“Why are you looking at me like that?” I ask.
She rolls her eyes. “I don’t like you.” I snort.
“Gee, I hadn’t noticed.”
Her eyes narrow. “But, I also can’t stand the sight of that bruise on your face, knowing some bastard put his hands on a woman.” I stare at her in stunned silence. “Look, my brother would have gone fucking apeshit on any bastard that dared to put his hands on me. I know you have a brother and it’s shit he didn’t do anything to protect you.” Shame washes over me as she leans in and gently begins to paint my face.
“Where’s your brother?” I ask.
She stiffens and I worry I’ve pissed her off. “He’s… gone.” I don’t press her, letting the conversation die. When she deems me ready, I don't check what she did in the mirror. For all I know she could have painted a dick on my face. Her and I walk side by side toward the rink in silence. Normally I would be fidgeting and trying to get away from her, but this time the silence isn’t tense.
When we finally arrive, my eyes widen. The parking lot is full. Cars have parked on the curb and driven up on the grass area.People are queued out front, waiting to get in. I whine at the sight of the long ass line we have to wait in.
“Bitch, please. We aren’t going that way,” Maddie says in a smug tone. I look over at her and pinch my lips to the side, making her roll her eyes. “Come on, rich girl,” she says, then takes off toward the back of the rink, with me following close behind, trying not to get hit by cars weaving through the lot, looking to find an empty space. I’ve never been around here before. Maddie leads us to a fire exit door and stops, then pulls her phone from her back pocket and calls someone. “X, it’s me.”
My brows raise in surprise, she’s calling Xaden.
“Yeah, can you let us in?” She waits for him to answer before saying, “Sweet,” then ends the call. When she looks over at me, a frown begins to form on her stunning face. She searches my eyes for a second before her own widen and a laugh bubbles out of her. “Oh, fuck no,” she wheezes out through her laughter.
“Huh?”
She shakes her head and waves a finger in front of my face. “Get that fucking jealous ass look off your face.”
I scoff. “I’m not jealous."
“And I’m not into your man, rich girl.”
“He’s not my man,” I retort.
She rolls her eyes. “I don’t care. Xaden is cool and good people, but we aren’t like that.”
“What are you like then?” I blurt before I can stop myself.
Sadness clouds her brown eyes and she looks away from me as she answers. “He was my brother’s best friend.” Pain laces her words.
“Was?” I hedge carefully.
She turns back to me and the haunted look in her eyes gives me pause. “Miles Talon was Xaden’s best friend and he’s also my brother.” It feels like a bucket of ice water has been tossed over my head. The color drains from my face at her revelation. Thedoor opens but I’m too focused on Maddie to see who is standing there. Guilt gnaws away at my gut. Shame demands I drop to my knees and hide away, but my pride keeps me on my feet. Tears prick the backs of my eyes, I want to say something but I have no idea what!
“Hurry up,” Xaden barks. Maddie is the first to look away, brushing past him without uttering a word. “Move, Tink,” he bellows, snapping me out of my thoughts. When I turn to face him, his eyes widen. “What the fuck is on your face?”
My eyes widen in horror. “She drew a dick didn’t she?”
Xaden reels back. “What?”
“Did she draw a dick on my face?” I ask in a panic.
“No.”
“Then why are you looking at me like that?” I hiss.
A smug look reflects back at me. “No fucking reason at all,” he says with a cocky lilt, then tosses something at me. I catch it with ease, I look down and see the Stormsend Raven Emblem staring back at me. I hold the jersey out in front of me. Devlin is stitched across the shoulders with the number 5 in the center, marking his position as a forward center. I drop my bag to the ground and pull the jersey over my head. I’m instantly consumed by the smell of his aftershave. I have to swallow my moan of apprehension.
Xaden bends down and snatches my bag off the ground. “Go inside, Tink.” I swallow my sigh and move to step past him but he pushes forward and uses his body to hold me in place. I crane my neck back and stare up at him. “Did he follow you to work?”
I presume to understand who he is talking about, I shake my head. “No.”
“You said you don’t lie, yet today you lied through your teeth.”
