Loving Knight: Book One of the Cresswell Series

19. ALIYAH

I come back from practice that evening, dropping my bag down on the floor of the dorm room.

I plop down on my bed, taking off my sneakers with a sigh of relief, as my sore feet were finally free from the squeezing material. I lay back, my head hitting the pillows just as the door opens. Kira and Jennie step inside, two large plastic bags and a pizza box.

“We come bearing gifts,” Kira says, Jennie closing the door behind them with her foot.

“So lucky we can order food here,” says Jennie as she sets the bags down on her desk. “Saves us a trip to the cafeteria.”

I sit up, smiling at them. “You two are lifesavers.”

Kira sits down on my bed with the pizza box, setting it down in the middle of us. “Just thought that we could have a little sleep over, like we used to back in high school.”

“And we thought you could use the energy boost after your practice,” Jennie adds.

”Thank you, guys,” I tell them. “Brooke really did a number on us in practice today.”

“I bet she did,” said Kira.

Jennie reaches into one of the bags, pulling out some paper plates and foam cups. “So, Aliyah. How are things going between you and Deion?”

I smile at the question. “Things between us are going great.”

Kira grins a little. “How great?”

“We haven’t gotten that far, of course, but everything’s amazing,” I gush. “He’s just so sweet and nice and gentle.”

“Awwww. You guys are so cute.”

“Just make sure he’s careful and doesn’t hurt you,” Jennie says, handing both Kira and I empty plates and cups filled with soda. “You know how boys are.”

“I trust Deion,” I say, taking a sip of my soda. “And Kira also threatened him.”

“Hey, I didn’t threaten him.” Kira grabs a slice of pizza from the box, putting it on her plate. “I just told him that if he hurt you, I’d send him to an early grave.”

I choke a little. “Kira!”

She takes a bite of her pizza. “Okay, I didn’t actually say that. But I’m serious. If he hurts you, I’m gonna hurt him. He knows better than to upset you.”

“I trust Deion,” I tell her. “If I didn’t, he and I wouldn’t be together.”

”Still not letting him off the hook because he’s my brother,” Kira says, taking another bite of her pizza. 

“Kira, everything’s fine between me and Deion. If anything, the only thing I have to worry about are the other girls on campus.”

“She’s right, Kira.” Jennie moves her desk chair in front of us, sitting down. “Half of the girls at Cresswell are practically in love with Deion, and would do anything to get his attention.”

“Even Brooke warned me about that,” I say. Her words from that day in the bathroom start to come to my mind.

“But just because I’m not into him, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be wary of girls who are. Be careful.”

Be careful. Those two words stuck with me. It wasn’t uncommon for a girl to get a warning about other girls, but the warning itself made me feel just as uneasy.

“It’s true that Deion is the center of attention here,” says Kira, “but I don’t think you have to be that careful of the girls here. One thing about Deion is that he’s really protective of anything and anyone he loves.”