Page 100 of Well That Happened

I let out a frustrated sigh. “So, you decided to fight them?”

He shrugs, his gaze finally meeting mine, shame evident in his eyes. “I guess I let my temper get the best of me.”

I shake my head, disbelief mingling with disappointment. “You’re a rookie, Finn. You represent this team both on and off the ice. You can’t just go around getting into brawls. You’re lucky it’s me here and not coach Dalton.”

He looks down, his bravado fading. “I know. I messed up.”

I run a hand through my hair, trying to figure out how to salvage this situation. “We’re a team. We support each other. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to bail you out of every mess you create.”

He nods, his shoulders slumping. “I understand.”

I sigh again, my frustration ebbing slightly. “We’ll deal with the fallout tomorrow. Right now, I’m driving you home.”

As we walk towards my truck, Finn is mostly quiet. He’d gotten in trouble early in the season for allegedly making a sex tape with a teammate’s sister and her friend. I didn’t know the details, didn’t know if all the rumors were true. What I did know was that he was almost kicked off the team due to the seriousness of the allegation. Last thing I heard about it was that he had some rich lawyer father who made all the trouble go away. To his credit, Finn has tried to keep his head down and work hard since then.

As we pull up to his dorm building, I turn off the engine and face him.

“Listen, Finn,” I say firmly, “you’ve got potential, but you need to get your shit together. Your actions affect the whole team, not just yourself.”

He nods, his expression more serious now. “I get it, Hunter. I won’t let this happen again.”

I give him a pointed look. “I hope so. We’ve got expectations, and you need to meet them.”

He opens the car door, his gaze meeting mine one last time. “Thanks for not leaving me stranded out there.”

I offer a small nod. “That’s what teammates do.”

When I finally make my way home, the lights in the living room are dim, and Rilee is asleep on the couch.

The sight is both heartwarming and slightly frustrating.

With a sigh, I move to grab a blanket and gently drape it over her. As I do, her eyes flutter open, and she blinks at me in surprise.

“Hunter?” she murmurs, her voice soft and groggy.

I offer her a small smile. “Hey. Sorry I woke you.”

She stretches slightly, her expression confused. “What time is it?”

“Late,” I reply, my gaze meeting hers. “I had to take care of some team stuff.”

She sits up, rubbing her eyes. “Is everything okay?”

I nod, not wanting to burden her with the details. “Yeah, just a rookie who got himself into some trouble.”

“Okay.” Rilee yawns, the sound endearing. “I’m glad you’re back.”

Her words pull at something inside me. Without another word, I turn and head to my room.

It’s been a weird fucking night.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Rilee

“So let me get this straight,” Lexi says, stabbing a sweet potato fry like it insulted her. “You let Graysonpaint your nailsand somehow didn’t immediately crawl into his lap and whisper, ‘Take me now, Stormcloud’?”

I choke on my iced tea.

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