I blink at him. “Liam. It’s summer and you’re in the off-season. You’re not even working.”
He leans back, almost like he’s offended at what I said. “Just because I’m not working doesn’t mean I’m not still busy.”
I let out a bitter laugh. “Join the club. Everyone’s busy. I was swamped with work and family stuff, but I still managed to get my part of the to-do list done. And I also managed to show up on time to meet you instead of blowing you off. So if you expect me to throw a pity party for you because you were too busy this week?—”
His head falls back as he groans. “God, Kendall. That’s not what I’m saying. Not even close. I was just trying to explain myself.”
“You did. And I don’t care.”
He rests his hands on his hips. “My phone died earlier, so that’s why I couldn’t text you to tell you I was running late?—”
“There’s this brilliant invention called a phone charger. Bring one with you next time.”
His jaw bulges, probably because he’s biting down in frustration. He looks off to the side and shakes his head. “Right. Of course you’d say that,” he mutters.
I check the time on my phone. I need to get home to my aunt.
“How many things did you get done on your list?” I ask.
He opens his mouth and hesitates.
I glower at him. “You didn’t get anything done, did you?”
“Like I said, I was busy and?—”
I make an annoyed noise that’s so loud, a cyclist riding past us turns to look over.
“Wow. Liam, I purposely gave you the easier items because I wanted to make this as simple as possible for you. All you had to do was order a bunch of cupcakes, put together a playlist on your phone, and call the venue to ask about parking. That’s it. I was going to take care of the rest. But no, you couldn’t even do that.”
He opens his mouth to speak, but I cut him off.
“You know what? Never mind. I’ll take care of the engagement party. And the rehearsal dinner. It was a terrible idea for us to try to work together in the first place. I knew this would be a disaster. You can plan the bachelor party on your own.”
He’s quiet for a second as he stares at me. “But we’re supposed to do all this stuff together.”
“Clearly you’re too important and too busy to help your brother and future sister-in-law, even though you promised them you would.”
His handsome face twists into a frown. “Kendall, that’s not?—”
“We’re done.” I stomp off, anger steamrolling my insides.
He calls my name again, but I ignore him. I walk to the end of the block and round the corner to where my car is parked, climb in, and head home.
This guy. Unbelievable.
His excuses replay in my mind. Publicity stuff. Meetings. Gym sessions.
I almost laugh. The guy is a professional hockey player. He gets paid millions of dollars to play the sport that he loves. And he has the entire summer off. All that free time to do whatever he wants. And he can’t even show up for his brother.
Or me.
A sting radiates through my chest. I think of that night in college when I overheard him talking to one of his hockey teammates about me.
The words he spoke are seared into my memory. They echo in my brain, as fresh as if he had just said them minutes ago.
Not in a million years would I ever hook up with Kendall. Are you kidding? I go for hot girls. Not mousy little bookworms like her.
That stinging feeling morphs into a stab. I feel it spread through my chest and gut. All those flirty moments we shared. All those times he complimented my looks. All those times he held on those extra few seconds when he hugged me and I thought that maybe, just maybe, he liked me more than just friends…
