Now he’s playing for himself, he doesn’t need to hold back and I don’t need to pretend I’m not staring at him because everyone else is too.
Xander sits in the empty space beside me and I hear Emilia groan before he’s even opened his mouth. He looks around me to my best friend, scowling. “Next time you need something off a top shelf, don’t bother asking me for help. Try growing.”
Emilia cackles. “Ooh, someone’s feeling feisty.”
He ignores her, instead turning back to me. “Roberts, how do you feel about flashing?”
“Being flashed? Big no. Not a fan. Being the flasher? I ordinarily wouldn’t be against it if it’s for something important, like a summer camp amateur basketball tournament where there is no prize or real incentive to participate, but it isn’t possible with minors around. Sorry.”
He sighs. “That’s true. Damn, kids. I wish Clay had a mascot you could steal.”
“I steal one pig a million years ago and suddenly I’m a risk to mascots,” I roll my eyes. As for my various reputations over the years, this is probably the most annoying one. “Would it help if I told you it’s not the winning that counts, it’s the taking part?”
Xander pins me with a look so icy, it reminds me of my mom staring at my dad. “Grow up, Aurora.”
What feels like a dozen games later, it’s finally time for us to play Russ. I’ve been purposely avoiding him since this afternoon, instead opting to send him intimidating looks, occasionally dragging my finger across my neck when I caught him staring at me.
He approaches me as soon as we step onto the court, holding out his hand to shake mine. “Isn’t this the bit where you proposition me with something debased and scandalous to help you cheat?” I say quietly, trying to look casual given our huge audience.
“Sorry, Roberts. I don’t negotiate with my competition.” He lets go of my hand, moving on to shake everyone else’s so it doesn’t look weird.
Xander is at my side immediately. “What did he say?”
“He said he’d organize a threesome with someone on the hockey team if I help him cheat. I said no. Told him I’m committed my team.”
“Okay, you could have picked something believable if you were going to lie to me.” Xander snorts and it’s the most Xander he’s been all day, which gives me hope this super intense version of him will pass. “That boy isn’t sharing you with anyone, ever. Is your head in the game?”
“My head is always in the game.”
The game starts and in a very predictable turn of events, it’s the Xander versus Clay show. Emilia and I are jogging up and down the court trying to keep up, but they all have such long legs and everything moves so quickly. They battle for points, which is fine, until Clay and Russ find their rhythm, making it harder for Xander and the other people on our team to keep up. Harder, but not impossible.
We’re neck and neck and, honestly, I’m more than ready for this to be over.
“Roberts,” Xander hisses as he runs past me. “Distract him.”
I don’t need him to expand on who him is. Rolling my eyes, I move to the other side of the court, the side Russ seems to favor. The only good distraction methods I have involve nudity and, as previously established, I can’t do that here. He looks over his shoulder at me as I approach him and I feel really freaking silly because there’s no way I can do what Xander wants.
I watch Clay battle with Xander, then turn, looking for Russ and I realize it’s my shot. The ball is heading right for him and I get as close as I can. “Can we have a threesome?”
Russ’s head snaps to me instantly, the basketball hits him right in the stomach. He grunts on impact, making me feel sort of bad.
Even in his winded state, he half lunges for the ball, but I’m quicker and as soon as it’s in my hands I freeze.
Oh shit, I didn’t think beyond the distraction.
“GO,” about fifty people shout at me at once.
Bouncing a ball and moving my feet at the same time is not as easy as it looks and somewhere in the distance I can hear Xander screaming at me to pass, but it’s too late, because there’s a body on mine. Russ being this close to me in front of so many people feels scandalous, but even with his heavy breath on my neck making my nipples go hard, he’s really freaking determined to get the ball back.
“We can both play dirty, sweetheart,” he huffs.
I’m surprised I can hear him, considering how loud the kids are being on the sidelines. The whistle blows and Russ takes an extra second to unwrap himself from around me. I tut at him, bouncing the ball once while our teammates argue over God knows what in the background. I can only assume what we just did breaks some kind of rule, but I’d be lying if I said I had any interest in finding out which ones. “I have a proposition for you.”
“If it’s another threesome offer, I respectfully decline.”
I can’t help but snort. “If I pretend to hurt myself, wanna go find the dogs and drink hot chocolate?”
“Of course I want that. Basketball is shit.”
“Not all balls are created equal.” Xander gestures for me to throw him the ball while he continues to bicker with Clay about something. “You’re allowed to favor your own.”
Russ is staring at me with his hands on his hips. His hair is messy, brushed back off his face in the way I love. It’s a real struggle to not tell him how pretty he is every minute of the day. “I know we sort of laughed about it, but I need to hear you say you know what a hockey puck looks like and that you know it’s not a ball.”
“Of course I do.” He breathes a sigh of relief. “Like a little baby car tire.”
“What? No, it—”
I turn to walk away from him, pretending to trip over my own feet and fall to the ground before he can say anything else, shouting OUCH at the top of my lungs. Russ crouches beside me, pretending to check my knee for injury. “You’d be a terrible actress, y’know.”
“I’m in so much pain,” I say casually. “Please take me to the nurse, my hero.”
The rest of our team jog over, staring down at me on the floor. “What happened?”
“She fell over her own feet,” Russ says, holding out his hands to help pull me to my feet. “I should take her to the nurse to be on the safe side. You guys carry on without us.”
Clay immediately tries to protest, but Xander beats him to it. “Yeah that’s fair, then we’re both one person down. Feel better, Roberts. Good effort, etcetera.”
He mouths good job as I pretend to hobble away with Russ and I love that Xander immediately thinks I did this for him and not myself.
When we’re far enough away from the basketball court that the kids’ cheers are just a quiet hum, Russ pulls me off the path and pushes me against a tree. My heart rate instantly spikes, excitement growing as he presses into me, caging me in with his arms. I know everyone is at the basketball court, but this is bold, especially for him.
“If I knew you wanted to take me against a tree, I’d have fallen down so much earlier.”
“Take you? No,” he echoes. “I need your undivided attention while I talk to you about hockey pucks.”
Chapter Thirty
AURORA
What’s the word for when you find yourself exactly where you’re supposed to be?
I feel at peace with myself and my life for the first time and there’s nothing that can derail that. Today is finally Visiting Day. A lot leave site for the day and only come back for the evening barbeque and games; some families don’t visit at all.