Page 25 of Her Goal
I scrunch up my nose. “He’s made of worm guts, rotten mashed potatoes, and glue.”
“Hmm. Mature. You really know your players. Let’s hear more of these very official-sounding stats,” Heidi teases.
I lean back in the chair and stare at the ceiling. “We went to high school together … and grew up next door to each other.”
She taps the air. “Oh, that’s right. He’s Hunter’s twin, right? I vaguely remember that he was a little odd.”
“We were best friends and?—”
Her cheeks darken. “I didn’t mean?—”
“It’s okay. You’re not wrong about Hunter. But he also made it clear we were to remain in the friend zone and we lost touch.”
“Oh gosh. I’m sorry. Will he be coming to a game? That could be awkward … or by working with Robo, you could try to rekindle things with his brother.”
My blush competes with Heidi’s, but I’m not sure why, because there’s nothing to rekindle. No sparks. Both Roboveitcheks took a blowtorch to my confidence—not that I’d ever admit that to anyone.
Her lips part slightly. “They’re identical twins, right? You could make a play for Hudson instead.”
The heat from my cheeks floods my body. I cover my face. I cannot believe I just shared any of that. I’m officially on overload. I don’t think the walk-in freezer and a gummy bear will help me now.
“Tell me more about the adventures of high school Leah,” she singsongs.
“There’s nothing to tell. I was a dumb, starry-eyed pushover.”
“You only had a crush on Hunter or was it both brothers, you know, given the twin factor?”
I snarl. “Just Hunter. He was my bucket list boyfriend.”
Heidi slaps the table. “Oh, my goodness. I forgot about that. The trend started my junior year so that would’ve been your?—”
“When I was a freshman.” Technically, Heidi’s right, but Hunter was the one who acknowledged my existence while Hudson was a jerk—merely my best friend’s awful brother and the boy next door. Nothing more.
Heidi eyes Hudson across the dining room. “Have you been keeping that flame alive all these years?”
Collecting my cool, I say, “Quite the opposite. I hardly know him. Couldn’t care less.”
Heidi pleads, “Think of it as a service to your team.”
“As far as I’m concerned, that consists of everyone except Hudson.”
“Are you saying that you pretend he doesn’t exist?” She arches an eyebrow as my own words boomerang back.
She gets a non-committal shrug in response. He didn’t until recently. Much. I’ll admit that it was hard to ignore the towel-clad body and muscles on display the other morning.
Excited now, Heidi leans in. “Are you a woman scorned? Is there fury?”
I roll my eyes. “You’ve been reading too many of Gracie’s books.”
“I’m so behind onKisses in the Rain.”
“Me too,” I admit.
“We should call itChat Club with a Side of Snacks and Books.”
“You’re the Knights’ social media manager, surely you can come up with something more catchy than that.”
We both laugh and Emerson joins us, digging into the nachos because the only customers in the restaurant are a few regulars who’d rather be left to their heated hockey debates and a few people at the bar. Billy has them covered. This is our chance to prep for the trickle that’ll start at four and not let up until closing time. But given Emerson’s gamification of our tasks, from what I can see, everything is well in hand at the precise moment I’d rather be busy restocking paper cups and lids.
