Chapter 22

Delaney

The next morning, I end up lying in bed, staring at the ceiling for a good hour before I even think about getting up and ready for today.

It’s the weekend, and it’s been a week since I’ve seen Logan or Benny. I’m miserable. All I could do was think about how Benny is doing. Is Stacy taking care of him, if not, is whoever’s watching him being kind to him?

Stacy is a vindictive bitch, so I highly doubt that she’s the one sitting at home being a doting mom.

Just thinking about Benny being neglected in any way makes me want to cry.

My phone dings again, making it the fifth time since I’ve woken up. I haven’t checked it yet.

Groaning, I roll over and grab it off the nightstand. Two of the messages are from Winter, the rest are from Kai. I look at Logan’s name with his many unopened messages, and my stomach sinks. I feel like a horrible person for leaving without an explanation, but it’s for the best. At least, that's what I keep telling myself.

First, I click on Winter. She messaged, asking if I wanted to hang out today before the game. I smile and text her back yes, that I just need to get ready for the day.

She replies that she’s on her way over and we can go out to grab some coffee and something to eat. I could use a coffee, and it might be the only thing that keeps me awake for the day.

Since leaving the house, my dreams about the guys have morphed into nightmares that have me waking up in a cold sweat. For the most part, I don’t remember much so I’m going to take that as a win.

After texting Winter that I’d see her soon, I open up Kai’s messages. He hasn’t said much after the few texts he sent me yesterday apart from wishing me goodnight.

Kai: Were you a good girl and did as you were told?

My brows furrow, not sure what he means.

Me: And what was I told?

Kai: Naughty Sweetheart, already forgetting. Reread my texts from last night.

I scroll up a few and reread his last text from the night before. It says Sleep well, Sweetheart. Dream of me tonight as I’ll be dreaming of you.

I bite my lip and smile before texting him back.

Me: And what would you do if I told you I wasn’t a good girl and I didn’t do as I was told?

I could tell him I did , but it would be a lie, even if it’s a small one. I’m not going to tell him the only thing I remember about last night’s dream was how Logan, Owen, and Elijah despise me and wish they never met me.

Kai: I’d tell you that you were in trouble and are in need of a punishment.

Me: And what would the punishment be? Does it involve that spanking you mentioned before?

This is wrong, I shouldn’t be flirting with my professor.

Yet, I can’t help but feel the way I do about him.

God, my head is a fucking mess. I have feelings for my stepbrothers that I can’t explore without causing World War III at this point, and now I’m hot for my professor.

I could tell him no, this can’t go any further... only I don’t want to. I want to see where things go with Kai. But I can't until I talk to him about everything that's going on in my life. Starting something with someone on a lie would only lead to disaster.

But how do you tell a man you’ve only met because of a one-night stand–and that night was based on a lot of little white lies–that you're into three other men, men who are off-limits. And that I’m in some kind of fucked up agreement with one of their baby mamas.

What I do know is that I like Kai. I want to get to know him better. And I don’t want to go out searching for another man to fill the whole find-a-boyfriend requirement.

Only thing is, Stacy is going to want me to show proof that I’m seeing someone. I can’t very well tell her that I’m dating my professor. That would only give her leverage to blackmail me.

Kai: Guess you're just going to have to wait and find out.

Sighing, I toss my phone onto my bed as my mind plays out a few scenarios.

With everything going on, dating should be the last thing I’m doing. Yet, one of the fucked up conditions for Stacy to stop being a raging cunt and ruining Logan’s life is to get a fucking boyfriend.

At this point, maybe I should just swear off all men and go into hiding. Maybe I could give women a try?

As much as that idea sounds wonderful, I’m not attracted to women. Shame, because Winter would make a wonderful girlfriend. But at least I’ll have her as my bestie.

“I really need to get organized,” I mutter as I take in the tiny space. The nice thing is, I don’t have to room with anyone. The downside is there's a reason for that, and it’s because this room is so damn small it wouldn’t fit another person in here. There’s just enough room for a bed, dresser, and a small desk.

I’m going to have to bring a lot of my things back to the house because there’s no way I can have everything in here.

Grabbing a change of clothes and my toiletries, I head to the bathroom.

“Hey!” I jump when I hear Justin’s voice as I enter the bathroom. My eyes widen.

“What the hell are you doing in here?” My eyes slowly take in the blond-haired football player. He’s in nothing but a towel that's wrapped around his waist, his hair still wet from a shower.

His body is clean, smooth, and free from tattoos. But not from piercings. Both his nipples have barbells through them. I raise a brow as I bring my gaze back up to his.

“Checking out your future husband?” He wiggles his eyebrows. “Look all you want, Laney Girl. This is all yours,” he says, running his hand down his chest.

I roll my eyes, placing my things on a bench. “As I asked a moment ago, what are you doing here?”

He gives me a sly look. “Are you open to the idea of an open relationship?”

“What? No.”

“Then I totally wasn’t having sex with this hot redhead I met the other night.”

I sigh, shaking my head. “So, you hooked up and couldn’t wait to get home to shower?”

“You're being awfully calm about this.” He smirks.

“Justin,” I growl, not in the mood for his joking.

“You really want to know?” He grins wider. “I needed a shower because I spent all night blowing her mind.”

“Nope. I don’t wanna know, and I don’t want you to go into any more detail.” I raise my hand as I grab my shampoo and body wash, heading into an empty shower stall.

“I thought we were friends?” he asks as I turn on the shower.

“We are. But that doesn’t mean I want to hear about your sex life,” I call back, sighing happily as the hot water beats down on me.

“Fine. I’ll tell Logan about it,” he mutters.

The mention of his name makes my heart clench.

Putting a bit of shampoo on my palm, I rub my hands together before running my fingers through my hair. “How is he doing?” I ask, dreading seeing him tonight.

“I’m gonna be honest, Laney, not so good.” He sighs heavily. “Thankfully, Stacy changed her mind about keeping him away from Benny.”

A heavy feeling settles over me as I finish scrubbing my hair before stepping back into the spray and rinsing it out.

“You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?” he questions.

“About what?” I pause, heart thundering in my chest as I scrub my body.

“The sudden change of her mind?”

I bite my lower lip, rinsing myself off. I can’t tell him because then I’d be asking him to lie to his best friend.

Grabbing my towel, I wrap it tightly around my body before stepping out of the shower.

Justin is sitting on the bench. He’s respectful, keeping his eyes away from me, and doesn't make one of his normal playful comments.

“I have no idea why she would change her mind,” I murmur, going over to my things.

“I know she doesn’t like you. I know she slapped you because she thought something more was going on between you and Logan. I might act like a dumb jock, Laney, but I’m not.”

“Just let it go,” I warn him, grabbing my clothes.

“What did she do? Is she the reason why you moved out?” Justin asks, searching my face.

“I said, let it go, Justin. Please,” I hate the pleading in my voice.

“She did, didn’t she!” he growls. “That woman is a menace to society.”

“All that matters is Benny is back with Logan.” I slip into the stall and get changed.

“And what, you have to give everything up? He told me he’s been trying to get ahold of you, but you’ve been blocking his calls and ignoring his texts. He’s freaking out. He thinks he pushed you into doing something you regret. The man confessed he wanted you, and you just ghosted him. I like you, Laney, but Logan is my bro. If you’re going to do something to keep Stacy happy, you need to at least let Logan know that it wasn’t him that sent you running.”

My gut turns as tears sting my eyes. I want to cry at the idea of hurting Logan like I did.

“I didn’t want to hurt him,” I whisper as I step outside. “But I know Benny is his life. I won’t apologize for doing something to keep the two of them together.”

“Is it worth losing Logan?”

“Yes,” I answer without hesitation. “Because it’s not about me or my happiness. It’s about Benny. Logan will move on; he will find someone else, someone better.” The idea makes that ache in my stomach grow.

“What makes you think Stacy isn’t going to do what she did to you to that new girl? The issue isn’t you being with Logan; it’s Stacy being a monster and trying to control every aspect of Logan’s life.” He steps closer to me. “You need to think. Would it be better to be by Logan’s side and fight with him or watch from afar while he struggles to keep his head above water?”

He turns around and leaves the bathroom. I stand there, tears spilling down my face.

“Fuck!” I shout, kicking the lockers before snatching my things and storming out of the bathroom.

“Everything okay?” Winter asks. She’s sitting outside my dorm room, getting to her feet when she sees me coming.

“Everything is so fucked up,” I half sob as I throw myself into her arms.

“Oh, babe.” She rubs my back. “Everything will be okay.”

“No, it won’t. Because she won’t let it.” I pull back, staring at my best friend with tear-stained cheeks. “I’m so sorry you’ve had to deal with her for most of your life.”

Winter gives me a sad smile. “You get used to it, learn ways to avoid her.”

“Easier said than done,” I sigh.

“True.”

I put my things away. Grabbing my purse and phone, I join Winter in the hall. She loops her arms through mine. “Let’s go eat our feelings and drown our sorrows in coffee before we’re forced to face the queen of hell.”

“Yeah.” I sigh. “That sounds good right about now.”

***

The stadium is packed, the bleachers filled with a sea of emerald and gold–the school’s colors.

I have my camera hanging around my neck as I wait for the team to come out. Poor Winter is already taking photos, and I’ve heard snarky comments from Stacy on the sidelines more than once. I’m doing my best to avoid her, but if that bitch says one more thing to my best friend, I’m going to lose my shit.

I’m already at my wit’s end with her. I’m not sure what else I can take before I burst.

Mr. White said I needed to be taking photos from the moment they come out of the locker rooms right up until they leave the field at the end of the night.

My nerves have been too shot for that. I’ll get as much as I can while they play. It’s only my first day; I’ll do more next time.

“Kill me. Please,” Winter begs. “They’re all so fake. The moment the camera is on them, they start posing. I’m supposed to be taking candid photos. At least until I have to take their headshots next week.” She looks drained already.

“I’ll come with you when you do that. Keep you from grabbing your toaster and taking a bath.” I grin.

She laughs. “Deal. So, any good shots?”

“I haven’t taken any yet.” I shrug. “I’ve been waiting for them to come out.”

Just as I say the words, the whole crowd cheers. Grabbing my camera, I raise it up and look through the viewfinder. It takes a moment, but when I find Logan, I start snapping photos.

Damn, he looks good. His black hair is messy as he runs across the field. I focus on his face and frown. He looks pissed, maybe annoyed, like he would rather be anywhere but here.

There's a layer of stubble on his chin and cheeks like he hasn't shaved in days. Zooming in, I see dark circles under his eyes.

“Fuck,” I whisper as a punch of guilt hits me hard. I should have been there with him, helping him deal with all this. Instead, I left him after he told me how he felt about me. He said he didn’t care about being stepsiblings, that he took back what he said about being just friends.

I fucking hate Stacy. I hate her for ruining everything good in his life.

Snapping a few shots, I continue to watch him through the camera.

As he makes his way over to the bench, his eyes shift my way. My heart stills as he stares at me, a surprised look taking over his face before it morphs into a frown.

Slowly, I lower the camera, looking at him now with my actual eyes. Can he see the misery on my face?

I feel someone watching me, my attention drifting over to find Stacy frowning at me before her eyes flick over to Logan. Then she’s looking back to me, glaring daggers, as if she’s warning me to stay away.

I read you loud and clear, she-devil.

My eyes find Logan again, and he’s frowning harder, anger filling his face as he looks toward Stacy. I’m guessing this is the first time he’s seen her since last weekend.

It looks like he’s ready to go over there and say something.

He doesn’t get the chance because his coach gets his attention.

“Remember, Laney,” Winter says. “You need to take photos of the team, not just a certain someone.”

I look down and laugh at Winter. “I know.” I roll my eyes.

By the second quarter, I have quite a few good shots. I’m reviewing some of them when I feel a presence in front of me.

“Logan,” I whisper, looking up.

“What the fuck, Laney,” he rumbles, crossing his arms. “Do you know how much it fucking killed me to come home from school on Monday and find your room fucking empty when I came looking for you?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Are you?” he growls. “You don’t seem like the kind of person who fucking runs. So why did you? Why did you move out and into the dorms?”

“I thought it would be better to move out. It was getting harder to stay on the right side of the line that was drawn.”

“What part of me wanting you and regretting suggesting we only be friends did you miss? I want more, Laney. I thought you wanted that too.”

“I did. I do. But it’s not that easy, Logan. Just because we change our minds doesn’t take away what had us all agreeing to only be friends in the first place.”

“So that's it? You're just done with me? With Benny?”

My heart breaks as my eyes well. “Don’t be like that, Logan.”

“Then tell me why you left like you did!” He gets closer to me. I take a step back, eyes shooting over towards the cheerleaders. Thankfully, Stacy isn’t watching as I bring my eyes back to Logan. Only his eyes aren’t on me, but in the direction where I was looking.

“Is this about her?” His eyes dart back over to mine.

I could tell him that I didn’t sign up for baby mama drama, that his life is too complicated, and I don’t want part of it, but that's a lie. I’d deal with all of this as long as I got to be with him. If it was anyone else, anyone less crazy, this wouldn’t be an issue. He and Benny have become too important to me to just turn my back on them.

But isn’t that what I’m doing? Was Justin right? Should I have stayed at his side and fought?

That would only piss Stacy off more, and until I know the lengths she’s willing to go, I don’t want to push that line.

“What did she say, Laney? What did she do?”

I don’t want to lie to him; it’s killing me that I have been. So, I’ll tell him what is obvious to anyone around us without going into details. “Stacy hates me. She clearly doesn’t want me around Benny. After she threatened to take him away from you because I was watching him, I knew it was time I took myself out of the equation. I don’t want to be the reason you have issues in your life. Benny comes first.”

“Fuck her,” he snaps. “Fuck her and what she wants. She can’t control my life.”

“Yet she did.” I give him a sad look. “She was going to take that little boy away from you, maybe for good. I couldn’t let that happen. If me living at the school and staying away from you and Benny keeps that from happening, then it’s a small price to pay.”

“So that's it? She wins?” His nostrils flare.

“For now, yeah.” I swallow hard. “Please don’t think I don’t care about you or Benny. That little boy has won my heart. I love him so much. This isn’t easy for me.”

“Cross!” Coach calls out. “Get your ass over here.”

Logan gives me a hard look. “This isn’t over, Laney. Not by a long shot.”

He turns around and jogs back to his team.

“I thought I said to stay away from him,” Stacy snips from behind me a few minutes later.

I turn around and sigh. “He came over to me. I’m only here because I have no other choice.” I hold up the camera. “I’m only taking photos of the team, the whole team. That's it.”

“What did you say to him?”

“He asked me why I moved out, I said it’s because I want to live in the dorms. To get the full college experience. To date around and have fun.” Funny how that was my original plan until I met the Cross boys.

She glares at me. “Fine. How's that going? Got a man yet?”

Anger fills me. “No, because it’s not that easy.”

“Sure it is. Go to a party, ask someone out, fuck them, make them yours.”

“I don’t work like that.” I glare at her.

“Well, you better start because if I find him sniffing around you again, I won’t be fucking happy,” she snaps before turning on her heel and storming back over to her team.

“Isn’t she a ray of sunshine?” Winter says, coming to stand by my side.

“Speaking of sun, I’d like to fucking yeet her into it.” I’m still pissed and annoyed. All I want to do is go home. Sadly, I can’t because the game isn’t over.

For the last quarter of the game, I’m all over the place, getting the best shots I can. It’s amazing to see these men in action up close. I wasn’t paying much attention at the last game, my focus mostly on Logan as I watched at a far distance, but zoomed in like this, I can see just how talented each player is.

I manage to get a lot of good shots of most of the players, more of Justin and Logan than the others.

But the best shot of the night is the winning touchdown and the pure joy on their faces when the Princes win their second game in a row.

The crowd goes wild, and I swing my camera to get a few shots of them cheering for their team before bringing it back to the guys.

Logan stands in the middle of the field, his teammates celebrating around him. He’s not celebrating, though. His attention is on me, a promise in his eyes that this isn’t over. That he’s not giving up. Not on me or finding out the truth.