Page 14 of Big Man on Campus

“I’ll take care of it. I’ll square things with Dooley.” Shit. I give her a kiss and even though the heat of my mouth touching hers feels like striking a match, I keep it short and push her into Fitz’s arms. The sirens are getting loud now.

“Get her inside. Stat.” Fitz takes her and half carries, half drags her into the house. The others follow when I shoo them. Brick stays outside with me.

“What the fuck are you doing, man?” Brick’s voice is low and warning, his cool anger rumbling underneath.

Ignoring him, I turn and get inside the car and punch in Dooley’s number. I figure I have about fifteen seconds to convince him to go along with Glory’s bailout, agree that she was never driving the car.

That I was driving, that I crashed the car into the tree.

“Dooley, what the fuck? I thought you were coming over?”

“Change of plans—”

“No fucking kidding. Glory crashed her car into my tree.”

There was the expected very pregnant pause and I swipe a hand through my hair as I glare at Brick, who’s shaking his head, no doubt enjoying my rare meltdown.

“Fuck,” Dooley says. “I’ll be right over.”

“Don’t bother. The police are on their way. Listen carefully. Glory never drove here. I drove her car here. I crashed her car into the tree.”

“Oooh-kay. Where’s Glory in your alternate universe?”

“She’s here. She came over earlier, much earlier and she’s staying over. Got it?” The sirens are loud enough to interfere with the call now.

“Got it.”

“Gotta go.” I slip the phone back in my pocket and get ready as the police car pulls to a stop, followed by an ambulance and a firetruck. Shit. Talking quickly, I say to Brick, “You get the story?” He nods. He’s cooler than the peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro and about as friendly. But I know he’ll back me with the police. I get out of the car as the two officers approach, leading with their flashlights though there’s a full moon and a streetlight nearby.

“You the driver?” one officer says. I nod. “License and registration please. Do you live here?” I nod again. I didn’t bring my wallet outside with me. Fuck.

“My license is inside.”

He nods. “Any injuries?” He flashes the light in my face again and looks closely, then runs the light up and down my body. “You a student athlete at PSU?”

“Yes, sir. Hockey team.” May as well get credit for it if it matters—and I hope like hell it doesn’t go against me.

“So what happened here?” I give him the story I’d quickly rehearsed in my head.

“I’d just pulled out of my driveway. On my way to the store to pick up some snacks. Borrowing my girlfriend’s car and she called me so I wasn’t fully paying attention when I gunned the gas and thought I saw something in the street, a cat or squirrel or something, and overcorrected, jerking the wheel. Hit the tree.”

He looks skeptical. “Gunned the engine?” I nod. The dent is front and center, but not too deep. Glory wasn’t going fast when she hit, ready to park the car, so I think my story fits. Explains why she’s here and why I’m driving her car. I’m feeling confident except my heart’s beating out of my chest. I don’t want them to ask the question about whether I’ve been drinking. He shines the light at Brick.

“You a passenger?”

“No sir. I came outside when I heard the car crash.”

“Any reason you can think of why the neighbor thought she saw a woman get out of the car?”

Fuck. I shake my head and shrug. “It’s dark?”

Brick smirks. “She never did like you.”

It was the perfect thing to say because the police officer nods. The firemen are done looking at the car and ask if I want them to call a tow truck and I tell them to go for it. The police officer asks if I need medical attention and lets the EMT take a look at me. The woman pronounces me unscathed.

“Do you want to go in and get checked out?”

“No. I’m fine. Thanks.” I’m cringing inside because I have no signs of being in even a small crash and I wonder if Glory needs to get checked out. But I promise to check her out myself later, thoroughly.