The Game You Play (Rixon Raiders 2)

“I know. But we’re not attached at the hip. Besides, he needs this.” She glanced over at him. “After everything with his mom, he needs the team.”

“How is she?”

“Dealing the best she can. But she’s a fighter, and she really wants Cameron to focus on school and the team.”

I nodded. “So if he’s over there to bond with the team, why is it he hasn’t taken his eyes off you?” My brow arched, and Hailee fought a smile.

“He wanted me to sit with them.”

Swinging my leg over the bench, I stood up. “Come on, let’s go,” I said, prepared to take one for our team of two.

Hailee frowned. “What are you doing?”

“We’re going over there. He might need the team, but he needs you too. And to be quite honest, I can’t eat my lunch with him making moon eyes at you.”

“Flick,” she groaned, peeking over at the team. “I’m not sure...”

“Fine. I’ll go by myself.” I shrugged, grabbing my tray and moving around the table.

“Oh my god,” Hailee breathed out. “You’re serious, you’re really going to sit over—”

But her words rolled off me as I made my way over to their table. A few of the guys glanced up when I reached them.

“Fee, baby.” Asher’s eyes lit up when he noticed me. “And to what do we owe this pleasure?”

“Room for one more?”

“Oh, sweetheart,” one of the sophomore players, Joel Mackey, smirked. “You can sit right here.” He glanced down at his crotch and I rolled my eyes.

“Back the fuck up, Mackey.” Asher nudged the guy next to him and dropped his eyes to the space at his side.

Just as I went around to sit by him, Hailee approached the table. “I wondered how long it was going to take for you to give in,” I heard Cameron say to her, quietly. He swung his leg over the end of the bench and pulled her down, slipping his arms around her waist. “Hi.”

“Hi.”

I sat down, trying to look at anything but Cam brushing his lips over hers. God, they were so in love. So happy. So freaking perfect. Something inside me twisted.

“You okay over there?” Asher whispered.

“Who me?” I flashed him a warm smile. Asher was... well he was like a stray who followed you around; cute and annoying. But he’d never been anything but nice to me.

“You don’t need to do that,” he lowered his voice so that it was drowned out by the conversation going on around us. “Not with me,” he added.

“Do what?” I played dumb, ignoring the pit in my stomach.

His eyes flicked to where Jase sat. He was busy talking to one of the guys when a manicured hand slid over his shoulder. He glanced up, a sly smirk gracing his ridiculously perfect face, as Jenna Jarvis, star gymnast and head bitch of Rixon High, stared down at him with a salacious smile of her own. Without hesitation, Jase shoved his chair back slightly letting her drop onto his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and I almost gagged.

Suddenly, I felt Asher’s arm go around the back of me. My eyes slid to his in question but in true Asher style he simply grinned.

My cell phone vibrated, and I dug it out.

Hails: Are you okay?

Me: Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?

I didn’t meet her heavy gaze despite feeling it burn into the side of my face.

Hails: He’s just using her...