Unbelievable. Face to face with my biggest mistake, I felt a surge of anger rush through me.
It seemed he was still just as cocky as I recalled. And he didn’t look nearly as surprised as me by our little reunion. Though he had just come from practice with my dad, so I guessed he’d had more notice.
“And you play for the Devils?” I continued. “So, that means you go to Ransom High?”
“Sure do.”
I was already pissed at my dad for taking this job. But nowit felt like his decision was truly unforgivable. I knew it was a great opportunity for him. That it meant we’d be close enough to Ryker University so my brother could visit easily and we could get to some of his games. But surely nothing was worth this.
“Me too,” I muttered.
“Well, this day just keeps getting better and better.” Parker’s voice was thick with sarcasm as he adjusted the tissue on his nose. “Let me get this straight. First you kiss me. Then you punch me. I’m honestly not sure if I should be excited or terrified to find out what you’ve got in store for me next.”
“Youkissedme!”
He raised an eyebrow. “Look, Melanie, I might get kissed by a lot of blondes, but when one kisses youandgets you kicked out of the most prestigious hockey camp in the country, it kind of sticks in your memory.”
“It’s Mackenzie,” I replied through clenched teeth. “And that’snothow it happened.”
“It’s okay,” Parker replied, leaning in a little closer. “I understand why you did it. Most girls can’t resist me.”
Irritation rippled down my spine. “I can resist you just fine.”
“Can you?”
“I’m doing it right now, aren’t I?”
“Thankfully.”
I scoffed at the arrogance in his tone. “Do you want me to punch you again?”
The air between us was so tense, I swear the very molecules surrounding us wished they could be somewhere else.
“If my options are between that and another kiss, thenplease, swing away.”
My memories hadn’t done Parker justice. He was far more annoying than I recalled. Unfortunately, he was also far better looking too, even with his potentially broken nose, and that only made me hate him more.
I grimaced as I inspected the damage I’d done more closely. Despite my hostility toward this guy, I didn’t actually want him hurt. “Do you need that looked at?”
“I’m not letting you anywhere near it,” he said, stepping away as if he was preparing himself for another attack.
I gritted my teeth. “I meant at the hospital. By a trained professional.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“Just let me have a look first.”
“No way.”
“Don’t you at least want me to check it’s still straight?”
His eyes flashed with concern, and he lowered his tissue. “Okay, fine, be quick.”
I stepped forward and this time he held his ground. We were still mostly shrouded in darkness, so I reached up on my toes to get a better look. A shiver went down my spine as I neared, like a silent alarm.
While I didn’t really know what his nose had looked like before, it seemed straight to me. My gaze drifted upward slightly, until I found his blue eyes looking down at me.
“How do I look?” The way his words rumbled through me made me realize how close we were.
