“I’ll walk you,” Danny said, turning around to the girls. “I’ll be back and then we’ll take off.”
Danny followed after Paul, who walked fast, as if desperate to get away from Denise and Melissa. For some reason Paul had never meshed well with them, or any of Danny’s female lovers. It wasn’t jealousy. It was more a personality conflict that told Danny he and Paul had vastly different tastes in women, with the exception of Eve. She was clearly one-of-a-kind because Paul hated all the other girls Danny found interesting. As soon as they left the fenced-off parking lot for the players’ buses and got into the building, Paul confirmed his suspicions.
He turned to Danny, sticking his finger down his throat in a juvenile show of disgust, making a production of gagging. “If you make me go to that party—”
“It’s not that bad,” Danny said, laughing at him. “Come on, it’ll be fun. You can have a few beers and unwind.”
“I do not unwind at those parties,” Paul said, his low voice about as close to whiny as it got. “I hate them, especially after a win. Everyone’s hanging all over me.”
“So find a chick and an empty room and unwind that way.”
“Denise and Melissa’s friends aren’t my type,” Paul said, pulling another face. “Not even close. I’m really not into sorority girls like them.”
“Their friends are everyone’s type,” Danny said, raising his eyebrows at Paul and speaking slowly to make his point. “Hot, available and accommodating.”
Paul huffed, rubbing a hand over his eyes in a way that told Danny he really didn’t want to go. “I have other plans.”
“Fine.” Danny shrugged, not too concerned with disappointing Denise and Melissa despite their rain dance for Paul’s win. He could make it up to them later. “So we’ll go with you. I got my own dates and everything. Where are we going?”
“Danny Boy.” Paul laughed, lifting his hand to stare at him incredulously. “I got plans.”
“Oh,” Danny said, pulling back in surprise because, as far as he knew, Paul hadn’t been seeing anyone since Eve. Without warning, the image of deep knife wounds carved into Paul’s biceps surged to the forefront of his mind. The fears of Paul hurting himself surfaced again, as did the accusations made by Tony. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “Anyone I know?”
Paul shook his head, swallowing hard as he looked away. “No. She’s, um…not in school.”
Danny shrugged. “So what? Neither am I. Can I meet her?” He gestured to where they left Denise and Melissa waiting. “I always let you meet my girlfriends.”
“Uh,” Paul said, still appearing very uncomfortable. “It’s not like, a dating thing. It’s just—”
“Fucking?”
“Mmm.” Paul nodded, heaving a sigh of relief. “Pretty much.”
“Fine, whatever,” Danny said, unable to hide how rankled he was, concern for Paul making his entire body tense in defensiveness. “Have fun.”
Paul looked crestfallen. “You’re pissed.”
“You had plans, I get it,” Danny said, his voice edgy as he tried to ignore his inner warning bells. It wasn’t that Paul had private plans; Danny had plenty of those himself. It was the other things left unsaid. He let his gaze run over Paul, who was still sweaty from the game and grimy from not taking a shower in a public locker room. He wanted to needle him about his sudden shyness, but instead he shrugged, giving up on keeping Paul close for the evening. “Fuck off. Go get laid. Rock her world.”
Paul smiled, looking relieved. His face lit up in a way that almost made Danny feel good about encouraging the lie. “Thanks, Danny Boy. Call me tomorrow, okay? You can tell me what happened.”
“Nah, I don’t kiss and tell.”
“If you say so,” Paul said with a laugh. “I’m taking off. Tell Denise and Melissa I’m sorry. I hope you have an awesome time.”
“Sure.” Danny nodded, forcing a smile. “I always do.”
He stood there after Paul left, watching him walk down the hallway with a sinking feeling in his heart. Everything in Danny wanted to go after Paul and question him about this mysterious girl and, more so, about his strange behavior. Instead he walked outside to where he’d left Denise and Melissa. They were leaning against the fence talking, obviously enjoying being with each other and happy with life in general.
He studied them silently—the way blonde blended with dark as Melissa leaned her head against Denise’s, making it obvious they were much more than best friends. They were young. They partied and saw other people, but at the end of the day they loved each other and would most likely still love each other twenty years from now when they settled down and curbed their wild ways. There was probably a cosmic reason why Danny had been seeing these two for the better part of two years. They represented what he secretly longed for and watching what they had together was a miserable replacement for something that would never be his.