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“Then give me a chance.”
Eva pulled her chin free. “I can admit you’re not the evil asshole I thought you were, but there’s no future here.”
Disappointment hit me square in the chest, but I’d expected her to balk. “Agree to disagree. Come on, you’ve had enough water. Let’s have some fun.” I tugged her up from the bench and grabbed the Bluetooth speaker from my bag. “You can tell me about how your cheer competitions are going this year while I stare at your ass.”
She laughed, and the fragile tension broke. “I knew you couldn’t resist.”
“What about you? Come to my games this week and stare at my ass?”
Eva skated out ahead of me as I set up a random playlist, sending me a mischievous smile over her shoulder. “I do like watching you get all sweaty. Can you get me tickets?”
I’d buy a season’s worth of tickets if it meant I could look over and see her cheering by the glass. “I think I can figure something out.”
Carter: That’s what I’m talking about.
Me: You need a hobby.
I’d loveto say we crushed Ridgegate University, but our Friday game came down to a lucky score in the final seconds. Reecepassed to me, and I should have sent the puck to Cole for a better shot, but I saw an opening. If I’d missed, we’d have gone into overtime on a tie, but the puck sailed cleanly past their goalie’s shoulder.
We had a rematch tomorrow, but tonight, we were celebrating in the locker room.
“Party at our house,” Reece shouted over the chaos.
Several of our teammates looked my way for confirmation, and I caved. We had a fire pit in the backyard we barely used, and our new cleaning service was starting tomorrow. They deserved to let loose, but morning skate would suck if half the team was hungover.
“Fine.” The cheers were deafening, but I raised my arms to get them to shut up. “No hard liquor, players and plus ones only. This isn’t a Kappa party.”
I sped through my postgame routine, partly because I wanted to get home before the team, but also because Eva had come to the game. She’d jumped out of her seat when I scored that final goal, and all I wanted to do was find a quiet place to celebrate with her.
Knowing she liked watching me play, I’d shown off a little and taken more chances than normal. Before tonight, I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to play the way Dallas wanted—the way I’d been before my life had imploded. Coach had given me a speculative look, but at least Carter seemed happy with it.
Despite my hopes for a speedy exit, Coach wanted to talk to me before I left. I sent Reece, Cole, and Mase home in my car since Sellers volunteered to wait and give me a ride. A heavy sense of apprehension coiled in my stomach as I approached his office.
“You wanted to see me, Coach?”
He looked up from his desk with a smile, which went a long way toward getting rid of the nerves. “I don’t know what gotinto you tonight, but I’m glad you finally found the Gavin King I recruited three years ago.”
“Thanks?”
Coach laughed. “Feels good to beat Ridgegate. Make sure you’re rested for tomorrow.”
He sent a knowing look past me in the doorway to Sellers chasing Jaden around the locker room with what could only be a dirty sock. Jaden tripped over his own shorts, then howled as Sellers slapped him across the face with his improvised weapon.
“I wish I could take no responsibility for these idiots, but they’re coming to my house.”
Coach waved me off. “Better get moving then. Morning skate waits for no man.”
I gathered the rest of my gear and herded the guys outside. Sellers did me a solid and didn’t stop for milkshakes as he threatened. My street was crowded with cars, but I didn’t see any half-naked people on my lawn. Inside, about a dozen teammates crowded around the living room furniture, at least half of them with girls hanging on them.
“Where’s Eva?” I asked Reece.
He shrugged without pulling his attention away from the leggy redhead in his lap. No help there. Cole sauntered up carrying two beers and offered me one. I shook my head and scanned the crowd again.
Cole took a long swallow and nodded at the stairs. “Henry’s in my room, if you’re worried.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m not worried about the duck. I was looking for Eva.”
“Oh, she’s inherroom.”
