I was distracted by Sean, who really was looking starry-eyed. “Uh, okay. That’d be great.” Hell, what could it hurt, right? The more people who knew Sean was available, the better chance he had.
I hurried over to him. “Hey, my man. I’m already having to beat the females off you to give the guys a chance.”
He got that serious frown. “Why would a female be interested in me?”
I grinned at him. “They have eyes too. And you’re not wearing a rainbow sign or anything. She thinks you’re cute and wanted to meet you, but I set her straight, so now she’s looking to set you up with the right guy.”
“I see. Of course, I suppose you can’t expect strangers to know your proclivities. It’s kind of her to wish to participate.”
I chuckled. The man was funny and so damned adorable. “Let’s go inside and get a drink.”
As we approached the porch, I looked up and saw three of my teammates from the Badgers. Ruckus Randell, the second-string quarterback, but showing a lot of promise, stood with Josh Hamilton, center, and Double-cross Crossley, one of the guards.
Sean pulled back as we got closer, and I looked at him. He shook his head and frowned. “Those men threw a friend of mine off the steps of the library one time for smiling at a girl.”
“Probably Ruckus’s girlfriend. He’s pretty protective. But you’re not gonna be flirting with any girls, are you? Come on.” I pulled on his arm and unstuck him. We climbed the steps, and my teammates gave me fist bumps and one high-five, but nobody messed with Sean.
Heat smacked me in the face as we went inside. The press of bodies in the hall and the big living room, plus the set of the thermostat, made the place feel like a sauna. We both unwound our scarves and peeled off our jackets at the same time. One of the TriDelts, a plain brown-haired girl whose name tag said Patty, offered to stick our coats in the room off the entry that was probably an office, but I could see through the door, it had overflowing clothing racks. Even though I was afraid I’d never see it again, I gave over my jacket and Sean did the same.
I did a double take. Sean was wearing the blue shirt with white cuffs, rusty red vest, and leg-hugging jeans from the shop. And, holy shit, it looked even better here. Other than his glasses, he didn’t look anything like the Poin who’d shown up for that first flag-football practice. He was… wow.
Patty came back and pointed toward the living room. “Go get yourself a drink! Bar’s that way.”
“Thanks,” I said. I grabbed Sean’s arm and pulled him after me. It took a few minutes to push through the crowd and get anywhere near the bar, but a couple guys were standing there passing out beers that a bunch of other guys were filling from the kegs in back. I grabbed one and handed it to Sean, then snagged one for myself.
Scooting away from the bodies, I maneuvered toward the wall where it was possible to take a drink without getting beer sloshed on your clothes. Sean lined up beside me and held up the wall.
“Hey, Bubba.”
I looked toward the voice and saw Tray and Rand pushing through the crowd toward me. Tray was smiling at me, but Rand was staring at Sean.
They got close, and Tray said, “Hi, Bub. Quite the crush, huh?”
“Yeah, first open party of the semester. The TriDelts always pack ’em in.”
Rand cocked his head, his eyes got wider, and he said tentatively, “Hedgehog?”
Sean just stared at him, so I replied, “Yeah, Rand, you know Sean. He’s on our flag-football team.”
Tray’s mouth fell open. “Hedgehog!”
I laughed because they looked so floored. “Dudes! Don’t have a cow. He just had a makeover.”
Sean said in his serious way, “I must thank you, Rand, for your excellent recommendation.”
Rand looked back and forth from me to Sean. “You went to my store and came out like this?” He waved a hand down Sean’s body.
The crease popped between Sean’s red eyebrows. “Well, yes, after Quig sent me to Antony, and he renovated my hair.” He looked down. “I wasn’t sure about the blue shirt with the red vest, but Quig picked it out. Doesn’t it work?”
Rand still looked amazed. “No, you look, uh, great. Quig definitely has a good eye.”
“A good eye for color? Fit? Style? Perhaps you can qualify what you like about this outfit, so I know what to replicate in future—”
I patted his arm. “Just say thanks.”
Sean blinked. “Oh. Thanks.”
Tray kept giving Sean looks. “Shit, Rand, you never sent me to your secret makeover store.”
Rand snorted. “As if you needed it.”
“Hey, you kidding? I didn’t know miracles were on sale.”
Sean looked between them as if he wasn’t sure if he was being complimented or made fun of. To tell the truth, I wasn’t sure either.
A high female voice called, “Bubba. Hey, Bubba.”
I glanced over the heads of the crowd and saw Mindy’s blonde hair coming toward me. She was pulling on Woozie Ann, who was herself pulling on some tall slim guy in a tight T-shirt under a letterman’s jacket. For a second, I had a little panicky feeling and wanted to run, but why should I? I raised my hand and waved.
Mindy pushed through the crush and about bumped into me. She grinned up. “Hey there, big man.”
“Hi, Mindy.” Funny, I felt like my skin was burning, and I looked up to see Sean staring—no make that glaring at me. “Uh, Mindy, you know Rand and Tray.”
She waggled her fingers.
“And this is my, uh, client, Sean. Sean, this is Mindy.”
“Oh, hi, Sean.” She gave him a huge smile and yanked on Woozie’s arm. “This here is Woozie Ann, and this—” She shoved the tall guy, so he took a couple steps toward Sean. “—is Jonathan. He wanted to meet you.”
Jonathan wasn’t exactly smiling at the manhandling. Make that woman-handling. And Sean looked like a deer that wasn’t in the headlights because the car had already hit him, so I said, “Hey, Jonathan. You’re a diver, right?” I recognized him because there’d been a feature on the diving team in the Badger Herald recently. They’d been kicking ass.
“Uh, yeah. And you’re Bubba Merkofsky.” He gave a quick smile to Rand and Tray, obviously recognizing them too. They both nodded their chins at him, and Rand added a “Hey, man.”
I said, “Sean, have you ever seen competitive diving? Like on TV and shit? Jonathan’s one of Madison’s star competitors.”
Sean just shook his head. “My housemate, Dustin, was on the team. But now, he’s not.” His face grew pink, which really stood out given his red hair.
Woozie Ann giggled. “Aw! He’s so cute and shy.”
Sean frowned.
Uh-oh. I could feel a storm brewing. Before I could interrupt, Sean said, “While I’ve never seen the Madison diving team, I do know something about the sport because of Quiz Bowl. Diving first became a competitive sport in the early nineteenth century in Europe and was included in the Olympic Games in 1904. Competition includes springboard and platform events. Many divers were originally gymnasts and then—”
Oh jeez. Jonathan looked glassy-eyed, and Rand and Tray were about to bust a gut. The girls just seemed confused by the lecture. I barged in. “What events do you compete in, Jonathan?”