Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 82543 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 413(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82543 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 413(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
I stop dead in my tracks. “You what?”
He swears under his breath. “I don’t mean for you. I mean …” Levi blows out a loud breath. “Like I said the other day, that night, the way you talked about California, it sounded like everything I wanted and exactly what I wasn’t allowed. I came here because of what you represented, not … because of you specifically.”
He looks like he’s about to shit a brick, and I can’t help smiling.
His eyes are wide, and his babble is adorable. “I didn’t move here for you. Like, to be with you. I want us to be friends.”
That’s when my face drops and my gut hollows out, but I try not to let it show. “Just friends?”
He nods.
Damn.
There’s a beat of silence where I’m tempted to say how disappointing that is, but I decide to let it go. It’s not like I can offer him much more anyway.
“We should get these to the house.” I adjust the heavy takeout boxes in my arms a bit higher and lead the way.
We reach the steps of Stormer house and knock, but the noise from the other houses is either too loud or everyone inside is too high to realize the sound isn’t coming from their imaginations.
I knock again, louder this time and continuously until I hear movement inside—someone running down the stairs. Or falling. One or the other.
The door flies open, and a guy with long, blond hair stands there with a confused furrow in his brow but a casual smile on his lips. I recognize him as a friend of a friend of a friend type thing, and I think his name is Chris.
“Delivery.”
That just makes him more confused.
“We had all these leftovers, and I figured you and your roommates wouldn’t let them go to waste. You know, in case any of you got … hungry. I’d normally take it to the guys on the team or the DIKs, but you’re closer than the frat house, and we have a huge game tomorrow. Coach would kill me.”
His smile widens. “Sweet. Come in.” We follow him into the dim living room, where there are guys playing video games and there’s a dude in the corner nursing a bong.
The place smells like stale weed, but where I screw up my nose at it, Levi breathes it in.
“Mm, nostalgia,” he hums, and I laugh.
“Free food,” Chris calls out as we put the boxes on the coffee table.
That gets everyone’s attention, and they come flooding from all directions.
“You should’ve yelled that at the front door instead of knocking,” Levi says.
“Probably.” I turn to the guys. “We’ll leave you to it.”
They all mumble thank-yous around bites of food, and we give them a wave as we take off.
When we close the door behind us, Levi asks, “Where to now? Got any more good deeds you need doing?”
“The only good deed I have left is going home to bed so I can actually focus on the ball tomorrow.”
“Fair enough.”
I have to be reading into it, but I swear there’s disappointment in his tone. “I can walk you home first, though.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I know I don’t have to. But I want to. That’s what friends are for.” The word friend tastes bitter on my tongue.
“Right.”
The entire walk to Levi’s, I make sure to keep my hands in my jeans pockets at all times. Otherwise, I run the risk of pushing him against the nearest surface, kissing the fuck out of him, and then asking again if he only wants to be friends. If I did that, I’d be playing with fire because I know deep down I shouldn’t pursue anything with Levi. Or anyone.
I have one focus. Football, football, and more football.
“This is me,” he says and pauses on the stoop of his apartment building. His lips part to say something else, and I swear he’s going to ask me if I want to come up, but my phone interrupts us.
“Sorry. Just gotta …” I step back and see Dad’s name on my screen. “Uh-oh. I’m in trouble. This should be fun.” I hit Answer and don’t even get out a hello before I’m being yelled at.
“You spent over two thousand dollars on dinner?”
“Good luck with that. Good night.” Levi turns and disappears inside, and Dad’s anger is suddenly gone.
“Oh, wait, was that him? Are you still with Levi?”
“Not anymore. I’m on my way home. You can yell at me in ten minutes. Unless I get abducted on the walk home. Which is possible. I swear I saw a UFO go by before. Maybe I can flag them down.”
“I promise I won’t yell. Again. No need to call upon the aliens to save you. See you soon.”
We end the call, but I still don’t really want to go back to the house. Not because of getting in trouble—I was expecting that—but because they’re going to want details, and I’m not ready to share. Mainly because Levi is confusing as fuck.