Page 64 of False Play
I barked a laugh as I skated to the bench, peeled off one of my gloves then my helmet, and took a seat. The gear felt like it weighed a ton, sweaty hair clung to my forehead and nape of the neck, and I smelled like death, but…fuck. If they’d let me, I would have done another round. “You all love me that way.”
“We don’t,” Owens deadpanned, peeling off his helmet.
“Make sure you all rest, we have a long stretch coming soon, and we need to get our shit together if we want to make things happen this year,” Coach said gruffly.
“If only I weren’t benched,” I murmured.
Coach shot me one of his death glares. “What was that?”
Shit. I meant to say that inside my head.
Before I could answer, Hayes chimed in, “He said you look intimidating when you glare at us. In a hot way. But, like, respectfully.”
This fucking idiot. Knowing Coach Sloane, Hayes was going to pay for that with a few laps.
The rest of the team chuckled. Except for Owens, whorolled his eyes. The grumpy motherfucker had been in a mood for a few days, and we still couldn’t figure out why.
“Go do ten laps for that smart ass response.”
“Worth it,” Hayes mumbled through a giggle, stepping back into the ice.
“Make that twenty,” Coach barked. “The rest of you are dismissed.”
After taking a shower,I stopped by Kennedy’s office to see if she wanted to have lunch. I hadn’t seen her that morning at the apartment, so I guessed she had an early start, but when I knocked on her office door, she wasn’t there, and the door was locked.
“Come in,” Valentina said after I knocked on the door to her office. She looked up and gave me a kind smile. There was always something so peaceful about Valentina. She had the energy and personality to work in marketing. She was a people person, always willing to help and very creative, but she was also extremely nice. Some saytoonice—and yes, this was me quoting Owens. He thought people took advantage of her too often because of her kindness. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”
I rubbed the back of my neck. “I was wondering if you’ve seen Kennedy today. I went by her office, but she wasn’t there.”
“She texted me this morning saying she wasn’t coming in because she’s not feeling well.”
My pulse quickened, and worry settled at the pit of my stomach. I almost bombarded Valentina with a thousand and one questions, but I stopped myself. I didn’t know if Kennedy had told her about ourspecialarrangement, and I didn’t want to be caught in a lie. If I were her real boyfriend,of course, I would have known she was sick and wasn’t going to come in.
I cleared my throat. “Oh, right. I’m such an idiot. She told me this morning, I just forgot.” My laugh was forced and awkward. “Thanks anyway.”
Once I said goodbye and stepped out of her office, I shot Kennedy a quick text.
Me
How come you didn’t tell me you were sick?
Kenny
Why would I tell you?
Me
Kenny, Kenny, Kenny… I’m your boyfriend, remember? When I went by Valentina’s office to find out where you were, I was like a deer caught in headlights when she told me you were sick.
Kenny
Oops. I’m sorry, I’ve been in and out all day.
Me
What’s wrong?
Kenny
