Page 83 of Pucking Around

I cross my arms under my breasts, leaning against the counter. “So, you think I changed my mind? It took me less than twelve hours to decide living with two hockey bros might not be the best life choice. That’s what you wanna think, right?”

“I don’twantto think that,” he corrects. “I’m just not surprised that you have. It’s a lot for anyone. Jake is a lot. But I’m here to see if you’ll reconsider.”

I raise a brow. “Oh yeah? And what are you gonna offer me, Caleb?”

He takes a deep breath, dropping his hands to his sides. “I’ll bow out.”

There it is. Like clockwork.

Snatching up my glass of wine, I take another sip, saying nothing. Best to give them as much rope as possible when they’re determined to get tangled up in it. And Caleb loves a little bondage. He wants this. I bet he’s getting hard right now, high on his own bullshit martyrdom.

“Look…this is all a lot,” he goes on, rubbing the back of his neck. “Jake doesn’t need the distraction at the start of a new season with a brand-new team. And you certainly don’t need the added complication. I mean, you’ve been on the fence from the beginning. You tried to ghost Jake in Seattle, so I know you have your doubts. I just don’t want to add to them.”

Oh Caleb, you sweet, scared mess.

“Mhmm,” I say, taking another sip. “So…you’ve decided that if I mean to cut and run, best I do it with only Jake to hurt, right?”

“No,” he growls. “I don’t want Jake hurt.”

“Are you sure this is about Jake? Sounds like you’re ending this before it begins to keepyousafe. Sparing yourself the pain of getting left behind. That’s your fear, right?”

“No—I—fuck, this isn’t coming out right,” he mutters, lowering his gaze.

“No, you’re doin’ great,” I deadpan. “Let’s get all this bullshit out on the table now.”

His gaze flashes, his eyes molten. “You think this is funny?”

“Not at all,” I reply. “I also don’t think this is actually about me andmyloyalty issues,” I add. “It’s certainly not about Jake. Look up ‘constancy’ in the dictionary, and you’ll see a picture of Jake Compton giving a thumbs-up.”

He shakes his head, dragging a hand through his messy, dark auburn hair.

“By the way, I already texted him and told him I was on the way over,” I add. “That’s what I was doing when you scared me half to death just now.”

His brow scrunches as he looks at my buzzing phone on the counter. “You did?”

“Yep, Caleb, I did. I had no intention of ghosting either of you today. Work just got in the way. I handled it as quickly as I could, and I was ready to head over. But now that you’re standing in my kitchen, we can have this out here and now.”

His eyes narrow. “Have what out?”

I scoff, setting my wine aside again. “You really expect me to believe you used my key for the first time to come in here and tell me you’re bowing out? You’re not even the teeniest bit curious to see where this might go?”

“It can’t go anywhere. You said so yourself.”

“I said it can’t be public,” I correct. “For a whole mess of reasons, we all need to keep this quiet. But there’s a lot of room to dance in the dark, Caleb. For you especially.”

His frown deepens. “What the hell are you talking about?”

I shrug one shoulder. “Well, you’ve got a chance to see all your dreams come true here.”

His arms tighten over his chest. “I don’t follow.”

“You don’t? Let me spell it out for you then.” I take a step closer. “Your best friend found the love of his life. So, now you’re reeling. You don’t know what to do. Because she’s not some blonde puck bunny named Kelsey who wants to marry him and have his 2.5 babies that she’ll dress in Gucci onesies.”

The corner of his mouth twitches. “She’s not?”

I tug the towel off my head and drop it to the floor. My mess of damp hair falls around my shoulders. “Nope. She’s a Thai-food eating, scrubs-wearing, curses-like-a-sailor hot mess of a doctor. A born and bred rock’n’roller who grew up dropping acid behind the amps at her daddy’s sold-out shows.”

I take another step closer, watching the way he tenses. He’s fighting himself now more than me. He’s got his own monster chained up tight.

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