Dean coughed.
“What? No. Not… medium. I want medium.” My face burned cherry red as I stumbled over my words. “I’m not a one-night stand person. I wish I was, but I’m not, and that’s too far.”
“Making out then,” Vee said. “Or a tit squeeze.”
“We’re not putting atit squeezeon this list,” I said, grabbing Lo’s beer and taking a long swing. “Someone needs to be rational here.”
“I disagree.” Ale grinned sheepishly at me. “We know you, Mack, and despite Callum’s terrible start, we understand your limits. Now, you and your man chest pipe down. You trust us, and we love you. We got this.”
I stared at my friends, my teammates, and sighed. “Okay, I need a goddamn drink though.”
CHAPTER
FOUR
Dean
“I’ll come with you.”
I joined Mack on her walk to the house to get a drink. I wanted one too, but I’d need about ten if I was in her position. She was handling the challenge well too. It impressed me. Seeing her gain courage at the bar the other night, then tonight, wearing that stupid fucking shirt, showed her innate pride and bravery.
I’d always found Mack cute, but her legs in her outfit right now were delectable. After not being attracted to anyone the last half a year, lust hit me hard and fast. Her calves were defined from years of training, and I wanted to feel them, run my tongue over them to see if her skin was as smooth as it looked.
“Are you joining in on the list to embarrass me?”
“Wait.” I paused, clearing my inappropriate thoughts about my sister’s best friend. “Why would I do that?”
“You’re the king of one-night stands, and I can’t even do them. I put on this strong face that I’m looking forward to thesechallenges when really I’m terrified.” She pushed her hair behind her ears, her eyes wide and full of emotions.
Feelings weren’t really my thing off the field. It might’ve been why I was still struggling to deal with the aftermath of what happened in the fall. Seeing her fear, excitement, and embarrassment in her expression stopped me though. She thought I’d embarrass her? I didn’t like that. “There’s nothing to be ashamed about not wanting to do one-night stands.”
“Well, you’re a player, and that’s great. Good for you. But what if my friends, or former friends, put that shit on my list? I’m so competitive it’s unhealthy. I’ll have to complete the list, or I won’t live with myself.”
“You shouldn’t do anything that you’re not a fan of, Mack.”
“The whole point of the list is to have me live it up, which is something I don’t normally do.” She groaned and stomped into our kitchen. “Where is the alcohol?”
“Beer or hard stuff?” I asked, trying not to stare at the bare man chest or her legs. Callum said it perfectly earlier: it was confusing. Her legs were sexy as hell, but the hairy man chest wasn’t my preference.
SBC. Sexy but confusing.
“All of it.” She rubbed her temples and took a deep breath. “Beer. I’d love a beer or two before heading back out there. I thought I’d be in here alone to have my freakout, but you’re witnessing it, so I’m trying to be more chill.”
I went to the fridge and pulled out a couple of bottles. “Don’t be chill on my part. Let it all out, I can handle it.”
“You’re being nice to me. Why?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” I fired back, a little bothered by two negative comments from her. “Do you think I don’t like you? I would never embarrass you on purpose, like you asked earlier, nor would I be cruel. I’m a little confused here.”
“Fuck, you’re right. I’m sorry, Dean.” She walked closerto me, her eyes filled with sympathy as she squeezed my forearm. “I feel like we’ve circled each other the past three years, never really hanging out or talking, but now we’ve been around each other more the last week. You’re Dean Romano, the campus legend. The dude who can blink and have girls lined up. You’re kind of untouchable in my mind, so I’m projecting my own BS on you. You’re not mean and never have been to me. I shouldn’t have made you question that.”
I chewed my lip, taking in her words. She apologized so easily, so genuinely, and I envied her ability to do that. “I’m not really the campus legend anymore.”
She snorted. “And what has changed from last season to now? Of course, you still are. Your damn face is everywhere, and you have fan accounts.”
She has no idea what I went through.She never would. Instead of letting my mind go down that route, I changed direction.“I like how honest you are. It’s refreshing.”
“Oh. I can’t help it. It’s a personality flaw.”
