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My gaze stays pinned to Carina as she walks out of the room. Unable to help myself, it drops to the rounded curve of her ass.
Damn, she’s got a fine one.
High, tight, and muscular.
Her body is like a fine-honed instrument from years of dance.
It’s a work of art.
There’s an Olympic-sized swimming pool out back and in the summer, she spends a lot of time out there. The sight of her in a teeny tiny bikini is both heaven and hell.
It’s only when my father clears his throat, reluctantly drawing my attention back to him, that I force those thoughts from my brain. One brow lifts as if he knows exactly what kinds of dirty fantasies are rolling around in my head.
Well, hell.
I’m usually careful to keep my true feelings under wraps when it comes to Carina. I brace myself, afraid he’ll broach the topic. I fucking hate the way he looks at me. Like I’m a predator just waiting for the opportunity to take advantage of her.
It’s a relief when he asks instead, “Is the new coach giving you any problems?”
I relax against the antique chair. “Nope. He’s chilled out since the beginning of the season. He was more up Ryder’s ass than anyone else. Kind of felt bad for the guy.”
“I’ve been following the school’s social media feed. Seems like your friend is doing well.”
I nod in agreement. “He is.”
If all goes according to plan, Chicago will pick him up after the season, and his goal of playing in the NHL will become a reality. It would be a dream come true for any of my teammates.
I’m probably the exception to the rule. I’ve always known that my future would take a different path. Dad drilled it into my head from a young age that once I graduated from Western, I’d work full time for his construction company, eventually taking it over.
As soon as school ends each spring, I spend roughly sixty hours a week working for him. Instead of kicking my feet up in the office and learning the business side of things, I’m part of the crew and treated like any other lower tier employee. He doesn’t want anyone to think that I’ve gotten to where I am without earning it from the bottom up. By the time I head back to Western every fall, hockey and classes feel like a well-deserved break.
Dad jumped into the political arena about fifteen years ago, running for a local city council position before being elected to Congress. His partner, Peter Bowman, has taken on more of the lion’s share of the company’s responsibilities. In May, I’ll have to jump in and hit the ground running.
It’s not like I don’t realize how lucky I am to have a path forged for me, but sometimes I wonder what it would’ve been like to have a choice in my future.
For a long time, I was the only heir, and everything rested on my shoulders. Now there’s Carina. Since she’s also a business major, Dad wants her involved in the company as well. I don’t have a problem with that. In fact, if he can convince her to work for him, then at least she’ll be forced to stick around.
With graduation looming on the not-so-distant horizon, it feels like this chapter of my life, one that has been filled with Carina, is slowly coming to an end. When I think about her moving to LA or New York and trying to make a career for herself in dance, a pit the size of Texas takes up residence at the bottom of my gut.
I hate the idea of her being so far away.
Out of my reach.
It’s only a matter of time before someone wins her heart. I’m surprised it hasn’t happened already. Even though I’ve steeled myself for the inevitability, I still run off the guys who aren’t worthy.
Which, in case you’re wondering, is all of them.
Especially that fucking moron, Justin Fischer. He and I had a private convo the other day. Needless to say, he now sees things my way.
“I’m hoping to make it to your next game,” Dad says.
“It’s not a big deal if you can’t.” He spent years schlepping me to the hockey rink five days a week for practice and games up until I could drive myself.
The guy’s schedule is always packed full. He’s self-made and doesn’t know how to slow down and relax. Or even enjoy himself. It’s one of the reasons Pamela pulled the plug on their marriage.
While she seemed to enjoy the finer things he was able to offer, she got fed up with him being a workaholic. She isn’t the kind of woman who likes to be left to her own devices. I can’t blame her for finding someone else, but the way she went about it sucked.
“I’ll let you know if anything changes.” Before I can tell him that he shouldn’t bother, he circles back to the one topic I have zero desire to discuss with him. “Carina seems to be doing well.”
