“Maybe.” He laughed. “But now I know exactly what needs to be done—I’m going to train you.”
I frowned and my mouth fell open slightly in shock as he continued.
“You know how to stop a puck, but there’s more to being a great goaltender than that. Your dad’s not giving you the support you need at practice, and the guys are all too worried about pissing him off to shoot against you properly during drills. Either that, or they’re being nice to try and get in your pants.”
“Lovely,” I muttered.
“Come on,” he said, holding out his arms. “Let me train you, and we’ll prove everyone wrong.”
I wanted nothing more than to prove my dad wrong. But could I really commit to practicing with Parker? Almost every interaction we’d ever had seemed to end badly for at least one of us.
“We’ve only got a week before the next game,” I said. “You can’t expect a miracle.”
“Now that you’ve got me? Sure, I can.”
I let out a groan, mainly because I knew I didn’t have a choice. Maybe this could work. If we didn’t kill each other before the week was out. “Fine.” I sighed. “But just so we’re clear, I’m not going to enjoy a single second of this.”
“Likewise.” He grinned at me in a way that made my pulse flicker. “Go for a light recovery jog tomorrow. Do some stretching and maybe add in some core work. Then meet me at the rink when it opens on Monday morning for our first session.”
I watched as he turned and headed back toward the house, wondering what the hell I’d just signed myself up for.
“Kenzie!” Jaz and Isaac were waving at me from the deck. “What are you doing out here? It’s freezing!”
“Questioning my sanity,” I muttered as I went to join my friends.
Had Parker really just agreed to help me train? And had I really just accepted? It all felt like some cruel joke, though neither of us would be laughing if we lost the next game like we had today’s.
But apparently I was going to find out how serious Parker was when I joined him at the rink bright and early on Monday morning.
Chapter 17Parker
“You need to learn how to drive,” Cammie said. She was sitting in the passenger seat of my truck, her eyes glued to her phone. I had no idea how she could judge my driving when she wasn’t even looking at the road.
“I can drive just fine.”
“Tell that to the old lady who had to jump out of the way as you swerved round the corner back there.”
“There was no old lady!”
“Well, we were lucky then, because you would have taken her out for sure.” She lifted one disapproving eyebrow before returning her attention to her phone. “I miss Reed and Grayson. They were much more sensible behind the wheel.”
All I could do was grunt. I was so sick of everyone missing my older brothers and being constantly reminded of how I’d never live up to them. I thought this year would be different. But even in the comfort of my own car, I was still being compared to them.
“Yeah, well, they’re not here. And if you’re going to complain so much, next time you can walk to the rink.”
“Or maybe I’ll just get my license,” she replied smugly.
I wasn’t going to hold my breath. Cammie was too used to being a passenger princess. It was probably better than her being able to drive though. I dreaded the day I had to share this truck with her.
“You’re not going to get your license,” I replied. “You don’t have the time.”
“Yes, well, if you keep this up, I’ll make time.” Her focus fell back to her phone, but she wasn’t quiet for long. “So, tell me more about your new girlfriend.”
“Mackenzie’s not my girlfriend.” I knew my sister was just trying to annoy me. She wasn’t even being subtle about it. But it was still working.
“You don’t get out of bed early for anyone.”
“I’m helping her train. That’s it.” To be honest, I was almost as surprised as Cammie that this was happening. Heading to the rink first thing on a Monday morning to give our new goalie some extra practice was the last thing I wanted to do. And yet here I was.
