Page 50 of Puck and Prejudice

ChapterTwenty-One

IZZIE

After the odyssey it took to get to the game, all I wanted to do was crawl into my hotel bed and watch TV until I passed out. Hence I declined Jackson’s polite offer to join him and other players at the hotel bar. Jane and Chad had other plans, obviously. I don’t expect Jane to return to our room tonight.

My eyelids are heavy and almost shut when someone knocks on my door. Thinking that perhaps Jane forgot her key and needs to grab something from the room, I get out of bed and open the door without looking through the peephole.

I get sprayed with a slimy substance that gets in my eyes, hair, nose—basically everywhere. “Take that, Lions loser!” the teenage fucker who sprayed me shouts, and then takes off with his friend.

Gone is my tiredness. I’m wide awake now and fucking pissed. “Come back here, you asshole!”

I rush out of the room and chase the guys down the hallway. They’re all wearing Vikings jerseys. The only explanation to why I was targeted is that they might have witnessed my altercation at the arena and are staying at this hotel. Maybe they saw me in the lobby and followed me here.

I’m in shape, but they’re tall with long legs, and they reach the elevator before I can catch up with them. Another accomplice is waiting, holding the elevator door open. They vanish inside, then the door closes. Not that I’d be dumb enough to get into a metal box with three punks. I don’t trust the few karate lessons I took as a kid.

“God dammit! I’m never coming back to this city.” I wipe goo from my face then walk back to my room.

When I try to open the door, it won’t budge. My stomach bottoms out. “No, no, no!”

I can’t believe I locked myself out of my room.

I’m covered in gunk and not wearing any shoes. My phone is inside, and I don’t know Chad’s room number. That’s probably a good thing. I really don’t want to interrupt him and Jane right now. My shoulders slump, and I let out a big exhale of resignation. I have to go down to the lobby and get another key. Joy.

I press the button to call the elevator and, while I wait, I use my PJ top to clean my face. There’s no hope for my hair. Only a shower will do. I’m in the process of wiping my cheeks with the bottom of my shirt when the elevator doors open. Unfortunately, it’s not empty. Promptly, I let go of my shirt and come face to face with Jackson, the only person inside. Ofcoursehe has to be the one to see me in this state.

“What happened to you?” he asks, sounding alarmed and amused at the same time.

“Some teen punks pranked me.”

“What?” His eyes bug out, then he steps halfway out of the elevator and keeps the door from shutting.

“Someone knocked, and this idiot here thought it was Jane and opened without checking first. I got sprayed with…” I gesture at myself. “I don’t even know what this is.”

The corners of his lips twitch upward. “Why are you walking around in your PJs like that though?”

My face becomes as hot as lava. “I ran after the teens and got locked out of my room. I was on my way to the lobby to get a new key.”

“You can’t go downstairs like that. Come on.” He gets into the elevator again and motions for me to follow him. “You can get cleaned up in my room, and then we’ll get you your key.”

I freeze. I’m not sure if it’s smart to go to Jackson’s room. Something changed between us after that night at his ranch. The air seems to crackle with electricity every time he’s near me. I’m attracted to him, there’s no denying it, and since my animosity toward him has decreased considerably, there’s nothing distracting me from these inconvenient feelings.

“Are you coming?” he asks.

“All right.” I walk in and stand in the opposite corner, and stare straight ahead.

I’m tense, but then Jackson says, amused, “I can’t believe you went after the teens who did that to you.”

“What was I supposed to do?”

“I don’t know, but what were you planning to do to them if you caught them?”

“Maybe give them the ass-whopping their parents should have given them when they were younger.”

Jackson laughs. “Were those teens Vikings fans by any chance?”

I glare at him. “Yes. How did you know?”

He shakes his head. “Wild guess.”

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