Page 52 of Vince
Sydney smiles wide as she shakes her head. “She’s independent, that’s for sure.”
My head shakes in approval as laughter spills from my lips. “You have no idea. We’re gonna have our hands full with her later. She already acts like a mini-adult. I just freaking hope she chooses the right path in life because there will be no swaying her once her mind is set.”
“I might’ve resembled that as a kid.” Sydney shrugs guiltily. “I don’t think I’ve turned out that bad.”
“No… you certainly haven’t,” I agree. “Though I can just imagine you filled with spitfire and sass as a teenager. Your mom must’ve had her hands full.”
“Not really. I mellowed out,” she sighs. “Though, I’m sure it had more to do with the fact I was more the parent growing up than Mom.” Shaking her head as she looks to the sky, she lets out a loud sigh. “I should probably thank Grams for that. I’m only at CRU because she insisted I apply for my scholarship. It also helped that she left me just enough money in her will to cover my expenses for the first two years. Since last year, I’ve been on my own. But with the hours I pick up at the bar, I should be able to graduate without being in too much debt.”
Damn. Another thing we have in common. Though I shouldn’t be shocked; she’s a hard worker. I’ve seen her in action, and nothing she’s told me is out of character for her so far.
When I’m quiet for longer than necessary, Sydney changes the conversation with ease and after taking another long pull from her coffee mug, she asks, “Does Vanessa work tomorrow morning?”
I swear I see a flash of disappointment cross her face so quickly that if I hadn’t been paying such close attention, I would’ve missed it.
“Yeah. She grabs as many hours as possible when there’s a big event in town. The alumni always tip well, and it practically triples her paycheck.”
“Wow. I usually work after big events on campus, too. But there’s no way I’d miss the championship game. I requested last night off before we qualified for the championships. I just had this feeling, ya know…”
CRU had another amazing season, that’s for sure. “Do you like to watch other sports when basketball’s not in season?”
“I’m a huge football fan as well.”
“Okay—we can’t be friends if your team’s not the Rainier Renegades,” I deadpan, hoping I’m not wrong about her choice in teams. But let’s face it, she could like my most hated team, and I doubt it would have any effect on my feelings toward her.
Her seriousness is almost comical as her posture turns rigid, and her expression is stone cold. “Uh… Luke Leighton has brought so much to the team since taking over as head coach. How could I not?”
When she breaks her hardened stare, we both laugh.
Shaking her head at her adorable antics, she sighs. “Though truth be told—Grams loved the Renegades, and I really wasn’t allowed to like anything else. She and her friends always threw football parties at the local VFW. I can’t remember a weekend without watching the game if I was with her.”
“Your grams sounds like she was pretty cool,” I surmise. I would’ve loved being close to my grandparents.
“She was the best,” Syd says wistfully as our waitress interrupts with our food.
Neither of us speak while we dig into the feast before us. I’m ravenous and from the way Syd devours her biscuits and gravy, I’d say she worked up quite the appetite last night.
We eat in comfortable silence as we both consume most of our meal. I’m not sure what about Sydney puts me at ease, but I know one thing’s for certain. I like it—a lot. Probably way more than I should, but I’m not sure I have much choice in the matter.
Sometimes, Syd’s like a whirling hurricane on the outside, yet at the same time, when you cut to the core of her issues, she’s completely calm at the same time. I’ve never seen anything like it. She’s quite the anomaly and as I study her, I’m not sure what to make of it.
“What?” she asks, breaking my concentration.
Apparently, subtlety is not one of my virtues this morning as she’s caught me blatantly staring at her.
Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I mumble, “It’s nothing.”
Cocking an eyebrow, she stares in disbelief. Her bullshit meter is strong, and there’s no pulling anything past her.
I take a moment to finish chewing before I put her at ease. “Seriously, Syd. It’s nothing. I just got lost in thought. Sorry for staring.”
Well… that isn’t a total lie, but it’s the safest response—for now anyway. I’m not sure I want to lay all my cards on the table, when I barely know what game I’m playing. Not that I’m playing a game—because that’s not the case—but rather I’m in uncharted territory, and I’m uncertain what my next move should be.
“What were you concentrating so hard on?”
“I have no idea.” I shrug off, hoping she’ll let it go. It’s not that I have anything to hide, but I don’t want to explain my thoughts about her just yet either.
“You know you can tell me anything, right?” she assures me as she finishes another bite of biscuit.
