And what does he do for getting rejected? Goes out of his way to make my day difficult. What a winner. Definite boyfriend material qualities.
If only I had the courage to open my mouth and sling any of the well-thought-out comebacks I’ve formulated after our dreaded encounters, I’d put him in his place so fast. Instead, I stick with a demure mask of indifference in the hope my non-reaction to all of this will make him go away.
“I just want my notebook.”
His eyes gleam and he holds it up out of my reach. “And I want you to get on your knees for me and?—”
“Lainey. There you are, baby,” another familiar voice interrupts, carrying an edge I’ve never heard. An arm slings over my shoulder and guides me against a warm, firm body, smoothly maneuvering himself between me and Mike. “You didn’t answer my text. I wanted to see you before practice.”
Confusion swirls over me. Why the hell is Alex Keller butting into my problem?
We have a strict unspoken policy of ignoring each other’s existence that’s worked since he became friends with my brother. What’s he doing?
“Your text?” I stammer.
Mike’s brows pinch and his eyes narrow as they cut back and forth between me, Alex, and the arm he’s resting around my shoulders to tuck me into his side. He lowers my notebook, knuckles turning white.
“Baby? What, is she supposed to be with you or something?” The tone he uses shifts from a moment ago. He’s cautious, as if Alex’s intervention somehow gives me invisible protection against the immature games Mike enjoys playing with me. “Since when? Last I remember, you were at our party over the weekend with a hot sorority chick sucking on your neck before she took you upstairs for the main event.”
I rein in a grimace. All jocks are shameless pigs only concerned with hooking up and their testosterone-fueled sports. Alex is no different. His sexcapades are the most commented on topic of gossip around campus when people aren’t gushing about his skill playing hockey. He’s known for scoring off the ice as much as he does on it.
Alex only hesitates for a beat before he doubles down. “It was just for show. You can thank my girl here. She’s so shy, she insisted we keep things between us secret.” He gives me a comforting squeeze. “See, babe? I told you I wanted to stop hiding that I’m crazy about you. I don’t care about appearances.”
I blink, darting a questioning stare at my brother’s best friend. He doesn’t have to lie or help me out. He’s never gone out of his way to interact with me much before now, let alone bail me out of a sticky situation without any questions. I’d rather he didn’t, considering I refuse to budge on my hockey players are the worst stance.
There’s no way Mike and his crew will believe Heston U’s ice hockey legend Alex Keller would be dating me.
Yet to my amazement, no one laughs like this is some elaborate joke I’m not in on.
“Hey, grab those?” Alex points to the few flyers I abandoned on the ground in my rush to escape Mike.
His tone remains light and his smile is easygoing, but I pick up on the subtle shift in his demeanor. It’s an order, not a request.
Even amongst the jocks at Heston, there’s a hierarchy and the hockey players are at the top.
The shock of this entire bizarre exchange fades for a moment as I take in Alex’s handsome profile. Mike might be tall, but Alex has him beat by a few inches at six foot four. His light brown hair is trimmed on the sides and longer on top with thick waves that rustle in the cold winter breeze. More than his height, he hasa captivating presence people swarm to thanks to his outgoing spirit. The charming smile he likes to throw around helps, too.
Once Mike’s friends snap into action to gather my stuff, Alex motions to my notebook. “Is that hers, too? Thanks for helping my girl out, man.”
Without asking, Alex takes it from Mike and offers it to me. Relief billows inside me once I have it. A muscle in Mike’s cheek twitches, but he surrendered it without complaint.
The way he backs off so fast would be comical if it didn’t annoy me that it’s only because of Alex’s presence rather than me handling this on my own.
The guy who called me a nerd awkwardly hands off the last of the flyers I dropped. With stilted movements, I accept them.
“There, that’s better.” Alex drops a kiss on top of my head, his warm hum causing a shot of heat through my stomach to chase away the biting chill in the air. His calloused fingertips graze my cheek, tucking my hair behind my ear. “I need to get to practice, or coach will lose his shit on me and make me skate suicide drills until my legs fall off. I need those for the game tomorrow to crush UConn.”
I part my lips at the wink he offers, unsure what to say or do.
Mike saunters away backwards, casting one more grudging look my way that’s a mix of longing and jealousy. “See you at the party tomorrow night after the game?”
Alex doesn’t miss a beat this time, green eyes locked with mine as if he’s seeing me for the first time. “We’ll be there. Isn’t that right, baby?”
Um, wrong. Very wrong. I won’t be going anywhere near a party.
As soon as Alex walks away, this is all done and we’ll pretend this never happened as far as I’m concerned.
TWO
