Page 107 of Tight Ends & Tiaras
If I get busted here, will I get Ben in trouble? Olly seemed to think breaking the “no women in the dorm during camp” rule was a big deal. And I’m still pissed at Derek for not giving me a heads-up about Cal screwing half the campus while we were dating.
A giant hand yanks me into an empty corridor, and I’m about to let out a scream when Olly grabs my teetering tower of pizzas.
“Holy shit, you scared me. What the hell!” I smack him, and he yanks me further back as the guys from the elevator walk by.
Thankfully, no one noticed us.
My heart is racing. “I don’t think I could ever be a spy.” I laugh, exhilarated that I got through security and somehow managed to go undetected just now.
Olly points to a stairwell across the hall. I follow him. He has to scan his card, and then we’re both in. When we reach the third floor, he points to Ben’s room. “I think his roommate is watching a movie down the hall. He should be all yours.”
I smile, giddy to finally see Ben. “Thanks, Olly. Appreciate your help,” I say, too excited to be upset about how he handled the security issue downstairs. All that matters is being here now. “These are yours.” I hand him five of the pizzas.
He takes a whiff. “Have I mentioned that you’re one of my favorite people?”
I’m all smiles, giddy at the thought of surprising Ben.
Until I knock and hear a muffled groan.
What... was that?
I pause, frozen by a flashback to earlier this summer when I thought surprising Cal was a good idea.
My throat tightens, but then the door opens and I see a sleepy, rumpled Ben. He’s just wearing boxers, and his hair is adorably standing on end. Behind him, his room is dark and blissfully empty.
He smiles this huge, beautiful smile when he sees me. It brings tears to my eyes, and I drop the pizza and fling myself into his open arms.
He pulls me in and starts to kick the door closed, but I wiggle out of his grasp. “The pizza!”
I peek into the hallway to make sure no one’s out there before I grab the box and yank it inside. After I place it on a small coffee table, he pulls me into his arms again.
“What are you doing here?” He kisses me before I can respond. “And what are you wearing?” Laughing, he looks me over. “Not that I’m complaining. You look hot as fuck.”
“I’m moonlighting as a Pizza Castle wench,” I say as I shimmy in my scandalously low halter top. “You like?”
“Hell yes, I like.” Suddenly, his eyes get serious. “Is Lily okay?”
“Yes! She’s fine. Magnolia is watching her tonight for a few hours. I just couldn’t wait until Sunday to see you, so Olly helped me sneak in.”
In between kisses, he says, “Remind me to thank him.”
I palm his handsome face, but he hisses and pulls back. “What’s wrong?”
He winces and gingerly touches his jaw. “It’s nothing.”
“It’s not nothing.” It’s dark in here, the only illumination coming through the window and the streetlight. I flip on the lamp.
Ben’s jaw is mottled black and green. My eyes bug out. “That happened at practice?”
His eyes dart away. “So to speak.”
I study him. “What does that mean?”
“It means I was technically at practice when Winston and I got into it.”
“You got in a fight with Cal?”
He shrugs. “It’s nothing.”
