“Are you guys going to the nail salon too?” Lincoln asks.
“Thinking about it.” Easton holds up his hands and wiggles his fingers. “We’re playing Texas, so what do you think about Fu?—”
Decker swats him in the back of the head. “Easton!”
“Shut up,” I whisper.
Easton recovers quickly. “Right. I’m gonna get them to paint Boo, Texas.”
“That’s so cool. Can I get the same thing?” Lincoln looks at me, excitement glimmering in his eyes.
“Sure, nails for everyone I guess.” I shrug.
“You’ll love the massage,” Monroe says to Decker.
She’s ditching me too? I guess he really was babysitter of the year.
“I’m gonna be just like Easton Bailey. And I’m gonna tell everybody that I knew Easton Bailey was getting his nails done before the game,” Lincoln says proudly.
It’s official. I’ve been replaced. I was like a rock star, and now he’s all over Easton. But Easton is a favorite of the Colts’ fanbase since he’s played here longer than Decker and me.
When we reach the salon, we head inside and it takes me a minute to get used to the overpowering chemical smell. They take Monroe first, then Easton somehow finagles a spot for him and Lincoln, using his charm to get the same thing done to both of their nails. Decker sits in the corner on his phone, not really talking to any of us, so I slide in next to him.
“So be straight with me.”
“Straight with what?” He doesn’t look away from his phone, continuing to scroll.
“Was he right? Like… that I’m doing this to get in Leighton’s pants? Is it gonna come off that way? Because I do like her,” I whisper.
He turns away from his phone and quirks an eyebrow at me. “Easton owes me fifty. Thanks for that.”
I frown. “What?”
“He was baiting you. You know… reverse psychology. Make you do what you’re doing now, convincing yourself you shouldn’t be into her.”
“I just want to make sure I’m not doing it because I like her.”
But he doesn’t clarify why he and Easton are betting on whether I like Leighton or not. They’ve never even seen us together except at the hospital six months ago.
“I wouldn’t say you’re doing this because you want to get in her pants. You’re the kind of guy who helps a lot of people out,” Decker says.
“Who do I help out?”
“I’m not going to boost your ego by saying I think you could be captain material by next year.”
“Captain material?” I’ve never thought of myself as a captain. He’s just being a nice guy—per usual.
“You help all the guys on the team. I mean, you’re even nice to Drew. And Drew is a complete asshat.”
I shrug. “He’s young. He’s new in the league. You know how it was.”
“Yeah, I do know how it was, and we all earned our stripes the hard way. Drew needs to get knocked down a couple of pegs if he’s ever gonna get respect from the team.”
I don’t really want to get into the rookies with him, but I’ve always had a soft spot for the underdog, because I can relate to them.
“It sucks that you actually like her, though, because you’re never gonna do anything about it. She’s your sister’s best friend, so that makes her off-limits.”
Decker is such an admirable guy. I could leave him in a dark room with Callie giving him a lap dance, and he’d still lock his hands behind his back. Not so sure I could say the same about his brother, even if Foster is my best friend.
