Page 61 of Ice Princess

Why am I the only one who’s flustered?Whyam I the only one who’s freaking out?

Probably because it meant absolutely nothing to Gunner.

It meant nothing to me too. It’s not like Ihave feelings forGunner. I’m human. Excuse me for being incapable of turning my feelings on and off like a certain hockey robot.

“Do you want to sit on the end?” Gunner asks.

Seriously. He’s barely looked at me since the kiss and that’s the first thing he wants to know.

“Yes,” I mumble.

Don’t think about anything else but the Society seat, Rebel. Do it for the Society seat.

Gunner scoots in first and I take the end. The booth is fairly large, but he’s such a giant that his massive shoulders brush mine.

I inch away, subtly putting space between us.

“Victoria, you go in first,” Carol says, grabbing the other woman by the arm and stuffing her into the booth.

Victoria moves to the middle of the table which is, coincidentally, right beside Gunner. Not that I care. Carol sits beside Gunner’s ex while Mr. Kinsey takes up the other end seat.

A new waitress approaches our table. Her eyes fall on Gunner and stay there. “Whoa, you’re from the Lucky Strikers.”

“Did you guys catch the game?” Sheriff Kinsey asks conversationally.

The waitress nods.

“I was surprised to hear people cheering for my son,” Carol says. “I didn’t know there were Lucky Strikers fans this far out.”

“We don’t have our own hockey team, so we’ve all kind of claimed the Lucky Strikers.” Leaning in, she lowers her voice, “Everyone says they like Chance McLanely because he went pro. But there are a lot of us who like you too, Gunner.” She blushes. “I mean, we like your playing.”

With her cheeks so red and her smile so bashful, it’s hard to believe that’s all she likes about him.

Poor thing.

She’s blinded by a handsome face. Can’t she tell that Gunner Kinsey is a rotten, pain-in-the-butt who kisses women without warning and leaves them totally confused? If that’s the kind of guy she likes, more power to her.

Silence falls on the table as everyone waits for Gunner to say something. We’d probably wait until we’re blue in the face because the man is a steel trap. In fact, his expression hints that he hadn’t heard a word of the waitress’s confession.

Carol jumps in, ever the socialite. “Thank you so much.” Her eyes drop to the server’s name tag. “Ann. Lucky Falls is a really small, humble town. We’re not famous for much.”

“That won’t be the case for long,” Ann says, looking relieved that Carol engaged her. “Whether the Lucky Strikers go pro or not, we’ll support them.”

“What a sweetheart,” Carol coos.

“That’s mighty kind of you, Ann,” Sheriff Kinsey adds.

Gunner nods at the trembling waitress. Though that’s all the thanks she’ll get from him, Ann still beams like he showered her in compliments.

Grinning so hard, her cheeks bunch against her eyes, she says, “Can I start you folks off with some drinks?”

Victoria decides to make herself known then. She leans toward Gunner. “Gun, do you remember that drink we used to like? The one you ordered for me when you drove out to visit me at school?”

I nearly roll my eyes. Who does she think she is trying to bring up the past?

Gunner swings his head to look at her. Since I’m sitting on the outside, I can’t see his expression or Victoria’s. Are they smiling sweetly at each other? Are they having fun reminiscing the past?

I mentally slam my palm on the table.Not on my watch.

---