Lo: I’m prude of yot. You playhed so erll.
My phone buzzed, and I yelped.
Luca calling.
Shit. Theyjustwon the game. How was he calling me? An accident, maybe?
I stared, confused as to why he’d call that I forgot to answer. Oops! I giggled, just as he tried again, and I picked up, determined to not forget. “Hello there, champion.”
“Are you drunk?” he asked, no hello or anything.
Music blared around us, and people shouted. I tried moving past Cooper, but he was mid-convo arguing about the best cereal. “It’s Reese’s Puffs, idiots,” I said, nudging him. “Hey Coop, can I get by you?”
“Sure thing, Lo.” He picked me up by my hips and set me down, not even glancing at me before arguing with Ale about breakfast foods.
What a hoot.
“Lorelei, where the fuck are you?”
“At a bar. With my friends.” I ducked through the crowd until I went to the patio. “Luca Monroe, how are you calling me? You just won! Dare I say played the greatest game of your life?”
“Who are you with?”
“Good sir, let’s talk football. Shouldn’t that be the sexiest thing ever?” I giggled and twirled my hair like an idiot with an ill-timed crush. His irritated voice was raspy and rough and then it hit me. “Why are you angry? Did you get hurt? Oh, Luca.”
“Have you been drinking?”
“I mean, I’ve had a few drinks, but Luca, sweetie, why are you yelling at me? Did something happen? I wanted to tell you I’m so proud of you. Watching you tonight was unreal, the way you move and command the field. Dean is lucky to have you on his side, that’s the truth.”
“I—” he paused, the deafening silence like a punch to the gut. “You’re proud of me?”
“Goofily so. Is that a word? Goofily? It sounds goofy. Ha!” I cackled. “How are you calling me right now?”
“I have a phone. It’s this invention—”
“Luca Monroe, you’re doing a joke. I amherefor this!” I shouted, laughing again as warmth spread through my veins. “Why did you call me though? You should be doing body shots off a model or streaking through Iowa right now.”
“I hate seeing Oliver’s jersey on you.”
“You called to tell me that,” I deadpanned. “Liar.”
“Is Mack coming over tonight? I don’t want you alone at the house and… truthfully,” he said, sighing. “I was worried about you.”
“Aw, how cute.” I scrunched my nose and twirled in a circle.
“Your text had typos, and your face was red in the photo. It’s clear you’re drunk.”
The warmth cooled and my smile fell. “Ah, so not cute. You called to yell at me.”
“You need to be careful and smart,” he snapped.
“Because I’m not?” Maybe it was my beer-filled mind, but I wasn’t quite sure how this conversation had me switching from smiling and giddy to angry. “Enjoy your night. You deserve to have fun, but I’m not going to do this.”
I hung up, irritated as hell. He could’ve ignored my text entirely and left me on my merry way, but now I was pissed.Careful and smart.I wasn’t some helpless idiot party girl. We had a friend code and never left anywhere alone.
My phone buzzed again, Luca’s name appearing, and I debated not answering it. He didn’t deserve me too, but I did anyway. “What, Luca?”
“I want to renegotiate our deal.”
