Page 116 of Play Maker

“So, this is the one?” Kayden said to Jace with a knowing smile.

Jace nodded.

“You told him?” I asked as I took hold of his hand.

“Not the details, but yeah,” Jace replied. “Just before the game Friday.”

“He’s crazy about you,” Kayden added.

“Same goes,” I confirmed and kissed Jace.

“Shit, you guys are hot together,” Kayden announced. “Ouch. Mad. Not the sharp elbow.”

“Really, Kay?” Maddox hissed.

“I’m just saying, you know.” Kayden blushed. “Look at them. It’s a fact.”

Dane nodded. “He’s right.”

That didn’t seem to help Maddox’s mood at all.

“You know I only have eyes for my Bee,” Kayden added as he pulled Maddox into his side, kissing his temple.

“Not in front of everyone,” Maddox grumbled.

But he didn’t pull away from Kayden and the look that passed between them had me reaching for my drink.

An awkward silence fell, and I put a protective arm around Jace.

“About what happened back in January with Coach—” I started.

Maddox’s glare cut me off. “You’ve apologized ten times already. Enough. Let’s move on.”

“But—”

“You can clean my stinky equipment for the rest of the semester if it makes you feel better,” Maddox snarked.

“Bee,” Kayden warned.

“I said,ifit makes him feel better.”

“What my boyfriend is trying to say is, we accept your apology,” Kayden replied. “And we’re really looking forward to getting to know you as a friend, not just a teammate.”

Dane held up his soda and we all did the same.

“I second that.”

The next day, I transferred all but a few hundred dollars back to my parents as they requested.

Oddly enough, I was okay about it. I wouldn’t have guilt about cutting off contact with them after this and if my brother called asking for more money, I’d have nothing to loan him. Or, give him. He’d never paid me back anyway.

Once that was done, I headed into town and visited Boots n’ Burgers. Not to eat, but to ask for a job. Thankfully, Phoenix told me he was always looking for wait staff for the weekend shifts, so I managed to snag a spot, and with the promise of full-time hours when the summer hit. Which worked out great, since I had no intention of going back to Redgewick this summer. Or, as I told my parents, at all.

But I couldn’t afford next year’s tuition fees on minimum wage and tips. I was on the lookout for another gig, even though I wasn’t sure yet what that would look like. Something, anything to get me through to my twenty-first birthday and my trust fund. In the meantime, I sold some of my stuff online; clothing, watches, and expensive shit that I was gifted for show but that I didn’t need. I pocketed five grand in cash. It wasn’t enough, but it would get me through the next few months, until this semester was done.

After that, well, I had to have faith in myself that I’d find a way.

Knowing how Jace struggled growing up, I figured a year of financial hardship was nothing. I was never big on material stuff anyway. Another reason I didn’t fit in at home. Any money I had, I spent on hockey. But, except for the basics, I was putting myself on a strict no-buy policy.

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