The girl I’ve spent my teenage years playing games with was right in front of me the whole time.
I let out a slow breath and brush my thumb along her arm, careful not to wake her yet.
My phone is still on my nightstand where I left it. I know without checking there’s a series of missed calls and texts. I just didn’t care to read them last night.
Not with Brinley here and in my arms.
Not when the world felt quiet off the ice for once.
I slide out from beneath her and grab it, expecting the usual spam of the guys joking around in the group chat. Instead, I realize I have two missed calls and a series of missed messages from Reed.
My stomach feels uneasy at the thought of what it could be about.
I glance back at Brinley once more. Her white-blond hair looks almost curly from across the pillows. She looks stunning like this, bare face without a trace of makeup. For a minute, I juststand there and stare at her, letting the weight of how I feel for this girl settle something in my chest.
My phone buzzes in my hand again.
Reed.
I curse under my breath and start moving. I pull on my sweats, then grab my practice gear from where I dropped it on the floor and shove the rest into my bag.
“Brinley, baby, I’ll be back after practice,” I murmur, leaning down to press a kiss to her temple.
She shifts under the blankets.
“Coop?” Her voice is thick with sleep.
“Yeah?”
She blinks up at me, trying to focus. “Will you take me to my place on your way?”
I pause. The idea of her leaving doesn’t sit right with me. I know I need to tell her the truth about everything that’s gone on.
“You could stay,” I urge her.
She pushes herself up a little, rubbing her eyes. “I have class. I need to get my car.”
I nod.Right, class. “Yeah, of course.”
The drive is quiet, mostly because she’s still half asleep in the passenger seat. Her head tipped toward the window while the morning sun streams through the windshield.
When we pull up outside of Broken Saddle, she reaches for the door and then hesitates.”
“You’ll call or text me later?” she asks.
“Yeah,” I say. “After practice.”
She leans over and presses a quick kiss against my mouth. Too quick. When she pulls away, I reach for her wrist and tug her toward me. She hums softly and sighs when my hand settles along her cheek.
She pulls away with a dreamy smile, biting her lip like she’s trying to hold it in.
I watch her climb out and disappear inside before I finally drive off.
By the time I get to the rink, the feeling in my gut hasn’t left. With Brinley gone, I finally open the text thread from Reed.
Reed: I found something.
Reed: Call me.
