And then I walked away.

Gray

“Was that your girlfriend?”

I turned and looked down at Jason, one of the kids who liked to hang out and play ball after school.

It was really not good when I was so obvious that an eighth grader could tell. I glanced over to where Blair stood with her friend, Caitlin, worry ramming into me.

How long before people started to figure out that there was something between us? How long before I fucked this up, too? Considering the words she’d just hurled at me, had I already screwed up with her?

My jaw clenched. “No.”

He winked at me. “She’s hot.”

“Watch it.”

He laughed. “I’m just saying, if I were you, I’d lock her down.”

I tried to keep my expression serious, but failed in the face of this scrawny, backward-cap-wearing kid giving me romantic advice.

I blinked. “How old are you?”

“Fourteen.”

Jesus.

“That’s my girlfriend.” He nodded proudly, pointing to a pretty blonde girl shooting hoops. I’d seen her around and she seemed like a nice kid.

Jason grinned. “Like I said, gotta lock ’em down.”

He was one of my favorites in the after-school program. He didn’t talk about his family, but the principal had mentioned that his dad took off when he was a kid and his mom worked two jobs supporting Jason and his younger brother. Whatever his family situation, the kid always had a smile on his face. And he was smart.

“Trust me,” I muttered. “Sometimes it’s not that easy.”

He just flashed me that same cocky grin. “You just gotta have game.”

“Maybe I can borrow some then,” I joked, unable to remain stern in the face of this kid’s exuberance.

“Nah. You got game. You just need to know how to use it.”

Well, this ranked up there with one of the most surreal moments of my life. I’d had a few friends back in Chicago before I blew up my life. I’d never been all that social, but there had been guys I’d studied with, guys I’d played basketball with on Sunday afternoons. Somewhere along the way, I’d lost all of that. It was pathetic to admit, but not only did I have a shit relationship with my family, I’d alienated myself from any friends.

I was alone, and I only had myself to blame for it. And then there was Blair. It wasn’t just that she was sexy, she genuinely felt like a friend. And she was right—

I had no clue what I was doing with her.

“You going to be around for this Thanksgiving thing?” Jason asked.

I nodded.

“Cool. I’ll see you there.” Jason extended his hand and gave me the handshake we’d developed.

I watched him walk away, a smile tugging at my mouth, and then my gaze drifted over to where Blair stood shooting hoops with some of the girls. Trying, at least. Basketball was definitely not her game. But none of that mattered. The smile on her face was everything. Her laugh floated through the gym and something tightened in the vicinity of my heart.

I couldn’t stay away from her. And she was right, I was being a dick by jerking her around. I was too selfish to walk away and too afraid to take a chance. She deserved someone better than me, but for whatever insane reason, I was the one she wanted. And I was so tired of keeping her at arm’s length. Maybe it was time to stop worrying about being the good guy, and time to start going after what—who—I wanted.

In the immortal words of an eighth grade boy, it was time to lock it down.

Chapter Seventeen

New allegations of misuse of campaign funds plague Senator Reynolds . . .

—Capital Confessions blog

Blair

I stared at the screen, regretting the decision to create an email alert to let me know anytime my last name was mentioned. Thanks to Capital Confessions, it was becoming an increasingly frequent occurrence. Especially, where my father was concerned.

I hadn’t heard from either one of my parents since my phone call with my mother, so I had no clue how much of the stuff was even true, but he was definitely in the blog’s crosshairs. Whatever my father had expected, it appeared that his reelection had bought him a heap of trouble.

My phone lit up with an incoming text message.

Want to ride to the Thanksgiving dinner together?

My heartbeat picked up as I read his name above the text. I hadn’t seen Gray since the basketball day, also known as the day I discovered that he had ink on his bicep and an even better body than I’d imagined under his suit.

How did you get my number? I texted back.

He’d put his number in my phone weeks ago, but I definitely hadn’t done the same.

Class roster.

My lips curved. Why was I not surprised?

Is that really appropriate?

My screen lit up again. I think appropriate went out the window a long time ago. You in?

And then my phone lit up again and my mouth went dry.

This is me getting off the fence.

Oh my god.

I wasn’t sure if we were talking about riding together or being inappropriate together, but either way at the words, This is me getting off the fence, my answer was the same.

Yes.

Times one million. Plus one.

Where are you? he texted me.

Library.

I sent him the location of my study carrel, the small corner of the law library that had become my private haven.

My phone lit up again.

Be there in a few.

We were supposed to be at the middle school in two hours and I was still catching up on outlines for my con law final. The preferred method of studying for finals was to create mammoth outlines based on everything we’d learned in the course. The idea was that creating the outlines themselves would be an effective study aid, in addition to the time spent studying them.

At this point, I was seventy pages into what would likely be nearly a one-hundred-page outline, and I had no clue how I was even going to finish it, much less find time to study. Not to mention my three other exams. Luckily, legal research and writing had been a series of assignments that we’d turned in during the year. I couldn’t imagine adding another three-hour exam to my plate.

I pulled my hair back in a tie I found at the bottom of my bag, belatedly wishing I’d worn something other than my ratty Hannover Law T-shirt and jeans. And then the moment passed. I probably would have cared more a few months ago, but this was the height of law school mania, and there were only so many fucks I could give.

A few minutes later, Gray tapped on the door to my carrel. I let him in, not sure if I was more glad to see him or the two cups of coffee he held.

My heart moved a little closer on the falling-in-love meter as the smell of pumpkin spice hit me.

Gray peered around me, his eyes wide, and then he looked back and grinned at me. “Now this is a familiar sight.”

It wasn’t pretty. The desk in my carrel was covered in different colored highlighters, my con law book, the stupid supplement that I’d decided I needed another supplement just to understand, my laptop, and a mess of papers. I was normally a neat person, but I’d descended into exam chaos. Thank god I’d thrown away the box from the pizza I’d ordered earlier. This place was a step away from a sty.

I shot him a pleading look. “Kill me. Just kill me now. At this point, I want to be put out of my misery.”

He chuckled, his eyes going soft, his voice a husky purr. “Come here.”

He took my coffee out of my hands, setting both cups on the only available space on my desk.

Before I realized what he intended, he’d wrapped his arms around me, tucking me against his body. I stiffened for a moment, surprised by the contact, trying to remember if I’d forgotten to put on deodorant this morning.