Finally the bus driver started to slow down, then pulled over. Disappointment rumbled through the crowd of students who’d been excitedly watching Mackenzie’s pursuit. The show was over though, and everyone started returning to their seats.
Mackenzie clambered onto the bus, her chest heaving. The way she was scowling at the bus driver, I half expected him to catch on fire. She muttered a few things to the science teacher at the front, then went in search of a seat.
As she started down the aisle, her gaze went straight to mine. Her expression only darkened, as though she had somehow decided this was all my fault. A part of me wished it was. I still owed her a little payback after Friday night. Unfortunately though, I couldn’t take credit for this one.
Despite the lethal look in her eyes, I smiled and lifted a hand to wave. Not for the first time in my life, I wondered if I’d been born without any proper defensive instincts. When someone looked at you that way you were supposed to freeze, hide, or flee. I just smiled and waved.
She scowled at me before slumping into the nearest seat. The girl had serious issues with me—clearly. Yet I was still smiling. And now, I was thinking, which was even more dangerous. I knew Seth hadn’t genuinely been suggesting Mackenzie was the answer to our goalie problem. But what if that idea wasn’t as crazy as I’d initially thought?
She was a loose cannon. She couldn’t be trusted. She’d likely torch the entire school just to see me burn. But that wasn’t what I was thinking about right now. Instead, I was remembering how she’d played at her dad’s summer camp.She’d been incredibly fast, fiercely competitive, and she knew how to guard the net.
“We need to find someone who hasn’t already tried out,” I said, turning to Seth once more.
“Yeah, except hasn’t every guy who can play already tried out?”
“Everyguywho can play…” I nodded over to where Mackenzie was sitting. “We haven’t tried out every girl.”
Seth looked confused. “You know I wasn’t suggesting we recruit her for the team, right?”
“I know, but it’s not the worst idea. I’ve seen her play. She’s good.”
“You’re serious?”
“Maybe.”
“You want the girl who stole your clothes playing alongside you?” He spoke slowly, as if he was worried I wouldn’t be able to fully grasp the concept.
“Well, I’m hoping that won’t happen during a game,” I joked, though Seth didn’t laugh. No, he was still staring at me like I’d been slammed into the boards a little too hard.
“She’ll never go for it. She’d say no just to spite you.”
“Then we convince her. She already told me she wouldn’t be sitting on the sidelines if she had a choice.”
I was suddenly wishing she’d told me more about why she didn’t play anymore when she’d brought it up in the locker room.
“Perhaps,” Seth continued. “But even if she agrees, you know she’ll have to try out. And it’s her dad, not you, who decides who joins the team.”
I waved his concern away. “If she’s the best person for the job, there’s no way her dad will say no.”
“Because Coach Foster is such an open-minded guy. You don’t even know if she’s still a good player. That camp was three years ago.”
His arguments were starting to stack up, but I didn’t let it derail me. It felt like I was onto something. “She just managed to chase down a bus. She’s clearly fit. And determined.”
“Okay…”
“And we know she doesn’t back away from a fight. I’m still recovering from her killer right hook.”
“Yeah, but can she still stop a puck?”
That was the million-dollar question. And the only one that truly mattered. “No idea. Guess we’ll just have to find out.”
“You’re going to get yourself punched again, aren’t you?”
“No. Well, maybe. But if my instincts are right, it’ll be worth it.”
When we arrived at the museum and everyone filed off the bus, my mind was still racing. I couldn’t shake the idea that Mackenzie, the girl I thought was my biggest problem, suddenly seemed like my only solution. Once we were off the bus, everyone gathered in front of the museum entrance, and a teacher started rattling off instructions. I wasn’t listening though. My eyes were on Mackenzie.
I needed to put her goalie skills to the test; needed to know if she still had the lightning-fast reflexes I’d seen three years ago. I could hardly ask her to strap on a pair of skates and let me shoot pucks at her. I was going to have to be more covert. But how could I test her skills without her realizing? And evenif that succeeded, how the hell was I going to convince her to try out for the team? When she turned and caught me watching, she grimaced in disgust. Not a great start.
