Page 163 of Icing on the Cake

Sarah taps her chin thoughtfully. “Drew’s definitely got the hockey knowledge and the lingo. And he’s always been somewhat of a wild card.”

“True,” I muse, shuddering at Drew’s reputation as a playboy. “But would he risk our friendship like that? And why would he be in love with me?”

Sarah shrugs. “Maybe he’s been hiding his true feelings all this time. Or maybe he’s jealous of your relationship with Elliot.”

I shake my head, unconvinced. “Nah, Drew adores Elliot, if anything. What about Oliver Jacoby? He’s our left winger and probably my best friend on the team.”

“Oliver’s a sweetheart,” Sarah agrees. “And he’s been supportive of you and Elliot. But could that be a cover?”

I frown, trying to picture Oliver secretly pining for me. “I don’t know. He’s never given me any reason to think he’s into me. And we tell each other everything.”

“Maybe that’s just it. He knows everything about you, which means he can write about you intimately.”

I rub my temples, feeling a headache coming on. “Okay, well, what about Kyle Graham? Our goalie.”

“Kyle’s got the brooding artist vibe going on. And he’s always chilling in the background.”

“Could he be observing me?” I wonder aloud. “But why wouldhebe in love with me? We barely talk outside of practice.”

Sarah shrugs. “Maybe that’s why. He admires you from afar, too shy to make a move.”

I lean back and groan, burying my face in my hands. “This is getting us nowhere. Jackson Monroe is the only other person I’ve been close with this semester.”

Sarah’s eyebrows shoot up, as do mine.

“Okay. Hear me out,” I say, leaning forward. “Jackson’s close with Elliot, so he knows plenty about our relationship.”

Sarah nods slowly. “That’s true. And he’s not shy about expressing himself. Remember that poem he wrote for the school newspaper last year?”

I chuckle at the memory. “How could I forget? It was an ode to his abs.”

Sarah smirks. “He’s also the vice president of the Gerard Gunnarson fan club.”

I blink. “He has the writing chops, the access, and the obsession…” I trail off as the realization starts to set in.

“He’d have a pretty good idea of how to write from the perspective of someone who’s infatuated with you,” Sarah adds. “Or maybe it’s not Jackson. It could be the president of the fan club. Whoever that is.”

I let out a long sigh. “The president is someone named Ryan Eddington. I looked it up after I found out about Jackson. I’ve never even met the dude.”

“They’re the two biggest Gunnarson devotees. It makes sense that one of them would be behind this.”

I run a hand through my hair, feeling more stressed than when we started. “Now what? Do I confront Jackson? He’s been nothing but supportive?—”

“—and maybe his support has been a way to get closer to you all along,” Sarah finishes.

I slump in my chair, defeated. “I don’t want to accuse anyone without proof. If I’m wrong…”

“If you’re wrong, you’ll still have an answer,” Sarah says. “But if you do nothing, this will keep eating at you.”

I know she’s right, but the thought of potentially ruining friendships makes me queasy. “Why can’t life just be simple?” I mutter.

“Because then it’d be boring.”

My mind frantically spins with ideas of how I’m going to handle these potential candidates.

The last few months with Elliot, the team, and everything else has been an exercise in embracing change. Meanwhile, the IceQueen’s blog has been a constant background noise in my life—sometimes flattering, sometimes intrusive, but always there.

Could Jackson really be writing those posts? Or Ryan? They’re the most logical suspects now, but logic doesn’t always account for human emotion.