Total pages in book: 65
Estimated words: 62700 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 314(@200wpm)___ 251(@250wpm)___ 209(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62700 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 314(@200wpm)___ 251(@250wpm)___ 209(@300wpm)
Truthfully, I’d always been a problem-solver and the kind of person who gravitated to people who were a little more broken than I was. As though I could somehow help them. What a joke. I could barely help myself most days. But Colby’s grumpy, bad-boy vibe fascinated me. He was always angry about something, and I was the mellow one who tried to calm him down. Not so much anymore.
Colby was more even-tempered and relaxed since he met Sky. His boyfriend was a super handsome baseball player at Chilton who somehow snuck through Colby’s impressive armor. Happiness looked good on my buddy. He smiled a little more and had that contented glow I associated with people who got laid regularly.
Damn, I needed that in my life. Not the relationship part. Just the sex.
I slowed behind a red Corvette. When the urge to break into song hit me, I couldn’t resist. I sang the chorus to the Prince classic, snickering when Colby raised a brow over the rim of his sunglasses. He was five eleven with brown hair and brown eyes and a thick, muscular build. He’d perfected his signature intimidating glare on the ice. No doubt it served him well in hockey when he faced off against some badass dudes, but I’d known him too long.
I continued singing “Little Red Corvette” as I turned left onto Ocean Boulevard, chuckling when I caught his side-eye scowl.
“Cool it. You’re hurting my ears. Just tell me about the new roommate. He’s Sophie’s friend, right? Is he a theater geek too?”
“Sort of. He doesn’t seem like one, though. Braden isn’t overly dramatic like Sophie. He’s…normal. And he played volleyball at Chilton. I actually recognized him.”
“Hmm. Maybe Sky knows him,” Colby commented.
“Maybe. Hey, just…be cool. He’s meeting us at the beach,” I said in a rush. “I invited him last night, then Dylan texted to say he couldn’t make it this morning, so I told Braden we kind of need him.”
“Oh, okay.” He waited a beat then added, “I’m always cool.”
“Well, don’t give him that tough-guy scowl. I need him to like me this summer.”
“Everyone likes you, El. What’s really happening here?” Colby asked, swiveling in his seat. “Do you have a crush on him?”
I pulled into a parking spot across the street from the beach, flipped my sunglasses on top of my head, and huffed in exasperation. “Don’t be ridiculous. I hardly know the guy.”
Of course, that didn’t mean shit. Braden had every ingredient I was attracted to…times ten. He was sexy and smart, and he seemed to have his shit together.
“Oh, and you’ve never had an inappropriate crush on a stranger?”
“What makes a crush inappropriate?” I countered.
“Well, if you’re related, obvs. After that, it’s probably subjective.”
“Hmph. I don’t have time for any kind of crush right now,” I said before hopping out of the car.
Colby met me at the trunk and bumped my shoulder companionably. “Hey, are you okay? You’re acting squirrelly…like you’re anxious or something.”
“I’m fine, but…I ran into Drew at Starbucks yesterday. It was weird.”
“Ahh. So you got wound up about the ex and had rebound thoughts about your new roomie.”
“Nope. Two separate events.”
“So you do have a crush on the new guy!”
I glanced around the parking lot as if I were afraid Braden was lurking around, then elbowed Colby in the ribs. “No! Even if I did, it wouldn’t be a rebound thing. Drew and I broke up months ago. In fact, seeing him yesterday was a nonevent. We said ‘hi,’ and we were very polite. Like always. I felt like I was holding my breath for ten minutes waiting for something juicy to happen. But it was a big zero.”
“That’s ’cause he’s a big zero.”
“No, he’s a good guy. But get this.…He asked me if I wanted to have coffee sometime. In the future,” I clarified, stabbing the button at the crosswalk irritably.
“And you said?”
“Nothing. I’m over Drew. I really am. And we’re never going to have coffee.”
“But you can have coffee with Braden.”
“Sure.”
“Naked coffee,” he drawled matter-of-factly.
I snickered. “No, just regular coffee. And we can play volleyball, share a meal, whatever. I can’t lose a roommate now, and I can’t suck in my next tournament. Failure is not an option. This is my first year as a pro. I cannot blow it.”
“But you could blow your new roommate,” Colby quipped as we crossed the street.
“That wouldn’t be smart.”
“Nope. Not smart at all,” he agreed. “But it could be fun.”
“Sure, but it’s not going to happen.” I dropped my bag in the sand and waved at Tucker, who was busy fiddling with the net. “We both play volleyball, and nothing says ‘we’re just buds’ more than a casual game at the beach, right?”
Wrong.
Totally wrong.
I couldn’t keep my eyes off Braden. He was male beauty in motion…taut muscles, bulging biceps, and a perfect ass. My errant homoerotic thoughts didn’t necessarily worry me. I owned my bi side. In fact, I freaking loved exploring my attraction to men. But there was a time and place for everything, and sexy daydreaming on a crowded beach would only lead to serious embarrassment.