Page 160 of Puck Me Secretly

“Would you like something to eat or drink?”

“Maybe some fruit?”

“Take a seat,” I instructed her. I pulled some strawberries out of the fridge and sliced them onto a plate.

“You’re as pretty as Max said you were.”

My knife paused. “He talked about me?”

“All the time.”

That took me off guard. I didn’t even know where to begin this conversation.

Her voice sounded soft. “Do you know where he is?”

I bit my lip. “He’s upset about being fired from the team and getting arrested. He’s not talking right now.”

“He always told me that Vancouver was his last chance to be a hockey player.”

Our eyes met. I placed the plate in front of her and walked around the island to sit next to her.

“You said you wanted to talk?”

She ignored the fruit, and her big eyes searched my face. “I used to live in Minnesota.”

I figured as much.

“I was a waitress at a popular bar that all the hockey players came into. They came in like a pack and whatever they wanted they got. Girls flocked. There was lots of booze. Those guys knew how to party.”

I knew what she was describing. “Go on.”

“As a waitress, I flirted with the players. It was part of the scene. Everyone knows the more you flirt, the more money you make. One night, my shift ended early, and I walked into the back parking lot to get to my car.”

I didn’t want to hear this. I really didn’t.

“He came out of nowhere. He told me I was a tease, and that I wanted it. I fought him off, but he was too big and toostrong.”

I reached out and grabbed her hand.

Tears fell down her cheeks. “When he was done, I threatened to go to the police and he told me that if I told anyone he’d find me and kill me. Then he hit me so hard he knocked me out. He left me lying there, on the pavement, with my skirt up around my waist. When I came to, Max was bending over me.”

Holy shit.

“Max was gentle. I was scared of him, but he talked in such a quiet voice. He asked if he could help and then he carried me to his car and took me to the hospital. The doctors ran tests and confirmed that someone had raped me and they also did a DNA test. I was too frightened to reveal who did that to me.”

“Oh Lolita.”

“I didn’t know Max other than from seeing him in the bar, but he sat with me all night. He didn’t pressure me to tell him who it was. He sat with me. I was a mess. A complete mess. I wanted to run away.”

“What happened?”

“Max happened. I didn’t have enough money to move back home to Idaho, but Max bought me a flight. A week later, a professional moving van delivered all my stuff to my parent’s home.”

“Oh wow.”

“I couldn’t work. I couldn't leave the house, but Max phoned me every night. He felt like my lifeline. That summer, when I found out I was pregnant, he flew to my parent’s place and spent the weekend holding my hand while I cried. And he told me about his mom and his story and it made me realize that this baby is innocent and now I want to be a good mom to my baby,” she rubbed her belly.

Tears clouded my voice. “You’re going to be a great mom.”

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