Page 39 of Campus Muscle

“Control.” It was more of a breath than an actual expression of words. “He wants recognition. To prove that he belongs in a space that was never designed for a person like him. He’s trying to take what they refused to hand him all those years ago.”

I scoffed. “That’s a stretch.”

The problem was that I didn’t know if I believed my own words or not. I didn’t know what Frank Delaney wanted with me or why he was insisting on helping me, but I knew that I didn’t want to keep feeling like a tool that was being used for someone else’s gain.

“You don’t have to like it to understand that it’s a pattern.”

“That’s your interpretation of things,” I snapped.

Dakota got up and moved toward me, her frustration evident. “Why you? Why now? He’s been around other programs and players, so what makes you different?”

My patience finally gave in. “Maybe I’m just that good.”

The words came out fiercer than I intended, but it was too late to do anything about it. She framed everything so professionally, but to me, it still felt like a personal attack, and I wasn’t going to stand for it. Dakota blinked rapidly, and I could tell she had been thrown by the force of it.

I took a step forward, closing the distance between us. “Maybe someone saw what I could do and decided to back it. Not everything has to be some conspiracy.”

“That’s not what this is.”

“You don’t know what it is,” I cut in. “You think you do because you read a few things and decided that they fit your narrative.”

Her mouth tightened. “I’m trying to stop you from getting caught up in something you don’t understand!”

Why? Because she cared about my well-being or future? Who was she trying to kid? I knew I meant nothing more to her than the next guy to land a score? Did she forget about that part?

“I understand the situation just fine.”

“Do you?” she challenged. “Because it looks like you’re being set up.”

“And how do you think that will work out?”

“You’re the fall guy. He’s going to use you for leverage and whatever other benefits he can get, but when this blows up, it isn’t going to be in his face. You’re the one he’s going to be pointing fingers at, and he’ll have enough evidence to flush your career.”

It was so difficult for me to keep listening to her because no part of this made sense. She was the one I had to be careful of. She was the one who was trying to drag my name through the mud.

“Or maybe he’s helping me.”

“People like him don’t just give out help, Trace.”

“What the fuck do you know about people like him?”

“I know enough to be sure they’re dangerous.”

The more she spoke, the harder it became for me to keep listening to what she had to say. It was as if she expected the things she said to be true because that was what she wanted, and I really couldn’t take that seriously.

“No, you know what you want to know,” I said, breathing hard. “The rest of the stuff doesn’t exist for you. The possibility that this could be legit.”

Her frustration flared. “Why do you keep defending him?”

“This has nothing to do with him, but I do feel a need to defend myself.”

She stiffened at my words, and her brows furrowed. It actually looked like my words didn’t compute, and that wasn’t surprising at all. I never expected her to look at the world outside of her little bubble.

I pushed forward anyway, hoping something would get through to her. “You walk in here like you’ve got everything figured out. Pretending that you’re the only one who sees what’s really going on, but in the meantime you don’t have to deal with any of it.”

She frowned. “I—”

“You’re not the one who has to worry about losing everything. Your life doesn’t hang on the thread of a single mistake. And you don’t have people depending on you to make it.”