Page 115 of Wildcat
“You brought me to the WAG box?” I screech at Lindsey.
“He’ll never think to look up here.” She winks. “Now everyone get together so I can snap a few pictures before I go back down to the ice.”
“Evil genius.” Jade laughs.
We hang off to the side while Lindsey takes pictures of the Wildcat’s girlfriends and wives. It isn’t a big group, but within a few minutes, I feel at ease here. No one asks me about Leo, at least not until the game starts.
I pull out my Lohan jersey from my purse. I’ve worn it every game. It feels like bad luck if I don’t. Also, I still want to pretend I’m his girl.
Dakota takes the seat beside me. “Johnny doesn’t know I’m here either. I came up this weekend to surprise him.”
Dakota’s still in college in Arizona. I don’t know how they do it, only seeing each other a couple of times a month, but as we watch the game, she tells me she’s planning on moving here as soon as she’s done with school. The huge rock on her left ring finger sparkles as she claps for him.
“Now, I’ve waited as long as I can stand. Tell me what happened with you and Leo. Maverick is a terrible gossip and said Leo’s been a total grump all week.”
“It’s complicated,” I say.
Jade leans over me. “Some asshole called Scarlett a hooker at an event, Leo hit him, may or may not have been arrested.”
“Go, Leo,” Dakota says.
Jade shakes her head. “Then this one ended things.”
“That isn’t the entire story, but yes, our relationship was turning into one big distraction,” I say. “Hockey is everything to him.”
“I get that.” Dakota gives me a reassuring smile. “There’s a lot of pressure on them.”
The view of the game from here is nice, but I miss my seat behind the bench, where I can see every expression on Leo’s face as he comes on and off the ice. Though maybe it’s for the best because even being in the same space as him, nervous energy bounces through me. I twist my hands in my lap and worry my bottom lip.
The game is fast-paced, and at the end of the first, neither team has scored.
“Doing okay?” Jade asks as she sits back down with fresh drinks.
“This is torture,” I admit.
She rests her head on my shoulder. “Maybe you should talk to him.”
“And say what?”
“I don’t know, I miss you, and I want to be with you.”
I tilt my head and purse my lips.
“What? It’s the truth, isn’t it?”
“Of course it is, but—”
“No buts. If it had been me there that night, I would have gladly gone to jail to hit that dude. And I bet any other guy would have done the same thing if it was their girlfriend.”
Dakota’s listening in and nods emphatically. “She’s right. I mean, I barely know you, and I’d like to take a swing at that asshole.”
“You can’t live your life hoping bad shit won’t happen,” Jade says. “Manifest your dreams.”
I laugh softly.
“Which is why I decided to get engaged.”
My head snaps around, and I stare wide-eyed at my best friend. “What?! Sam proposed?”
