Page 34 of Offside for Christmas
"Born and raised in Evergreen Cove," Ellie said, trying not to feel defensive about it. "Left for grad school in Burlington, kind of. This is home, always was."
"Kind of? Wait—you didn't even move there?" Cole pressed. "For grad school?"
"I drove to classes."
"An hour and a half each way," Mac added helpfully, because of course he did.
Heat crept up Ellie's neck. "It was fine."
"That's three hours a day in the car," Cole said, and she couldn't quite read his tone.
"I had audiobooks. And I wanted to stay close to my family." Ellie lifted her chin. "Not everyone needs to run away tofind themselves, Hansen. Some of us already know where we belong."
The words came out sharper than she'd intended, and for a second, silence hung over the group.
Then Cole's lips quirked into something that wasn't quite a smile. "Touché, Winters."
Something crossed his face—not judgment, but something else. Something that looked almost like longing. Like he was trying to imagine what it would feel like to have a place you never wanted to leave.
"Never have I ever had a crush on a teammate," Luke said, clearly trying to move past the awkward moment, grinning wickedly.
Mac drank immediately. "WHAT?"
"Not telling," Mac said smugly.
"MacKenzie, you can't just—"
"Next question!"
Then Jamie leaned forward with a look that promised trouble. "Never have I ever kissed someone at this party."
Silence. No one drank.
"Boring," Mac declared. "Okay, my turn. Never have I everwantedto kiss someone at this party."
Ellie's heart stopped.
Time seemed to slow down as Cole, without hesitation, raised his mug and drank.
And then—because apparently her body had decided to betray her completely—Ellie found herself drinking too.
The room exploded.
"OH MY GOD," Mac shouted, jumping to his feet.
"This is the best party ever," Jamie said, cackling.
"I KNEW IT!" Jamie shrieked, pointing at both of them.
Luke just raised his mug in a silent salute, grinning.
"I need more eggnog," Ellie announced, standing up so fast she nearly tripped over her bell socks. The room tilted slightly—she'd definitely had more to drink than she'd realized. "Lots more eggnog. All the eggnog."
She fled to the kitchen.
She made it approximately thirty seconds alone before Cole followed her.
"Subtle," he said from the doorway.
