Page 34 of Teach Me To Sin
“I’m not sure that interview was the best idea,” Tate offers diplomatically. His attempt to sound polite just makes his words sting more.
“This doesn’t make sense.” I flip between the articles again. “These news sites never talked to me, and I never said this stuff. They’re just making shit up.”
My fingers start typing a message to Colson, but I pause and erase the words. There’s nothing he can do to stop this, and I’m not awake enough to listen to him point out that he tried to warn me.
“Alek.” Tate raises his voice, and I realize I haven’t been listening. “Victor didn’t come in this morning.”
“Shit.” Victor’s been doing so well the past few years, and here I am dredging up everything that he’s worked hard to forget. “I’ll find him. Can you take my lunch water aerobics class?”
“I’ve got you both covered until you can come in,” Tate rumbles comfortingly. “And I’m sorry. I didn’t want to ruin your day.”
When I hang up, I pull on running shorts, a swimming center crewneck sweater, and a Seahawks cap to cover my unwashed hair. My bike hangs from a hook in the hallway, so I fetch it and drag it down a flight of stairs to the street. There’s one place I know to look for Victor. If I’m wrong, I’ll have to interrupt Ethan’s busy day at his vet clinic.
Traffic isn’t busy yet, so I have a peaceful ride to the sprawling, neglected park halfway between my house and the swim center. Sharp screams from kids on the jungle gym pierce the air as I lock up my bike and follow a gravel path past some geese to a well-hidden metal bridge. Instead of crossing, I grab the railing and slide precariously down through overgrown grass to the edge of the water.
Victor’s sitting on the tiny lip of one of the bridge supports, his legs dangling in the pond. He watches me through his mirrored aviators as I fight off clingy weeds and stumble into the calf deep water. “Ugh.” I try to climb back onto land, but my sneakers slip in the mud. “Couldn’t you have chosen a less shitty spot?”
The corner of his mouth curls up. “Then I wouldn’t get to enjoy this view.” Swiping his foot, he splashes a spray of water across my clothes.
I frown at him. “Quit messing around.” When he rolls his eyes and looks away, I stick both hands in the pond and splash him back.
He squeals, then leaps off his perch into thigh-high water. “Is that how you want it? Huh?”
No one can see us down here as we stumble around in the pond, flinging water and laughing so hard we almost lose our footing. I stop abruptly when Victor slips and falls on his ass. “Oh gross, are you okay–Fuckyou!” The man dive-tackles me into the water, enjoying my un-manly scream.
We’re both drenched from the chest down as we struggle to our feet in a silent truce. Basking in the sunlight, I lean against the bridge support and close my eyes. After a moment, a wet, panting body presses against mine and my best friend rests his forehead against my shoulder. I gently brush his mostly dry curls with my damp fingers. “I’m so sorry about the headlines. I don’t care if people come after me, but you and the swim center are off limits. I’ll back off, whatever it takes.”
He growls, and his fist presses into my ribs. “I don’t want you to stop,” he mumbles. “We can’t let them fucking win. It’s just hard. Coach feels closer now, and I’m not…” His voice trails off, and I feel him shudder. The words he can’t say shove a knife deep into my heart as I wrap my arms around him.
“I don’t think you should come with Benji and me to Ohio.” I rest my cheek on his hair and tighten my grip. He was excited to join us, and I wanted a chaperone to stop Benji and I from ending up in bed together. Guess I’ll just have to do my best. “Spend the weekend with Ethan and stay away from the news. When I come back, we’ll tackle this together.”
He hesitates, then nods and pushes me away. “I wish you had someone to go with. You and that kid will be wandering around like little lambs.”
“I’m not responding to that.” Scrambling up the bank, I offer my hand to help him up. He ignores it and climbs past me to bound across the grass. My soaked clothes chafe my skin as I follow him. If this wasn’t a public park, we’d both strip to our briefs and sunbathe in complete bliss.
“Here’s a thought,” Victor muses as I unlock my bike and we walk toward the swim center. “Take that dickhole with you. He’s got big babysitter energy.”
“What the hell?” When I realize who he means, I shake my head quickly. “Oh no, no. I’m not traveling with him. And he’d never agree, anyway.” I can’t think of a worse idea–I wanted someone to keep Benji and I out of bed, not someone who would, perhaps literally, throw us into it.
Victor pulls off his sunglasses and watches me dangerously, eyes dancing with amusement. “Every time he comes up, you get more and more flustered.”
“I’m not flustered.”
Faster than I can react, he lunges toward me and shoves his hand into my pocket, then dances away with my phone. “Hey, give it back.” Part of me hopes it’s too water damaged to turn on. I try to chase him, but he’s all lean muscle and I’m the slower, stronger one.
Batting my hands away, he taps through my contacts list and puts the phone to his ear. “Colson, right? This is Victor.”
“Hang the fuck up,” I protest. Colson can probably hear me raging in the background, but I don’t care.
Victor listens to words I can’t make out. “I know this is Alek’s phone,” he answers calmly, kicking me when I get too close. “I regret to inform you that he fell in a pond and drowned in fish poo. We’ll pull him out later, but in the meantime I need you to fly to Ohio for him.”
Gasping, I give up and rest my hands on my knees. Victor puts the phone on speaker, but Colson doesn't say anything. The longer the silence stretches out, the wider the brat’s grin gets. Finally he adds, “I hear Columbus has an amazing topiary park.”
Colson clears his throat. “Either you’re making euphemisms I’m too old to grasp, or you’re being literal, and I can’t decide which is worse.”
Victor dissolves into a loud, snorting laugh that fills me with relief. “Alek and Benji are flying to Columbus for a big meet this weekend, and I’ve just realized I can’t supervise them. Alek begged me to ask you. He said it turns him on when you boss him around.”
“Victor,” I protest, not caring if Colson can hear me. “Fucking tell him that’s not true."