Page 32 of Hard Hitter

"Go get your girl, Case," said Chris as he gave him another clap on the back, then walked toward his own car.

With a deep inhale, Quinn continued walking toward Rae, heart racing and hands shaking with anticipation. He was one row of cars away when he paused, watching another figure approach Rae and lean coolly against her car next to her.

His heart dropped. Not just into his stomach; he was pretty sure it actually fell out of his body and onto the pavement beneath him.

Liam Hamilton's body language was easy enough to read from where Quinn was standing. He had one side of his body leaning on Rae's car, angled toward her, head dipped low as he spoke, looking at her hungrily with a cocky grin on his face. He was asking her out.

Fuck.

Quinn was undecided whether he wanted to stay back and give them space to have their conversation or if he should barge in and interrupt. Maybe he could get to them before Liam got his question out. Or maybe he'd get there just in time for Rae to say yes, and he was sure he didn't want to hear that.

Liam Hamilton was a senior on the varsity football team with Quinn. He was a typical jock in most ways: Over six feet tall, short blond hair, one of the few high school seniors who could successfullygrow facial hair that wasn't patchy. He had that confident look of a person who had always been well cared-for, wanted for nothing, and had absolutely no idea how lucky he was for it. He strutted around as if everything his parents had been able to provide were his own personal entitlements. Quinn was sure Liam's family was nearly as well off as the DeRoses. A silver spoon baby, so unlike himself.

A possessive growl rose in his chest as he saw Liam put his hand on Rae's arm. He made up his mind to interrupt the moment with hopes that Liam would get the message that this was Quinn's territory and he needed to take his business elsewhere.

"Ready to go, Rae? I'm starving," said Quinn, acting as though he hadn't even noticed Liam standing there in his brand new Under Armour sweats and a white t-shirt that was purposely a size small to showcase his possibly steroid-enhanced muscles.

"Oh, hey, Quinn!" Rae turned and smiled at him. Her smile fell for a second and she looked as though she were carefully crafting her next sentence. "Um, yeah, I'm starving, too. But, hey, uh...Liam just asked me to go to the homecoming dance with him." She gestured toward the blonde jackass next to her. "We hadn't really talked about it yet. I know we usually go together in like a big group, but…"

Shit, is she asking my permission? How the fuck do I do this without looking like a damn territorial caveman?

"Oh, right…" Quinn paused, looking back and forth between Rae and Liam. It suddenly struck him how much they must have in common. They were from the same world. Liam was the kind of guy Rae's parents probably wanted her to end up with. Quinn had been so sure Rae would've gone with him, but here she was, interested in this other guy who seemed so… obvious for her. "I mean, that's up to you, isn't it? I can't tell you who to go with."

What the fuck, man?

Rae looked confused for a few beats and didn't say anything as she just stared at Quinn.

Feeling like he should say something and seriously despising the situation he'd been put in he spat out, "I mean, if you go with Liam it's not like I can't find a real date."

What. The. Actual. Fuck.

Rae's eyebrows shot up in surprise at his remark, not that Quinn could blame her. Why was he acting like such a dick? She was giving him an incredulous look he was sure she'd never given him before and then let out a hollow laugh and turned back to Liam. "I'dloveto go with you. I'd hate to hold Quinn back from his numerous other prospects."

"Great!" Liam flashed a megawatt smile at Rae and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you this weekend at the club, right? Tennis tournament, I think. We can go over the details then."

The subtle mention that their families were members at the same country club felt like a slap to Quinn's face. Rae gave a nod to Liam with a "see you then". Quinn fully understood the meaning of Liam's smirk as he bumped his shoulder unnecessarily hard into Quinn's when he walked by.Checkmate. Quinn felt his nostrils flare as he physically bit his tongue to keep from saying anything else.

Rae turned around and assessed Quinn briefly before blurting, "What the fuck, Quinn?"

"What?" It was more a clipped statement than a question.

"You're being an ass," Rae said as she tossed her bag in the back seat, holding the door open for him to do the same.

Apparently Iaman ass. A fucking stupid one.

Quinn let out a sigh, though the anger he felt didn't fade. He walked around to the passenger's side of the car. "It's just been a long day."

They got into the car and Rae started the engine. "Maybe you're hangry. I'm sure food will help. I'm always ravenous after swim practice."

"I'm really not that hungry," said Quinn, unable to take the attitude out of his voice.

"You just said you were starving," Rae pointed out. She paused then sighed. "If you didn't want me to go with him, you should've said something."

This annoyed him further. "You didn't have to say yes...and I don't see why it should be my choice who you go with." He could feel himself glaring at her. "You're telling me if I'd made the decision for you and told him to back the fuck off because we were going together, you wouldn't have punched me in the balls for being a controlling dickhead?"

"Is that what you wanted to do?" Rae asked, seeming genuinely curious.

"No," Quinn lied. After a beat he finished, "I wanted you to choose for yourself."

---