Steeling Her: A Romance Novel

Nick

“How much shit do you need, Haley? You’re only going to be here until Thanksgiving, then you’ll leave at Christmas, right? You don’t need four suitcases.” My sister is one of the worst packers I’ve ever met. Actually, scratch that—all girls are the worst packers I’ve ever met. But four cases? Yeah sure, I work out everyday, but I’m praying her dorm building has an elevator I can use to get this crap into her room. She just had to buy the brightest colors for the cases too, really showing her personality to the entire campus. Blue, pink, purple, and yellow. All bright, all seen. And I have to carry them all. Well, with the help of TJ.

“Pink really brings out your eyes, bro.” TJ punches my shoulder, making me glare hard at him. I’m not in the mood for his shit as well as my sister’s. I can hear her giggling up in front of the car while I’m stand here staring at the cases.

“Shut the fuck up. You can take the pink and purple ones. I’ll take the blue and yellow.” TJ rolls his eyes and slides the pink one out, with the yellow one following.

We arrived here last week for training sessions for the football team. Our training today was brutal; the heat does a lot to your head when you’re running around. Having Maya there was a huge distraction too, if you know what I mean. Coach picked on me hard today; my head was not focused. Not hard to figure out why, that’s why coach was on my case.

“Oh, I have a few boxes for you to bring up too when you’re done with the cases.” Haley kisses our cheeks.

I know the game she’s playing. Flipping her blonde hair to one side with a cheeky smile on her face, she knows I’ll give in to her. I reach up my head, taking my cap off and rubbing my hand along my forehead through my hair, all the while sighing. Placing my cap back on, I proceed to lift the cases up for her into the main building, where she’ll be staying.

Two roommates. Two new friends. Not that she finds it hard to make any. She never shuts up. She’s got the gift of the gab; she got it from my mom.

Reaching for the door, I open it and let TJ walk in with the other two cases. We both can see and enjoy the view: girls crowded around in the reception area to get their keys and meet with their roommates. Haley already has hers, so we walk past the girls eyeing us up. Seeing their flushed cheeks, I smile to myself and TJ. What girl doesn’t want to be with a football player? A college football player—one who has scouts at almost every game he plays. Ripped body, six pack included, dirty blond hair, and a smile that makes girls’ panties wet.

“Dude, some cute looking freshmen this year. You see all those short skirts?” TJ asks me as he looks back at the young girls who are staring at us. Averting their eyes away from us, we high five each other to say we still got it.

Once we finally get to Haley’s floor, we find her standing outside the room with the door open. We push her bags through to see an empty dorm. Her roommates mustn’t be here yet? TJ pushes her bag through to what we guess is the room she claimed as hers, her arm hanging dramatically in the air like what you would do while bowling. Hearing a crash in the room, he whips his head around to see Haley tapping her foot. The terrified look on his face makes me snort.

He goes slightly red with embarrassment. “I was meant to do that.” He smiles awkwardly at her.

“Yeah, well, pick it up,” she sasses back at him. I kick her other two cases into the room.

“Our babies!” My mom burst through the open door and runs to Haley, then to me, then to TJ.

TJ is like her fourth child. I’ve been best friends with him since I was three. We’re neighbours, and we met by fighting each other. A lot. Both of us came home with bloody noses and bruises on our cheeks. Good times.

My mom’s blonde hair whips through the conditioned air like always. And like always, she had her hair and makeup done. I wonder where Haley gets it from?

Once she’s done squeezing the life out of Haley, she makes a beeline for me. I suck in a breath because she likes them long. My mom’s hugs are the best hugs; filled with love, and nothing else.

My younger sister Ellie runs through the door with my dad following behind her. Her laugh illuminates the room and she makes her way towards me with her arms stretched out. I swiftly pick her up once my mom lets up and whirl her around, making that laugh last a little longer.

I see my mom run to TJ to give him her special hug. It’s good having my family with me, but it will take forever to get my mom to leave. I already know how it’s going to go. She’ll want to help Haley get her room ready, make every excuse under the sun not to leave, will hug us all together, and then the waterworks will happen. Then she’ll blame us for ruining her makeup. Like it’s our fault for growing up.

“Son, you better look after your sister.” My dad’s large hand rests on my shoulder. “Damn son! You been hittin’ the gym lately? I can barely put my hand on your shoulder!” He laughs, patting me harder before walking over to my mom.

“Yeah, coach has a new strength and conditioning program for us. Been going everyday trying it out. Glad to know it’s working.” I smile over my sister’s head at him. Ellie takes my hat off and puts it on her head, covering her face. I can’t help but laugh at her. She enjoys swimming in my clothing.

I feel my phone buzz in my back pocket. I have a feeling I know who it is.

Unknown: I had so much fun last night! Lets do it again 😉 xx

Or not. But the next message was her.

Maya: Nick, we got a hot tub at our sorority, you should come try it out with me! Pool party next weekend, but you can come over any time 😉 x

Erin: You going to the party later? We should catch up, maybe come back to mine tonight? 😉

I put Ellie down so she doesn’t read the messages out loud to my family. That’s all I needed. I smile at my screen with the numerous options I have tonight. I mouth “Party tonight” to TJ, whose grin gets bigger when I tell him.

“Nick, TJ, will you grab Haley’s boxes from the car too? Thanks boys.” Not waiting for our response, she struts with her heels into Haley’s room with Ellie behind her. TJ and I groan loudly, making my dad laugh at our reactions.

“Come on, Dad, help us out, will you?” I lift up my arm with my hand outstretched for him to follow us out the door. He shakes his head and places a hand on his lower back, squinting his eyes like he’s in pain. “Sorry boys, you’re on you own. I’m old, and my back isn’t as strong as it used to be to lift them up. But your mother, on the other hand . . .” he trails off, smirking at us and causing another groan to leave our mouths except louder. “That’s what she says.” He winks. We run out the door before he could continue. My dad thinks he’s hilarious when he makes references about his and my mom’s sex life.

I do not need to know that shit. No child should know that about their parents’ sex life. Ever. Period.

TJ and I jog down the stairs to get to the main lobby where the girls are getting an introduction to the dorm rules. We interrupt them by walking past them. Gaining a few looks, we send them a few winks, making them giggle and blush.

Too easy.

Grabbing as many boxes as we can, we walk by them yet again, having their attention in the palm of our hands as we walk to the elevator. Both of us are waiting for it to open. Once it does, we step inside and see the girls still checking us out. We send them a small wave and a smile, and some of them send one back.

Freshmen are way too easy.

“All the fresh pussy in that lobby dude. I can’t wait for this party tonight.” TJ looks up at the numbers gradually lighting up as we move upwards.

“I’ve already got three options for tonight. The girl from last night whose name I can’t remember for shit, Maya, and Erin. Although, I’m feeling for something different, someone younger. You know, perky ass, good tits, and hot body.” TJ nods while the bell dings, telling us we’ve reached the floor again.

“I feel ya, bro! I want something different, too. Some of the girls are just a bit too . . .” His eyes dart around the hallway to find the right word.

“Available,” I finish it for him while he nods. I kick the door back open and place my sister’s boxes down on the ground for her.

TJ and I decided to leave after a half an hour. I’ve got to leave before my mom starts her crying party piece. It’s getting late, and I’ve got to shower for the party for tonight.

Driving back to the house me and the guys are staying in, I tell Haley I’d drop around tomorrow to make sure she’s settled in and if she needed help with any furniture or anything else. Apparently, one of her roommates bought all the furniture because it looks fancy. Her family must be loaded. That could only mean one thing to me. She’s hot.

Pulling into the driveway, I see Rob and Ryan waiting for us. Rob and Ryan are twins who are staying with me. TJ and few more are walking into the house at the same time as us.

“Dude! Your sister is a freshman here? She hot?” Ryan asks me with a cheeky grin.

I smack Ryan in the back of the head, making his twin bellow a laugh as he clutches his sides. “Stay the fuck away from my sister. All of you! You touch her, I will skin you alive. Got it?”

Rubbing the back of his head, he agrees not to touch her. I just have to tell the rest of the guys tonight. Knowing Haley, she’ll flirt with anything that has a penis, so I’ve got to put my threats in so when she does, they’re not going to bother with her.

My sister is going to be single for the rest of her life; less stress for me having to deal with the guy who breaks her heart. I want none of that crap to happen to either of my sisters. That’s why I don’t bother with relationships; too messy. Girls can be so dramatic.

“I’m going for a quick shower! See you in thirty!” TJ says to me and I nod in response. I turn to walk down the hallway to my room where I’ll be doing the exact same thing as TJ.

Slipping into the shower, I allow the water to trail down my skin and heat my body up. I start to have flashbacks of last night. Rebecca I think was her name. Let’s go with Rebecca. The images of her grinding on my dick flashes through my mind. That dirty mouth of hers whispering filthy things to me. She was a squealer, and that was her downfall. She just wouldn’t shut up; too loud.

The time when her mouth was wrapped around my dick was good. She gives a good blowjob, I’ll give her that. Great rack too.

“Fuck!” I rest my head against the tiles on the wall. I instinctively grab my hardened length and begin to stroke it. I think about all the nights I’ve had with girls. The best one was, hands down, Maya. The shit that girl can do will make you get you excited just thinking about it. Right now, I’m excited as fuck.

Pumping myself to an orgasm. I milk myself dry just at the thought of tonight. I can’t wait to be buried in a new girl. I’ve made my mind up. I want a fresh piece of ass tonight. Nothing like I’ve had before. I want a good fuck—a long fuck.

***

Carter

“Mom, you turn right here . . . no, here! MOM! Turn the steering wheel!” One of these days, I will hunt the person who gave my mom a drivers licence. This woman shouldn’t be on roads at all. She flew in with me to get me settled into college. My dad and brothers couldn’t come because football season is coming up. My dad is the coach for the New York Giants while my brothers play in the NFL for the LA Chargers.

Both of my parents went to college in Ole Miss, along with my older brothers Austin and Chris. I’m the youngest and the only girl in the family. My family is known in the football industry because of my father’s winning record, and the fact that he has two sons playing in the NFL for a team that meets his own in the Super Bowl. It’s hard to decide who you’re supporting when it comes to that.

“I know where I’m going honey . . . Sort of . . . Okay, which turn is it again? These roads are different from when I was here . . . ?” she trails off as she looks around her surroundings. I can tell by her face that she doesn’t recognize anything from when she was here. On top of not recognizing anything, she has a terrible sense of direction.

“Mom, the building is right there. Just park here. I’ll grab the stuff and you can wheel it through the building. I’m in dorm 45A.” I hop out of the car that has now been parked outside a tall white building, with its double doors greeting me. There looks to be about ten floors. I take a case from the trunk and drag it up the steps with a struggle. I open the door for myself and push the case through with my knee as it was rolling in a direction it didn’t need to go in. I see some girls waiting around in the space beside a desk. I walk up to see an older girl sitting with a highlighter, flicking through stapled paper with rows of names.

“Name?” she asks in a bored tone.

“Carter Steel.” She flicks through the paper to get to the end, where the S’s are located. She sees my name and highlights it. Pushing her chair back, she rolls away from the desk until she hits a cabinet behind her. Dancing her fingers across the envelopes, she comes across mine and hands it over to me, slamming the door back into its place.

“Your room is 45A on the fourth floor. It’s the fifth door from the elevator. A means North, so you’ll be on the north end of the building. Here’s a map of the building and one of the campus. Your roommates are Haley Jackson and Danielle Connors. Your keys are in that envelope. If you lose them, it’s a hundred dollar fine, and you have to get the locks changed too. There’s two keys in there, so try not to lose any of it.” She points over to the free elevators, and I wheel my case away from her. I’ve got a feeling she hates her job.

My mom falls into step beside me as we wait to allow other girls to enter the elevator with us. Pressing the different floors each of us are going to, we all wait in silence. My floor was the first stop. Excusing myself around the others, we both make it out and make our way to 45A, which was further away than I originally thought. I open the envelope to retrieve my keys but my mom notices the door is open upon hearing voices inside.

“Yeah, I’m from here. Well, two towns over, b—” a blonde girl stops talking to the dark brunette-haired girl when she sees me. “You must be Carter!” she beams at me, running over with the other girl following her. “I’m Haley! Hi! Nice to meet you!” She holds out her hand for me to take and I shake it.

“Yeah, I’m Carter,” I say nervously. Meeting new people was never my strong point; I’m quiet, shy, and so bad at talking. I don’t have many friends. They only want to know me because of my last name and what it comes with. Most girls befriend me to get to my brothers, then they dispose me like trash.

“I’m Danielle! I love your shoes!” the other girl introduces herself too.

“It’s nice to meet you. And thanks, I like yours too,” I mumble, embarrassed by the compliment. I fix my hair awkwardly as I stand under their gazes, studying me.

“You’re going to be the shy one, aren’t you?” Haley smiles at me.

“She’s always been shy, but college is the time to get out of that shell of hers. Live a little honey. Not too much, I don’t want to see you in your birthday suit on TV. Neither does your father,” my mom jokes, making us all laugh and, little by little, washing the awkwardness between us away.

After spending some time with us, my mom decides to leave. She hesitates at first. Then she cries, more like wails, “My gosh, my baby is all grown up! Your father is so proud of you, sweetie! I’m sorry he and your brothers couldn’t come to see you, but they’ll visit. They promised me they would.” She pats my head, sliding it down to cup my cheek. I see the tears stinging her eyes and one drips down her rosy cheeks.

“It’s fine, Mom. I know they’re busy. I’ll be fine.”

Giving me one last squeeze, she says goodbye to the girls and walks out the door, blowing a million kisses at us. Once she leaves, there is a short silence in the room. I stare at the closed door, almost waiting for her to open it back up and take me back to New York. But it doesn’t.

“Your mom is so cute!” Haley gushes at the door. “I’ve a feeling we’re all going to be great friends! You both seem like my kind of girls! So why don’t we go out and celebrate our newfound freedom? I know there’s a party on tonight. We can meet college boys there. Who’s in?”

Danielle shoots her hand straight up while I rub the back of my neck. I’ve only been to one party in high school and the cops got called. Safe to say, that scared me for life.

“Um, I think I’m going to skip it. I’m a little tired tonight. I just want to settle in and adjust—” I tell her but she shakes her head no.

“Carter, come on! Please, it’s our first night here I want to party with my new friends. It’ll be fun, I promise you. If it’s not, we’ll come home.” Haley begs me clasping her hands.

“Parties aren’t really my thing—”

“Well, this year they will be! Look, we’ll all stay together and leave together? How about that?” she pleads once more. Her eyelashes are batting at me. I smile to her and give in. I couldn’t think of anything worse than going to this party.

“Yes! Okay, so, I can do your hair and makeup and then let you borrow a dress if you want? I don’t want you to feel pressured.” Too late for that. I nod and place my bag down on the table.

I feel Haley’s tools poking my face as I sit there with my eyes closed. She’s instructing me while I’m sitting down in her tight-fitting red dress she gave me for the night. It feels like a corset. I’m struggling to both breathe and hide my stomach, which I know is on full display right now. I really need to start exercising.

“Carter, you have a such a natural glow on your face!” Haley whines playfully. I snort at whatever that means. “Done!” She clicks something.

I open up my eyes adjusting to the light to see myself in the mirror. My eyebrows shoot up, and my eyes widen at the sight of me. “Wow . . .” I whisper, moving my face from side to side and allowing the lighting to hit in different angles. “You’re good at this,” I tell Haley, who is sitting there proudly while pulling on some heels.

“I know, lots of practice.” She smiles at me once more. I can tell she’s one of those girls who likes to dress up and wear makeup. She’s naturally stunning—beautiful, in fact. Same with Danielle. She has pale skin that makes her look so mysterious. She’s super funny and feisty. Haley likes to talk, but I like those kind of people; it saves me from having to speak. She can do it for me.

“Carter, you have a banging body! You should wear dresses a lot more!” Danielle comments, making me blush. While she finishes off her own makeup, Haley pours us some shots before we go out. I feel the sting burn down my throat as I take the shot. I scrunch up my face at the aftertaste.

“Ugh, I hate tequila,” Haley says, and yet, we both drank the crap.

“Then why did we drink it?” I ask innocently. I’ve decided that tequila isn’t really my drink. I’ve come to an understanding that it’s just not going to work out.

“Meh, to get drunk quicker?”

I put the glass down on the table and shake my head. “Oh no, I don’t want to get dru—”

I start before Danielle interrupts me, “Carter, you look like you need at least one wild night. You don’t need to get drunk, but it certainly helps in order to tolerate the people we’re going to meet tonight . . .” She stands up to check her makeup and likes what she sees. Strutting over in her heels, she takes the three shots that were lined up for her. She drinks them with ease, with no faces being made in disgust of the taste. “Unlike you two, I love tequila.” She winks, finishing off the last shot.

We all grab our clutches, signifying we’re ready to leave. Walking out the door and towards the elevator, we meet a couple of girls who are going to the same party as us. Haley keeps talking to them while I just stand with Danielle, listening and smiling at their conversation. I’m so bad at meeting new people.

My hands nervously run over my dress, trying to smooth down the nonexistent wrinkles in it. We walk towards a house booming with music, and my phone buzzes in my purse. I fish it out to see my dad calling me. I tap Haley’s shoulder and tell her, “Hey I’ve got to take this. I’ll come find you guys inside?”

She nods and replies, “If you’re not inside in ten minutes, I’ll come out and find you alright?” I smile at her kindness to withstand my awkwardness. These girls are going to hate me by the end of the year.

“Hey, Dad!” I slide my finger across the screen, answering him.

“Carter! Sweetie! How are you? Did you settle in alright? What are your roommates like? You like the place?” my dad says in one breath, making me laugh. I mindlessly start walking around in circles while on the phone with him.

“I’m fine, Dad. Yeah, Mom helped me out after eventually finding the place. They’re really nice girls. We’re actually at a party now. But yeah, the place is neat. They said thanks for getting the furnishings for our dorm.” I play with my ear, kicking leaves around in my heels.

“You’re at a party? Don’t go too wild, honey. I know what parties are like in college. I’ve saved your brothers from numerous ones when they were there. I’m glad you’re settling in fine, and I can’t wait to come down in a couple of weeks with your mom and the boys to see my baby girl.”

I miss his voice already. His job doesn’t allow much days off around this time. Being the head coach of a high profile football team doesn’t give you much leeway.

“I won’t. I’m only going to see what the hype is about and maybe leave after an hour or so. Parties aren’t really my thing. I can’t wait to see you all, too! I miss you already.” I feel the tightness in my chest. I’m a family girl, and I always miss them when I’m away. But I’m in college alone now, so it’s amplified.

“It’s good to hear your voice, honey. I miss having you around the house. But go, enjoy the party! And don’t get too drunk, you’re still underaged! And stay away from those college boys too! Lord only knows what they do in their spare time . . .” he jokes, but he knows I won’t be bad. I’m not like that; never have been. Plus, my brothers never let me be that girl.

“Don’t worry, Dad! I’ll be good, I promise. See you soon. Love you!” I smile through the phone at him.

“I know you will, Carter. I love you too! Bye, and be safe.” I end the call with a bye and put my phone back into my clutch and seal it. I look up to the house and see numerous bodies on a balcony and out on the porch, people lying on the grass, making out with red cups scattered around, and a few people doing a little more than making out, hands roaming and groping bodies as they grind on each other. That’s a little awkward to see.

“Time for your first college party, Carter. Don’t be awkward . . .” I mumble to myself, but I know I will be.

Let the games begin.