Page 50 of Puck with Karma
“Morning, Laura,” I finally say, pretending like I never heard anything.
“Good morning, Abigail. How are you today?” She sounds so incredibly official when she greets me.
I swallow around the sudden lump in my throat. “I’m doing well.”
She doesn’t say anything else, so I just make myself comfortable at my desk. I take my heavy coat off and put it on the hook I have in my cubicle, then sit down and turn my computer on. While it’s booting up, I grab my cell phone with the intention to save the search on hair salons that Xander found for me.
When I click on the browser, a picture of my brother, Bran, pops up. He is at a basketball game, in the VIP section, drinking something out of a large cup and laughing at whatever someone just told him.
“Scouting the competition?”
I jump so hard, the phone slips out of my hand and falls to the ground. Laura is standing right behind me, looking over my shoulder.
“No, he…” I almost claim him as my brother, but stop myself just in time.
“He’s hot, that’s for sure.” She smiles when she says it, taking me completely by surprise. She almost looks pretty when she’s not scowling at everyone.
“What’s going on with your hair?” she changes the subject. “It looks funny from this side,” she informs me. “Only because I’m looking from up here, but still…”
I touch my head self consciously, wondering how many people are going to notice my missing extension.
“I am trying to get an appointment to get it fixed,” I assure her.
She nods. “Good. Now let’s get to work.”
The next few hours pass in a blur of activity. I feel like I am everywhere all at once, and I worry that I won’t remember anything by the end of the day. Hopefully, no one will quiz me on it.
“Good job,” Laura gives me a rare praise. “If you want a break, now’s a good time. I know you didn’t take a lunch.”
I just smile and shrug. There really hasn't been time for that.
“The other interns are going to watch the team practice.” She pauses. “If you’re interested, you can go.”
“Yes!” It’s like my mom just gave me permission to do something cool.
She nods. “I’ll see you back here when they’re done.”
Without hesitation, I lock my computer, grab my cell phone and rush toward the hallway that leads to the ice rink. The closer I get, the more the temperature drops, and by the time I am actually there, I shiver in the cute blouse I am wearing today.
“You should’ve worn your coat,” one of the other girls already there tells me. “You’ll freeze to death.”
I just smile and take a sit on the bench. I am next to everyone, but it is obvious that they formed a clique of some sort, and I am not in it. I am the only intern working directly with upper management, and I felt an off vibe from the others from that first day in orientation.
With my arms crossed over my chest, I shiver in my seat, looking over the players and trying to pick Xander out of the bunch.
“I can’t believe they split them up like that,” one of the girls next to me comments. “How am I supposed to choose a favorite?”
“I’m with the red team,” another one responds.
Upon closer inspection, it looks like they divided all the players into two teams. One has blue stripes on their practice jerseys, the other red.
“I want to root for red, too,” the first girl says. “But Xander Hamilton is just so hot.” She fans herself. “I just can’t with that man.”
“It’s weird he’s never had a serious girlfriend,” a third person chimes in. “Or boyfriend. Something.”
My heart beats in my chest a hundred miles an hour and my head is ready to explode. When my teeth let out a nervous chatter, they all turn to look at me. And I feel as if they judge me. Like they know that I’ve been sleeping with Xander.
“Told you you’d freeze,” the first one who talked to me when I first showed up here says. I let out a sigh of relief when she turns back to talk to her friends.
