Page 30 of Zero Pucks Given
“Literally anything else I could be doing would be more important than this,” she whispered back.
“Asshole.”
“Dick,” she hissed at me.
“Can you two at leastpretendto be excited?” Manny said. “Right now you look like you’re on your way to divorce court.”
We snapped photos in front of the car. Mason stood to the side and pouted while Manny gave us instructions. Turn to the side. Lean close together. Put your arm around each other. No, lean incloser.
I breathed in Josie’s scent, luxuriating in the flowery smell. It stirred something inside of me, and it took all of my willpower not to think about my dream.
The final shot was me opening the door for her while she climbed into the SUV, as if I was a gentleman and this wasn’t all scripted. While Manny gave a thumbs-up and climbed into the front passenger seat,Josie immediately dropped her smile.
“You two have fun!” Mason waved from the curb. “Don’t stay out too late!”
“He seems nice,” Josie said as we drove to the game. “He hasn’t allowed fame and fortune to go to his head yet, unlike some other Surge players I know.”
“He’s basically a puppy,” I said, looking out the window. “It’ll be nice when he gets his own place.”
“Wait a minute. He lives with you?”
“We have a mentorship program. For the first year, rookies on the team stay with veterans. It helps build camaraderie and makes them feel like part of the team.”
“That sucks.”
I turned to look at her. “It’s not so bad. It’s only for a few months, and he’s notthatannoying.”
Josie gave me a wicked smile. “I meant that sucks forhim. Getting stuck with you instead of a likable teammate.”
I turned back to the window. “You’re insufferable.”
“Eat my ass,” she shot back.
But even that insult just conjured more images—and feelings—from my dream. Intrusive thoughts pummeled my imagination, so I opened my phone and scrolled through sports news until we reached the stadium.
We parked in the underground garage where the players entered the arena, to avoid too much attention. Manny hopped out first and took more photos while snapping away, capturing the moment as I opened the door for her and took her hand to help her down.
“Such a gentleman,” she said sarcastically.
“Hey, I don’t want to tell you how to act,” Manny said as we went inside. “But can you two at leastpretendto be having a good time together? Bob’s gonna chew me out if we don’t get some convincingshots tonight.”
“I’ll do my best, but no promises,” I replied.
“Same,” Josie said. “I’m sure it’ll make Grayson Aluminum feel right at home. He’s probably used to women faking things around him.”
“You already used that joke once.”
“I wanted to make sure you got the joke,” she said patronizingly. “Because your last name is Steele. And Aluminum is a different kind of metal. A weaker kind.”
“Can you explain it slower? I still don’t get it, since I’m just a stupid hockey player.”
Josie sneered over at me. “Just giving you a taste of what you sounded like at Carlo’s.” She turned to Manny. “Grayson called me pussycat on our first date, then mansplained the nickname to me.”
“You’ve probably heard that joke your whole life,” Manny replied.
“Yes! Exactly! See?” She pointed at him. “This guy gets it.”
“We’ll make it convincing,” I said to change the subject. “Come on,sweetie.We have to put on a show for the fans.”
