“Ben Castillo!” Ryan shouts, having finally gathered the strength to speak.
Kayla looks at me for an explanation. “What is wrong with them?”
At this point, I should take pity on everyone and explain the situation, but I’d rather see how far Julia and Ryan are willing to take this.
Julia stands and points at me, shouting in one go, “You and Ben Castillo are dating!”
Kayla screams at the top of her lungs. It’s ear-piercing and glass-shattering and it seems to go on for a solid minute.
“WHAT?!”
The remainder of my afternoon is spent filling them in on everything I’ve been withholding. They sit on the edge of my bed, listening, mostly mute except for the occasional “Wait a minute” or “How did you two meet again?” or “Just how big are we talking?” (That comes from Kayla, of course.)
By the end of my explanation, Kayla still thinks we’re all trying to pull some big prank on her, which is understandable given how extremely unlikely it is that I would be dating a professional athlete.
“FaceTime him right now,” she says, pointing at my phone. “If you’re really dating him then FaceTime him right now.”
I laugh and reach for my phone. “Okay, but he has a game later so there’s no telling what he’ll be doing right now.”
I scroll to his name in my contact list and press the FaceTime button. It starts to ring and we sit patiently for a few seconds. I highly doubt he’ll answer. He’s undoubtedly busy, but then low and behold, the video call connects and Ben’s handsome face fills the screen.
Before he can even say hi though, Anthony ducks into the frame. “Sorry Birdie, Benny-boy is in the locker room right now—you two can’t have phone sex.”
Kayla’s scream fills the room again as she flies off the bed. “THIS IS ACTUALLY HAPPENING! I AM LOSING MY SHIT!”
I look down at Ben, who’s smiling good-naturedly despite looking thoroughly confused.
I wink. “Call me after your game?”
He nods.
“Good luck.”
“Love you.”
It’s Anthony’s turn to shout in the background. “I knew it! I fucking KNEW IT.”
Then the call cuts off and three sets of eyes blink at me in shock.
I have a feeling this will take some getting used to for them, understandably. I’m still getting used to it.
“Y’all look like you might pass out,” I tease.
Kayla closes her gaping mouth, narrows her eyes, and crosses her arms as if preparing for a proper interrogation. “Okay. Right. Start again from the beginning, and don’t leave anything out. You met him at a gas station? Like…what? How? Do I need to go hang out at QuikTrip all day so I can meet a professional athlete too?”
Later that night, when I’m in bed, Ben calls.
Kayla is lying flat on her bed, watching an episode of Outlander with her headphones in, but she must hear my phone vibrate because she immediately pauses her show and looks my way.
“Is that him?”
I nod, biting back a huge smile as I answer it. “Hello?”
“Hey.”
His voice sends tingles down my spine.
“Are you heading home?” I ask.
“Yeah. I’m in the car now, didn’t have to stay long after my game. Should I have Hermann swing by and pick you up so I can take you home with me?”
I flush. “Ben. I need to get some things done in the morning before classes start again on Monday.”
“You can use my study.”
I laugh. “Remember how well that worked last time?”
“Caleb is with Shelby tomorrow. I wouldn’t disturb you.”
“Somehow I doubt that.”
He chuckles as if even he knows I’m right.
My phone buzzes suddenly, and I pull it away from my ear to check the text.
“Leanna just texted me,” I tell Ben, reading it aloud. “She’s bummed I wasn’t at the game and wondering if I want to go out to dinner with Eva and her for a girls’ night tomorrow.”
Kayla—who’s been listening to my conversation the entire time—interjects. “You are not going without me. You don’t get to start dating a celebrity and just up and ditch your old boring friends. I will also be coming to this dinner tomorrow night, and so will Julia because it’s her birthday Monday and we need to get her drunk. So tell your fancy friend you’d love to go to girls’ night and you’ll be bringing two tagalongs.”
Ben, who’s heard Kayla’s entire spiel, laughs and says, “Sounds like you’re going out tomorrow.”
“Is that okay?”
“You don’t need my permission, but I’d like you to take Nikko, and Hermann can drive you and your friends.”
“Okay.”
We’re quiet for a moment, and I’m suddenly filled with a sense of longing. “I miss you.”
“I miss you too. The offer to pick you up still stands.”
I bite back a smile. “You’re relentless.”
“Hi. Yoo-hoo. Some of us are trying to watch Scottish hotties in peace, so if you two could wrap up your lovey-dovey phone call, that’d be great.”
I laugh. “Guess I have to go.”
“Call me tomorrow when you have time?” he asks.
“Of course.”
“Night, Birdie. Love you.”
My mouth opens and I almost say it back. I love him. I do. It’s just been so long since I’ve said the words out loud to someone. I can’t quite do it.
“Night, Ben.”
Eva has been put in charge of our dinner location, which is mildly distressing. She texts me in the early afternoon on Sunday with suggested attire, and her directive is as follows: “Wear something that shows a little skin. NO FLATS. NO MAXI DRESSES. I WILL CUT YOUR DRESS IF IT GOES PAST YOUR KNEES.”
When I show this text to Kayla, she gives it a wholehearted round of applause. “Okay, yes. I don’t know who Eva is, but I can already tell she and I are going to be friends.”
And she’s right.
Kayla and Eva hit it off almost immediately when I make introductions in the foyer of the restaurant later that night. It starts with mutual compliments about their respective outfits. Out of the five of us, they’re the two most provocatively dressed. Kayla swoons over Eva’s two-piece outfit that bares a good bit of her midriff.
“Can we please become friends so I can borrow that from you?”
Eva grins. “Of course. And I love that skirt.”
“Really? I’ve had it since high school.”
“It’s a classic.”
Meanwhile, Leanna and Julia are chatting, albeit much more quietly. I’m glad to see everyone getting along so well as the hostess leads us back toward our table.
I should have known better than to trust Eva to pick a quiet bistro for us to sit and sip wine and eat a casual dinner. To be fair, the restaurant’s location in West Hollywood should have tipped me off. The demure entry gives way rather quickly to a full-fledged club. It’s early, only a little past eight PM, but the place is already packed with people dancing and drinking. There’re cocktail tables strewn around the room and some booths located on the outer edges. That’s where we’re led by the hostess, to a secluded booth in the back where a security guard is already posted. Not that it matters. Nikko is with us. When we make it to the table, he nods to the other guard and they stand like sentries, blocking clubgoers from getting to us.