I shake my head slightly and stare back out the window.
When I told her to stay, I didn’t even stop to think about the repercussions. The words just spilled out of my mouth.
Stay.
And she did.
She kicked off her shoes and climbed into my bed beside me, like she always belonged there.
I didn’t sleep much. Most of the night, I just lay there, switching between staring at her and the ceiling, taking in the soft sound of her snores as her body curled into me.
When I woke up, I found her trying to leave without saying goodbye.
“I have class,” she said, pulling on her jacket.
“I’ll come with you.”
She glances over at my gear bag on the floor, already knowing we’re heading out of town today. “You don’t have to do that. I know you have an away game tomorrow.”
“Until then, I have nowhere else to be.”
That was the end of the discussion.
I followed her so she’d have her car when class let out. The campus was busy. People heading to morning class with coffee in their hands. Brinley had groaned about not having any herselfwhen I took her hand, taking a detour to grab her a cup before walking her to her lecture.
I stayed at her side the entire way.
“You’re making a point,” she says quietly.
“Maybe.”
She looks up at me, like she’s trying to read into what that meant.
When we reach the doors, she turns and pauses. “You don’t have to prove anything to anyone watching.”
“I’m not.”
Well, that wasn’t entirely true.
If someone’s been watching her, they can keep watching. If Coach assumes I’m going to fall in line and follow his rules, letting him control my life, he can think again.
I press my palm against her cheek, trailing my thumb along her jaw, and lean in to kiss her. It’s slow and unhurried, right here in front of anyone who could be staring.
She didn’t pull away either.
Now, on the bus, I tilt my head against the headrest and close my eyes for a minute. Replaying every minute of that kiss and the night we shared.
“The media is already speculating how your shoulder is doing and if you’ll be playing.”
“I figured.”
“You gonna say anything if they ask to speak with you?”
“No.”
He lets out a quiet laugh. “Gonna milk it, then?”
I open one eye and look at him.
