Page 201 of Wicked Savage Cruel
Deacon hisses. “Kasey, drop it.”
“Yo!” Reed hollers.
“I have questions.” I nod my head and indicate for him to come over. He says a few more words to the guys he was talking to before slapping one on the back and heading our way.
“Kasey—” There’s a warning in Deacon’s voice. It’s cute. I mean if I don’t listen when Dominique gets all growly, why would I listen now?
“You’re welcome to tell me yourself,” I remind him.
He presses his lips into a firm line. Alrighty then.
As soon as Reed is close I say, “What happened with Deacon and Dominique Price?”
Reed whistles. “Aw, man. That was some rough shit.” He ignores the death stare Deacon is giving him and dives into his recount of Tuesday’s events. Dominique getting in Deacon’s face. Choking him. How Deacon nearly passed out.
Deacon is quiet the entire time, chin down and shoulders slumped.
“And then the other guy, what’s his name again?” He snaps his fingers before answering his own question. “E! That’s what all the jocks call him. So Dominique is walking away, point made, am I right?” He wiggles his brows. “When his buddy, E, starts talking in Spanish and punches Deacon while he’s still on the ground. It was fucking savage.”
Deacon groans. “Thanks for the recount, man. Appreciate it.”
Reeds misses the sarcasm in Deacon’s voice.
“Emilio punched you?” I ask. Now, that surprises me the most.
Deacon sighs. “Yeah. I don’t think he or Valdez knew why Dominique was in my face. They were trying to haul him off me at first. Talk him down and shit.” His mouth tightens. “After Dominique made his point, he warned me off you and mentioned that,” he points his beer toward my arm, “Chavez blew a gasket and clocked me. Now that I see it, can’t say I really blame him. I’d be pissed too if someone hurt a girl I cared about.”
“I’m sorry. The guys can be overprotective.”
“It’s all good now. Like I said. It’s done.”
“Fuck no, it’s not. D, you haven’t told her about practices, man.”
“Shut the fuck up, bro,” he grinds out, but Reed is drunk, making him oblivious to Deacon’s warning.
“What’s going on in practice?”
It’s Reed who answers. “Deacon is getting his ass handed to him. All day, every day. Left tackles aren’t protecting him. He’s getting sacked damn near every play he runs. It’s fucking brutal.”
My eyes widen. “You’re kidding?” Why wasn’t his team watching his back? The quarterback was the most vulnerable player on the field. One wrong hit and he could be seriously injured.
“Nope. Price’s shoulder is fucked up, right?” Wait, it is? What happened to his shoulder? “So all he’s doing in practice is throwing. Him and Valdez run drills while Deacon starts on the field. Five plays in on day one and it dawns on Deacon that protection is bad and it’s staying bad. He starts to scramble when he gets the ball. Man doesn’t want to get hit.”
Deacon is rigid, every muscle in his face drawn tight. He doesn’t like hearing this.
“This shit goes on for three days,” Reed says, waving three fingers in the air. “And then out of nowhere, Price takes to the field, smacks our boy here upside the head, and tells him, ‘You’re fast. Play faster. Trust your feet.’It was solid advice but Deacon isn’t having it. He’s pissed.”
“Can you blame me?” Deacon snaps.
Reed lifts both hands in the air. “Nope. I’d be an asshole, too. Maybe not to the dude’s face like that, but,” he shrugs. “Anyway, Hunt is mouthing off. He tells Price he’s playing dirty, fucking with his protection, and damn, you should have seen the look on Price’s face. He told Deacon if he wanted protection, give them someone worth protecting. And if he doesn’t like getting hit, then go play fucking tennis.”
I wince. Dominique’s never been one to mince words. “That was harsh.”
“But, effective,” Reed smirks.
I turn to Deacon, who’s still glaring, but when he sees me looking he nods. “It did the job,” he sighs. “Got my head out of my ass and back in the game.”
“And made you a damn better quarterback. Deacon learned in three days what takes most quarterbacks years to figure out, and he’s not buckling under the pressure. He’s playing smart.”
