Kendall
Perfect. Where?
Addison
Diamond? I’d like some privacy.
Kendall
Fancy. I’m in.
It’s one of those elite bars where celebrities and famous people go, and it reminds me that my father is Coach Hart.
Addison
Woo-hoo! Meet at 8:30?
Kendall
That’s great. It will give me some time to get more work done.
Addison
Me too! See you then! Cannot wait!
Part of me wants to make brownies and paint all night, but I need to have some fun before five more years pass me by. Who knows? Maybe I’ll meet someone who doesn’t make my blood boil every time he walks into a room.
I slide my phone into my pocket and take the stairs down to the subway, thankful for Addison’s friendship.
Tonight, I’ll drink with my best friend and try to forget her brother exists. At least for a few hours.
5
PATTERSON
Kendall’s words have been rattling around my skull for the past four hours, and I’ve tried everything to shake them. A nap that I really needed turned into me staring at the ceiling for an hour, and the pregame meal I’d planned tasted like cardboard. Right now, not even the music blasting through my headphones is loud enough to drown out my own thoughts. Nothing fucking works. It never does with her.
I shut off my music because I’m too annoyed and frustrated.
“Your team needs you locked in.”
She walked past me, brushing my arm, wearing that smug expression. My hands twitched with the urge to pull her back to me. That would have ruined everything I worked so hard to build.
I’m in the locker room now, lacing up my skates while the guys bounce around me, hyping each other up the way we always do before we play. Music pumps through the speakers, and Smiley is doing his ridiculous pregame dance routine that makes everyone laugh. Wyatt looks like he might throw up, which is normal for him.
Mason drops onto the bench beside me and mimics my posture, hunched over his skates. “You planning to strangle those laces or tie them?”
“Mind your damn business.”
“Oh, someone’s moody tonight.” He nudges my shoulder. “Channel that into the game, yeah? Philly’s goalie has been a brick wall lately. We need you, Cross. Whatever’s bugging you, forget it.”
I grunt in response because I don’t trust myself to say anything else. If I open my mouth, I might admit that I’m wound up because of Kendall fucking Hart. I’d rather skate naked through Times Square than confess that to anyone.
The Philadelphia Falcons are a good team. They’re hovering around the middle of the standings, hungry for a playoff spot and desperate for wins. Their defense is physical, and their new goalie has been hot. This won’t be easy, but we’re stronger players. Now we have to prove it.
The roar of the crowd hits me as we take the ice for warm-ups. Madison Square Garden is packed with eighteen thousand fans screaming for blood, and I push through my stretches before taking a few laps to let the cold air fill my lungs. This is supposed to be where everything else fades away, but my mind keeps circling back to her eyes sliding down my body like she was cataloging every inch of me.
Pattycakes.
