Page 29 of Scoring Lessons

I hated it all. Especially him.

“Every guy here has been staring at you since we walked in, and you haven’t even noticed.”

My brows furrowed deeper into a scowl. “No, they haven’t.”

His laugh was laced with disbelief. “There’s a guy to our right that hasn’t taken his eyes off of you since we got here, except to glare at me.” His tongue ran across his bottom lip, leaving a trace of moisture. Had his lips always looked this good, or was my body having a strange reaction to the general male population? That had to be it. “There’s a guy behind you, who, since the second you set foot in this bar, has been trying to figure out a way to approach you.”

My eyes traveled across the barely lit bar.

The guy who had a glare etched on his face as he stared at Wesley softened when his eyes met mine and gave me a flirty smile. I looked over my shoulder, where there was a guy who was pretending to listen to whatever his friend was saying, but every so often, his eyes would divert to where I was sitting.

How hadn’t I noticed?

Because you were too busy having fun with your brother’s best friend, my brain mocked.

I shook my head in hopes of clearing the laughable thought away.

The issue was clear: they weren’t my type. They both had that clean, lawyer-type look. Too skinny, hair way too combed. But maybe that was the kind of guy I needed in my life now.

I needed to swear off athletes for good. They were too hot-headed. Too possessive. I didn’t want to be caged anymore.

It sounded ridiculous, I know. It’s not like I was looking for a husband.

Why was I overthinking this?

My stomach tightened with dread.

I was so desperate to find myself, I didn’t know what to do anymore. All I knew was that I had my reasons for wanting to do this. Good reasons. Logical reasons.

When I met Wesley’s stare with stunned silence, he settled me with a See? look. “You’re too in your head. Which means you’re not ready for something casual.”

I scoffed. He was unbelievable. “It’s funny you say that, because I don’t remember asking for dating advice.” I wasn’t looking to be told the obvious. I was only looking for a how-to-become-a-player crash course.

“You want to know the first rule about being a player?” He didn’t even let me reply before he continued, “You can’t overthink. This is about having fun—safely—with a stranger you won’t ever see again.”

“But you need to at least connect with them on some level. Don’t you?”

Who on Earth could get turned on by someone they didn’t have at least something in common with? That was how chemistry was naturally built.

He frowned like the question had been absurd. I supposed it was. What the hell did I know about casual hookups? Or sex, for that matter? God only knew how mediocre my sex life used to be. And now it was nonexistent.

“It’s just sex,” he said.

“No connection, then. Got it.”

I, in fact, did not have it.

He rubbed his jawline in contemplation. “You pretty much have to go against your gut.”

My shoulders sagged. “That makes sense. My instinct sucks, anyway.”

“I’m sure it doesn’t.”

“Tell that to past Olivia, who wasted seven years of her youth in a pointless relationship.” I hadn’t meant to say my inner thought out loud.

But that was the one good thing about being around Wesley. I didn’t care what he thought of me. He certainly didn’t care what I thought of him. It was why being blunt around him was easy.

“Oh, come on.” His shoulder hit mine playfully. “We’re still young.”