Page 55 of Make the Play

I push those memories down so hard they practically crack my ribs. No one needs to know how much I think about that night. No one needs to know how much I wish I could go back to it again and again.

Instead, I lean into the lie, because at least that way I’m in control of it.

“Oh, there was a moment.”

It was fast and messy and unforgettable. So good I still feel it in my bones and have been chasing that feeling ever since.

“Jesus Christ,” Jake mutters. “You’re in deep.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Okay then, real question.” Logan skates closer, dragging his stick behind him.

He stops just in front of me. “Who fell first?”

“Me.”

I don’t mean to say it so quickly, but I don’t even think. It just drops from my mouth like the truth it is.

There’s a pause, a longer one this time. The air stretches tight, like it’s holding its breath. Reid’s eyebrows creep up in slow disbelief, and Ryan makes a weird sound that might be laughter or horror.

Jake just stares at me. “Oh mygod.”

I exhale sharply, already so over this. “Listen, I don’t owe you douchebags the full play-by-play of my love life—”

Logan gasps. “You just saidlove!”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake.”

Reid, who hasn’t said a damn word since I doomed myself, finally exhales. And then he nods, like he’s just figured out the meaning of life.

“Yeah.” His voice is calm. “That tracks.”

I whip toward him. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

He shrugs, entirely too calm. “I mean, if I had to guess who’d be in love first out of the both of you, my money was always on you.”

I point a gloved finger at him. “I’m not in love!”

His mouth opens to reply, but Jake suddenly grabs my arm and turns us away from the guys, his tone shifting. “You know she’s Charlie’s best friend, right?”

“I know.”

“She’s family, man. If you screw this up—”

“I’d never fucking hurt Zoe, you know that.”

The words come out rough, but I mean every single one. Doesn’t matter that it’s fake, doesn’t matter that this is a play for damage control. She’s not going to be collateral.

He stares at me a beat longer, trying to read between the lines and see the truth of it all, then finally nods. “Alright.”

And then, because this team is run by demons, Logan opens his mouth.

“So, when’s the sex tape sequel with Zoe dropping?”

Jake slowly closes his eyes as I freeze. Something cold and instant slams into my chest, knocking the breath out of me. Not embarrassment, not frustration. Something worse, something darker. A sharp, violentno fucking wayresponse that I barely manage to keep from showing on my face.

Because no one—no one—gets to see Zoe naked. Not in a video. Not in their goddamnheads. Not anyone butme.

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