Despite being friends with her brother, I don’t know her well. She’s intriguing.
Quiet falls between us as we walk around campus. Several people wave when they spot me and I shoot them easy smiles. The more people that notice us, the more she ducks her head over the stack of books and flyers in her arms.
“You don’t have to walk with me,” she says.
“Here.” I stop her by a bulletin board and tear down some of the colorful print outs with expired dates from before winter break. “You need to put those up, right? This is a good spot.”
Lainey’s eyes bounce between her flyers and the space I made for her advertisement. She seems to psych herself up, scanning the area and scrutinizing the flyer before inching toward the bulletin board. I incline my head in encouragement when she glances over her shoulder and tucks her hair behind her ear.
“It’s fine. Everyone puts stuff up here. Job offers. Study groups. Events. Look, a Netflix and chill club is looking for members. Well, I hope it’s more about binge watching thanchill-chilling, right?” I wrinkle my brows in thought, reaching for herbooks. “Let me hold these for you so you don’t have to balance them.”
She slides her lips together, then the nervous tension bleeds away, stealing my breath with it when it’s replaced by determination. Picking a spot not quite front and center, she freezes.
“I didn’t bring anything to hang them with,” she admits softly, deflating.
I don’t like the way it kills off the steady build of conviction. Snagging one of the abandoned push pins, I offer it to her.
“Use this.”
She stares at it for a beat before carefully taking it. Her fingers are colder than mine. The quick brush stirs warmth in my chest as I watch her light up with her returning determination. She holds her flyer in place on the board and I skim what it says.
“What’s this dance for?”
“Charity. All the proceeds from ticket sales will go to the Derby Bookshop.” A sigh leaves her. “I have a lot to do. It was all my idea to organize this. I don’t want to see it close its doors in favor of a chain store. I thought the students could help give back to the local community. It’s a store that’s been there forever.”
Stepping back, she admires the flyer, lit up over completing a task so simple that I wouldn’t have thought twice about doing. That weird thought about kissing the top of her head is back.
“That’s cool. I can take some of those with me to hang up, if you want. We can cover more ground between the two of us.”
“Thank you. For your help, er—” She squints at me, visibly stumped. “You’re nice, I suppose.”
“You suppose,” I echo with a smirk. “I’ll be your flyer hanging wingman anytime you need me, sweetheart.”
It rolls off my tongue easily.
One thing that gives me an edge when I’m on the ice is my tenacity. Once I put my mind to something, I’m all in.
The instinct to act as her stand-in boyfriend to get those guys to leave her alone rises once more, a plan forming in my head as quickly as I select play strategies to dominate with my team for the W.
I will protect Lainey Boucher from creeps and anyone else who dares to try anything with her by posing as her boyfriend. No one will go after her if they believe she’s dating me.
“The team’s parties usually start around nine after the game,” I say. “I’ll get your ticket for you after practice so you can come to watch it, then I’ll give you a ride from the arena after I’m done in the locker room. It’ll help our cover story if we show up together.”
“What?” She whirls on me, the flare of confidence fading again. “What are you talking about? Why would I do that? I don’t go to hockey games.”
“Not even to support Theo?” I lift a brow. “He’s your brother.”
“And? My Dad supports him plenty. He goes to his games.” Her jaw works. “And my mom.”
She hugs her stuff to her chest and I fight back the offer to carry the books for her the rest of the way, which is odd since I’ve never done that for any girl I’ve been with. I don’t really have time for girlfriends thanks to the rigorous schedule that comes with being a hockey player. If I’m with a girl, it’s not serious. A hookup, maybe two, then I move on. My focus is on making it to the NHL.
I’ve never allowed anything to distract me from that.
This feels different, though. It’s not like we need to devote time to a relationship, which is why girlfriends haven’t worked out for me. This would just be an act to help her out.
Lainey sighs. “I don’t see why I should go to the game, and I don’t plan to be at your party.”
“You’d make your boyfriend fly solo after a win?” The corner of my mouth tugs up. “That’s cold, babe.”
