“You came!” I shout, throwing myself at him.
My arms wrap around his broad shoulders, and I’m hit with his familiar smell?spicy and sweet and comforting, like a glass of mulled cider.
“Whoa!” His arms slowly come around me as I stumble, steadying me on my feet.
I chuckle and drop my arms, leaning back to get a look at him. He’s wearing an old AAU football T-shirt and worn jeans, his thick, sandy hair still damp from the shower I know he probably took after practice. A broad grin splits his lips as he stares downat me, blue eyes sparkling. The sight of him is like a balm, a warm hug on a chilly day. It wraps around me and makes everything whole again.
Behind me, Ethan clears his throat, and I jerk away from my best friend. “You want to introduce me to all your friends?” he asks, his tone strained.
“Oh, right, of course!” I say, feeling my cheeks heat. “Um, Ethan, this is Chris, and his girlfriend Charlotte,” I say, smiling at the pretty brunette. “And the rest of the gang,” I turn toward Brandon and his friends, motioning to each of them. “That’s Jace and Brynn, Damon and Avery, and West, AAUs kicker. Everyone,” I say, planting a hand on Ethan’s chest, “this is my boyfriend, Ethan.”
“We’ve heard a lot about you,” Jace says with a smirk before Brandon elbows him in the ribs.
“I’m guessing you all play football?” Ethan asks, eyeing each of them in a way that makes me squirm. It’s clear from everything he’s said previously that he thinks of jocks as meatheads and nothing more.
“Maybe.” Damon crosses his arms over his chest, and even I’m intimidated. “So what?”
“Just making an observation,” Ethan says with a knowing smile. “Can I get you guys a drink?”
Jace shakes his head. “We don’t drink much during the season, especially the night before a game.”
“We, on the other hand, can drink however much we want,” Brynn, the wide receiver’s girlfriend, chimes in.
Ethan’s gaze quickly sweeps over her?or maybe I imagined it?before he nods toward a pair of French doors. “The keg’s out back. Come on, I’ll show you,” he says, like he owns the place. “You coming?” he asks me.
I shake my head and lift my cup. “I’m good. I’ll just wait here.”
“Me too. You guys go,” Brandon chimes in.
Ethan’s gaze flickers between us, the pulsing of the vein at his temple the only sign he might be unhappy about Brandon and me being alone together.
“Come on, man, this beer’s not gonna pour itself,” Chris says, slapping Ethan on the shoulder and leading him toward the doors.
After they’re gone, I turn back to find Brandon staring at me, a crooked grin on his lips. “What?” I scrub a hand over my face, instantly paranoid.
“Nothing.” He shakes his head as if clearing his thoughts before he nods toward the drink in my hand. “What’s in the cup?”
I scrunch my nose. “Jungle juice? It’s a Sigma Alpha thing,” I explain. “You’re sure you don’t want anything?”
“Nah. I’m good.” He stares at me for a moment, searching my face before he asks, “How much have you had?”
My brows rise. “Just a little,” I say, flushing.
“Mm-hmm,” he murmurs, reaching out and touching my cheek. “Is that why your cheeks are as red as a tomato?”
I roll my eyes and swat at his hand, and he chuckles. “Okay, maybe I’ve had a few.”
“The Tate I know is usually one and done.” He cocks his head, eyeing me closer until I squirm under the scrutiny. “Everything okay?”
No. Everything’s not okay. My boyfriend and my best friend spent time together for the first time ever and so far, they seem to hate each other.
“Why wouldn’t it be?” I say, feigning ignorance when I know damn well why he’s asking. Brandon has firsthand knowledge of my one and only experience binge drinking. It was my senior year of high school, and I wound up sick as a dog. Ever since, I never have more than a drink, maybe two, and I’m almost always with him when I do. “Just because I’m having a little fun and letting loose doesn’t mean something’s wrong,” I say, suppressing the urge to grimace, because even I don’t sound convincing to my own ears.
“You’re a lightweight, Fletcher.”
“So?”
“So, I didn’t think you called hugging the porcelain throne a good time.”
