“So, can you get tickets for the rest of your home playoff games? Because that was the best hockey I’ve ever watched in my life, and I’d do just about anything to go to another game.” Lola turns her big blue eyes on Sebastian from the back seat. She wouldn’t be above batting her lashes at him if she wasn’t so sure he was into me.
Something I had thought was ridiculous until tonight.
Sebastian’s gaze flicks my way before looking back at Lola, then refocusing on the road. “Yeah, I think I can manage that. It was great having people there cheering me on. You two would be doing me a favor, really.”
He glances at me again when he says that, and it makes my heart do an entire gymnastics routine. Flips, kicks, and forward rolls. He really wants us there?
“What do you think, Rosebud? Come to another game?”
I tamp down the unhinged little giggle trying to claw its way up my throat and nod. “Yeah, of course. Wouldn’t miss it.”
“Great.” The flashing of passing streetlights, traffic lights, and the too-bright headlights of other cars as they drive by illuminates Sebastian’s smile, and I can’t help staring.
He’s so damn handsome. He always was, but the years have been more than kind to him. They’ve chiseled his jaw, peppered it with stubble so dark it’s almost black, and added inches and at least fifty pounds of muscle. Sebastian is the kind of man women drool over. And it’s not only his looks; it’s his quiet confidence, his attentiveness, and an internal softness that contradicts his powerful exterior.
And he kissedme.
It probably didn’t mean the same thing to him as it meant to me. To me, it was everything. To him, it was probably adrenaline, the high of a win, and the impulse of a moment. I want him to do it again, but it’s far more likely that he pulls me into a room and says something likewe need to talk about what happenedbefore explaining why it was a onetime thing.
Which means I need to rebuild my walls, and fast.
“Here we are,” Sebastian says, more to himself than us, as he pulls into a parking garage. He leads Lola and me over to an elevator, and I try not to focus on his fingers when they skim the small of my back as he ushers me in.
“This is a nice building,” Lola observes as Sebastian hits the button for the top floor. “Do you live in a place like this?”
He shakes his head. “No, I have a house outside of downtown Minneapolis. In the Bde Maka Ska-Isles neighborhood.”
My ears perk up at that, because I’ve been wondering where he lives. Did he settle somewhere with a ton of nightlife or as close to the arena as he could get?
When Lola’s brow furrows, he elaborates. “It’s southwest of downtown. I picked it because of the lake. It’s not the same as living near the ocean, but it’s as close as I’m going to get in the Midwest.”
Of course, he’d miss the ocean. It makes sense that he’d choose somewhere near a body of water.
“So it’s like a huge mansion, right?” Lola waggles her eyebrows at him. “Because you’re a hot-shot goalie and you have more money than you know what to do with?”
He chuckles as the elevator comes to a stop and the door opens. He guides us out and toward Maddox and Isla’s door. “Not a mansion, no. And I think you’re overestimating how much money hockey players make. It’s not like what some football or basketball players pull.”
Lola rolls her eyes. “You’re one of the top-paid goalies in the league, crab boy.”
“I do all right.”
She barks out a laugh at that as Sebastian opens the door for us. He doesn’t knock, simply opens it and ushers us in. I suppose it makes sense. These guys are clearly as close as family. Well, as close as normal families. Not sure mine counts.
“You gonna invite us over one night?”
“Lols,” I hiss, shooting her a death glare before turning to check on Sebastian’s reaction.
He doesn’t look remotely offended, a smile on his face as his teammates call out greetings. “Any time you want.”
Then we’re surrounded by massive men and smiling women. And an adorable teenage boy who I know to be Blair’s—Logan’s girlfriend’s—little brother. It’s chaotic and loud, and none of these guys seem to understand the concept of personal space, but it’s also amazing. It’s obvious how much they all love each other.
“I’m going to say hi to the girls,” Lola says. “You coming?”
I smile at my best friend. “I need a minute.” When she arches one eyebrow at me, I roll my eyes. “I promise I’m not going to bolt. I just need a minute after…everything.”
My head is still spinning from the kiss, and now, watching Sebastian interact with these people who all clearly love him, I can’t stop wishing that I could have had this.
I love Lola. She’s my ride or die. But she has her own life, too, and sometimes mine feels lonely. With my parents gone so much, the breakup with Ryland, and the fact that writing is such a solitary thing, I spend most of my time alone.
