The gasps that sounded from my other two friends were so exaggerated, they were comical. I ducked my face before they could see me blush. Carson and I had been keeping things under wraps. We weren’t necessarily hiding. Rather, we were getting used to us before we let others know. Plus, no assurances I could give had settled his unease over how my parents and Roman would react once they found out. He was being ridiculous, but telling him that would only make it worse.
Nicole nodded. “It’s true. I saw Becca from afar, looked away, and when I looked back, she was wrapped around a piece of man muscle.”
My cheeks heated. She made it sound so dirty. I most definitely had not been wrapped around Carson’s man muscle. Though I had been doing my fair share of that. My cheeks got hotter at the thought.
“If I weren’t already late, I would have gone to get a closer look,” Nicole said unapologetically. “My dating life is so stale, I’ve been reduced to living vicariously. So spill.”
“Yeah,” Courtney demanded. “Who were you making out with?”
“I wasn’t making out,” I protested. Carson had kissed me after we’d had lunch on campus, and sure, maybe he’d taken the kiss to a level I probably wouldn’t have in public, but it most definitely wasn’t a make-out session.
Nicole snorted. “Was there tongue?”
Oh God. I’d never been one of those girls who discussed these kinds of details with friends. Then again, I’d never had details to discuss, nor had I had close friends to discuss them with.
“I wasn’t making out,” I said again. “It was simply a very enthusiastic goodbye kiss.”
My friends burst into laughter.
I wasn’t fooling them. But it wasn’t like Carson and I had been groping each other. Except I might have grabbed his ass. Oops. With an ass like his, though, who could blame me?
“Who’s the guy?” Nicole asked. “That’s what I want to know. And how the hell did you manage to keep this from your bodyguard? Because if you keep making out in public like that, Carson is going to find out, and then someone’s going to die.”
I waited for her to crack a smile, but she was serious. She didn’t know. If she had been close enough to call out to me, she would have. That meant she must have been far enough away that she hadn’t seen Carson clearly.
“Carson’s totally cool with it,” I said.
“Really?” Nicole asked. “I thought he broke bad on his teammate who tried to talk to you at Bleakers.”
“I wouldn’t say he ‘broke bad,’” I corrected. That seemed like so long ago. “There were words.”
“Why are you dodging the question?” Courtney asked. “Give us details! Who is this mystery guy?”
I grinned, not able to keep the ruse any longer. “It’s Carson.”
The girls squealed. Nicole grabbed my arm and squeezed. “Are you kidding me? I was in such a hurry, I didn’t get a good look, but I should have known. It was only a matter of time.”
If she says so. I certainly hadn’t been that confident, especially after years of secretly pining for him. The reality of it was a lot less romantic than historical romances made it sound.
Courtney sighed. “I need to find a man.”
Nicole nodded. “Girl, same.”
They looked at Hanima expectantly, waiting for her to chorus her agreement. “What?” she asked. “I don’t have to worry about this stuff. Arranged marriage, remember?”
“Huh,” Nicole mused. “You know, I never would have thought I’d be on board for that, but if I’m still single when I’m thirty, can your parents hook me up?”
Hanima rolled her eyes.
***
MISS HINCHEY, THE teacher in charge of the STEM program at Bleaksburg Middle School, nodded enthusiastically. “I’d love to have a partnership with VVU.”
“Well, it wouldn’t be with VVU exactly,” I explained as I shifted in the uncomfortable student desk I’d dragged over next to the teacher’s. “I can’t speak for anyone else in the engineering department, but WIE wants to get involved, specifically with underrepresented populations in STEM.”
“Even better. This is only my second year, but the number of students involved has already doubled.” The young teacher pursed her lips and drummed her fingers on her desk. “How do I put this nicely? Oh, forget it. It’s just us talking. Mr. Adams should have retired fifteen years ago, or at least given up the STEM program. The man still carried a flip phone.”
I cringed. “Not exactly cutting edge.” Even my technophobic grandmother had a smart phone. Though most of the selfies she sent me were of her forehead or partially blocked by a finger.
“Far from it. Don’t get me wrong. He was a nice man, just… past his prime.”
“I get it.”
“So anyway, I’ll need to get everything cleared with the principal, but I don’t see any reason why she would object.” Miss Hinchey grinned, making her look like she could be one of the middle school students instead of the teacher. She couldn’t be much older than me. “This is going to be awesome. I wish my school had had something like this. I might have ended up in a much different career.”
“Oh?” I’d only just met her, but she seemed perfectly suited to her position. I would bet anything her students absolutely adored her.
“I love teaching, but I wasn’t even exposed to the concept of STEM until I was in college.” She shrugged. “Maybe if I had been, I would have gone into engineering or scientific research.”
As I left the school, her words stuck with me, and I became even more determined to make this work. I wished I had taken the initiative sooner since I would be leaving VVU after this year. But if everything went according to plan, a system would be in place for WIE to volunteer with the middle school STEM program for years to come.
I couldn’t take all the credit for it, though. I never would have pursued the idea if Hanima hadn’t pushed me to be on homecoming court. I’d gotten so caught up in my own life that I’d forgotten how great it felt to give back.
When I started my car, and the dash flared to life, I cursed. I hadn’t realized how late it was. I’d gotten along immediately with Miss Hinchey, and we’d chatted for quite a while, which wouldn’t have been a problem except now I would have to haul ass to make it to the stadium. I rushed to my apartment so I could change out of the business clothes I’d worn for the meeting and into my VVU fan gear.
As I hurried past Lucy in the living room, she fell to her knees.
I whirled around to face her. “Oh my God, are you—”
“Upon my knees,” she cried out. “What doth your speech import?”
Should have known. She’d been trying to make up for the rehearsals she’d missed while in New York.
Shaking my head, I continued to my room to get ready. I’d never been late to a game, and I sure as hell wasn’t about to start now. It was my first home game as a WAG, and I intended to enjoy it.
***
Carson
I SLIPPED MY earbuds in my ears for my normal pregame ritual. This game against West Virginia was a rare Thursday night game. I loved night games, probably because the fans loved them. Plus, there was something awesome about playing under the lights. Maybe it was nostalgia for high school when every player was probably the best in their high school, destined for something greater. For most guys on the team, their time playing at VVU was the end of the line. Only a select few would become professional athletes.