Page 78 of Unforgettable Player

I shrug. “Yeah, I will.”

Coach pauses with a bag of pucks and rubs his stubble. “When you first came here, I was a little worried about you. You didn’t seem happy, and when you told me you were giving up hockey for good, I really worried. That isn’t you. You’re a hockey player. Always have been. Most hockey players don’t make the NHL, but you still might. You seem lighter since you’ve been back.”

“I am.”

Coach nods, a big grin on his face.

The second I see Scout’s car parked on the driveway, my heart rate speeds up. It doesn’t necessarily mean Eli’s with her. He could still be at the library. Still, the buzz in my head gets louder the closer I get to the house.

I hear the laughter floating in from outside when I get to the kitchen. The patio doors are open, Scout’s flip flops are discarded on the floor.

I step outside and see her and Elliot in the water.

Scout looks up, shielding her eyes from the sun.

“Hey,” she says.

I’m waiting for the ‘loser.’ It doesn’t come. “Hey.”

“Wanna get your ass kicked on Dance Mania?”

“What?”

She rolls her eyes before wading over to the side of the pool. I take a few steps closer and crouch down until we’re almost eye level.

“I said, do you want to get your ass kicked on Dance Mania?”

“You going to the arcade?”

“Yes, doofus.”

I boop her nose. She flinches way too late, slapping my hand away.

“Just let me grab a quick shower and get changed out of these clothes.”

She swims back to Eli. I catch his eye and he smiles shyly at me.

Has Scout just been nice to me for no good reason? Fucking invited me somewhere?

I’ve let her beat me on Dance Mania since we were kids. It’s not about dancing—you’re literally stomping on arrows. It’s a hand-eye co-ordination and reflex test. Scout is pretty good at it, but I’ve been putting my reflexes to the test ever since I could stand in skates. I just like seeing her happy. Don’t even mind that she’s a bad winner. This could be an opportunity to bond with her again before we go back to school.

When I step out of the bathroom, wrapped in a towel, Elliot’s coming up the stairs in his shorts, his hair still wet from the pool. We pause. I glance behind him, looking for Scout.

“She’s in the shower in the en-suite,” he explains. Knowing exactly what I was looking for.

I cross the space between us and grab his face, kiss him, feeling relief flood me. All the blood heading south. He kisses me back, hungry, like we’ve been apart for months.

He breaks away first. “Not here.”

His gaze shoots nervously to Scout’s bedroom door where the sound of water can be faintly heard.

I nod, controlling myself. “Do you know why she invited me to the arcade? Does she just wanna humiliate me on Dance Mania?”

He snorts. “Yes and no. I think she feels bad for….” he trails off.

“What?”

“Calling you a loser all the time.”