“Ooo, that sounds good,” she says and pulls out a container of soup. “Here.”
“It’s the best. It’s almost as good as my mom’s chicken and rice soup.”
Evie smiles. “That’s awesome.” She hands me a piece of bread.
“There’s another bowl in there for her,” Slater says.
I turn to him. “You got me two bowls of soup?” He nods. “Why?”
Evie laughs. “Just go with it, Tess. These guys love their food and want to make sure we get enough too.”
I turn to him. “Thanks, Slater.” He only nods. “Let me know how much I owe you.” Evie laughs again, and I turn to her. “What?”
“It’s cute that you think he’s going to let you pay.”
I turn to Slater, and he shakes his head. “Not happening.” He picks up my bowl and bread and a salad container and walks outto the living room. He sets everything down on the coffee table and then waits for me.
“We’re eating out here?” I ask.
“We’re going to watch Reid’s game,” Zane says, carrying his and Evie’s food.
“Ooo, yes.” I plop down onto the couch. “This is going to be so good. They’re playing Kansas City tonight; it should be a good game.”
Slater hands me my bowl of soup. “You get this excited for soccer or just basketball?”
Zane laughs, but I ignore it, “I get excited about all sports,” I remind him and then put out my hands for my soup. I can smell it, and I’m so hungry. He hands me the bowl with bread on top. “Thank you.” He nods and then grabs his salad. I realize at that moment that there’s not enough room for him to sit with us. Zane, Evie, and I are already taking up the whole couch. I mean, we could squeeze together; but before we do, Slater slips to the floor in front of me. I automatically pull up my legs and sit cross-legged so he can sit against the couch. He turns and looks at me skeptically. “Are you comfortable that way?”
“Perfectly.” I tear off a piece of bread and slip it into my mouth. He leans all the way against the couch, and I can feel his body heat from here. I take off the lid of my soup and close my eyes. “Mmmm.”
Chapter 18
Tessa
I enjoy my soup while we watch the teams warm-up, and then it’s time for the start of the game. Slater tries to offer me the second bowl of soup, but I wave him away. “I’m full; thank you.” I spy the bread that came with it. “Ooo, but I’ll take that bread if you don’t want it.” He hands it to me, and I tear off strips of bread.
“Panera has the best bread,” Evie comments from right next to me.
“Yeah, they do.”
The game starts, and I lose focus of everything but the game. Slater hasn’t been subjected to sitting near me during a game, and he gets the full experience. He turns to me after the first few minutes when there’s a commercial. “Are you always this intense during a game?”
Zane and Evie laugh. “Oh, this is nothing. You should have seen her at your game this weekend, Brother,” Zane says.
Slater stares at me, and I shrug. “I love sports.”
“But you love soccer more, right?” His voice is quiet, and I don’t think Evie and Zane can hear him over the tv.
I grin and pretend that I’m thinking about it. “Watching Reid play is pretty amazing; he’s really good.” I’m not lying about that; he really is good. Slater’s eyes narrow, and I can’t resist messing with him. “And football is really good too. Zane has quite the arm. He’s set so many records already.” I lean forward and pat his shoulder. “Don’t worry. I still love soccer too.”
The game comes back on, and I get sucked in. I really enjoy watching, but the pain in my nose and head is starting to build again. At halftime, I lean forward. “Slater, do you have any more of those pain killers?”
He turns to me, and I realize how close our heads are. He stills, and I think I forget how to breathe. Then he breaks the moment. “I’ll get them.” He’s gone a moment later, and I try to draw oxygen into my lungs. He comes back a few minutes later and hands them to me along with my water bottle from earlier.
“Thanks.”
I continue to watch as the second half starts, but I have a hard time watching. It’s making my headache worse. I must make a sound, because Slater turns to me suddenly and stands. “Hey, come on.” He puts out his hand, and I slip mine in his. Without a word, he leads me to his room again.
“I just need a minute in the dark to try to get my head to stop hurting, and then maybe you could drive me back to campus, if that’s not too much trouble.”
