"I'm not afraid of a little competition, Kinsley," he whispered. "I play to win."
A smile spread across my lips, but I did my best to hide it. He moved behind me, heading toward Coach Davis to help her with drills, but his hand skipped along the base of my back as he walked by. The casual touch made goose bumps bloom across my body, and I knew I was making the right decision. Liam could disarm me with a single touch, and I'd never felt that way about either Trey or Josh. I was officially in over my head.
Once I'd showered and changed after practice, I laid back on my bed and checked my phone. There was a text message from Liam that I decided to check first.
Liam: I'll pick you up around 7. Don't eat dinner.
I texted him back right away.
Kinsley: Any hints? What should I wear?
Liam: Pajamas.
I laughed and swapped screens to check the missed call and voicemail I also had waiting for me.
"Hello Kinsley. This is Brian King. We spoke in Coach Davis' office last week about a potential interview opportunity for you. I know this is last minute, but I’ve been called away to Europe and my editor would really like this interview set up before I leave. That puts you in a tight spot, but if there’s any way I could convince you, would you be willing to meet me for the interview after you’re done with practice on Wednesday? I realize this is very late notice, but unfortunately the magazine has left me with very few options. We could meet at a coffee shop in West Hollywood. I’ll be coming from downtown LA. Also, I’ve sent Coach Davis a list of possible interview questions that you can run through with her. Let me know what you think.”
The voicemail cut off and I was left momentarily stunned. I hadn’t thought about Brian’s offer in a few days and now I was suddenly forced to decide one way or the other ASAP. I wasn’t 100% sold on putting my personal life out there for everyone to see, but if I looked over the interview questions and thought they seemed okay, I’d agree to the interview. Brian seemed like a nice person, and I didn’t want him to get in trouble with his editor if I turned down the interview.
I glanced down at my phone and hit “call” before I even fully realized what I was doing.
"Hi Brian, this is Kinsley."
"Kinsley! Hi," he answered, shuffling papers.
"I listened to your message and I think I'd be able to meet with you on Wednesday. I could be in West Hollywood around 5:00 P.M.?"
"That's great. 5:00 P.M. works for me as well. I know this is hardly any notice, but it will be a short interview, mainly about your position at ULA and your training for the Olympic tryouts. If our readers enjoy it, we'll do a more in depth interview in a few weeks. That is, if you agree to it."
I laughed politely. "Let's get through this one first. Could you forward me the interview questions you sent to Coach Davis?"
"Sure thing. I'll also text you the address to a coffee shop where we can meet."
I rattled off my email and thanked him for his time. I had a good feeling about the article. I still had no clue what to expect, but at least I'd have the questions beforehand.
As soon as I hung up, I called my mom and filled her in. She promised she’d run through the questions with me tomorrow after practice, just to make sure I didn’t make a fool out of myself.
Five minutes before 7:00 P.M., Liam texted me that he was waiting around the corner. I hopped off my bed and threw on a jacket and my Converse. Then I shouted bye to Becca on my way down the stairs. I rounded the corner at top speed, jumped into Liam's car, and planted a kiss right on his mouth before I'd even realized my shoes were untied and I'd put my jacket on inside out. Details.
"Well hello there," he laughed against my lips after I pulled away to catch my breath.
"Hi," I murmured, then sat back and adjusted myself in my seat.
"That was a good greeting."
I smiled and shrugged. "I was just excited to see you, I guess. Where are we going?"
"It's a surprise," he answered, putting the car in drive and heading away from my house.
"Ah, fine, but I wore my pajamas. I couldn't tell if you were kidding, but I decided I'd take you up on the offer anyway." I unzipped my jacket to show him my faded "Made in the ‘90s" shirt that was on its last leg and my sleeping shorts.
"I wasn't bluffing. You'll be glad you wore them."
I smiled and watched him drive. I had no clue where he was leading me, but the uncertainty was half the fun.
"I think I'm doing my first interview on Wednesday," I mentioned as he exited the highway.
"Really? With who?"
"Brian King. I met him the other day with Coach Davis."
"Ah, I know Brian. He's a decent guy." His eyes were focused on the road and I couldn't tell if there was more he wanted to say about the subject.
"Have you ever done an interview with him?"
"No. We played soccer together for a year, though."
I didn't have time to ask more, because Liam was pulling into a small Drive-in Movie Theater. Who knew they even existed in LA still?
"I figured since going to the movies is out of the question, we could at least sneak into a drive in movie and pretend like it's a real date," Liam explained with an earnest expression.
A giant smile spread across my lips. "It's an awesome date. I'm in pajamas… it doesn't get better than that."
He laughed at my joke as he pulled his SUV into one of the middle parking spots. It was a small theater with room for twenty or thirty cars at most. It was filling up fast around us and I knew we’d gotten there just in time.
“How will we watch the movie if the screen is behind us?” I asked, twisting my head to look through the back window.
He smirked and hopped out. “C’mon, we’re sitting in the trunk.”
I had no choice but to follow him to the back of the car, and when he lifted the back latch, I was glad I did. He’d set up a picnic of sorts. Well a picnic made up mostly of candy, does that count? He had it all lined up perfectly. Twizzlers, Skittles, Sour Patch Kids, Snickers, Butterfingers, and M&Ms… to name a few. There was a little cooler of drinks pushed off the side next to a tub of popcorn that he’d put a lid on for our drive over.
“Did you raid a small candy village to get all of this stuff?”
He smirked. “I have a sweet tooth. It’s my one flaw.”
I rolled my eyes and shoved his arm playfully.
"I think they're showing Sixteen Candles tonight. I've never seen it,” he said.
I gasped. "What! How have you not seen it? It's on TV like once a week.
He shrugged. “Okay, so I have two flaws."
I smiled. "I can't believe you did all of this.”
"I hate not being able to take you on real dates, so I wanted to make it special," he admitted, then followed with, "I also just really like candy."
He flashed me a wicked grin and helped me up into the back of the car. Once we'd stuffed our faces, we pushed the food and drinks to the side and laid down on the blanket Liam had brought.
Somehow we ended up shifting around until he was leaning against the back seat and I was leaning back on his chest with his legs on either side of me. Okay, it wasn’t exactly an accident; I kept shifting back until he pretty much had to accommodate my body in his space. Oh, oops, how’d we get into this adorable position? Strategic planning, my friends.
His arms were wrapped around me, holding the blanket in place. As easy as it would have been to turn around, kiss him, and forget about the rest of the movie, I really enjoyed just sitting there together. It felt good to feel his chest rising and falling against my back.
Every now and then he'd ask me if I was comfortable or if I needed a drink, but I just shook my head, not wanting him to move a muscle for fear that the magic would be lost.
Chapter Sixteen
The blissful feeling of lying in Liam’s arms was long and forgotten when I woke up to someone ripping the blankets off my bed Tuesday morning.
Tara's voice invaded my conscious
ness.
"Get up and get dressed. You, Becca, and Emily have a special job this morning."
What the hell? Was I going to have to start barricading my door every night to ensure she couldn’t Edward Cullen me? It probably wouldn’t work; she’d just climb in through my window like the angsty vampire did.
I groaned and sat up, trying to blink away my sleep. Tara was joined by Sofie and another one of her evil henchmen. They all stared down at me with cunning smiles that made me wish I slept with a rifle beneath my pillow like an old southern veteran.
“Get up,” Tara ordered again.
Her tone was wearing on me, not to mention I thought we were moving beyond the whole high school bully situation. It seemed like she’d maxed out her asshole card, but apparently she needed another shot of evil to tide her over for a few more days.
Were we positive that she didn’t have any serial killer relatives?
I pushed myself off the bed and moved toward my dresser without saying a word.
"Meet us downstairs when you're ready, Bryant," Sofie muttered before she burst through the bathroom door to get to Emily's room. I cringed when I heard them yell Emily’s name to wake her up.
As I pulled on my workout gear, I dreamt about bringing the hazing issue up to Coach Davis, but I still wasn’t sure it was worth it. Everything would change if I ratted out the seniors. They’d make my life living hell, but they’d do it more subtly and twice as vicious as they already were. If I was going to tell Coach Davis, I had to be sure that it was worth the trouble.
So I made myself a deal. Today would be the last day. If they weren’t done after whatever they had planned for us this morning, then I’d bring the issue up to Coach Davis.
Becca, Emily, and I were shuffled into the back seat of Sofie's car in silence while the rest of the underclassmen were still asleep in the house. This was the second time they’d gone after the three of us, and I wasn’t dumb enough to think it was a coincidence. I guess Tara really did hate me.
The last time I'd been in Sofie's car was on my nineteenth birthday. I knew Tara wasn't going to be my friend that night, but I'd had no clue just how crazy she would actually turn out to be. If I could have gone back in time, I would have warned former-me to get the hell away from Tara as soon as possible... and maybe also to warn my Mom away from the front-bang trend. They don’t work for everyone!
There was a sense of dread lingering in the air as we headed to the field with the seniors. Tara had said they had a “special job” for us, but they couldn't really do anything to us, right? I mean if they even came close to breaking the law, I'd go to the police immediately. I wasn’t about to start digging graves for all of her victims.
"Since you three were so compliant this morning, I think we'll go easier on you than we were planning to," Tara said with a foreboding smile.
Oh, how sweet of her, I thought, staring out the window and wishing the day was already over.
When we got to the practice field, Sofie parked the car and the three of us scrambled out of the back seat.
"All right, rookies. Today we thought you three should learn the art of hygiene," Tara began, pulling three unopened toothbrushes out of her purse.
What was she talking about?
"Those field house bathrooms could be a lot cleaner," she continued, handing us each a toothbrush. "So we'd like each of you to clean a stall, and then when that's done, you can tackle the bathroom floor."
Becca groaned. "I'm sorry, do you think you can get away with this? The costumes were funny, ha-ha. You had your fun, but this is ridiculous and you know it."
Emily just stood there gaping, like she couldn't believe the circumstances she'd stumbled into. I felt guilt hit my stomach. She wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for me.
"Becca is right. I'm not doing this. You guys have watched too many ‘90s movies," I said, tossing the toothbrush to the ground. Tara could kiss my ass.
Tara's gaze traveled from the toothbrush sitting on the ground, slowly up to my eyes. The sardonic grin eclipsing her features was a warning of things to come.
"Come talk to me for a second, Bryant," Tara said, wagging her finger and turning to walk away so we could talk in private. I followed after her, mainly so I could tell her how crazy she was without being overheard by anyone else, but the next thing out of her mouth stopped me dead in my tracks.
"If you don't pick that toothbrush up and follow my orders as your captain, I'll have no choice but to go to Coach Davis with some disturbing news."
I rolled my eyes. "What are you talking about, Tara?"
She ran her finger back and forth across her lips, and in that moment, I realized how truly cold-hearted she actually was.
"Let me tell you what I'd be forced to tell Coach Davis," she began, making sure to keep her voice soft enough that no one could overhear her, "I went to a party the other night and saw both you and Liam there. That wasn't a big deal considering it was an LA Stars party, but then to my horror, I saw the two of you go into his room, and when you came out it was very clear that the two of had been having sex. Now, because I'm not sure how intelligent you are concerning this matter, I'll spell it out for you.” I bristled at her harsh tone. “Liam makes most of his money from endorsement deals— Endorsement deals that are completely contingent on his public image. The LA Stars might not drop him, but you better believe those companies wouldn’t want him as a liability. He was supposed to be volunteering not trying to get laid. And you, our sweet little rookie, would be kicked off the ULA team so fast you wouldn't even have time to clean out your locker. Coach Davis made it perfectly clear that any relationship between a coach and a team member was off-limits."
In case that wasn’t enough, she just kept adding layers of icing to the cake as the blood drained from my face.
“Can you even imagine the headlines they’ll run? LA Stars player takes advantage of ULA freshman…”
I stood there, gaping and trying to piece together just how conniving one person could be.
"Oh, and I have quite a few witnesses that can back up my claim. I mean, how stupid could you be to have sex at a freaking LA Stars party? Really, Kinsley, you made it all just too easy."
I looked up into her narrowed eyes. "You're such a bitch."
Her smile told me she took that as a compliment. "I hope you like cleaning toilets, Bryant," she said before turning on her heel and heading back to the group. I didn't say a word. There was nothing to say. In that moment, Tara held all the cards. But soon the tables would shift. I wasn’t going to let her get away with it. There was a way to beat her at her own game, but not until I had time to think over my options. With my chin raised, I walked back over, bent down, grabbed the toothbrush off the concrete, and headed to the bathroom without a word.
When Emily and Becca followed me after a moment, their gazes bored into the side of my head.
"I'm really sorry, guys," I muttered, opening the toothbrush. This was freaking ridiculous. How did Tara have time in her day to mastermind shit like this?
"It's not your fault," Emily answered with a frown. Poor Emily, she had no clue what I'd brought her into.
Becca caught my eye and I sighed. "I'll explain it later," I mouthed, and she nodded solemnly.
It was the worst morning of my life and it was hardly 5:00 A.M. I reluctantly tore open my toothbrush and got to work in the bathroom, letting my mind wander toward ways of torturing Tara to death. I was thinking that old fashion method where the four horses pull your body apart would fit nicely for her.
To ensure that we were actually cleaning, Tara would check up on us every few minutes. She’d poke their head in, mutter a snide comment, and then leave again. After what felt like hours, she finally came in and told us to stop.
"That’s enough. We're going to go run some laps before practice."
The three of us followed behind her and I could hear Emily sniffling behind her. Tara was making her cry. I was making her cry.
"Emily, it's okay. I'll
run for you like last time."
Tara laughed. "No, Bryant, I think you three should all run. I think your friends should realize how selfish you really are."
The word selfish struck a chord as Emily’s tears ran down her cheeks. Was I being selfish for pursuing a relationship with Liam? I didn’t think it would hurt anyone.
Tara might have disliked me before, but the fact that I had some kind of relationship with Liam pushed me toward the top of her enemy list. Unfortunately, my friendships with Becca and Emily meant they were getting dragged alongside me.
"I'm so sorry, guys," I pleaded as we began to run. Emily wouldn't look at me, but Becca shot me a stern look.
"Do not apologize for anything. It's Tara that should be apologizing. She's trying to ruin your life by turning us against you, but she has no clue the kind of enemies she's making," Becca bit out.
"We have to be smart about this. We can get her to stop, but if we go about it the wrong way, we'll be taking ourselves down with her," I answered.
"Kinsley, I know about Liam," Emily said out of the blue.
Becca and I both turned sharply toward her. "What are you talking about?" I asked.
"We share a bathroom, and you and Becca seriously talk way too loudly about personal matters. Like I know that you made Becca come look at a freckle on your butt last week because you thought it was shaped like a giraffe. I mean, I get it. You guys have a really strange relationship.” She realized she was veering off topic. “Oh, right. Anyway, no one else in the house knows about you and Liam, I've made sure of it, but I just wanted to let you know that I know,” she shrugged.
I had no clue how to approach the subject. "Are you upset that I didn't tell you? I’m really sorry I lied to you, Em. I just wanted to keep it as private as possible, and I didn't want to drag you in as an accomplice."
Emily furrowed her brows. "I'm not mad. I know why you didn't tell me. I just felt a little left out. To be honest I was kind of glad not to be included in the beginning because I would have told you it was a beyond terrible idea."