Page 62 of Summer Shot
Lucas’ brows crease with confusion. “Not happy to see me?”
“Of course I am.” I wrap my arms tightly around him in greeting. ”I just wanted to yell at Tyler for being a douchebag.”
Lucas’ laugh tickles my ear. “Just in general or . . .?”
“Why didn’t you tell me he got in a fight?” I demand in a sharp tone, breaking out embrace.
Lucas runs his hand through his luscious hair before answering, “This is the first time I’m talking to you since this morning, Laur.”
He’s right. I’m being absurd. “Sorry,” I mutter. “I’m just heated.”
“If it makes you feel any better, Coach benched him for the first three games of the season,” Lucas informs me.
“Am I a bad person if that does make me feel better?” I look down at the ground, feeling uneasy that I would wish something bad on my friend, but he needs to learn a lesson before he goes too far.
“Not at all.” Lucas pulls me into another hug, pressing a gentle kiss on my forehead. “It sucks for the team, but he deserves it.”
“How’s the party?” I change the subject. "Seems like a pretty big turnout.”
Lucas sheepishly puts his hands in the front pockets of his jeans. “I don’t know half of these people. But yeah, everyone seems to be having fun.”
“You’re not having fun?” I ask, raising my eyes at him.
“I’m having even more fun now that you’re here.” A slow smile spreads across his face, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Tell me about your day.”
A big exhale pours out of me. “It’s been long.” I take a sip of my almost empty beer. “But we have a great new event planned for this year.”
My heart races with excitement, I haven’t told Lucas anything about our new PR plans this year.
“Already?”
“Yeah.” I beam up at him. “It’ll be an auction, but instead of just the players, it’ll be a player with his curated picnic basket.” My words spill out of me, eager to share more. “It’ll be a new way to do player auctions without feeling like we are just auctioning off boys. Raven—”
“Raven?” Lucas interrupts with an edge to his voice.
“A new girl on my team.”
“What’s her last name?” he asks. His mouth is a fine line, and his jaw grows tight.
Why is he asking so many questions about her?
Chapter thirty
Lucas
My heart tumbles into a pit of dread when the name Raven casually rolls off Laur’s tongue. Concern fills her voice
“Her last name—,” each word out of Laur’s mouth is slow, her tone cautious, “—is Matthews.”
The hollow ache spreading through my gut stops, I can finally breathe again. My ex-girlfriend’s last name is her fashion guru mother’s maiden name: Harrington. I’m sure if it was Raven Harrington, gossip would be spreading like wildfire, and I would already know about it.
“I used to know a girl named Raven,” I mutter, knowing I owe Laur an explanation. “She’s not someone you’d want on your team.”
“Oh,” Laur’s voice is still laced with concern, but I quickly change the subject back to the event.
“Sounds like a great way to avoid the scandal that Brad Mancheto caused with . . .” I pause. “I can’t even remember whose stepmom it was. But we haven’t had a player auction since then.”
“Exactly.” Laur beams with pride. “After the secret auction is over, the winners would be in a big open area with the player and their basket. Everything would be easy to monitor and all very public.”
