Page 11 of The Penalty Box

“Andrew.”

He leans closer, his words too quiet for me to understand, but I can see their lips moving as they move closer to each other. The tension between them skyrockets within seconds, but it’s not the only thing.

Dammit, he’s into her.

The sparks that fly between the two along with their tempers are unmistakable. It’s like they’re stuck in their own world where nothing and nobody else exists. Just looking at them makes me uncomfortable.

And then he kisses her. And we’re not talking here about a peck on the lips, but a full-on makeout session. The possessive kind that at the same time makes you uncomfortable and says loud and clear this girl is taken to every single onlooker.

Perfect. Just what I needed.

Looking away, I hope they forget about me because the last thing I want is to piss my teammate off. If I knew he was into her, I’d never…

From the corner of my eye, I can see them break away, and then there is a loudwhackthat makes my eyes pop out of my sockets.

Andrew’s face is turned to the side, his hand rubbing at his cheek. The room is dark, but I bet it’s bright red.

Damn, the girl’s got a nasty hook.

Her face is stone-hard, her lips barely moving, but she must have said something to him before storming off.

“What do you think you’re looking at, Rookie?” Hill barks at me.

I lift my hands in the air in surrender. “Not going there, man.”

No way in hell, not even with a ten-foot pole.

“You better not.” He gives me one last warning stare before he turns around and storms after Jeanette.

I stare behind them, unable to wrap my mind about what just happened.

“What the hell was that?” Mike asks as he slides into one of the barstools on the other side.

Grabbing a glass, I pour myself two fingers of Jack and down it in one go. My heart is still thumping loudly from the interaction I had with Andrew-fucking-Hill.

“I thought he was going to rip my head off,” I say, shaking said head.

“What did you do to piss him off?”

“It wasn’t about me. It was abouther. Jeanette Sanders,” I murmur the words quietly as I look around. The last thing I want is for Andrew to hear me and come back swinging.

“The Ice Queen?” Mike’s brows furrow in confusion.

Andrew is cool and collected. Yes, he can be obnoxious and sometimes, okaymostof the time, he acts like a complete dickhead, but usually, it’s almost like his heart is made of ice and nothing can touch him.

“Yes.” I nod my head in confirmation, still stunned myself.

“Andrew went ballistic over a girl?” The skepticism in his voice is clear. It’s to be expected since Andrew Hill doesn’t give two shits about anybody, and especially not girls. Dude switches them more often than his socks.

“Did you see how he kissed her? If that’s not some possessive shit, I don’t know what is.”

“Crazy shit, man.”

Not wanting to think about it for a second longer, I switch the subject to hockey. We go over some of today’s plays and discuss our future opponents as I hand out a drink every now and then. Most of the people just go for the beer and since the kegs are in the kitchen I don’t have to worry about that.

Sometime in the middle of our discussion, Jack joins us too. He has a shit-eating grin plastered on his face, and I know he got some action not that long ago. Thankfully, I don’t have to listen about his latest conquest because a group of girls comes to get drinks. After I give them their vodka cranberries, I go back to the guys, my eyes scanning the overflowing crowd, realizing I still haven’t seen my best friend.

Where the fuck is she?

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