I crack up laughing because my determination is nothing new. And he knows it. “Yeah, I mean because I never was, Hayes.”
We both stop talking and watch a car turning into the park. It’s clearly his Uber.
“I need you to know, I never put you at risk. With your heat… I was in complete control.”
“One thing I know, Hayes, is you are not the person they made you think you were. If I didn’t feel safe with you,wewouldn’t have happened. It’s an important part of being in heat… Feeling safe and protected that is. Otherwise, simple biology wouldn’t work. The proof of how secure and happy I felt around you were all the knots and orgasms we shared.”
“They were good, weren’t they,” he says, a small smile on his face.
“Good? Excuse me… They were amazing. And you know it,” I say, risking nothing, leaning in to kiss him gently on the mouth.
He looks back at me stunned.
“I know I said our heat was a one-time thing, but it was nice seeing you again, Hayes.”
“Yeah, you got that right,” he says confidently, his eyes falling away before they come back to mine. “Can I kiss you, Raney?”
Before I can answer, he buries his hands in my hair and kisses me. And boy does he kiss me good. He pulls away once we hear the gravel crunching under the tires of a car as it parks next to us.
I feel a bit shit not arguing about the kiss, but like I said about missing out on being with Puck, that sentiment also includes him. A sneaky kiss isn’t going to break me. “Hey, Hayes, what hospital were you at?”
“Xavier Memorial.”
I can’t help the roll of my eyes. Xavier Memorial is pretty much a shrine to the Anders and their fucked up rich, snooty friends.
“And what was the woman’s name again?”
His eyes squint together as he glares at me, “Why?”
Shrugging, I lean in to boop his nose, “Because I’ve got a friend who can do some snooping for me.”
“Don’t do that, Raney, it’s not safe to be digging in their world.”
“You get that they set you up, right? Like they completely bent you over and fucked you up the ass with a giant cactus? I get you’ve got a huge reason now, but from a survivor to another survivor, you gotta break free of anything that traps you. And yeah, sometimes you do it to yourself. Besides, what’s the worst that can happen, Hayes?”
ChapterThirty
RANEY
After watching Hayes leave in his Uber, I ended up texting Talon, but again, no response. I suspect he’s still busy being a career asshole. Or he’s looking after his family. I hope it’s the second.
I seriously think Hayes is way too close to the trauma to see how they fucked him over. I also get he is reluctant to do anything to draw attention to him. But I wasn’t being overdramatic when I said I was done missing out on things.
The second I step in the Wolverines stadium my only focus is Puck.
Puck lied to me. He hasn’t gotten better, he’s in-fucking-sane. He moves like he was born with blades on his feet. His size means he’s an absolute unit, and despite practicing his goals the other day, he is clearly defence through and through. Makes my heart giddy seeing how he was made for this.
Unsurprisingly, the friendly game is not that friendly at all but that’s the nature of the game. Tied at half time, Puck’s nearly the last off the ice, his eyes locked on mine the whole time. He’s been showing off and pointing me out to his teammates, and can’t say I didn’t like it. With a hurried wave, Puck follows his team into the tunnel, and that’s my cue to sprint to the loo.
Rhodes takes second point, letting Andrea take lead in my protection since I’m going to the ladies. She plays a good game, making me wait in the hallway while she checks, leading me inside, waiting at the second door where the loos are. There’s just something about her I don’t like.
The buzzer over the PA system drowns out Koz’s voice as he gives me an update on his release. And yeah, I know I should be more aware, but you should be able to rely on the people paid to protect you.
Instinctively, the second I open the door, I know I’ve been set up. Before I step foot out of the confined space to where they’re both waiting, I crack the tiny panic alarm / tracker hidden in my clothes.
Andrea pulls the door open, and Sharlene’s already snarling directions about where she wants me to stand.
“And this would be the first fuck off you’ll hear from me.” I shrug at her as I step out of the loos into where the basins are. Honestly, I shock myself at my confidence, and then I freak myself out when I put my back to Puck’s mother and instead jab my finger in Andrea’s direction. “You are dead. Don’t even bother packing a fucking bag. You want to survive? You need to start running and not stop. Really, how stupid are you? No amount of money they threw at you is going to be worth the fear and pain you’ve just brought on yourself.”
