AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Luc lazily dropped the puck. Kassie quickly grabbed the biscuit and zigzagged around him, tossing it right into the back of the net.
“Score!” she yelled, and pumped her fist in the air.
Luc watched her with wide eyes, as if he hadn’t expected her to come out swinging. She didn’t know any other way to play hockey. She certainly wasn’t going to dumb it down and become a giggling girl. She was raised on hockey, and her daddy had raised her right.
“Surprised?” Teasing him would just be a bonus. Kassie had this in the bag, and she knew what her reward was going to be once she won. Her stomach growled at her as if it knew what she was thinking. Patting her stomach, she nodded quickly to herself.
Luc shook his head frantically. “No. I’m not surprised. I don’t want you to get hurt, so I’m taking it easy on you.”
“Sure. Whatever you say.” Kassie grinned. “I’m an O’Conner, remember?”
She enjoyed ribbing him, but her last comment made her question her actions. She was flirting, and that was fine. But she was walking, or skating, a fine line with Luc, considering she was exactly what she was bragging about. That was the white elephant in the room. She was still an O’Conner.
***
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Luc
“I’m an O’Conner, remember?” She smirked and laid one of her gloved hands on her hip. The girl was sexy even in ice hockey gear. Granted, she had on blue jeans and a zip up hooded sweatshirt. But never in his wildest dreams would he have thought a girl would be downright cute in hockey gloves, helmet, and pads. But Kassie was.
Then she had to bring up O’Conner. Yes, she was in fact Kaden’s sister. Luc wasn’t exactly sure how he should or shouldn’t go about this. His internal fight pulled him to honor the code, but then her playful smile pulled him right back in.
When she invited him up last night, he knew right then that he was going to break a lot of rules and ruin friendships. But he also knew she was worth it. Even so, he wasn’t going to rush this. And taking things slow was way out of his wheelhouse.
Kassie was more athletic than he imagined. And that was downright hot. He should be backing off, but instead he went into full Romeo mode. Girls can’t resist my charm. Determined, he flashed her his signature smile.
Figuring she’d be so caught up in his smile, he snuck around her, stealing the puck off her stick and then racing towards the net. Assuming he had plenty of time, he went backhand and took longer than usual to take the shot. He had this in the bag. She might be up one, but that’d change soon.
Out of nowhere, Kassie swooped in with her stick, poking the puck away and making a wide arc around him and towards the blue line. It took Luc a moment to realize what had happened, and by the time he raced after her, she had arced around at center ice and back towards the goal. She controlled the puck with precision and danced around him, making him look like a fool, before putting it in the back of the net.
“Boom!” She celebrated a little less enthusiastically than she had the first time.
Smiling, because it was hard not to around her, he shook his head in defeat. This girl had his number. “Go ahead and celebrate. Don’t be shy, princess.”
With his persuading, she skated back around the net, pumping her fist, and ended her celly with a loud, “BOOM!”
Even celebrating what may just be his defeat, she was adorable. Forgetting all about the code, about Kaden, and everything else that didn’t matter this moment, he tried his best for the next twenty minutes to play like the Renegades player that he was.
Somehow, he managed to get two by her, finally. It wasn’t easy. She was as good on offense as she was defensively.
They were tied, and he had her now. If he could just get the puck off her, he could touch up at center ice and get back to the net before she knew what hit her. Cornering her against the boards, he pressed his body against her back. It only took a second for the situation to go from competitive to hot as hell.
His biggest worry was making sure she didn’t realize how hot he really thought it was. That was a tough order. Downright hard. As long as she didn’t notice that’s exactly what he was.
“Um?” Her voice cut through his thoughts. “Luc?”
“Uh, yeah?” Backing off, he spun away from her, making sure to take the puck with him. His face was hot, and if he didn’t put his mind back on the game, things would go sideways quickly. Speeding up his stride towards the net, he called over his shoulder to her, “Sorry, got tangled up back there!”
Trying to put that awkwardness behind them, he focused on the game. He had her now. A clear path to the goal. Easily sliding the puck to the back of the net, he punched his fist high in the air. “BAM!”
“Nice shot, hockey boy.” She twirled around gracefully in almost a figure skater way. A playful smirk filled her face. “Hate to tell you, but I kinda let you have that one.”
“Yeah right. That was all talent, baby.” Of course it was. Wasn’t it?
“I didn’t even try to stop you. Figured your ego needed it.” She batted her eyes and twirled around in a circle, letting out a little giggle. It wasn’t a laugh, but a giggle, as though she was enjoying seeing him confused.
She had to be messing with him. It was the only explanation. He didn’t know why she was egging him on, but she might not like the kind of rise it got out of him. It certainly wasn’t making him mad, more like the complete opposite. He was used to the cat and mouse game, but he wasn’t used to being the mouse.
