Page 34 of Off The Ice

“Mhm,” his teammate said distractedly, giving me the once-over.

Liam stepped in front of me, slightly blocking me from view, and I wanted to die of mortification. He was probably embarrassed to be seen with me. Now, he was probably going to hear an earful from his teammates about the girl who showed up at practice, and I knew how much Liam liked his privacy. I was sure he wouldn’t be too thrilled to have to explain who I was or what I was doing there.

But he might because he’d probably set the record straight instead of letting his team think I was his girlfriend or something.

Like anyone would believe that,I mentally chastised myself.

“Sorry about interrupting. I’ll leave,” I scrambled to assure him. “But I have something for you, too.”

I pulled the cash from my back pocket, having made a pit stop at the drive-thru ATM. I didn’t want to show up empty-handed while I was interrupting his practice and asking for something.

“What is this?” he asked.

“I know it’s not a ton,” I said sheepishly, holding the wad of $500 toward him. “This won’t even cover half your rent, probably, but I wondered if I could give the rest to you later?”

“Absolutely not.” He shook his head, causing all the color to drain from my face.

Of course not. I should’ve known better. His place was so nice. His rent was probably in the high 2000s for something like that in the city. Of course he would want more than $500 while I was staying there, using his space, his shower, and his food.

“Right.” I nodded quickly. “Sorry. I’ll go get more now and come back—” I mumbled, mentally thinking of how I could come up with the rest of the money fast.

I wasn’t sure I had much more in my checking account, but money put toward a place to sleep at night was the best use I could think of for what little I had.

“I don’t want your money.” He bristled, looking almost offended. “Put it away.”

“What?” I asked, trying to process what he meant. “Should I give it to you later when I have the full amount?”

“Cassie,no,”he said, staring intently. “I don’t want your money, now or ever. I offered you a place to stay, no strings attached. I have the space. It’s no big deal. I would never ask for you topayme to sleep in a spare room I already have.”

“But I—”

“No buts,” he said, grabbing hold of my outstretched hand and guiding it toward my pocket. “Put your money away and get going before you freeze, okay?”

I frowned up at him, feeling caught in a trap. He laughed, taking hold of my shoulders and shaking slightly.

“Stop making that face. You’re okay.” He looked over his shoulder to where the coach was calling for him. “I’ve got to go, but I’ll see you at home, okay?”

I forced out a nod, and he smiled, jogging away from me, leaving me there staring after him. I turned to go, feeling the soft weight of his hoodie and the slight press of the key in my pocket like reminders of just how much I owed him.

But maybe, just maybe, Liam Brynn wasn’t keeping score.

Liam

“Oh, to be Liam Brynn and have beautiful women swarm hockey practice for you.” Ryan placed a dramatic gloved hand on his heart and pretended to swoon as I glided back onto the ice.

Choosing to ignore his words rather than feed into the curiosity that was looking at me from nineteen pairs of eyes, I tried to start practice back up.

“Well?” Hudson asked expectantly, “Are you going to leave us hanging?”

“Yes,” I responded dryly, sending the puck flying toward him.

He caught it with a grin but made no move to start our drills back up.

“It’s okay, guys,” Our goalie called out innocently. “Liam’s just being protective over his new girlfriend.”

A chorus of snickering ‘awwws’ reverberated through the rink.

“Shut up.” I bristled. “It’s not like that.”

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