Chapter 11

CHAPTER ELEVEN

RYAN

Dad: Congrats on tonight’s win. Wish I could’ve been there. Hold the line. It won’t be long.

I stare at Dad’s text a moment longer before responding. He means well. He really does. But part of me regrets the choices I’ve made. I should’ve accepted the team’s offer. Blake did with no remorse. I turned it down, bound and determined to take care of Dad. With my mediocre grades, I wonder if caring for him would’ve been sticking with hockey. It was the riskier path, or so I thought.

“Good game. I love what I see.” Some guy in his mid-thirties slaps my back. Guess I get the attention now that Blake skipped out on us.

“Thanks, man. The team’s looking great.”

The waitress brings our round of drinks, and he meanders back to his table. I love this bar. Anyone who’s anyone goes to Barton’s. It’s near campus and caters to students. The place is a legend.

“Here’s to the win!” Easton says as the rest of the crew shouts above the bar sounds.

“To the win!” I echo, lifting my beer with a flourish. The cool condensation from the bottle against my palm feels like a physical reminder of our victory on the ice.

“The goal you scored was epic, dude.” Easton shakes his head in disbelief.

“Yeah, Sorenson. That was some NHL-level stuff right there,” another teammate, Drew, pipes up. I brush off the compliments with a shrug and deflect the attention back to them.

“We all killed it out there tonight,” I insist. “Couldn’t have done it without all of you.”

We clink our glasses and take the celebratory drink, but my smile becomes forced when my phone vibrates on the table and lights up with a new text.

What does the old man want now?

It’s not that I don’t want to talk to him, but the entire situation makes me edgy. He’d freak out if he knew I was spending time with Maddy. We expect a settlement for the lawsuit any day. He doesn’t want anything to jeopardize it. The last thing he wants is for this to go to a jury trial.

I get it.

I don’t want that either.

But I can’t seem to stay away.

She has this pull, this magnetic quality that gets me in the gut every time.

“You okay?” Easton asks, jarring me from my thoughts. His eyes narrow with concern.

“I’m good, just my dad … again.”

“Gotcha.” Easton nods and turns his attention back to the group as they engage in some heated debate about the latest rookie in the NHL.

With a grunt, I pull my phone out and stop breathing. The text isn’t from my dad. It’s from Madison.

Maddy: Why is my best friend going out with the hockey team captain? Did you know about this?

After practice the other day, Blake asked if I’d be okay with him taking Amanda out. I was skeptical. But I knew what he was getting at. He was feeling me out, much like Maddy did the other night. After reassuring him that nothing remotely romantic happened, I warned him about hurting her. Amanda’s a good friend. I’ll always have her back, not that he hurts girls intentionally. Nope. That title goes to me. One was deliberate, and the other was a fallout from my mistake.

I never should’ve taken Madison’s best friend to prom Junior year. It was disastrous, to say the least. It may have been a save-face date to get Madison off my trail, but the betrayal still stung.

And to top it off, I hurt my date in the process.

If I had to do it all over again, I would’ve told Mr. Grimes to go fuck himself, lawsuit be damned.

I shake the memory free and type out a response.

Me: Apparently, he’s taking her to meet the parents. I think it’s harmless.

Maddy: You better be right.

Maddy: Congrats on the win, BTW.

I chuckle. This girl. She’s so cute. She tries to please me even when being bossy.

Me: Thanks. Come out and celebrate. We’re at Barton’s.

My knee bounces as I watch the dots appear and then disappear. Come on, Maddy. Say yes.

“What’s up with you?” Easton’s question draws the guys’ attention.

“Nothing.”

“Yeah, right.” He grunts out a laugh. “You’ve got that face.”

“What face?”

“That face you make when you’re about to do something stupid.”

“You’re an idiot.” I snort into my beer and check the cell. My heart nearly stops when the reply comes through.

Maddy: We can’t be seen together.

Disappointment twists my guts. I should’ve known asking her was pushing it too far.

The bitch of it, though? She’s not wrong. We shouldn’t be seen together—not with our family feuding.

Me: We could go somewhere private.

“Who are you texting?” Drew asks in a knowing voice.

Maddy: Meet me behind the mall on Mayview.

“Just a friend,” I lie, typing a quick response before tucking my phone away. Rapping my knuckles on the tabletop, I push to stand. “I’m out.”

“Friend, my ass.” Drew’s grunt is muffled by his drink.

“Where are you going?” Easton asks.

“None of your business.”

“You’re leaving us for pussy, aren’t you?”

I shake my head at Easton’s crassness. “I’ll never tell.”

It’s not long before I pull up in the old Honda. I about swallowed my tongue.

She’s wearing cut-off jean shorts with her great ass peeking out. Those legs of hers go on for miles. Fuck, she looks hot.

I grip the steering wheel to gain control. I don’t want to drive to the beach with a hard-on the entire time.

But damn. With her tall, thin frame and dark, auburn hair, this woman is a fucking goddess. Why does she have to be untouchable?

Though, I plan on touching her tonight. A lot of it.

She slides into the car, her eyes bright and wide. The scent of her strawberry shampoo fills the air.

“You ready, Berry Girl?”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Why not? It fits.” Between the watermelon drink she wore and her strawberry-smelling hair, I can’t think of anything sweeter.

“It’s stupid. That’s why.”

“You preferred Melon Girl?”

“No! That’s worse.”

“Well, you smell fruity, so Fruity-Tootie?”

“God, no! Just stop.”

“Toots for short, then.”

She rolls her eyes, which causes me to grin. I glance over my shoulder and pull back to the road.

Once we head down the road, I keep my eyes straight ahead. “You didn’t answer the question.”

There’s a slight tease in her tone when she asks, “What question.”

Peering over at her, I’m met with the teasing sparkle of her eyes as the corners of her mouth lift into a seductive smile. “Are you ready, Toots ?”

“Only if you stop calling me that,” she says, but the playful sparkle refuses to leave. That’s my Maddy.

My Maddy?

“The name stays.” I feign sternness but can’t keep my own mouth from grinning. How can I when she’s so fucking radiant under the dim glow of the streetlights? “Answer me.”

She tilts her head, wearing that sexy and confident smirk I extract from her. “I am. The better question is, are you?”

Well, damn. Looks like I’m driving to the beach with a hard-on after all.