Page 120 of His Reckless Freshman

“Oh! Hi!” Caroline’s face lights with a grin, and Nylah invites her in, asking about her morning while I take a second to gather myself.

My roommate runs perfect interference, asking Caroline what she should wear to her Tuesday night babysitting gig. It gives me a second to come up with a story about what I got caught up in.

I feel so bad for lying, but I make up a story about having coffee with some new friends I made in class. Shoot, it’s like jumping down a rabbit hole, and I stand there silently begging Caroline not to ask for details.

Thankfully, my cousin’s face goes all mushy, and she pulls me into a hug. “I’m so glad you’re starting to find your place here! We’ve all been so worried about you.”

“I’m good, Cinnamon.” I pat her back, relief pulsing through me. “Seriously. It just took me a little minute to find my feet.”

Leaning back, Caroline cups my cheeks and smiles like a mother hen. “Proud of you, my lil’ Joey.” Her eyes seem to flicker with relief, and I wonder if she’s assuming this whole Ben thing is behind us.

Oh boy.

I’m so not looking forward to bursting that bubble, so I make my smile grow, patting Caroline’s arm and stepping back, which is the wrong move because her eyes start to narrow again.

Oh no! Please do not read me right now!

Don’t force the truth out of me!

I keep my smile in place, blinking innocently and conjuring up arguments I can make if things spill. I’ve got the fact that she ignored Ben—dick move!—and that she kept her pregnancy from me in my arsenal. I don’t want to use either of them, but I will if I have to.

“Anyone wanna go for ice cream?” Nylah suggests, and I turn to face her, giving her another grateful smile as my cousin starts to laugh.

“Ice cream is always a good idea.” Wrapping her arm around my shoulders, she gives me a little jiggle. “Ain’t that right, cuz?”

“It surely is, Miss Mason.” I put on a Southern drawl that makes her laugh, and Nylah watches us with a grin.

Thank God she’s coming too.

She can keep my curious cousin distracted, and I can keep my secret romance under wraps for a little longer.

38

BEN

Leaning my head back against the headrest, I watch the landscape trundle by as we return to Nolan after our final preseason away game. I’d been quietly nervous about this one. It was the first with Coach Paxton, and after the way he’s been riding us at practices, I thought he was going to be a hard-ass courtside too. I was expecting yelling and arguments with the ref. But the man was cool and calm the entire time. He brought us in for huddles, directed us like he actually knew what he was doing, and I don’t think we’ve ever played such a cohesive game before.

We only lost by four points, which is the closest we’ve ever gotten to beating the Beckham Bobcats. Their school’s a four-hour bus ride away and we usually hate going, but spirits are pretty high on the way back. I thought they might be low because we still lost, but the point is, we only just lost, and Coach Paxton was stoked. In the locker room after the game, he was praising us like we’d just come top of the table.

“Such a great start to the season, boys.” He clapped his hands. “I know it was a pregame, but the season officially kicks off next week, and this year, with play like I saw tonight…” He gave us a closed-mouth grin, his head bobbing. “We won’t be coming last, that’s for sure.” He started clapping again and then Sawyer whooped, and we were soon all cheering like idiots.

Maybe this new coach won’t be so bad.

I glance to my left, spotting Jimmy across the aisle. He has his big headphones on and is frowning out the window like he’s trying to solve a complex math problem or something. I watch him for a beat, wondering what he’s so worried about. He played well tonight. Coach kept telling him not to hold back, and he let himself shine more than usual. That’s probably why we did so well. I don’t understand why that’s a problem for him. Shouldn’t he always be playing his best? With moves like I saw tonight, he should be transferring out of here and going to a school with a better basketball program. The guy’s got skills.

I kind of wish I was close enough to him to pitch that idea.

You are. Just mention it. Or tell Mac and get him to do it.

I sit up and glance at the seats around me, spotting Mac diagonally behind me. He senses my gaze, his sharp eyes darting to meet mine. I give him a friendly smile and slump back down in my seat. Mac’s not gonna tell Jimmy to go.

And sure, I’d miss the guy if he left too.

Jimmy’s solid. Reliable. An awesome person to have in the house. It’s not like I want him to leave; I’m just trying to think about his potential and how it’s probably wasted on a team of our caliber. Unless he doesn’t want to play pro-ball. Just because someone’s good at something doesn’t mean it’s their dream, right? Maybe he wants to do other stuff with his life, like the rest of us.

Shit, we must be the only team in the competition who doesn’t have anyone gunning for the NBA, yet we all stay. I snicker and shake my head. We all come to practices, sweat it out, play the game. Because we can. Because it’s a damn privilege, even when we do come bottom of the standings.

Not this year. This year, you might even come middle.