“Street girl?”
And then I stopped wondering about it.
Cord Tatum stood behind me with his arm around a girl’s waist. He was dressed in Grant West University gear, with athletic pants and a sweatshirt that looked like it might’ve cost over a $200. Two other guys were with him, dressed the same. The girl wore a skimpy red top and jeans that were like a second skin.
He flashed me a grin. “Marissa’s friend, right? You bitched me out on the street by Benson’s house.”
I gave them a wry grin. For some reason, I was uncomfortable that he remembered that. “Yeah, I guess so.”
His gaze flicked past my shoulder to the front desk worker. “What are you doing? You getting a room?”
“That’s cute, thinking you can get a room here.” The girl flicked her red hair over her shoulder and laughed. She trailed a hand down his arm and rested it on his chest.
My eyes narrowed at her, but I responded to him, “My friends already got rooms, but they’re coupled up. It feels weird, you know?”
“Ah. Got it.”
One of the guys nudged him from behind. Cord’s eyes lit up. “Hey, we have a few empty beds with the team. You could bunk with one of us. We’d have to put you with a decent guy.”
“Or one that’s neutered,” a buddy snickered behind him.
My smile strained at the ends. “Uh…” But I remembered the front desk’s snippy words and my fingers let go of my bags. They dropped to the floor. “Sure.” I was desperate at that moment. But then I remembered all of his words. “Wait, you said your whole team? Your whole team is staying here?”
He nodded. “Yeah, we have a game tomorrow. I ran into Marissa at the airport and she badgered me for tickets.” He shrugged. “It’s no big deal. I figured I owed her for what a jackass I was before.”
I nodded. I had guessed that was how she’d gotten those tickets, but some excitement sparked in me at the idea of watching Jesse play again. It’d been too long. It’d been too long since I had felt him too.
Cord’s eyes were thoughtful on me. “I think Hunt got his own room.”
The same guy snickered again, “Golden Boy ain’t going to share a room, not unless he’s banging the chick.”
Cord turned on him and sneered, “The Golden Boy was best friends with her brother.”
His friend’s smirk vanished and his eyes widened. The girl straightened and reassessed me. I ignored both of their reactions. “I don’t want to bother Jesse. I’m sure he has other things to worry about.”
A third guy snorted from the back. “The only thing he’s got to worry about is if he gets enough sleep.”
Cord’s eyes grew hard. “Shut up, Kaseys. We’re damn lucky to have Hunt on our team and you know it. He’s our best damn player, so show some respect.”
The girl had detached herself from his side and migrated over as he had turned towards his buddies. She gave me an intense look now and her voice came out husky, “So you know Jesse Hunt?”
Cord snorted and hauled her back to him. A hand cemented her against his side. “No way, Mel. This girl is off limits.”
Her lips stuck out in a pout. “Come on.”
“No.”
And then one of the guys shouted, “Hunt!”
He was coming in from the sliding doors with a bag over his shoulder. As he looked up, a polite grin was on his face, but then Cord stepped aside and his eyes landed on me. He froze. I watched with a pounding heart as his hand tightened on his bag strap and his eyes went wide with some unnamed emotion. But then a mask came over him and he approached us. “Hey, guys.” His eyes zeroed in on me. “You’re here?”
I swallowed over a painful knot in my throat. “Yeah.”
He frowned. “But your folks are—”
Cord clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, buddy. So this little beauty here is looking for a room to share. She’s here with friends, but they’re all coupled up and the front desk bitch made it clear that there aren’t any empty rooms available.”
The worker’s mouth flattened at her mention, but shedidn’t say a word.
Jesse’s eyes had narrowed on me. He didn’t wait a second. “Yeah, she can stay with me.”
My heart skipped a beat and I forgot to breathe for a second.
“Sweet. It’s all worked out. See you around, Street girl.” Cord winked at me as he led his friends to the elevator.
Jesse waited until they had gotten into one before he touched my arm. He asked quietly, “You’re not here with your parents?”
I shook my head. I couldn’t speak. Tears threatened to spill.
“They’re at The Four Seasons.” He had grown so quiet. “You don’t want them to know you’re here?”
My head wrenched from side to side. I couldn’t tell him they had left to escape me and now we were in the same city. It wouldn’t have been fair to them. So I choked out in a whisper, “They’re doing a second honeymoon thing.”
“Who did you come with?”
“Marissa and her boyfriend. Angie and Justin.”
He settled back. “Got it.” His lip twitched at the corner. “Marissa’s got another boyfriend? I pity that guy.”
“Eric Nathan.”
He went still. “What?”
“She’s dating Eric Nathan.”
His jaw clenched. And then he clipped out, “Good. He’s not your problem anymore then.”