What happens next is hilarious. Our six foot five goalie, covered in neon blue Jell-O, trying to grab Vaughn is a sight to be seen.
For such a big guy, Tucker is surprisingly limber and agile—I guess that’s what makes him great in front of the net—he wins easily, keeping Vaughn face-down in the Jell-O until our defenseman taps out.
“Let’s hit the showers, dude.” Vaughn wipes some Jell-O out of his face. “You can use the bathroom in Haller’s room if you want.”
“Thanks, but our apartment is just down the hallway. I need out of these clothes too. I’ll be right back. You guys don’t do anything I wouldn’t do while I’m gone, ok?”
I have a feeling that leaves us with all sorts of options. I suspect that behind Tucker’s easy smile hides one hell of a wild streak. Most goalies are crazy. It’s the only explanation for choosing to be the target of hundreds of high-speed pucks for a living.
“This is starting to get fun.” Davis, one of the guys who live in this apartment, rubs his hands together. “Let’s go back in and spin the bottle.”
“Yes. Let’s,” Genevieve bites out, her tone bitter.
I follow her gaze to the inflatable hot tub where Mack is sitting with one woman on either side of him. He has his tongue down one woman’s throat, while the other one is licking her way down his thick neck.
“I’m gonna have to catch those two tomorrow. They’re not from Star Cove; maybe wherever they hail from they’ve never heard of girl code.”
“Whose turn is it to spin the bottle? It would be up to Tucker, but since he’s gone, I can do it.” Haller offers.
“No. I’ve got it.” Gen snaps. “Fiona, spin the bottle for Tucker.”
I don’t know exactly what happened between Mack and his ex, but in addition to being mean, Genevieve Berger is also a control freak. I wouldn’t last five minutes with someone who loves to tell others what to do.
I’m so distracted by my musings that I’m caught off guard when the beer bottle stops pointing at me.
“Nash, the newest addition to the Cove Nights.” Gen’s smile doesn’t promise anything good. “Truth or Dare?”
I don’t like the glint in her eyes.
In theory, if I picked truth, I should be fine. No one knows me well enough to ask anything too personal, right? But on second thought, because they don’t know me well enough, they might ask about my transfer. I’m not ready to talk about what happened in Hemlock Beach. I’d rather take my chances rolling around in the Jell-O.
“Dare,” I say, ready to get this over with.
That’s the moment when Mack comes back into the house, dripping water all over the carpet, with his arms around the two women in barely there bikinis.
For a second, I feel sorry for Gen. If she’s genuinely in love with Mack, seeing him hook up with someone else must be painful.
That pang of compassion, however, fades away when Gen smiles in her ex’s direction and issues her dare. “Nash, I dare you to kiss Taryn.”
It doesn’t take a genius to guess why Gen dared me to kiss Taryn. She’s convinced there’s something going on between her and Mack. I’ve been wondering the same thing too. Not that it would make a difference. I’m here to play hockey; I have to remember that. No drama, no distractions. And that means no women.
I’d be lying if I said, though, that I hate this latest turn of events. I’ve had a low-key crush on Taryn since we took that class together last year.
My life was just too much of a shit show for me to have the spoons to do anything about the attractive nursing major/dancer.
Maybe this is the perfect opportunity to get her out of my system without putting my plans for this year at risk.
A lot of times attraction fizzles out anyway the second you get closer to your crush. One kiss should be enough to know if that’s the case with Taryn too.
I rise from my spot on the couch and set my eyes on her. Her tits look spectacular in a little back dress with a pink and blue floral print and little jeweled buttons closing the front of it from neckline to hem.
When our eyes meet and she blushes, I can barely contain my smile. This night just got one hell of a lot more interesting.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
BUTTONS AND WILDFIRES
TARYN
