Page 60 of Bad Wolf

“Oh yeah, well,” I sigh and close my eyes, “it kept him close.” I wipe at a stray tear and lift my gaze to his.

“We gonna drink beer, eat late night take out, and watch trash TV?”

He searches my face and nods. “Yeah, that’s exactly what I want to do. I’ll go change into some of Scotty’s sweats.”

“Good idea. I’ll call for delivery.”

He screws up his face as he stands waving his phone at me, “I’ll just do it on the app.”

“Oh yeah, right. Of course. I always forget about that.” He looks at me like I’m an idiot and goes on the hunt for some comfy clothes while I head to the fridge for drinks. As I turn though, I hit a wall of muscle.

Troy squeezes me in a bear hug that I immediately sink into.

“You protected our family,” he whispers into my hair.

I simply nod.

“You did good, kid.”

I pull back and roll my eyes, “I’m two months younger than you.”

“Such a little dweeb.”

“You’re an idiot,” I say, snuggling back in.

“No, I’m your best friend.”

CHAPTERSIXTEEN

KNOX

The text notifications stack up,one on top of the other. None of them are in the group threads, these are just for me.

Troy: Dude, you need to call me back

Coralie: If you’re planning on coming over today, maybe we can find some time to talk. I miss you, Ace

And on and on.

But it’s the one from my mama that makes my gut twist. I should not be overlooking her messages and calls. Still, I clear my screen and continue on my journey.

There’s one person I will never ignore, not even when I’m this mad, and that’s Jack. He wants me to swing by the house after practice, and that’s exactly where I’m driving to now. He called to say he had an epic game to show me, and I told him I’d be there straight after my meeting with my agent, John, who is starting to get a bit twitchy over my recent behavior. Apparently, I’ve missed too many meetings, for one, and two, watching me play is making him feel on edge.

But I think I managed to brush him off. His issue? I was originally pulled up on a two-way contract but had thankfully changed to full-on NHL by the close of the season. With Korhonen’s return, he’s worried about what that means for me.

Obviously, I left out the part where Coach told me in no uncertain terms, that if I didn’t get my shit together, he’d cut me. Instead, I explained how he intended to continue to play with the lines, and that placated John enough.

I assist more when I’m on the ice with Casey and Hollywood, but I score more on the second line, so it doesn’t really matter.

I pull into Gunner and Coralie’s driveway after passing through the gates and when I walk in through the door, I find almost our whole gang and the craziest-looking shit I’ve ever seen.

It’s like I’ve stepped into the past. Jack has definitely been watching reruns of that old TV show, Double Dare because an assortment of skill-based games are set up around the open-plan space.

He’s also wearing a wizard’s hat, waving around a hockey stick.

This kid.

“Knox, finally. Is everything okay?” Jack says with a sigh of relief.

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