Fair Catch (Love and Sports Series) (43 page)

             
“Hey.” He said.

             
“Hey.” Lexi didn’t want him here, she wasn’t strong enough.

             
“I’m sorry you lost.” Lexi just shrugged and fidgeted with her cleats in her hand. She always put on her slip on sandals after games. “Are you going to the athlete party later this week?” He asked.

             
“Don’t know yet.” Lexi felt so awkward. He started to come toward her and she froze, she knew she needed to move away but she couldn’t. The draw to him was too powerful.

             
He wrapped his hands around her waist and pulled her in close to him. “Damn. I miss you so much.” Lexi didn’t know what to say so she stayed silent. He gave her a big hug and kissed the top of her head. She didn’t respond but she didn’t pull away either. “Please say something.” Jake said.

             
Lexi looked up at him, his eyes were full of hope and she knew she was leading him on. She let him hold her and touch her and that was wrong. She pulled away and said, “Jake, I can’t do this. You know that. I’m sorry.”

             
She started to walk away but he stopped her. “Lexi, please talk to me. I want to fix this.”

             
“That’s the problem. Jake. You always want to be the solution. Well I don’t want that. I want to do this on my own.”

             
Jake ran a hand over his face. “But being in a relationship means helping each other out. Please Lexi, let me help you.”

             
Lexi shook her head. “No, Jake.” She continued to walk away from him but turned around real quick and spread her arms out. “Thank you for everything today. It was truly magical.” He looked so sad and depressed. “I’m sorry, Jake. I’m sorry I’m being so awful to you. You deserve better and I’m sure you will find that special person someday.”

             
“I already did.” He said while she was walking away. “And she keeps choosing to walk away from me. This isn’t over Lexi, not by a long shot.”

             
Lexi didn’t stop to listen to the rest of his speech, she kept propelling her legs forward, as far away from Jake as possible. She was way too weak where Jake was concerned. He was perfect in every way but that was not what she needed. In order to even be good enough for Jake, she needed to find out who she was first, then if he already wasn’t with someone, then she could fully give herself over to Jake; mind, body and soul.

                                                        ***

              Margo pulled on her short denim skirt and paired it with a deep blue halter top and strappy wedges. It was the last party of the year and Margo wanted to go out in style. Some people had been drinking all day, starting at nine in the morning and were still at it. Margo wanted to stay classy so she waited until the party. She talked to Lexi all week about going to the party but kept getting turned down.

             
They moved into their new place, well Margo’s new place where Lexi was a temporary guest. Margo didn’t mind having Lexi stay with her, it was actually kind of nice since Lexi could help Margo ease into a new place. Starting next week they both would be reporting to the shelter to start work, Margo more on the business side and Lexi on the day to day operations. Margo wasn’t sure how happy Lexi actually was about the whole job situation but she did know she was grateful for the opportunity.

             
Jake called Margo a couple of times during the week asking if Lexi was going to be at the party, sadly she had to keep telling him no. He was going to start training soon with the Thunder so he wouldn’t be seeing Lexi around campus anymore, Margo felt awful. She didn’t know what to do, she wanted to help Jake and snap Lexi out of the funk she was in but she also didn’t want to push Lexi too much. She was determined and Margo didn’t really want to get in the way of that.

             
There was a knock on her door that had Margo turning around to see that Parker let himself in. He looked way too good, he should be illegal. He wore tight fitting jeans, a button up grey shirt and black vest as if he just jumped out of a Justin Timberlake video. Margo tried not to stare but she couldn’t help herself, he was gorgeous.

             
“Hey, beautiful.” Parker leaned down and kissed Margo on the cheek. She inhaled the sweet scent of his cologne and committed it to memory. He was going to Atlanta for baseball and he would be leaving soon to get settled even though the baseball season just started. Everything was changing and Margo wasn’t sure if she would be able to handle it.

             
The horribly embarrassing moment they shared outside the coffee house, where Margo confessed her feelings for Parker was never brought up again. Margo was grateful because she didn’t know how she would react if Parker asked her about her confession. Her confession was put to rest, thankfully.

             
“Hey, Parker. You look good.” She said with a smile.

             
“Speak for yourself. I’m going to need to behave myself.”

             
Margo giggled and thought to herself if only he wouldn’t behave himself, this one time. She grabbed her purse, threw some lip gloss in it as well as her camera and phone and turned toward Parker.

             
“You ready?” She asked. Parker was giving her a ride so she didn’t have to get a taxi later. Parker said he would be the designated driver since he was trying to prepare for his upcoming move.

             
“Where’s Lexi?” Parker asked looking around the living room when they were heading for the front door. Margo peaked around the apartment and saw no traces of Lexi anywhere.

             
“I have no clue where she is.”

             
Parker wiggled his eyebrows. “Oh I might know where she is. I bet she is with Jake right now making up for lost time.” Parker was grinning like a fool.

             
“No, that’s not going to happen. Believe me. I don’t know where she is. Let me send her a text to make sure she is ok.”

Margo: Hey, where are you?

              Parker led Margo out the door by placing his hand at the small of her back. The feel of his strong grip against her skin made Margo’s toes curl. Why did she have to be so attracted to Parker? It wasn’t fair. Margo’s phone beeped, startling her. She looked at a text she received from Lexi.

Lexi: At the party, you and Parker ever going to make it?

              Margo stared at her phone confused and then looked up at Parker who was matching her confusion. “She’s already at the party which is so weird because I don’t even remember hearing her get ready.”

             
Parker shrugged and pulled the car door open for Margo. “Maybe she really did end up going with Jake.”

             
“I guess there is only one way to find out.”

             
Parker closed her door and walked around the back to his side. Margo would miss this, the precious time she spent alone with Parker. Even though Lexi was acting weird, Margo was not going to let Lexi get to her and ruin this night. No, Lexi drama was going to be non-existent and Margo was going to enjoy the time she had with Parker, what little time she had left.

             
When Parker pulled up to the infamous football house for their last party, Margo felt more than nostalgic. The football house was where she first met Parker. Lexi was already friends with him from one of her classes but introduced Parker to Margo at the football house. One of the only parties Lexi actually attended her freshman year. After the catastrophe in the kitchen with beer spilling down the front of Lexi’s shirt, Lexi wasn’t too keen on going to parties after that. Margo couldn’t blame her.

             
They both got out of Parker’s car and walked to the back porch like usual. Margo instantly spotted Jake and he didn’t look happy at all. He actually looked like steam was coming out of his ears and he was about to murder someone. The grip he had on his beer could possibly break the bottle if he held on to it any tighter.

             
Margo nudged him with her hip and asked, “Hey, what’s going on?”

             
Jake looked up at her and frowned. He took a sip from his beer and nodded over where the beer pong tables were. Margo could barely believe what she was seeing. Lexi was at the party, playing beer pong with Marcus from the baseball team. Margo couldn’t help but notice how good looking Marcus was. He was the right fielder and was also graduating but he didn’t have ambitions of going pro like Parker, he had a job lined up in advertisement for some big firm in San Diego. Margo watched as Lexi was smiling as if there wasn’t a care in the world. She had no clue what was going on, was Lexi trying to make Jake smash Marcus’ head into a brick wall?

             
Parker just came back from getting beers and asked, “What are we looking at?” He must have spotted Lexi because he muttered, “Oh shit” under his breath.

             
Margo took a seat next to Jake and pulled his attention away from the game that was going on. “Jake, don’t look over there.”

             
“How can I not?” He nearly spit all over Margo from pure rage. “That is my girl over there playing with another guy. How the hell am I supposed to look away from that?”

             
Margo let out a deep sigh. “She is not your girl anymore, Jake.”

Wrong sentence, Margo thought instantly because the fire pouring out of Jake’s eyes nearly singed off every last hair on her body.

             
He pointed his finger and beer at Margo while he spoke. “Don’t you fucking dare tell me she’s not my girl.” Jake ran his hand over his face and this time when Margo looked at him he didn’t look pissed, he looked defeated, sad, as if he was giving up on life. “I just don’t get it.” He said. “What did I do that was so wrong? I wanted to take care of her. I wanted to provide anything for her that she wanted. Any girl would want that…besides the one girl I can’t have.”

             
Margo’s heart ripped apart for him, she felt so terrible. She hated seeing Jake like this. He was always the fun, out-going guy at parties, not the depressed guy who sat in the corner sulking while everyone else had fun.

             
Margo grabbed Jake’s hand and squeezed it. “Listen, you did nothing wrong, not really at least. She just needs to show her independence, you can thank her parents for that. Give her time, Jake.”

             
Jake shook his head. “I don’t know if I can.” Lexi took that moment to let out a burst of laughter that snapped Jake’s head up and brought back the fury Margo saw when she first sat down. She didn’t like how this night was already starting out and she knew it wasn’t about to get any better. She just hoped that Marcus would be able to walk out of the party alive.

                                                        ***

              Jake couldn’t be outside anymore, that was why he found himself staring into a fridge full of beer and not making a move to grab one. He was letting the cold air cool down his raging temper. How could she do this to him? What was she trying to prove by showing up with someone else? Whatever she was doing, she was doing a good job at hitting Jake right where it hurt.

             
He didn’t think when he begged and pleaded to have Margo bring Lexi to the party that Lexi would show up with another guy. Margo and Parker seemed just as surprised as he was which was a relief. At least they didn’t know about Lexi being with another guy and were hiding it behind his back. That would have felt even worse. Jake thought he earned a sense of loyalty with Margo and Parker. Yes, their loyalty shifted a little more toward Lexi but at least they both had been very honest with him during the whole catastrophe of his break up with Lexi.

             
A small hand started climbing up Jake’s back under his shirt and he snapped straight up and slammed the door shut. He turned around hoping to see his favorite set of blue eyes but instead fell short in a pair of brown. One of the freshmen from the basketball team was trying to get close to him, too close. He couldn’t remember her name, she hit on him a couple of times but once news broke out that Lexi and him were a couple, she backed off. Apparently she was back on the prowl.

             
“Come be my partner at the beer pong table…please.”

             
She made a pouty lip that always made Jake angry. Why did women think they could look like a child and get whatever they wanted? Jake was in no mood to play around with the slut in front of him but then again, who was she planning on playing beer pong against?

             
“Who’s playing?”

             
A huge grin broke out across her face. “Oh you know, Lexi and Marcus.”

             
Just as he suspected. Jake didn’t want to play with this girl but playing with her meant being able to get closer to Lexi without looking like a stalker. All he wanted was to find out what was going on with her and Marcus.