Page 33 of Rumor Has It

“Yes, Wren?” Rebecca asked, looking fully annoyed.

“Whatcha wearing?”

Rebecca sighed. “I forgot that I had a small cube of clothes in my soccer bag. That cube definitely had my pajamas.”

Wren let out a laugh. “Do you want to borrow something? I’ve got a sweater with no planned purpose other than lounging.” She dug through her two drawers. “Everything else kind of has a purpose, but you could borrow the sweater, no problem.” She held it out for Rebecca to take.

Rebecca’s jaw clenched. “You’re kidding, right?” She rolled her eyes and handed the sweater back to Wren.

Wren frowned. “What’s wrong with my”—she cut herself off with a laugh. “Oh, for fuck’s sake. Becky, no one is going to see you in it. It’s not going to burn you. I won’t take any incriminating photos.” She flinched at her own joke. She didn’t think she’d be taking any photos at all for the foreseeable future if she was honest.

“I’m not wearing a LAU sweater,” Rebecca said, as if that was that.

“Rebecca, I’m saying this with love and compassion. You look like a dork right now. Just put the sweater on. You’re not going to be comfortable in a button-down. Hell, just wear whatever you’re going to wear to practice tomorrow. Even that’s a better plan than a button-down.” Wren continued to hold the sweater out.

“What I’m going to wear to practice tomorrow is at the stadium.” Rebecca sighed. “I should have unpacked before we left. I was so upset. I’m thankful you got me out of there. I’m just going to be super uncomfortable tonight. Any way I slice it.” She let out a pitiful shrug.

Wren rolled her eyes. “You don’t have to be. Wear the damn sweater.”

“No.” Rebecca forced a smile. “But thank you.”

Wren sighed dramatically and dug through her drawer. She was easily a size smaller than Rebecca. Rebecca was a solid three inches taller than her, probably had twenty pounds of muscle on her, and Wren wasn’t even going to let her mind drift to their noticeably different cup sizes. But even one of her sized small T-shirts would probably be more comfortable than what Rebecca had on. “Do you want a different T-shirt?” She pointed to her small stack of T-shirts in her open drawer. “Seriously, take your pick.”

Rebecca snorted. “It’d be a crop top on me. It’s fine, Wren. Seriously.”

“Rebecca, please just wear the damn sweater.” Wren wasn’t having this. They were supposed to be relaxing and trying to laugh off their shitty weeks. She wasn’t going to let Rebecca attempt to relax while looking like she was going into a Webex interview. She held up the two middle fingers on her right hand. “I won’t tell anyone you wore it. Lesbian’s honor.” She smirked, waiting for Rebecca to get it.

Rebecca’s eyes shot from Wren’s to her two fingered promise. “Oh my God, put your hand down. Fine.” She grabbed the sweater, though her top lip definitely curled into a snarl. “But seriously. This stays between us.”

“As sacred to me as soccer camp,” Wren said, putting her hand over her heart.

Rebecca rolled her eyes and let out a huff as she pushed back into the bathroom. “You’re a pain in the ass,” she muttered as she shut the door, and Wren couldn’t help but chuckle at that.

CHAPTER

TWELVE

BECKY

Becky glared at her reflection. She couldn’t believe she was wearing a Los Angeles University sweater. It was even harder to believe that she was wearing Wren Eames’s LAU sweater. She was glad that she was in the bathroom for a minute. It allowed her one tiny moment to just inhale really deeply. It smelled faintly of the cologne that Wren had worn the entire time she had known her. Becky could still picture the bottle, its black metal top and amber body. Wren had only worn it once at camp all those years ago, that night they had first kissed. And she had only worn it a few times since they had been forced to share a room, but the smell was intoxicating.

Becky shamelessly breathed into the collar for just a moment. She knew the pizza would be getting there soon and that Wren had probably picked a movie for them to watch. Hopefully, after their shitty weeks, they’d finally be able to just chill. She knew she was being ridiculous, throwing a semi-temper tantrum over a sweater was, as her mother would say, unbecoming of her. But they had been rivals for four years. A pitiful groan ripped through her. None of her former teammates could ever know about this. Having a teeny, tiny crush on Wren was one thing. They had a history and a lot of shared baggage. But wearing a LAU sweater violated everything that her college team stood for.

She was still quietly grumbling to herself when she exited the bathroom. Fortunately, Wren didn’t do anything more than smirk at her and maybe bite back a small, triumphant laugh.

“More comfortable?” Wren asked, though she surprisingly didn’t sound like her normal teasing self. She sounded genuinely concerned.

Becky sighed. “Yes,” she admitted.

“Good,” Wren said, easily. “Alright, found a movie. I’m not sure how you want to watch it though.” Wren gestured at her laptop and the two beds.

Oh. Becky looked between the two beds, then at Wren, then down to her laptop.

“I can bring one of those cables next time—the HDMI thing—you know? We can hook it up to the TV, but I don’t have one with me and there’s not one back there. I already looked.” Wren pointed at the television, looking like she wouldn’t judge Becky if she double-checked.

They could do this. They could be adults. Sitting on a bed together, eating pizza, and watching a movie didn’t have to be weird. They were friends. Right? Or trying to be, at least. It would be a no-brainer if it was Katie. So, it should be an easy decision with Wren. Just because they had technically had sex before didn’t have to mean anything. It certainly didn’t have to be weird just because a news article had insinuated something was going on between them. And them both being single now was absolutely no cause for concern. And Becky’s little crush was, without a doubt, one-sided. So, there was really nothing wrong with it.

Becky schooled her face to be the epitome of ambivalence. “I don’t care if we watch it in bed together, Wren. We’re not on opposite teams right now. I’m not going to kick you.”