Page 16 of Rush the Edge

A medical pamphlet catches my eye, likely one of River’s, and I stare at it until I know there's enough distance between Daisy and me.

I head toward the elevator after she steps inside, except she presses the button before I even manage to shut her apartment door.

Her cheeky smile is the last thing I see before the elevator closes, leaving me to wait alone in the hallway.

I narrow my gaze.Brat.

* * *

I keep my face smooth and unreadable while Daisy’s lips slowly part at the sight of the hockey arena. She slams my car door shut with a little too much force and glares in my direction, likely wanting me to explain.

I won’t, though.

Leaving her behind me to gape, I head toward the doors with my hockey bag slung over my shoulder. Practice isn’t for another two hours, but I would love nothing more than to feel her wrath after she realizes what her job interview is for.

She can take it or leave it.

It just depends how badly she wants a paycheck, I suppose.

“Why are we here?” she asks as she trails behind me.

Her heels click just as loudly against the pavement as they did in her apartment.

“Well, I’m here for practice,” I say. “You’re here for an interview.”

“An interview at the hockey arena?” The clicking of her heels stops. I’m sure she is conjuring up the types of jobs that she could be interviewing for, but I doubt any of them are correct.

“I am not going to be an ice girl, Kane!”

I chuckle. See? Far from the truth.

“What’s wrong with being an ice girl?” I peer over my shoulder at her and feign innocence. “They clean the ice in between timeouts. You said you still know how to skate.”

Her red lips form a scowl. “That’s not all they do, and you know it.”

“Those are rumors. They don’t fuck the hockey players…” I pause. “Not all of them, anyway.”

“But the inclination is there! I’m not walking into a hockey arena just to be labeled a puck bunny. No thanks. I’ll find a job elsewhere.”

With a huff and so much attitude it could fill the entire parking lot, she turns and attempts to stomp away, but her heel gets stuck in a crack in the pavement. Out of reaction, I reach out and wrap my arm around her waist, pulling her flush against my front.

Fuck.

My chest tightens when she turns her head and fans her sweet breath against my skin. I look into her soft eyes. I always thought she had the most honest eyes. The truth bled through them every time we were alone, but now that I’m older and wiser, I refuse to fall for them again.

Time stops as I continue to gaze down at her face, but I quickly take control of the moment and immediately release her after she steadies in my grip.

She turns with a blank expression and brushes her hands down her outfit.

“The interview isn’t for an ice girl, so quit being a brat and get inside before you’re late.” My voice is harsh, but that’s the only way I can dismiss whatever the hell I just felt with her in my arms.

Daisy doesn’t make a single peep until we’re in the elevator and heading to the conference rooms. A shaky breath leaves her and floats out into the tight space we’re stuck in.

I’m sort of glad the interview is so early.

I don’t know how I’ll explain to the team that she’s off-limits without them assuming she means something more to me than she actually does. With the number of times I’ve fucked with them about their girlfriends or fiancèes by making some lewd comment or implying innuendos, I’m certain at least one of them will turn the tables and do the same to me.

Only, I have no real claim over her.

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