I’ve got a hell of a sadistic streak, because it’s way more fun to sit here and bicker with Liza.
She switches the vacuum back on and weaves her way around the room, making perfect lines as she goes. I track hermovements so I can shove my discarded clothes out of her way, and also because, well…she’s hot.
I know, I know. I’m probably going to hell for ogling a woman who loathes my existence, but I’m only twenty-one years old. I’ve got plenty of time to repent.
“Oh. My. God. Are these yours?” she asks, and there’s no mistaking the horror and disdain in her voice. I look down to see where she’s pointing with her toe. Yep. Those are, in fact, my boxers.
I scoop them up quickly and toss them on the pile that already contains the sweats, hoodie, and socks I was wearing last night. “My bad,” I say, genuinely meaning my apology. I don’t know why she’s choosing to vacuum at this hour, but she shouldn’t have to sweep around my skivvies.
Liza’s eyes roam up and down my body. Granted, not much is visible because I’m lying under a pile of blankets, but I feel every ounce of her attention. “Are you naked?” she asks, blushing so furiously that her cheeks nearly match the burgundy BU Wolves sweatshirt she’s wearing.
“I get hot when I sleep,” I tell her, because it’s the truth, but my explanation does nothing to mollify her. If anything, she looks more horrified.
“You’re on the couch!” she shrieks.
“Yeah, I passed out last night and?—”
“And you just decided to strip down and sleep on communal property? In case it has escaped your attention, we all use these couches, and now that I know your…bits and pieces have been all over the fabric, I?—”
“Woah,” I say, putting my hands up to stop her tirade because first of all, she’s too damn loud. But also, I take issue with her word choice. “Bits and pieces? My bits are jumbo-sized and my piece is plenty?—”
“Stop! Just stop talking,” she pleads, damn near making my eardrums bleed.
“Then you need to stop yelling,” I tell her. “What? It’s not enough that you woke me at this ungodly hour, but now you’re going to make everybody in the whole house get up?”
Liza stands in front of me, blinking rapidly. “Ungodly hour? What are you talking about? No one else is sleeping right now. Not even Mickey. It’s noon.”
I freeze as my brain processes her words. “Are you fucking with me? It’s not noon. It can’t be noon.”
“And yet, it is,” she responds, holding her phone up in front of my face.
The digital display spells out my doom.
“Fuckity-fuck-fuck-fucking-fuck,” I mutter, reaching for my sweats.
“Don’t you dare move that sheet,” she warns, her voice both lethal and high-pitched.
I look up at her. “I have to get dressed. Shiiiiit. I’m gonna be late,” I say, grabbing my shirt and tugging it over my head. If there’s one thing my father hates more than the fact that I’m choosing to play hockey during my college career instead of pledging his old fraternity, it’s tardiness. And even if I haul ass out of this house in the next five minutes and hit every green light from here to North Creek Country Club, I know I’m still going to walk into the restaurant and find him already seated at a table and keeping track of the time.
Liza’s still staring at my lap like she can see the outline of my morning wood through the layers of blankets. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear there’s curiosity in her gaze, but I do know better. Liza thinks I’m a spoiled rich kid who doesn’t know the meaning of hard work. She thinks that all I care about is a good time, and that I’m a waste of space. She thinks my looks and myprivilege have gotten me this far in life, so there’s nothing below the surface. She thinks I’m all talk and no substance.
She’s not completely wrong, but she’s not totally right, either. But now is not the time for me to set her straight. The clock is ticking, I’m still naked, and my beautiful nemesis shows no signs of leaving the room. I’m trying to figure out if I can shimmy my way into my boxers without pulling the covers off my lap, but luckily I don’t have to enact that plan because Liza lights out of the room like she can read my mind.
Damn, I hope she can’t.
Liza’s never been shy about her feelings for me, and by that I mean she’ll happily tell anyone that I’m her least favorite player on the team. Hell, probably her least favorite person on campus, or even the east coast. She doesn’t like me, and I can’t say I’m a huge fan of her prickly, know-it-all attitude. But that doesn’t mean I’m immune to her beauty. It doesn’t mean I don’t wonder what would have happened if I’d never set that stupid glitter prank up to mess with my teammates.
I don’t have time to worry about that right now, though, because I’ve got to get my ass in gear and meet my dad for lunch. It’ll be a solid hour or more of him droning on about graduate school and the future he has planned for me. The man’s so obsessed with my career path that he won’t even notice the glazed look in my eyes when he starts yapping about prep courses for the GMAT or how I need to get serious about networking and making the right connections so I can follow in his footsteps and take the finance world by storm when I join his investment firm. It’s the same story every time we get together, and I’m so fucking tired of it, I could scream. But I won’t. I’ll play along because I know it’s a battle I’ll never win.
On the bright side, the North Creek Country Club serves brunch until two p.m., and that means there’s just enough time for me to eat my weight in French toast. My dad willorder his usual egg white western omelet and look at me with bewilderment when I order a second platter before he’s halfway through his eggs. It’s a small, delicious act of rebellion, but it’s all I’ve got, so I’m going to enjoy it.
2
Liza
Ihear the front door close, and I hold my breath. Ten seconds later, Blue’s fancy sports car roars to life and I hear him peel out of the driveway. When his taillights fade and his car is just a shiny white dot in the distance, I breathe a sigh of relief.
I’m alone.
