Page 2 of The Pass Protection
Another knock on the door has Harris turning back around to answer. Hopefully, it’s the pizza this time.
“Did she seem okay?” he asks. I’m not sure what Campbell knows about my friendship with his sister. There honestly isn’t much there. A few videos were sent to each other on social media, a liked picture here and there, and the occasional text. He warned me off of her last winter, and I’ve done my best to honor that. Of course, I felt a connection, but damn, that’s my Coach’s daughter, who is clearly going through some shit. I need to tread lightly, very lightly.
I’m about to respond when her door swings open. “Is the pizza…” Her words trail off as her eyes widen at seeing her big brother standing outside her door. Since she’s entered her room, she’s tossed on an oversized hoodie with her high school basketball logo across the chest. Thank God she covered up her tits.
Shock crosses both of their faces as his sister’s appearance literally takes Grant aback. “What happened to your hair?”
She scoffs. “Well, hello to you too, brother.” Her eyes narrow as she bounces her gaze from JP to Harris, who’s setting our pizza order down on the table, and then they land on me. The glare she gives me is glacial. And reminds me way too much of the glare her brother just gave me.
I raise my hands, one still holding my beer. “Don’t look at me like that. I didn’t say shit. If you want to blame anyone, blame the jackass on the other side.”
Her head quirks as she props her hands on her hips. “Oh, so this is how it’s going to be, roomie?”
Grant goes to grab Bret’s arm, and she freezes. Her back goes ramrod straight as fear covers her face. It’s the same reaction she gave me in the parking lot when I questioned who hurt her. At that moment, every guy in this room knew she was hiding something. Someone fucking hurt her. Call it male instinct, but a protectiveness went through each of us.
“Don’t,” she says, her words soft. “I’m fine, Grant. I just missed the family and wanted to be an Eagle like you.”
He pulls her into his arms, and I’m jealous that I’m not wrapping my arms around her. He whispers something in her hair, and she grabs him tighter. He pulls away with a quick peck to the top of her head. “We’ll talk about this more.”
She gives him a terse nod before he steps away from her. Heaviness weighs on his shoulder as he stares at his sister.
“Wanna stay for some food?” Harris asks, tossing paper plates next to the pizza boxes. It looks like he ordered Cousin Jimmy’s, a staple around campus. They’re the only place on campus that stays open until four a.m. Their pizza is super greasy, super tasty, and super cheap. When the late-night drunk munchies hit, they’re the go-to. Somehow, they even cure hangovers. They also have a helluva deal of an extra-large pizza, ten breadsticks, and two large drinks for ten dollars. You can’t freaking beat it.
Grant shakes his head. “Nah, man. You sure you’re good, Addy?”
“Yeah, and don’t be mad at them,” she says. Her green doe eyes sparkle as she looks up at him. “I did everything under Bret Campbell. They had no idea.”
“I still don’t like it. Why didn’t you call me? You could’ve taken my extra room.”
“Some things need to be done on my own.”
He eyes her, much like a parent would search their child for any traces of a lie. When he seems satisfied with her answer—at least for the moment—he pulls her in for one last hug. The two are close. I’m jealous of their relationship. I have an older brother and a younger sister. My sister and I are somewhat close, but she’s quite a bit younger than I am. And as much as I wished I was closer to my brother, we’ve never had the chance to be close.
He’s four years older than me, and when he was in high school, he was quite the shithead. Trouble always seemed to find him, so I never got much opportunity to grow close to him. Then, after he graduated high school, he enlisted in the Army. My dad would have been proud of him. He would have been more proud if Jett had followed in my dad’s footsteps and enlisted in the Air Force, but I guess the Army is the next best thing.
For the past six years, he’s been serving overseas. Building a relationship with someone who never wants to come home is hard. It’s not like I’m at home in Ohio either, but we aren’t even in the same country. The two of us email back and forth, and he tries to catch replays of my games when he has the chance. But it isn’t the same.
Maybe once I graduate, he’ll be ready to leave the service, and we can both be home together. Dad’s dream was always for the two of us to take over the family farm since my younger sister never had any interest in it—at least, she didn’t when I lived at home.
“See you guys in the morning,” Grant says as he reaches into his wallet and pulls out a card for his sister. “Here’s my keycard to get into the practice facility. We have practice from six to nine. You have until ten to talk to Dad, or I’m doing it for you.”
Bret takes the card from Grant and nods her head. With that, Grant leaves us alone for our first dinner with our new roommate.
Dinner went smoothly. We watchedIt’s Always Sunnyreruns before Bret beat JP in a game of rock, paper, scissors, and the winner got to choose the movie. The three of us all sat on the edge of our seats as we waited—eyes closed, per Bret’s request—for the movie she selected tostart playing. It turns out that Bret is a big fan of action movies. We all sighed in relief that it wasn’t a chick flick.
However, halfway through the movie, I glanced over and found a sleeping Bret. She had curled up in the corner of the sectional and fallen asleep. Her hood was up, her hands folded underneath her head, and her legs curled in the fetal position. It was at that moment I saw a genuinely relaxed Bret. Her walls weren’t standing tall. She seemed at peace.
When ten o’clock rolled around, the guys and I were ready to call it a night. We’ve been waking up at five in the morning to make sure we fuel up before our morning workouts, which meant early bedtimes. Harris nudged Bret awake, and the four of us went our separate ways.
Now it’s after two, and I’m staring at my ceiling knowing only a bathroom separates us, not hundreds of miles. I can’t get her out of my head. Her pitch-black hair hanging long down her back and her toned-athletic framed body. Those eyes remind me of summer days on the lake in my hometown. The tattoos she now wears have me wondering if she’s hiding more under her clothes, which has me begging to explore her body more than I already did. And dear lord, those piercings on her perfect, perky tits.
Rebellion looks good on her.
My body is exhausted, and my eyes are heavy, but my brain won’t quiet down to allow sleep to consume me. I’ve tossed and turned enough times tonight the sheets are no longer tucked underneath the mattress. Rolling over, I tap the screen on my phone to check the time. Deciding a glass of water might help me go back to sleep, I toss the covers from my bed and lazily stumble across the hallway to the kitchen.
With heavy lids, I barely make out a lone figure sitting across from me on the counter with a bowl in her hand in the dimly lit room.Without thought, I stride across the cool linoleum floor and close the gap between us. My hand wraps around her head as I tug her toward me. Our lips meet, and she lets out a small gasp in surprise. My tongue takes the opportunity to plunge inside as cinnamon sugar hits my taste buds. She startles at the contact as her hands find my bare chest, and she pushes me away.
“Shit!” I gasp. “I’m sorry, I thought maybe I dreamed you were here in my apartment.”
