Page 17 of Puck You
Elijah let out a bark of laughter.“I’m sure you keep this one on his toes.”
“If you’ll excuse us for a moment,” I said, taking Grace’s wrist and leading her toward the back corner of the room.
“Are you going to manhandle me every time we meet?”sheasked.
“Are you going to run into me every time we’re within ten feet of each other?What the hell are you doing here?”
“It’s none of your business.I’ll be sure to stay far away from you for the rest of the night.”Grace pulled out of my hold, and the effort caused her to stumble before she regained her balance.
“If you don’t know how to walk in heels, don’t wear them.The next person you fall on might not be as nice as me.”
“Nice?”She barked out a caustic laugh.“You and ‘nice’ don’t belong in the same sentence.‘Asshole’ would be a much better descriptor.”
I bit my tongue.It was all I could do to keep myself from conceding to the overwhelming urge to squabble with her.Why did I so thoroughly enjoy bickering with Grace?Something within me burned with desire every time her cheeks turned pink or her eyes narrowed in my direction.She made the blood in my veins run hot.
“You’re up to something,” I accused, my eyes narrowed in suspicion.“And I’m telling you right now to cut it out.This isn’t the time or place.”
“Again, it’s none of your business why I’m here.Maybe I’m someone’s date.Which reminds me, shouldn’t you get back to your girlfriend?”
The mention of Kate had me searching the room, eyes roaming across the growing throng of attendees.I spotted her with Macy and Bishop, who were whispering to each other like a love-drunk couple.Kate stood beside them with one hand planted on her hip, eyes trained directly on me.
“Stay out of my way,” I said under my breath, not looking away from my girlfriend.I knew if I did, Grace would manageto suck me back into her gravitational pull.“And try not to trip again.Next time, I won’t be there to catch you.”
Chapter 6
Grace
My hands shook as Sebastian disappeared into the crowd, leaving a faint trace of cologne in his wake.The delicious mixture of pine and citrus filled my head with thoughts that were undoubtedly foolish to be having about him.For a few seconds, I seemed to forget where I was and the reason I was here.
Focus on the plan,I reminded myself, eyes surveying the room for my teammate.Pearson’s boyfriend had pulled her away to discuss something with his parents nearly twenty minutes ago.Slowly, I headed toward the other end of the ballroom, searching for a hint of dark purple amongst the many gowns.After another few sweeps of the crowd, I landed on her familiar form.Pearson was already watching me, and, when our eyes connected, she gave me a firm nod.
It was now or never.
There was a long booth to the right of the stage covered in computer monitors and cords.As I approached it, someone clinked their glass with a utensil, effectively hushing all conversations.A guy wearing large headphones and thick glasses looked up from behind the screen of a laptop.I gave him a shy smile and nodded toward the stage.“I know they have a little presentation planned, but I have a few extra slides.I’m the honoree’s niece, and we wanted to surprise him with some special feedback about how much his generous donation has helped the children of this community.”
Glasses guy looked down at his computer, then back up to me.To our right, Coach Dawson was clambering onto the stage with a drink in his hand.
“Do you have the slides with you?”he asked.
I nodded my head and reached into my cleavage to pull out the flash drive, holding eye contact with him the entire time.He gulped slowly as he accepted the small device.
“I’ll let you know when to share it, okay?”
After a few slow blinks he nodded and then dragged his attention back to the screen.The Ravens’ coach cleared his throat and started speaking.
“Hi, everyone.I need a few moments of your time before we get back to the drinking and dancing.First, thank you for attending another Ravens Gala.We’re here to raise money for this incredible team of young men and to honor the man responsible for bringing this program to new heights.As a reminder, please don’t forget to check out the silent auction items at the back of the room.And now, I’d like to give a special thanks to the man of the hour himself, Jerome DuLane.”
The screen behind Coach Dawson lit up with a beautifulshot of DuLane Arena.As he continued to sing praises for DuLane’s donation, the presentation filtered through different photos of the facility.
“Sir, your generous support for this team cannot be understated.DuLane Arena is one of the best hockey facilities in this country, and in the last five years, it’s helped bring some of the best hockey players to this school.”
Dawson droned on for another five minutes, eventually pulling an elderly Mr.DuLane up on the stage to share his own words.My pulse raced as the presentation continued, flashing through photos of the facility, showing off all the resources the men had access to.Finally, after another reminder for people to participate in the silent auction, Dawson wished the group a good night.The moment he stepped off the stage, I swooped in.
My only shot was the element of surprise.
A bright light beamed down on me as I nodded toward the booth, signaling to the AV guy to load my slides.I made my way slowly to the podium and gripped the microphone tightly between my hands.Not everyone was paying attention, so I cleared my throat into the microphone.
“Excuse me.Sorry to interrupt.This will be quick.My name is Grace, and I play for the women’s hockey team at Dallard University.”
