Rounding Third Read Free Page A

open fly.
    Brax is hot. His sandy-blond hair, shaved close to his head, only brings out his icy-blue eyes. After a summer of working landscaping, his skin is tan, and now, it’s glistening.
    “Like you don’t want what she had.” He concentrates on Jen, flinging his head in the direction of the staircase to the disheveled blonde chomping at the bit for more.
    “Tell her to button her shirt,” I whisper, sliding by him through the doorway.
    He sidesteps and blocks me. “Whoa, El.” He holds his hands up in the air.
    “What is this?” Jen automatically grows defensive. No isn’t a word in her dictionary.
    He eyes her and then looks back at me. There’s something working in those blue hues, but I don’t know what.
    “You don’t want to hang around a bunch of horny baseball players tonight,” he says.
    I draw back in surprise. “If you didn’t want us to come, why’d you call me so many times and then list the reasons I should come tonight?” I hold my hand up to count off the reasons he’s told me. “You tell me my boyfriend’s a douche, that I never get out, that I need a good fuck by one of your friends.”
    He laughs. “Well, true, true, and damn true because no one fucks like my boys.”
    “How do you know?” Jen interrupts again.
    I snicker.
    “From the girls who come in droves. You should try us sometime. Your long list would pale in comparison.”
    “Hehe. Funny, asshole. Now, I need a beer to continue my buzz, so let us in.”
    This is one time I agree with Jen.
    “What’s the holdup?” I ask.
    He turns to search the party and then swings his head back my way. “Isn’t Pi Kappa having a party?”
    My patience is at max level when I cross my arms over my breasts. “Brax, what gives? Why are you shunning us? My guess is”—I glance to the blonde on the steps, who is in no hurry to button up her shirt—“you were in the middle of something before you were interrupted by someone telling you I was here. I don’t need you to chaperone me. I’m a big girl.”
    He inhales a long, deep breath and looks down at me, as though we were telepathic and I should understand what his eyes are conveying.
    “What, Brax?” I scream over the loud music.
    “Sorry,” he mumbles. He steps aside, allowing us into the party. “Hey, man, she’s here!” he yells into the house.
    “Finally,” Jen drones.
    As a sea of women disperse, a tall figure stands, and my heart hammers against my chest wall, like I’m standing on a wire, high in the sky, between two skyscrapers.
    “Cinderella,” he says, his voice shallow, but sure of himself.
    “Don’t call me that,” I respond, my feet frozen in place.
    “Who is that?” Jen asks from behind me.
    “That is Ella’s first love, Crosby Lynch.”
    “I thought Liam was her first boyfriend?” Jen questions, her voice slowly fading to background noise.
    Crosby breaks the small distance between us, and I swallow the large lump in my throat. My body screams for me to run or to pinch myself out of this dream, but his eyes still mesmerize me into submission.
    “No, she and Crosby are destined.”
    I hold my hand up in the air to stop Brax from rehashing history.
    Crosby is still breathtakingly gorgeous. His dark hair is shorter and messy, and those hazel eyes still hold a glint of the devil in them. The cocky smile plastered on his face as he shoves his hands in his pockets, almost has me jumping in his arms and thanking him for coming back for me. But one question overrides my body.
    “How long are you here?” I ask, bitterness lacing my voice.
    He tilts his head. “Until graduation.” He glances to Brax. “My guess anyway.”
    That cocky smile grows as the lump in my throat shrinks.
    Quickly, the room starts spinning, and my breathing becomes more labored. He’s the new baseball player I heard Coach Lipton talking about.
    “Oh my God.” My hand lies over my heart, and I close my eyes, trying to find my bearings, but the room continues to spin.
    “Get