Page 196 of Playing the Pucking Game
“Yeah,” I muse.
“But there’s no point getting your own room when there is a perfectly good one down the hall with an empty side of the bed.”
“Will you stop?”
“Oh, because you did when I was sneaking around with Casey?” he points out.
“That was different,” I argue.
“Was it?” he asks, staring me dead in the eyes. “She’s someone you think you can’t have. You’re freaking out about what you’re feeling. You don’t think you’re good enough for her.”
“Hey, any woman would be lucky to have me. I’m a catch.”
He smirks, not needing to point out that I completely ignored the rest of his comments.
So what? He might just have a point, but still, Parker and me, and Casey and him are not the same.
Being with Kodie was never going to affect Casey’s job. Sure, they had the added complication of her being Coach’s daughter.
Kodie mutters something under his breath as he disappears into the bathroom.
Flopping onto my bed, I open Instagram and immediately find her account for clues about where she might be.
There’s nothing. She hasn’t posted in weeks. But that doesn’t mean it’s the end of the road because she’s with Brooke, and Brooke posts every second of her life on social media.
I don’t need to type her name in; she’s right there beneath Parker’s in my search history.
It may not be the first time I’ve done this…
I groan as my eyes land on the first image of the three of them from earlier this evening. Brooke and Leah blur into the background. The only woman I see is Parker.
She’s wearing a navy fitted, short dress. Her hair is up, and her makeup is heavier than usual. She looks fucking hot. And she’s out in public right now.
My grip on the screen tightens until I’m sure it’s about to crack as I scroll through the images Brooke posted an hour ago.
Each one hits me harder. But it’s one of Parker laughing with a drink in her hand that really catches me. She looks so happy and carefree. The opposite of how she’s been recently.
I want to give that to her, but when we’re back in LA, it’s like the entire world is pressing down on her shoulders.
“Don’t tell me you’re stalking Parker,” Kodie states as he emerges and falls into bed.
“Okay, I won’t tell you.”
“Is she back yet?”
I glance at the time. It’s not late, but then we’ve all got to be at the arena early tomorrow, so there’s every chance she will be.
“I don’t know.”
“Are you going to find out?”
“I-I—” I want to.
“Just go, Linc. She might need help getting out of her dress.”
Kodie flips over, giving me his back and focusing on his own cell. I don’t need to look to know he’s chatting with Casey.
I ignore his comment and continue scrolling. Most of my feed is full of hockey news, both factual and fake, and I read it all with a grain of salt.
