AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I feel my heart rate pick up as she asks the question. It's not that I'm afraid to answer, but the way she's looking at me--like she's trying to uncover some deep secret--is making me uneasy.
"No girlfriend," I confirm, keeping my tone neutral.
Birdie lets out a low hum, looking down at the notebook she's kept skillfully hidden. "Interesting."
I furrow my brow. "What's interesting?"
She bites her lip again, and I can't help but let my eyes flicker down to her mouth. "Well, for someone who claims to have no personal life, you seem to be awfully...focused," she says. "On the ice and off."
I can feel my cheeks heat up at her insinuation, but I refuse to let her see me flustered. Instead, I grin, leaning back in my seat. "I don't know what you're talking about, Miss Hart. Like I said, I don't have any secrets."
But I might if she keeps up like this. If I end up in bed with Jake's sister, it might just be her fault.
Birdie's eyes twinkle with mischief as she leans forward, her lips curling into a wicked smile. "No secrets, huh? Well, I'll just have to see about that."
I can feel the tension between us building as she continues to stare at me, her gaze never wavering. I'm suddenly hyperaware of the way her body is angled towards mine, the way her hair smells like sugar. It's like the air around us is charged with electricity, and I can't help but feel like something is about to happen.
But then, just as suddenly as it started, the tension dissipates. Birdie leans back in her seat, closing her notebook with a snap. "Well, I think I have enough for my article. Thanks for meeting with me, Johnny."
I blink, feeling a little disoriented. "That's it? You're done?"
Birdie nods, slipping the notebook into her bag. "That's it. It was great meeting with you, Johnny. I'll make sure you get to take a peek at the article before it's published...and you'll be hearing from me again as we approach the season."
"Sounds great," I say, still flustered. "Thanks, Birdie."
As she walks away, I watch her hips sway in her tight jeans, her blonde ponytail bouncing with every step.
I can feel my body react, my mind racing with all the things I'd like to do to her.
But I know better.
She's Jake's sister--and worse than that, she's a fucking journalist. A journalist who's ruined careers, tough as nails and dangerous to someone like me.
I shake my head, trying to clear my thoughts as I finish up my coffee.
But I know that Birdie Hart is going to be a problem.
A very tempting problem.
Chapter three
Birdie
I've lived all over the south: New Orleans, Atlanta, Dallas. I've worked for newspapers and covered football teams, hopping around wherever the stories took me. When Jake asked me if I would move to Fern Hollow to be closer to family, I really wasn't sure.
I've never been the smalltown type, but Fern Hollow is pretty nice if I had to choose a place to settle down.
It feels like everyone is always getting married and having babies, and while it isn't for me, itispretty cute. It's the kind of place where there's a wedding every weekend.
And tonight,Johnny Playfairwill be at that wedding--which is the perfect place for me to get a scoop on him and the Portland Pucks.
I get dressed up in a pink dress I've used to butter up more than a few guys, and I put my hair up in a braided up-do. Next thing I know, I'm off to the races with my brother, his wife, and their kid, riding along in the back seat. Their daughter, Carina, tells me about each and every one of her toys on the drive as Jake's wife Sarah catches up with me on work.
"I can't believe you actually agreed to spend the summer out here," Sarah says. "I mean...I never pictured you in sleepy old Fern Hollow after we met at Jake and I's wedding."
I laugh. "Yeah, well...work takes me all over the place. And if I hadn't come, I wouldn't have been able to hear about all these cool toys, right Carina?"
"I was telling Aunt Bird she looks like my dolls!" Carina shouts at Sarah.
