t envy my roommates their talents or their choices. “Football got me to Waverly and it’ll help me break into sports broadcasting, where I’ve always wanted to go.”
Sutton’s eyes shutter and I know we’re both thinking about the Sports Stream internship—and the fact that only one of us can get it.
Anxiety squeezes my chest like a vise.
You’ve always known how it would end.
True, but it was easier to ignore the facts when they were a distant reality. When we were more likely to set each other on fire literally instead of figuratively. But somewhere along the way we became friends, and even though I’m not about to walk away from the internship—from my future—the prospect of disappointing her, of taking something she wants as badly as I do, hurts like a motherfucker.
It’s only October.
Right. The intern won’t be chosen until December. And there’s no guarantee either of us will even get it.
So I do what I do best, squashing all thoughts of the future and sealing them in a box with all the other shit I’m not ready to deal with. Then I crush my lips to Sutton’s and lose myself in her warm embrace.
28
PARKER
“Don’t be an asshole.”
Coop snorts. “You knew what you were getting into when you hit me up for a ride.”
“Trust me, if I’d had any other option, I’d have taken it.” But Reid’s got shit to do before we leave for Indiana in a few hours and I’m in a time crunch, so public transport was out.
Could’ve gotten an Uber.
If only I’d thought of that before recruiting Coop for this little adventure.
“It’s all good.” He snickers and swings the Audi into the Extreme Pleasures parking lot. “I don’t mind being a last resort. Especially when it means I get to visit a sex shop.”
One look at his shit-eating grin, and I know I’m going to regret bringing him along.
He throws the car in park and I climb out, surveying the empty lot. Thankfully, there’s only one other vehicle. The last thing I need is to run into someone I know at a sex shop.
Talk about awkward.
Coop climbs out of the car, practically vibrating with excitement.
Maybe having him as my wingman will prove useful after all. Given his reputation, anyone who knows us would probably assume he’s the one doing the shopping. God knows I don’t have a clue what I’m doing.
A gust of wind whips at my hair, sending dead leaves tumbling across the blacktop. It’s the first weekend in November and a cold front has descended on College Park, bringing gray skies and shorter days, but we haven’t seen snow yet, so I can hardly complain.
“What are we shopping for, anyway?” Coop asks, giving the store a once-over. Extreme Pleasures is a squat red brick building with large display windows swathed in flowing white fabric and a discreet sign. “Please tell me we’re getting you a fleshlight.”
I shoot him the side-eye. “What the fuck is a fleshlight?”
“Ah, Padawan. Much to learn, you still have.”
“Dude. If the women on campus had any idea you were such a closet geek, the pussy parade would dry up faster than the Mojave.”
He smirks. “Then it’s a good thing I know how to keep it on the down low.”
Ignoring him, I open the door to the shop, setting off a melodic chime.
If the outside of the shop is discreet, then the inside is definitely…not. The ivory walls and glass top tables are overflowing with sexual paraphernalia, from crotchless panties and colorful vibrators to collars and blindfolds.
