Page 82 of Lost on Ice

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Stepping out into the hallway, I see a familiar face and freeze.

Oh, shit.

It’s Cassandra. She’s dressed in short shorts and a jersey with my number on it. Her long hair is pulled back into a high ponytail and she’s wearing bright red lipstick. She spots me immediately and smiles, her eyes going big. As she rushes to me, I actually take a step back, physically recoiling from her. “Jake…!” she cries.

“Get the hell away from me,” I hiss, stepping back and throwing my hands up in a stop sign before she can get too close. “You want me to call the cops?”

She stops, but she doesn’t leave. Instead, she sticks her bottom lip out in a pout and crosses her arms.

“Come on, baby,” she purrs. “Don’t be like that…”

“I’m serious, Cassandra,” I snarl. “Get the fuck out of here. You know I have a restraining order against you.”

She rolls her eyes, looking irritated. Jesus Christ, the nerve of her to show up here after everything she did and act like nothing’s wrong!

“Jake, come on…” she tries to plead, but my teammates start walking out of the locker room behind me. “I just want to talk.”

“Holy shit, is that Cassandra?” I hear one of the guys declare in clear disgust. “Don’t we have her on a list or something to keep her away from our games?”

“Stalker alert,” someone else calls out.

“Come on, Jake,” Drew says as he passes by, knocking his shoulder against mine. “Don’t give her the time of day.”

Cassandra looks shocked at the guys’ biting remarks and jabs, but they know what she put me through. Several were there the night she roofied me and saw how strange I was acting when I left with her, and then when I thought she was pregnant, I couldn’t hide my devastation from my teammates.

She’s banned from the stadium in Boston, so it’s shocking that she has the balls to show up here, when we’re at an away game.

“Watch your drinks around that one, guys,” I loudly tell them as I fall into step with the group to head toward the bus. “She’ll try to fuck you over.”

Some of the guys chuckle, but others shoot her cautious looks. Cassandra glares after me as I leave with my team but thankfully doesn’t try to follow. That said, as I walk away, her eyes won’t break their lock with mine, and for a moment, I imagine how Abbie must feel — knowing this insane person iswatching her every moment, unwilling to let go no matter what barriers you put up.

The ride back to the hotel is loud. All the guys are excited and talking over one another—it’s like we’re a bunch of high schoolers.

“Who’s up for drinks?” someone shouts, earning cheers from the rest of the team.

“Yo, there’s a strip club just a few miles from the hotel,” another guy announces. “Let’s party!”

More cheers. I grin and shake my head but don’t join in. Honestly, I don’t have any interest in going out, especially to a strip club.

All I want is to go home to Abbie and Lilah.

Holy shit. When did I start thinking of the apartment as home?

I was missing them before I saw Cassandra, but running into her again has only reinforced how I feel. Especially how I feel about Abbie.

She’s the exact opposite of Cassandra. She’s real, honest, and she values me for more than what I can give her. Cassandra made me feel dirty. Like something to be used and manipulated for her benefit, no matter my thoughts or feelings. It’s a lot like how Mom and Kevin treat me.

Abbie’s not like that, though.

Hell, she stood up to my family and told them to their faces how fucked up the way they treat me is. I’ve never had anyone do that for me before. I was always too ashamed to bring friends around my family growing up—I didn’t want anyone to knowhow shitty they are to me. Abbie didn’t make me feel ashamed. She made me feel seen, really seen. Maybe for the first time in my life.

She’s proven that she cares for me, but a part of me has been holding back. Not committing. Not giving her my all, and that’s not fair to her. I hurt her when I ghosted her, and I regret that. She’s never done anything to make me think she doesn’t care about me. She wears her heart on her sleeve, and I’ve been a fool to keep us at a distance from each other.

I won’t take her for granted again.

Fuck, I miss her. I miss her so bad.

The bus pulls up to the hotel and we all get off to head inside. Most of the guys are planning to go out, but not me. In fact, I don’t really want to stay here at all.