Waking Olivia(30)

"I'd love to help," I coo.

Brendan disguises his laugh as a cough and turns to me. "So where are we headed tonight?"

"We aren't headed anywhere," counters Will. "Olivia's not even old enough to drink yet."

"You're almost old enough, though, right?" asks Brendan.

"I turn 21 in December."

"I can't be seen drinking with my under-age student," growls Will.

"It's okay," I say, waving them off. "You go out. I'll stay home with  Dorothy and watch TV." I see a wistful look cross Will's face and wonder  if he might actually like our nights in.

"No," says Brendan. "Will and Jessica can go to one place, and you and I can go to another. Problem solved."

"But-"

"No, it's okay," Will intones suddenly, "we'll just go somewhere away from campus."

We go to a country bar far to the outskirts of town where Brendan seems  to know just about everyone, which is interesting given that he goes to  school three hours away. He drapes an arm around my shoulders and we  walk away from Jessica and Will. Brendan introduces me to the staff as  the next Mrs. Langstrom, and by the time we've ordered a pitcher, I'm  fairly certain I've just met every semi-toothless person in the state.

"How do you know all these people?" I ask.

He grins. "I'm a lovable guy. Surely you've figured that out by now?"

"Yes, right around the moment you tackled my coach."

"It's so weird that he's your coach. I mean, isn't that weird for you?"

"Weird how?"

"You're almost the same age, for one thing. And the two of you just have  that vibe. You know, a couple vibe. When you guys argue, the air is  just rife with sexual tension the whole time."

"You're watching too much porn."

He smirks. "That's entirely possible but irrelevant. Something is going on."

"Nothing is going on." I can't help but notice Will, sitting in the  corner booth, looking unhappy as he glances over at us. "Should we go  sit with them?"                       
       
           


///
       

"Nah," says Brendan. "My brother needs to realize how bored he is by  Jessica on his own. And besides, it's so fun making him jealous."

"He's not jealous."

"Wanna bet?" he asks. "Watch." He puts his hand on the small of my back  and then slowly lowers it until it's resting on my ass. Before I can  smack his hand away, Will is there, pushing between us.

"What's taking so long?" he snaps, grabbing the pitcher.

Brendan leans toward my ear as we follow him to the table. "Told you."



It's pretty damned awkward sitting at the table, given that Brendan and  Will aren't getting along and Jessica and I clearly dislike each other.  It's a relief when Brendan pulls me out of the booth. "You know how to  two-step, right?" he asks.

"I just moved here from Texas. I could teach a course on two-stepping."

We get out on the dance floor and a moment later are joined by Will and  Jessica. Will looks like he'd rather be anywhere else. Brendan spins me  and then dips me so low my head nearly hits the ground.

He laughs. "You're so into me right now, aren't you?"

"Yes, there's nothing hotter than a guy who gives you a concussion while you're dancing."

"You're such a hard-ass," he sighs. "No wonder my brother's so into it."

"Oh my God. Shut up about that already," I groan. "You're making it  weird." I give him my best stink-eye, but he's as impervious to it as  his brother.

"Believe me, babe," he grins, "it was already weird."

The next time we're alongside Will and Jessica, Brendan pulls away from  me without warning, grabbing Jessica's arm. "Switch," he says, and he's  the only one of the four of us who looks happy as he and Jessica dance  away.

Will and I stand there awkwardly for a second. I start to turn back  toward the table, but he stops me with a hand on my waist. "Fuck it," he  sighs, grabbing my other hand. "This goes no farther than this room."

I roll my eyes. "Did you really think I was going to brag about dancing with you?"

He smiles. "They don't call me the Two Stepping King of Colorado for nothing."

I just witnessed his lackluster dancing with Jessica, so I'm finding this hard to believe. "Who calls you that?" I demand.

"You will," he says with that cocky grin of his that could get him  anything he wants from me, and I mean anything, "by the time we're  done." He spins me one direction and the next, and the speed with which  it all occurs leaves me unable to do anything but follow his lead.

"Holy shit," I cry. "Where'd you learn to do that?"

"My mom. She taught us all these stupid dances under the impression that they were important skills to have."

"And did they ever come in handy?"

"They've gotten me laid more than once," he replies, spinning me, and  I'm so shocked that I nearly fly free of his hand. He looks a little  surprised himself. "I shouldn't have said that. I'm sorry."

I spin close to him, so that my chest is pressed to his and our mouths  are just millimeters apart. "Will," I whisper, "I already knew this  could get you laid."

His eyes meet mine and there's something fierce there. He squeezes his  eyes shut. "Don't do that," he hisses. He pulls away and walks straight  to the bathroom.

I sigh, heading to the table alone. I actually allowed myself to believe Brendan. I won't make that mistake again.



Much later, I'm climbing into bed when there's tapping on my window. I  pull up the shade and find Brendan standing there with that mischievous  smile on his face, holding a six-pack aloft.

I open the window. "I thought I was supposed to be the bad influence."

He winks. "Got to be some benefit to growing up in a tiny one-story house."

I slide sweats on over my running clothes and climb out. "I get the feeling you've done this more than once."

He laughs. "Been caught for it more than once, too."

We go down to the stables, where the shelter and the hay make it just  warm enough to be cozy. "So that was fun tonight," I say sarcastically.

"Fun is impossible when Jessica is around," he retorts. "She's so fucking fake."

"I'm not sure why your brother doesn't see that."

"He used to," Brendan says. "My dad was always all over him to ask  Jessica out when they were younger and Will would make this face like my  dad was asking him to eat a plate full of shit. Then my dad died and he  started dating her. I don't get it."                       
       
           


///
       

"If you hate her so much, why'd you come out with us? Aren't your friends around?"

He shrugs. "I had my reasons," he says evasively. "What about you? Why  do you sleep here before meets? And why the hell would you sleep here  when you don't have one?"

I look at him in wonder. They really didn't tell him anything - Dorothy  or Will. They let me keep all my secrets to myself. "You're going to  think I'm a freak."

"Hey, I'm a registered sex offender. I'm no one to throw stones."

My back stiffens. "You are?"

"Little known fact: streaking during pledge week is actually considered a  sex crime. It was such a miscarriage of justice. I mean, look at me.  Those girls were lucky to get an eyeful of this."

I snort and he elbows me. "So tell me why my mom wants to adopt you and  my brother is risking his job and sanity to have you over here."

It's the first time I've willingly told someone my story. It still  humiliates me, but having brought my secret out in the light to Will and  Dorothy makes it seems slightly less dark than it did before.

"That's kind of awesome," he says when I conclude. "You get your entire  workout out of the way and you don't even know you've done it."

Calling it ‘awesome' seems like a stretch, but it's better than what he could have said.

"So you and my brother are sleeping under the same roof and you see him  every morning and he'd rather spend time with you than his girlfriend,  but nothing's happening."

"He's my coach, Brendan," I reply. "He'd get fired. And neither of us is  interested anyway." Okay, that's sort of a lie. But based on the way he  freaking ran from me tonight I suppose it's true for one of us.

"You know," Brendan says, scooting closer, "I heard his brother is super hot. And available."

I smile. "I don't think Will would be a fan of that idea."

"Exactly," says Brendan. "Maybe it would help him get his priorities straight."

"No, it's not that he likes me," I explain. "It's just that things are tense between you guys and that would make it worse."