“Kind of. I thought girls were into guys who fall in love at first sight.”
“You haven’t fallen in love with me.”
“I’m already picking out our wedding playlist.”
I groaned. “Be serious.”
He released a breathy laugh. “Okay, you want serious?”
“Please.”
“Apparently I made a bad impression on a certain superstar coach.” He shrugged like it was no big deal, but the light in his eyes dimmed a little. “I need to prove him wrong.”
He had to be talking about my dad, and the frustration in his voice was clear. It wasn’t surprising. I knew first-hand how frustrating my dad could be. Perhaps we had more in common than I thought.
“But more importantly, I think I’m in love with you…”
I couldn’t stop a laugh escaping me, though I did my best to make it sound like I was laughingathim.
“Fine, you’re on,” I said. “But only to shut you up. And I should warn you, I’m on a hot streak today.”
I skated for the net, pulling my helmet on as I went. Although I’d preferred having the place to myself, I felt a rush of adrenaline at the prospect of competing against someone. One day into camp and I was already addicted to the thrill of testing myself against players who weren’t my brother.
I was almost in position when I heard him take a shot, and I turned just in time to see the puck sail right past me into the net.
“Hey! I wasn’t ready.”
My mystery opponent laughed to himself before callingback. “Damn, I guess that hot streak is done.”
“Uh, because you cheated.”
Still laughing, he skated over to me. “Don’t worry. The streak might be over, but you’re still hot.”
My mouth dropped open. This guy might just be worse than the one at dinner. Though for some reason I wasn’t completely revolted by his attempts to flirt with me. I tried to convince myself it was because he wasn’t talking with his mouth full. It had nothing to do with his striking blue eyes.
“That doesn’t count,” I argued. “I want a rematch.”
“Nope.”
“Are you scared you can’t beat a girl without cheating?”
“Yes, I’m terrified.”
I scoffed. “So much for love at first sight.”
“Okay, fine,” he said. “We’ll make it best of three. But why don’t we up the stakes?”
His eyes started to do that whole glittering thing again, and I immediately grew suspicious. “What are you thinking?” I paused. “Actually, don’t answer that,” I said before he could reply. “I know guys like you. You’re probably going to say something like ‘loser has to take off a piece of clothing’ or ‘if you score, I have to kiss you’.”
He slowly started to smile. “Well, those are both excellent suggestions, but the kiss seems like a worthy prize. You’re on.”
“Wait, that’s not—”
But he was already skating away.Shit. I hurried back to the net. He hadn’t allowed me a moment to consider the terms of his bet, but I wasn’t going to let him score another cheap goal. Thankfully, this time, he waited until I was in position.
I clanged my stick hard against each post and nodded that I was ready.
Instantly, he started pushing the puck down the ice toward me, switching it from side to side with impressive speed. I swallowed as I kept my eyes laser-focused on the puck. This guy was really good. But so was Max, and I’d been playing against my brother for years.
