“That’s why I’m here,” I continue, another sob breaking loose. “I know Madison hurt you. I know I promised not to hurt you, but when I heard the things coming out of Ethan’s mouth, it was like a preview of what Dad would say. How he would react. As much as this is destroying me, I have to tell you goodbye, Aiden. I won’t be the one to ruin your career here in Miami. Youbelongon this team. Youdeserveto wear that A on your chest with pride. And I’m going to make sure you do.”
I let my hands drop and move out of his grasp. Huge sobs rack my body, and I turn away from him, the tears streaming down my face. I spy a box of tissues on an end table and grab a wad of them, as my nose is running all over the place and I’m a complete mess.
Seconds go by. It seems like forever that I have my back to him, sobbing, but then I hear his voice, loud and clear.
“Is that what you think matters to me?” he asks sharply, his voice edged with anger. “Wearing the freaking A on my chest?”
I turn around, staring at Aiden through my tears. “Of course it matters. This is what you’ve wanted your whole life!”
Within a second, he’s closed the gap between us, his hands grasping my arms above my elbows, his eyes flashing with emotion. A startled gasp escapes my lips as his fingertips clasp tight around my arms and he jerks me closer to him.
“No. Itdidmatter. But not anymore. Not after you.”
I stare at him, stunned.
“You’ve changed me, Scarlett. For most of my life, hockey was the only thing that mattered.Was. When I was with Madison, I wouldn’t dream of walking away from it, despite how my heart broke when she ended things because of it. I picked the game over her. I thought I would always feel that wa—”
“No!” I interject. “Aiden, you’re not thinking clearly. You—”
“I am thinking clearly!” he shouts at me. “Because with Madison, I couldn’t walk away from the game. For you? Not only could I, but I would. It’s not even a contest.”
Panic seizes me. No. Aiden isn’t thinking straight. I have to make him understand this. “You don’t know what you’re saying.”
“I knowexactlywhat I’m saying,” Aiden snaps. “I know when I saw you with those ridiculous feathers stuck to your cheek that I wanted to know you, even though it was dangerous. I know I started to have feelings when I had that cup of coffee with you. I know how much I think about you and want to hear your voice. How I can’t wait to see you again as soon as we part. I know your taste and your touch, how your body feels with mine, and I can’t ever get it out of my mind. And before you give me some bullshit about this being infatuation, it’s not. I like you next to me in my car, drinking some God-awful matcha drink. I like looking atChristmas lights with you. I like when you’re next to me on the couch, and you drop your head on my shoulder, and I can smell the vanilla shampoo on your hair while we watch TV.
“I’ve never felt this way about anyone, and with you, I realize there’s so much more I want in my life than hockey,” Aiden continues, the words continuing to pour from his lips. “I wantyou, Scarlett. If your dad wants to trade me? Fine. Let him. Or if he wants to rip the A off my chest? Great. I’ll make it easier and give it to him. But the one thing I am NOT going to do is give you up.”
Then his mouth crashes down onto mine.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Aiden’s kiss is hard and demanding. Possessive. He’s backing up his words with his mouth.
He’s not going to give me up. Even if he has to ruin his reputation with the Manatees to keep me.
I fist his T-shirt with both my hands, pouring myself into this kiss. I tell him with my mouth that I’m sorry. I want him. I need him.
I love him.
Aiden’s hands are in my hair. Down my back. A groan escapes his throat, and a sob breaks free from mine.
He breaks the kiss, breathing hard, and rests his forehead to mine. I close my eyes, the tears slipping down my cheeks again.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper, my voice thick.
Aiden begins to kiss the tears off my cheeks, and it makes me want to cry some more.
“I know you were doing it for me,” he whispers against my skin, his breath warm and caressing against my cheeks.
“I was,” I choke out.
Aiden lifts his head, moving both hands to my tear-stained face. The storm is gone from his eyes now, replaced by a look of tenderness. “I can’t lose you,” he says, moving his fingertips to my chin and tilting my face up. “I can live without hockey. I won’t live without you.”
My breath catches in my throat.
“I know it’s crazy to feel the way I do so soon,” Aiden confesses. “But I have had feelings since our first conversation on Casino Night. They’ve only intensified since then.”
My heart leaps. Aiden is feeling all the same things I am.
