I noticed my name engraved on the keychain attached to the fob that merely had to be inside of the car for the engine to start. Aunt Emmy’s old truck I’d had to borrow to get around hadn’t even been equipped with automatic locks.
“Was that a no?”
I looked up at Leo. “What?”
“Were you shaking your head because you don’t want to go out to dinner?”
“Oh.” Right. He’d asked me a question. “It wasn’t a no, but you don’t need to take me out. I’m good with whatever Susan is making.”
He slung an arm over my shoulder. “Why are you so easy?”
“You wish,” I muttered, and he burst out laughing.
“Damn right, I wish. You have no idea how many times I’ve had to jack off in the shower over the last few weeks.”
“Leo.” I smacked his hard-as-a-rock stomach. “You’re not supposed to tell me that.”
“I’m not?” he asked innocently. “Is masturbation not an acceptable topic for mixed company?”
“No.”
“That’s too bad. I’d love nothing more than to hear all about you getting yourself off.” His face brightened. “Do you use a vibrator?”
My cheeks heated under his intense scrutiny. “I can’t believe you just asked me that.”
“Is that a no?” He narrowed his eyes, considering me. “I think that’s a no.”
I pushed past him to open the door into the house. “We’re not talking about this anymore.”
“We don’t need to talk about it, if you show me instead.”
Leo bumped into my back as I stopped dead in my tracks. Because Vincent stood in the entrance to the kitchen, watching us.
“I see that you found my gift.”
“I thought I wasn’t supposed to think of it as a gift?” I replied snippily.
“The pink accents were a nice touch,” Leo said jovially, probably to keep me from saying something else that would get me kicked out after all. “Very considerate of you.”
“Thank you, son.” He took a step forward. “I’m glad you’re here. We need to talk.”
Leo leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. “Oh? About what?”
“About the fact that I got your suspension lifted for the final two games.”
At that, Leo straightened and my jaw dropped. Since the team had been off last week, he'd only missed one game so far. How was it possible that Vincent had managed to get the last two of Leo's three-game suspension lifted? I'd thought that was a hopeless task, even for him.
“How?” Leo gritted out.
Vincent waved a dismissive hand. “Nothing for you to worry about.” He turned, as though to leave. “Except, there is one little thing.”
“There always is,” Leo muttered.
“You're expected to escort the athletic director’s daughter to the charity ball in two weeks.” Vincent's gaze slid to mine, and I could have sworn the beginning of a smirk graced his lips. “I assume that won't be a problem?”
Charity ball? What charity ball?
Leo tucked an arm around my waist. “Fuck, yeah, that's a problem. Thea is my girlfriend. If I'm going with anyone, it’ll be with her.”
Vincent raised his eyebrows. “Oh? I didn't realize you two had graduated from fooling around to a formal relationship.”
“Well, we have.”
My stomach twisted as I waited for Vincent to make a remark about how I sure got around when it came to his sons. But he merely swung his gaze in my direction. “I'm sure Thea won't mind lending you out to someone else for one night. For the good of your team and future football career, of course.”
Fuck him and his scheming ways.
Then again, I couldn't exactly say no. Though he hadn't spoken much about it, I knew Leo had been torn up about the games he was missing. He'd been working hard with the backup quarterback, but given the score from the last game, the backup was no Leo. It had almost been a shutout, with Harbor U only scoring a single field goal.
Peering up at Leo, I said softly, “It's fine. Don't worry about me. I want you to be able to play.”
I saw the conflict raging in his eyes. It likely had little to do with having to spend a night with another girl on his arm. I wasn’t so jealous that I couldn’t handle that part. His struggle—and my own—was about giving in to his father’s manipulation.
But if I could play Vincent’s game and drive the Audi, Leo could do this one thing. And I wouldn’t give him a hard time about the other girl, whoever she was.
I nodded, encouraging him to accept his father's offer.
Leo finally returned his attention to Vincent. “Fine.