Page 100 of Off The Ice

I saw the eyes on her. The hunger in men’s gazes as they stared her up and down, and while it pissed me the hell off, I had the satisfaction of them knowing she was with me.

Mine.

My eyes said exactly that every time I caught them looking our way.

Yeah, I thought with satisfaction each time some creep averted his gaze,turn your fucking head in the other direction. She’s not for you.

She wasn’t for me either, but no one had to know that.

I don’t think she noticed, but I was touching her a lot. In whatever small, inconsequential way I could manage without sending her off any red flags. She’d agreed to pretend to be my girlfriend for a night, not to have my hands all over her body in front of a few hundred people.

So, with every ounce of self-restraint in my body, I kept it casual: a hand on her arm, an intentional brush of our shoulders. Every once in a while, I even dared to brush my hand against hers. Each brief moment of contact was like a jolt of electricity running through me, and I wondered if this was how other people felt, if this was the feeling that made people risk breaking their hearts over.

I hadn’t felt it before, not to this extent, and I doubted I ever would again.

Cassie looked lost in thought when I looked over at her.

“What?” I asked, desperate to hear whatever thoughts were spinning around in her head.

“You’re not drinking,” Cassie noticed, staring down at the untouched drink in front of me. Apparently, she was just as aware of me as I’d been of her.

“Don’t need to.” I shrugged. “I’m having enough fun with you without it.”

She smiled at that softly, as if she were trying not to.

I laughed, “What’s that smile for?”

“Nothing.” She shook her head. “I just like that.”

She was so easy to please. I couldn’t understand how Dave had screwed it up with her so badly when the things that made her happy were easier to give her than breathing.

“What the hell, Brynn?” One of my teammates’ voices sounded. “You bring a beautiful woman around and don’t bother to introduce her to us?”

I turned to see three of the guys standing there expectantly, all dressed in fitted suits. A drastic change from how I usually saw them in their hockey gear.

“This is Cassie,” I answered curtly, watching out of the corner of my eye as she waved at them.

“My best friend!” Maggie raised her hand as she sipped her champagne.

Cassie, I noticed, sipped on water, a glass of champagne untouched in front of her.

“And you are?” Shane West asked.

“My date!” Brody beamed proudly, draping an arm around her chair.

Weird to see.

“Also, my sister,” I added to ensure they didn’t have any intention of making comments about her after they walked away.

Guys’ dates were usually up for discussion, but they faithfully steered clear of any talk about sisters.

All of them except Brody. But his hard work and delusions had paid off because now my sister was sitting beside him, staring at him with a smile she granted to few.

“Well, we just wanted to come over here and thank you for clearing up the competition.” Ryan Dawson smiled cheekily.

“What?” I asked.

“Apparently, you’re off the market now.” He winked at Cassie, causing me to stiffen. “For the auction at least, right?”

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