She elbowed me in the ribs. “Don’t be a jerk.”
I couldn’t hide the smirk. “You bring it out in me.”
We kept walking silently, neither of us saying a word, until we reached the other side of the street from her apartment. Hadley glanced at me from the corner of her eye. “You walked me home?”
I had. I half shrugged. “I wasn’t planning to,” I said. “But I wasn’t letting you wander back out there either.” I was only half joking. I looked up at her building. “What happened to the cat?”
Hadley looked up in alarm. “Milly? Is she out?”
“Whoa, no.” I grabbed her arm as she nearly ran away from me. The passing car made her jump back. “Now I know what happened to the cat,” I griped. Looking both ways, I guided her across the street. “You and the cat need to be more aware of traffic.”
“Sorry.” She blushed with embarrassment. “She was hit by a car, her back leg was mangled, and they fixed her, but I don’t let her out anymore. She doesn’t like being contained.”
We were at the main door to her apartment. I’d noticed the other day that it didn’t close properly. “I get the feeling it’s a trait her owner shares.”
Hadley smiled, looking away. Her gaze became more focused. “Um... do you want to know there’s a huge sports channel van heading our way?”
I pushed her into her entrance and followed her inside, closing the door behind us.
Hadley looked at me, then at the door. “So... want a beer?”
And that’s how I found myself back in her apartment, watching a sports network set up shop just up the street from her building and wondering how long I had to stay here.
“Why are they there?” I asked.
She came up behind me and leaned in to point out a building halfway down the street. “On game days, they use that wide street between two of the buildings for tailgating.”
I turned to look at her. “No, tailgating is on Maberly, beside the Den.”
“Yes.” Hadley nodded. “But on less important days, when you weren’t national champions, or it’s not so good a team,” she said with a huff, “they do it here instead.” She turned to the cat. Her voice dropped into a sweet cajole. “That’s how you got hurt, wasn’t it, baby girl?” she said, opening a can of tuna and feeding it.
“I’ll never get to leave,” I groaned as she had a conversation with the cat behind me. “I’m stuck with the crazy cat lady.”
“You can go anytime,” she sassed back. She washed her hands and then handed me a beer. “Drink your beer and stop being a whiny little bitch. They’ll be gone soon.”
I turned away from the window and glared at her. “Your hospitality skills are lacking.”
Hadley shrugged, pulling her hoodie off. Her shirt rode up, halfway up her stomach, before she noticed it and pulled it back down. “Staring much?” She didn’t seem particularly bothered by it.
I tilted my head. “And your ego is really big.”
“It’s not ego,” she told me, picking up her beer and taking a drink. “It’s called confidence.” She kicked off her sneakers and sank onto the couch. “Do you want to know what I’ve found?”
“No.” I sat with my back to the window, watching her as I took a drink.
Hadley made a face. “Okay, scaredy cat.” She picked up her laptop from the small table and opened it. “So I—”
I crossed the room in two strides, plucking the laptop off her lap. “No. I don’t want to know, Peterson.” I set it down where it had been.
Hadley looked up at me, her eyes widening slightly. “You really do move fast,” she mumbled. “It’s impressive.”
I snorted, straightening up. “Says the girl who kept up with me.” I took another drink and frowned when the bottle was empty. “You got more?”
Wordlessly, she handed me her bottle. I sat down on the couch and took it, taking a long drink. “There.” I handed it back, and she shook it slightly.
“Thanks for leaving me some.”
I chuckled, and so did she. “So, I can’t talk about anything...” Hadley said, placing the now-empty bottle down. She turned her head to look at me. “What do we do?” She gestured behind her. “My laptop is my TV, and you took it from me.”