I had a masturbation session with him. As I read the texts, I remembered the incident clearly, and I had been a willing participant in the actions. I had no doubt he would have too. Ash owned his sexuality, which is one of the things that I found so attractive about him. He wasn’t a cringeworthy one-liner kind of guy; he was just a guy who looked at you, and you knew he was going to own your ass in the bedroom.
The guy had game, there was no doubt about it.
And before last night, I would’ve liked to think I had a little bit of game myself. Now? Now I was hoping to never see him again if I were honest. The embarrassment was gut-wrenching.
“Ava?” I asked as I turned to look at my best friend. “What have I missed?”
“Only the top two teams go forward to the championship game. The Saints have lost one game; the Alabama Lions have lost one game. Neither could afford to lose today. Add in Kentucky, which has only lost to both Alabama and us, and, well, we need them to lose today. Then the Saints can still get to the championship game if they win next week.”
“And Kentucky loses,” Quinn added grimly. “Damn, we needed to win today. What was Woods doing on the D-line?”
“Dante Spence was just on point today,” Ava commiserated. “And Dustin, geez, did you see those runs?”
Ava’s cell rang, and she reached over to answer it. Her look was one of surprise, so I knew it wasn’t Jett. “Hey, Bobby,” Ava greeted. She nodded as she listened. “Yeah, I did take a note of the yards, yup, I can text you. Aren’t you watching it on the TV?” She paused. “Seriously? It’s going out now?” She listened. “Wow, that’s harsh.”
Quinn was watching her closely, and I saw Ava frown. “No, Bobby, you’rethisschool’s sportswriter.” Ava stood, and I knew she was irked when she rolled her eyes. “Youcannotput that as a headline. No.” Another pause. “Because Jett’s going to kick your ass. And if he doesn’t, Gray will. Actually, fuck that,Iwill.” Ava turned her attention to me, and I saw her eyes narrow. “No, no.” A deep breath. “I’ll send you what you need, but do not dare make me knee you in your balls.”
Hanging up, she looked at us both. “Bobby needs the Lions’ stats. He’s already halfway through the column for the paper.”
“Headline?” Quinn asked, and I could see her holding her breath.
“‘Lions Victory Over Devil-less Saints.’”
“Yeah, they’re going to kick his ass.”
“Yup.”
“I’m going to go work on some assignments before they get home,” Quinn said as she headed to the stairs. “Kentucky ended while you were on the phone, same score as before,” she added to Ava. Ava’s groan told me that wasn’t what they were hoping for.
Ava was on her phone, texting Bobby, no doubt, and didn’t even look up. I watched Quinn climb the stairs. With a sigh, I pushed to my feet. We had been cordial during the game, but I couldn’t put it off. I needed to apologize. Properly.
“She’s not scary,” Ava said from her spot on the couch, still without lifting her head.
“No, I know.” I lingered for a moment more. “Her boyfriend is though.”
Ava snorted and continued texting. With a deep breath, I followed Quinn up the stairs and knocked on Gray’s door.
“Come in,” Quinn called, and I pushed the door open. She was in the middle of changing, her shirt on the bed, her yoga pants and bra the only things she had on. “Oh, I thought you were Ava.”
“Sorry,” I muttered as I closed the door.
Quinn crossed the room and went into Gray’s closet. “No matter, what do you need?”
Feeling awkward, I followed her to the closet. I didn’t want to say this to a door; I wanted to at least be able to say it face-to-face.
“Can we talk?”
Quinn looked at me briefly before she looked back at the drawers. She had drawers here? Wow. They really wereall in. “I don’t know if you have anything left to say?” she said with a forced laugh.
“I know, I was so out of line. I didn’t remember when I woke up, but I, um, do now.”
And I did. When I read the text thread to Ash, the whole evening came crashing back to me, and I had lain on his bed, feeling like a really terrible human being.
“I wasn’t sure if you did or not,” Quinn replied as she straightened. She looked at the closet and then at me, then down at her half-undressed state. “I want to wear something nice for him to come home to.”
It was an olive branch, and I recognized it for what it was. A peace offering, and I grabbed it. “I can help? And maybe talk?”
Quinn studied me for a moment longer and then nodded. “I’d like to hear what you have to say,” she said, and I could hear the hesitation in her voice as she spoke to me.
