Page 17 of Defend Me

“You’re close with them,” I guessed.

He nodded. The way he blinked a few times made me want to reassure him, but even a vulnerable moment wouldn’t make that go over well.

“Why’d you come all the way out here for school?”

“I got a scholarship, but it’s not a full ride,” he replied. “I still have loans for about half of it. Sometimes, I think about just going home for school so I can be closer, but it wouldn’t save me any money since they live too far from the campus back home for me to stay with them, plus I wouldn’t have the scholarship to help.”

I jerked my chin toward the living room and he followed me to the couch. The way he plopped down made it clear he was more relaxed than when he’d arrived, which was cool. Hell, he was sharing personal information with me, so we’d either moved past the loathing stage or he’d just forgotten.

“I’m surprised you don’t live at the frat with the other guys.”

His nose wrinkled. “Nah. It’s more expensive than my dorm anyway, which is already ridiculous. They have a spare room they let me use whenever I feel like crashing there or when they have parties, but they’ll fill it eventually.”

“Living in that house sounds like a nightmare to me.”

“That’s because you have every option in the world.”

I licked my lips and brought my feet up on the couch. “True. You’ll tell me how privileged I am, but I sometimes wish I was in a dorm. This place is too much.”

He was silent and his brow was furrowed slightly. Yeah, he definitely thought I was a douchebag.Poor Brooks has to live in a fancy apartment instead of a tiny dorm. How sad.

“We can trade,” he joked.

His words helped dispel my morose thoughts. “Yeah, totally. When my parents come to visit, just act natural. They might not notice.”

“Pretty sure they’d take one look at me and know that my bank account is negative.”

My eyes widened. “Really?”

He looked sheepish. “Uh, no. Just messing around.”

That was a lie. Dean was obviously struggling. I’d seen that from the way he glared at his phone at the airport. A sixty-dollar Uber was enough to break him. He was also too proud to ask for help. Except from Tilian, for some reason.

His stomach growled and he shifted on the couch.

“Would it help if you didn’t have to pay for the dorm?” I asked.

“I mean, yeah. It’d free up some funds and help me cover my other expenses. Plus, I hate sharing a room with someone. It wouldn’t be worth getting an apartment, though. They’re too expensive around here.”

“Unless you had roommates.”

He shrugged his mouth thoughtfully. “I’ve brought it up before, but most of the guys on the team already have their shit figured out. And I’m locked into my dorm for the semester.”

“Kai and West only have to pay up until the school finds someone to take over their rooms. Since it’s the beginning of the semester, it was easy. Bet you could do that too.”

“Well, if you find anyone who needs a roommate, holler at me.” He chuckled before he hit the pen again. I almost laughed when he sunk deeper into the couch and stared up at the ceiling.

“I know a lot of people. Maybe I can help you find something.”

He shrugged. “It’s whatever, man.”

He didn’t know me well enough to realize that I’d do it anyway. It wasn’t like he had to move if he didn’t want to, but if he was into the possibility, why not?

“If your roommate in the dorm is ever driving you insane, I have a second room you can crash in.”

His eyes narrowed. “Why?”

“Because it came with a second bedroom.” His glare made me smile. “I’m just saying, it’s furnished, has a big walk-in shower and a jetted tub. It can be a little resort for you to unwind once in a while.”

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