“Hmm, last week, maybe?” She throws her hands up in the hair. “Yes, definitely last week. I don’t know why I’m being coy.”
“Are you serious?” I’m screeching, but I can’t help it. This is all just so scandalous. “Then why is he bringing Lady Priscilla to the house and not you?”
“He knows your mother will flip her shit if he ever brought me around as his girlfriend! Besides, he doesn’t call me his girlfriend. He claims we have an understanding,” Evie says.
“Oh, that understanding thing is complete and utter shit, and you know it! How dare he?” Now I’m pissed at George on Evie’s behalf.
“It’s what I thought I wanted too. You know how I don’t like labels,” she says, and she’s right. I do know how much she hates labels. She doesn’t want to be just any one thing. Evie’s always wanted to be all the things.
“Right, but he’s not acknowledging that the two of you have a relationship,” I explain, hoping that she realizes just how much of a jerk George is being.
“It’s not a relationship. He’s not my boyfriend. It is an understanding. We’re doing it just for the sex,” she insists, but her eyes are starting to well up with tears again, and I’m afraid there’s more than sex involved here.
Sounds like there are honest to goodness feelings.
And I’m afraid Evie’s going to end up with a broken heart.
I’m getting ready for dinner when my phone rings with a FaceTime call from Cannon. I rush to grab my phone, terrified I’ll miss the call and then I’ll be unable to get a hold of him, and when his handsome face fills my screen, my heart trips over itself in happiness.
“Cannon,” I say breathlessly.
“Sus,” he returns with a big grin. “You look beautiful.”
Now my heart swells to three times its size. “Thank you. Getting ready for dinner.”
“Where are you?”
“My parents’ house, remember? Evie and I are here for the weekend.” I switch the angle of the camera so he can see the room. “This is my old bedroom. Evie and I are sharing it.”
“Where is she at?”
I flip the phone camera back around so it’s my face once again. “Taking a shower.” She just got in, after I spent at least thirty minutes trying to convince her that yes, she absolutely has to come down for dinner tonight, or it would look weird. And it would give George the sense that he won.
I’m not going to let him win this. No way.
“So you’re alone?” Cannon raises his brows.
“Yes, but I’m not going to dirty talk with you or expose myself. Not here,” I tell him, making him laugh.
“I wasn’t going to ask you to do any of that stuff, though I do miss you and wouldn’t mind seeing that pretty little body of yours,” he says longingly.
My skin goes warm at his sweet words. “We should set up another video date.”
“We should.” He takes a deep breath, exhaling loudly before he announces, “I got hurt yesterday.”
“Wait, what? What do you mean?” Now my heart is racing. This man puts me through all the emotions in a short amount of time, and it’s almost too much to handle.
“I was at practice, running on the field and I don’t know, my knee just—gave out.” He shrugs. “Hurts like a bitch.”
“No one tackled you or anything?” I still don’t know much about American football or how it works. I try to watch his games, but most of them aren’t broadcasted here, so it’s difficult.
“No, I was by myself. Well, I wasn’t by myself, but no one else was around me when it happened. I had trouble with my knee back in high school, and even had to have surgery the summer after my sophomore year. But I thought it was fixed. Never gave me any problems until now,” he says.
“Where are you? Are you at home?” I don’t think so. None of his surroundings look familiar.
“I’m in a hotel room. In Arizona. We play the Cardinals tomorrow.”
“Are you playing in the game?”