Page 11 of The Fate Factor

I drop my bag on the bench and lace up my skates, watching Trev and Derek do a few laps around the rink to warm up. Greg falls into the seat beside me, stretching his tricep across his chest. “You bring your A game tonight, Bishop? I’m not losing to a goddamn accountant and a high school music teacher again.”

I laugh at the trash talk. Most of us have known each other since we played pee-wee so it’s all in good fun. We’re competitive, but no one is under the illusion that we’re not a handful of years out from being an official old man league.

“If I remember correctly, it was your boneheaded penalty that gave us the power play.”

He pretends to scratch the side of his face with his middle finger. “Kelsey coming to watch?”

I squint at him, surprised Greg even knows about her. Even if he got the details wrong. “It’s Kelly, and no.”

“Because she’s busy or because you didn’t invite her?”

“Both,” I say, snapping my helmet on. “It’s not like that.”

Yesterday I sent Kelly a text to see if she’s planning to show up for the launch tomorrow—a pretty big night for my career—and she has yet to reply.That’swhat it’s like.

“Where’s this coming from?”

“The guys were chatting about you and her the other day at the pool.”

I tilt my head. “You were talking about me at your kids’ swim lessons?”

“I said the new instructor seemed nice and maybe we should slip her your number.”

“Oh, so you were trying to set me up at your kids’ swim lessons. That’s so much less weird.”

Greg shrugs, showing zero remorse for the overstep. When we all hit thirty, they started doing shit like this—dropping random comments about their wives’ friends and how single they were. Asking pointed questions to draw attention to some flaw in whoever I’m casually seeing at the time.

I’m aware that Kelly could be a little more supportive, but she’s a good time and a great distraction—exactly what I’m looking for while I’m building my empire. Basically, it’s hockey on Thursdays and Kelly on Saturdays that keeps me from burning out with the number of hours I’m putting in. But, fuck it, I’m young and healthy. I can work myself to death now and reap the rewards later.

Besides, I tried the wholeLove me forever?thing with Becca, and the answer wasKinda busy sleeping with someone else, thanks. I may not have been the best student in school, but that’s the kind of lesson you learn hard and you learn once.

“Don’t get your hopes up.” I shift on the bench, my stomach suddenly tight. “And send me a picture of the swim instructor.”

Greg slaps me on the shoulder with a chuckle, like he’s giving up. “You never change, Jamie.”

We hit the ice five minutes late because of all the bullshitting, and after a solid hour of play, Derek calls a water break. Chase is breathing heavily as he slumps against the glass and squeezes water through his goalie mask.

“You guys coming tomorrow night?” I ask, panting just as hard.

Greg’s face pulls into a smile. “Course we are. We’re fucking proud of you, bro.”

I accept the compliment even as a little voice reminds me that, though I work damn hard, not all the credit for my success is mine to take. Do I go around telling people that my biggest business break came from a psychic at a party? No. But anyone who knows me knows I’m not exactly a business mastermind, and the name says it all: Fortune. Luck.

Derek slaps me on the back. “Looking forward to it. Hoping it will be a little classier than the parties you used to throw.”

I shake my head because I know where this is going.

Trev leans on his stick, making a face. “You don’t think he’s planning on celebrating this business milestone by drinking a bottle of Fireball and sleeping in his car?”

Derek points his water bottle at Trev. “That’s the after party.”

Maybe it’s theyou never changecomment from Greg, but an age-old insecurity tightens my jaw. We all know I stayed in my dumbass phase a lot longer than these guys, but sometimes I wonder if they’ve even noticed that I’m out of it now. Or trying like hell to be.

I pretend to fix the snap on my helmet. “You three reminisce like a bunch of old men.”

Derek makes a show of stretching his quads. “I take a hundred-fifty milligrams of ginkgo biloba every day to be able to remember all of that shit, so I’m gonna bring it up when the moment calls.”

I laugh. “You can remember it all because you finally stopped getting high every weekend.” He also traded cans of Natty Ice for a vintage wine cellar in his basement and his beater Altima for the latest Audi A6.

---