AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Adalee twists her mouth up and sighs. She has something to say, but she is by far the most cautious of my roommates regarding her words. “Maybe she doesn’t want him to feel forced into hockey.”
Everyone considers her words. “Yeah, but why?”
Harper’s eyes narrow as she walks over to Flynn, who is leaning against the cabinets. “You do not say a word to anyone until Reed and Brooke are ready to tell her dad. Got it?”
“Easy, princess.” Logan slides his hand down her arm. “If Flynn wants to be welcome in this house, he’ll keep his mouth shut.”
Logan’s the biggest of all of us and can be intimidating when he uses a certain tone, and this is one of those times.
Flynn holds up his hands like he’s flustered. “My lips are sealed, but it might help if they don’t kiss outside her apartment.”
“Are you following me?” I ask.
“No, I hooked up with a girl across the street. She has a daughter. Maybe we can have ready-made families together?”
“Fuck off.”
“Why are you upset? Since when can younottake a joke?”
As I reflect on the situation, I find myself compelled to admit, with a slight brush of my lips and closed eyes, that my feelings for her have grown stronger. “Initially, our plan was to date for a few weeks and make sure we’re compatible before involving her son and spending time together as a trio. However, I could hear the panic in her voice when she would have to call in sick to work and miss her classes, so I volunteered to hang out with him.”
Hagan offers a reassuring squeeze on my shoulder. "It's a lot to handle, and if you feel the need to take things slower, she’ll understand."
“It’s not that. I realize how much time she doesn’t have. I thought I was busy, but it doesn’t come close to what she does in a day.”
Adalee boils the water. “Flynn, are you staying for dinner?”
“Can’t. Promised the boys we would go to McShane’s. And I hope the basketball team is there after North Carolina trampled them. I hate those fuckers, thinking they can pluck any girl they want.”
Logan studies him for a moment. “The basketball players come and go, so I don’t know most of them, but Dane and Jazarius are good guys. They visit the children’s hospital anytime we ask. And they’re doing a routine for the Evy Brown Cheer-Off.”
I feel the need to take up for Flynn, not wanting my roommates to think he’s an asshole. “Flynn caught his girlfriend with one of the basketball players, so he’s taking his frustrations out on the whole team.”
“That sucks,” Hagan says. “I’ve been cheated on, and it makes you feel worthless but believe me when I tell you there’s someone perfect for you waiting for you to call her. Or in my case making me beg.” Hagan and Adalee smile at each other before he pecks her cheek.
That lightens up the mood, and Adalee continues to cook.
“Hey man, I’ll walk you out.” Flynn follows me. “I appreciate you keeping this between us. I wanted to tell you that I had found someone who makes me feel like I’m worth something more than a fuck. But when she found out I played hockey, and I found out her dad is our coach, I freaked out. Still freaked out.”
My phone buzzes with a text. I pull it out, and it’s Brooke. He sees my screen says Cookie.
“So, this has been going on for weeks? Cookie was the name of the girl you were texting on the bus.”
“Yeah.”
“Be careful. Is blowing up your shot at an NHL career worth it?”
“I think it is. I need to talk with her.”
He walks backward to his SUV. “See ya in the morning.”
Brooke:Why does Caleb have a stick and puck?
Me:I thought it would be fun for us to play together.
Brooke:You should have asked me.
Me:Sorry, but just to let you know, he’s a natural. In one day, he can already slapshot into the net.
