Page 51 of Breakaway Hearts

When the ref doesn’t call a penalty, Margo and I both shoot to our feet.

“Are you fucking kidding me, ref?” I call, my shout joined by several other Aces fans behind me. “That was a clear violation! Send that dickhead to the penalty box!”

But the ref doesn’t intervene until Theo pivots on the ice, drops his stick, and shoves Kaplan backward before landing a brutal punch against his helmet. Kaplan grabs Theo’s jersey with one hand and shoves his helmet with the other. He slams his elbow into Theo’s ribs, which pulls a groan from everyone present in the crowd, even the Prowlers fans.

The ref blows a warning whistle, which I can barely hear over the shouting crowd and my own deafening yells, and the two end up having to be pulled apart.

And much to the fury of the entire Aces’ bench, along with their fans in the crowd, both Theo and Kaplan are sent to the sin bin.

“You can’t be fucking serious!” I call as Margo films a clip for social media.

The game resumes, and Margo and I both sit down, out of breath and huffing about the unfairness of the call.

“I should go and get some more footage,” she tells me. “You okay here on your own?”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” I say, giving her a little smile before shifting my focus back to the ice. My gaze tracks Reese as he calls out to Noah. He and the rest of the Aces all seem both furious and determined, and I have to admit, it’s a sexy as hell look on him. “I’ll see you soon.”

Margo gets up and scoots past me. I lean forward in my seat, hardly saying a word for the rest of the game. Everything in me is tense, and I let out a groan when the Prowlers score a goal and then another one.

Some hope lights my chest when Noah sends a puck into the back of the Prowlers’ net, but it fades as the third period ticks closer to the end of the game. Before I know it, the final whistle blows, and the crowd erupts at the Prowlers’ home win. The Aces bow their heads in frustrated defeat before shaking their opponents’ hands and skating off the ice toward the locker room.

I sigh and stand with the rest of the crowd. Margo finds me again as I’m leaving, shaking her head as she tucks her camera back into its case.

“Our boys are gonna be pissed,” she says. “Especially Theo.”

I grimace. “Tell me about it.”

Chapter18

Callie

“We’re going to every bar in town to find that asshole,” Theo growls, the look on his face murderous.

The team and a few of their girlfriends stand in the hotel lobby. Reese took my bag upstairs for me, and we’re waiting for him to return so we can determine our post-game consolation plans.

“You want to go out to every bar in LA?” Grant asks slowly. “You need to cool down, man.”

“Cool down?” Theo runs a hand through his dark hair and scoffs, his green eyes flashing. “You saw what happened out there, same as me.”

“I think you nearly punched his lights out on the ice anyway,” Sawyer comments. “It’s best not to start more shit now. It’ll only make you look bad. I think everyone watching knew he was the asshole.”

“Except for the refs,” Theo mumbles. He sighs and drops his head back so he’s staring at the ceiling. “Whatever. You guys are right, I guess.”

“Youguess.” Grant scuffs his shoe against the hotel floor before pointing his thumb at the elevators behind us. “I’m heading to bed. Have fun with whatever you end up doing.”

“Aw, come on, Grant, come with us!” Maxim nudges his shoulder. “Don’t be a grump.”

“Hey, hey.” Sawyer holds up a hand. “Don’t pressure him. It’s alright if he wants some alone time.”

I nod, giving Grant a little smile. After spending an ample amount of time with the guys, it’s become abundantly clear that that man is a perfectionist. Letting two goals get past him tonight couldn’t have felt good.

“Thanks, Sawyer. I’ll see you all in the morning,” Grant grunts, then trudges off without another word. He pushes the up button on the elevator just as Reese steps out. Reese pats Grant on the shoulder, saying a few words that none of us can hear before walking our way.

“All set, Firefly.” He stops next to me and throws his arm around my shoulders, and I can feel heat creeping up my cheeks. I’ve never loved how easily I blush, but I feel like it’s become a much bigger problem since we started fake dating. “Did I miss anything? What are we doing tonight?”

“Undecided,” Sawyer informs him. “But we’ve decided against going to every bar in LA to try to find Kaplan and knock his lights out.”

“Mm, I see, not the best plan.” Reese taps his chin and tugs me closer to him. “There’s a movie theater down the block. I think they’re showing that new Spiderman movie. Wanna go check it out?”

---