There’s just pitch black, and the thump of the metal I’m listening to ricocheting through my head.
I’m running out of space on my canvas, so I glance over the top of it to watch Darcy. He’s chewing his bottom lip, typing and backspacing, typing and backspacing.
I can’t tell if he’s missing West or if he’s just really messed up about the paper he’s supposed to be writing. When he groans and backspaces again, I sigh. “What’s wrong?”
He lifts his eyes. “Nothing.”
When I raise an eyebrow at him, it pulls a little. Damn. Must have paint on my face. “Okay, so why all the doom and gloom and huffing and whining?”
He huffs, making me grin. “I’m not whining.”
Well, that’s not believable at all. “Sure, sure.”
I look back at my canvas. There’s a small section with weird brushstrokes, so I smooth it out some. Not that I really care what it looks like. Well, I do. Only because I want to show Ben and Landon tomorrow. Or maybe even tonight.
Darcy’s keystrokes pick back up, and it sounds like he gets a good streak going. At least for a few seconds, but when he huffs and starts jamming his finger into the backspace key over and over, I pause the music.
His eyes dart to mine. “Seriously, Darce. What’s the problem? Missing West?”
He groans. “Don’t say it like that. It makes me sound pathetic.”
I laugh. It’s not like I’m any better. I miss the fuck out of Ben and Lan right now. “If it’s the truth…”
Darcy glares at me. “Shut up.”
I pick up my phone and scroll through all the photos Ben sent to our group chat. At the very bottom, he’s pinned their location. A smile blooms on my face. We’re going. Now I just need to convince Darcy of that.
Chapter 22
Landon
Weston bumps my helmet with his. “Fuck yeah, man! Great protection.”
“Thanks, Weston.”
He shakes his head. “Call me West.”
He runs off, congratulating each of the guys for our win. Ben sidles up beside me. “Great game, Cutie. Think we’re gonna go out and celebrate. Wanna make a date of it?”
Nerves rattle in my stomach. I know West is dating Darcy now, but there’s still a little fear lingering.
“We don’t have to,” Ben says gently. “We can just go as teammates.”
I shake my head, mind made up. “Nah. Fuck that. Let’s text Park, though, to make sure it’s okay with them.”
Ben grins. We jog off the field toward the locker room. The crowd was electric tonight, and there’s nothing like playing to all those screams.There’s also nothing like watching Ben in action. He’s fast, and he’s got magic hands. I have no idea how he’s able to run the routes he does and still manage to get the ball in such tight coverage, but he’s a real joy to watch. If he wasn’t already mine, I’d be crushing hard.
Hell, I basically still am, if you can even call this a crush anymore. I’m sure my heart has doubled in size and found itself a nice home in Ben and Parker’s shared hands.
Ben drops down onto the bench, then pulls his phone out to text Parker.
Ben
Hey, Cotton Candy. The guys are going out to celebrate our win tonight. You okay if Lan and I make a date of it?
Cotton Candy
Duh. I’m at home with Darcy. He’s working on some paper, and I’m painting.
