Haddy is beside me. Heather is on the other side of her, and we’re all watching, waiting, hoping.
Once again, tapping on my shoulder. Only this time it’s more insistent.
Exhaling a soft growl, I let go of Haddy’s hand to turn and see who (TF!) is bugging me in the third period of themost exciting game we’ve had all season, with Owen teed up to score a hat trick.
“What is it?” I do my best to gentle my tone as I turn around.
My heart stills in my chest when I see a tallish guy, a little under six-feet, standing in front of me. His light brown hair is cut high and tight, and a pair of horn-rimmed glasses are perched on his nose.
He’s slim, dressed in a maroon sweater and jeans, and he has both hands shoved in his pockets.
“Baxter.” It’s not a question. It’s a statement of utter disbelief.
“Hi, Gina.” He ducks his head, looking down. “I figured I’d find you here… with Mav playing and all.”
I’m not sure whether to be shocked or pissed. “What do you want?”
“You won’t answer any of my texts.” He has the nerve to give me a look of confusion.
“I blocked you.”
“Oh.” His chin pulls back as if I’d hit him. “That seems rude.”
“Does it?” I can’t keep the sarcasm out of my tone. “As rude as sleeping with someone and then completely disappearing without a single word for more than a year?”
His lips press together, and he lifts his chin, looking out at the guys on the ice. He actually makes a pretty decent pensive expression.Bastard.
Then his brown eyes return to me. “I need to talk to you. I have something I need to say.”
“I’m sorry.” I shake my head. “I’m really not interested in what youneedto say to me. Maybe a year ago I’d have wanted to know, but now… I honestly don’t care.”
“Please, Gina.” His tone is a mixture of firm and pleading, and I try to decide just how annoyed I am right now.
“You’ve really got some nerve coming here like this and demanding to speak to me.”
“Would you just give me five minutes? I think it would help us both.”
Haddy turns at my side now, and her face wrinkles with horror. “What areyoudoing here? Can’t you take a hint?”
“Hi, Hayden. I just need to talk to Gina for a minute.”
My cousin puts a hand on her hip, looking from him to me. “What do you think?”
“Please,” he says again, brown eyes fixed on mine. “I’ll never bother you again.”
“Oh, good grief.” I grab his arm, dragging him into the aisle and down the steps to the hallway that leads to the concourse.
He follows me into the narrow space, and I stop, crossing my arms and facing him. “Make it quick.”
A loudAw!comes from outside in the stadium, and I look over my shoulder. I want to get back to the game and see if Owen makes his third goal.
“Well, you see…” Baxter looks down, his light-brown hair falling over his eyes. “It’s like this, Gina. I’m an addict.”
My arms fall to my sides, and curiosity takes the lead over my anger. “An addict?” He nods, but I’m confused. I never saw any signs of… “What kind of addict?”
“Well…” He clears his throat. “I’ve struggled with narcotics since I was in a car accident two years ago. I thought I’d beaten it when we were together, but an old friend came to visit after that night, and… well…” His voice lowers. “I hadn’t.”
I momentarily forget about the game, taking a deep inhale. “I’m really sorry to hear about that.”
