Touchdown: A Bad Boy Sports Romance (Pass To Win Book 1) by Roxy Sinclaire Page B

were the ultimate status symbols. I could almost hear their whispers at the mention of my name. It still didn’t make it okay, though.
    “Are you still there?” my mom asked.
    “Yes,” I took a deep breath. “I’m sorry that you felt embarrassed. I was embarrassed, too. You put me in a very difficult position. I don’t want to hurt anyone, but I have to put my needs first.”
    “So selfish,” my mom hissed. “How can you say that to me, after all I’ve done for you?”
    “What have you done for me besides stand in my way at every opportunity? You throw money at your problems to make things seem even. It’s not even close. You can’t put a monetary amount on the disappointment and disapproval I’ve experienced from you.”
    “I see,” my mom said, eerily calm. “In that case, I will stop ‘throwing money’ at my problems. You’re a big girl, Alexa. If you want to live your own life, I will not stand in your way. I gave you a chance to do the right thing and marry Sebastian. I will be dissolving your trust fund. I am canceling our credit cards in your name.”
    “Mom,” I stammered.
    “I will have your things put in a storage locker. Do not bother coming home when school is out. This is no longer your home.”
    “You can’t do this,” I cried. “What about Dad?”
    “Your father isn’t too pleased with your behavior either,” she said. “If he wants to see you, he can get in contact with you. I’m done, Alexa. If you change your mind about Sebastian, then we’ll talk.”
    She hung up. I sat on my bed in stunned silence. Her response didn’t seem justified. I wasn’t asking for much; I just wanted to have a choice for my future. I felt sick.
    Maybe she was right about me not knowing how to live on my own. I had a few thousand dollars in a bank account, but that was it. I didn’t know anything about money management, because I never needed to. I bought things because I wanted them, and I usually didn’t even look at the price tag. It just wasn’t something necessary.
    I heard Sasha come through the door. “Alexa, I’m going to the dining hall. Want to come with me?”
    “I’m not hungry,” I answered.
    “What’s wrong?” she asked. She could always tell when something wasn’t right.
    “It happened,” I sighed. “My parents cut me off and my mom told me not to come home at the end of the semester.”
    I gave her the highlights of the conversation. She looked shocked, sad, and angry all at once.
    “How can I help?” she asked.
    “Help me forget about this,” I said. “We’re going over to Martin’s tonight.”

    * * *
    A t nine o’clock , we knocked on Martin’s door. I wasn’t really in the party mood, but I needed to get away from my racing mind. Reg had a devilish grin on his face when he answered the door.
    “You’re the first guests to arrive,” Reg exclaimed.
    “Besides Sasha, Gia, and I, who else did you invite?” I inquired.
    “No one, really. Martin said. “But people will show up. They always do.”
    I sat down at their table, fiddling with the wrapper on the bottle of wine that I brought. This wine was much too good for a college party. It would probably be the last expensive bottle of wine I ever enjoyed.
    “Let’s play a game,” Sasha suggested. “How about, Never Have I Ever?”
    We all nodded in agreement and poured ourselves tall drinks.
    “I’ll start,” offered Martin. “Never have I ever visited a foreign country.”
    Sasha, Reg, and I took a drink.
    “Never have I ever gone skinny dipping,” Reg added.
    Martin, Sasha, Gia, and I took a drink.
    “Never have I ever played football,” Sasha giggled.
    “Hey, that’s cheating,” Reg said playfully. Reg and Martin took a drink.
    “Never have I ever been cut off and disowned by my parents,” I said flatly.
    Seeing as no one else had experienced this in their life, I took a long pull from my glass. I could feel everyone’s eyes on me. I made quick eye contact with Martin. His eyes were