Chapter 14

Fraser

"Dammit," I grumble, as we lose control of the puck again.

We"ve squandered a 2-1 lead to be trailing the Philly Panthers 4-2 with only a couple of minutes left in the game.

For whatever reason, we just haven"t been able to get in the zone tonight.

Myself included.

Despite having scored both of our goals, I"ve also missed twice.

Something"s off, and I don"t know what it is.

Evie"s in the stands, having flown out earlier today. Losing always sucks, but knowing she"s here, seeing the team unravel in person, only makes it hit harder.

The guys are tiring.

Where we used to be sharp and confident, now every pass, every play, is hesitant. We"re out of sync, and the opposition is pouncing on every opportunity we hand them.

A swift pass sends the puck gliding toward the offensive blue line where Kingsler, Philly"s star forward, picks it up. Accelerating, he weaves through our defenders like a hot knife through butter.

I curse under my breath.

Kingsler barrels down the ice, crossing into the attacking zone. Culver shifts his weight, preparing to leverage his body in a textbook defensive move. Kingsler fakes out at the last second. Culver tries to pivot but catches on something in the ice, twisting awkwardly as he falls to the ground.

The game comes to a halt.

Officials signal for medical attention as my teammates and I speed over to him.

I reach him first. "You okay, man?"

He grimaces in pain, trying to get up, but can"t.

"Stay down. Stay down. Let them look at you."

The medical team arrives, and the guys and I move out of their way. I keep a close eye on Culver, watching anxiously as he"s assessed by the medics before they help him off the ice.

Turns out he"s strained his knee. It"s not catastrophic, but it"s enough to sideline him for the rest of the game.

Great. Just what we need. Losing our best defenseman. But at least he"s all right, and hopefully it"s nothing too serious.

We end up losing 5-2.

The mood in the locker room after the game is subdued. Frustration and disappointment hang heavy in the air. The usual banter is replaced by reflective silence or hushed conversations about what went wrong.

I get showered and dressed fast, keen to get an update on Culver"s condition.

Before heading out, as always, the last thing I do is kiss Evie"s bracelet three times. I wonder if I should tell her I still have it?

For all the things we"ve talked about these past few months, neither one of us has broached the subject of why I left and what happened all those years ago.

Dawn has scheduled a family meeting to discuss things, which will pave the way for me to finally tell Evie everything.

But there"s something else I want to discuss with Evie tonight.

Something important.

I leave the locker room and hunt down the assistant coach, who tells me Culver has been taken to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

So that"s where I head.

Via a quick stop at the club box.

"Hey," Evie says, rushing over to me the moment she spots me entering the lounge.

I don"t know what sort of greeting I was expecting, but it certainly wasn"t her looping her arms around me and just…holding me.

I breathe in the sweet vanilla scent I"ve grown used to and run my fingers through her silky soft hair.

"That was brutal, but you did great."

My body tenses, and Evie must feel it, because she pulls apart, latches both hands onto my shoulders and gives a firm squeeze. "You did great, Fraser," she repeats with such conviction, I almost believe it.

But I"m in a post-game losing funk, and it"s hard to break through it. The scoreboard doesn"t lie. Not to mention Culver getting injured.

"How"s Culver?" she asks, as if reading my thoughts.

"Don"t know. He"s been taken to the hospital. They"re running some scans on him. I"m sorry, but I need to go see him."

Evie frowns. "Why are you sorry?"

"You flew all this way out here for the game, and I don"t know how long I"ll be, but I"d feel bad if I didn"t?—"

Her soft, sweet lips cut me off.

It takes my brain a second to click into gear, but once it does, my hands find their way to her lower back, and I press her in closer to me.

"You were saying?" she murmurs against my mouth.

"I was speaking?"

I feel the hum of her giggle vibrate through my body.

"If you don"t mind, I"d like to tag along. I want to make sure Culver"s okay, too. Hannah"s going out of her mind."

"I bet she is."

Culver and Hannah are childhood friends. Their families have known each other going back four generations. She must be sick with worry.

"I told her I"d give her an update as soon as I could."

"Let"s go, then."

Twenty-five minutes later, we"re in Culver"s hospital room, waiting for the results of the tests. He"s resting and no longer in pain, so that"s good.

Evie has ordered food and updated Hannah. Her phone dings. "Food"s here," she tells us. "I"ll go get it."

"Want me to come with you?" I ask.

"No, stay." She smiles. "Give you two a chance to talk about how great I am."

"She"s definitely a keeper," Culver says once Evie is out of the room.

"Because she"s broken down the food pyramid into three main food groups—burgers, fries, and pastries?"

Culver smiles. "Nah, man. Because she"s terrific and because of the way you look at her. Reminds me of how my old man looks at Ma. Like she hung the moon in the sky. Except, you have a much goofier face."

"Hey, leave my goofy face alone."

Evie reappears with the food, and the three of us eat as she gives us her very detailed take on what went wrong in the game and what we need to improve on.

Maybe I"ve grown immune to it, but her delivery has improved so much since she was a feisty twelve-year old barking critiques at me whenever I was over at her house, hanging out with Levi. Even back then, she knew the ins and outs of the game like a pro. Guess that"s her dad"s influence rubbing off on her.

"You weren"t lying, man," Culver says with a grin once she"s done. "She"s tough."

I finish chewing my burger. "This is nothing. You should have heard what she was like when she was younger. It"s taken me years of therapy to recover."

Evie throws a fry at me. "Stop it. You"re exaggerating…You are exaggerating, right?"

I laugh. "I am."

Kinda.

"I get it from my dad. You should hear half the stuff that comes out of his mouth."

"I bet," Culver says. "The man is a legend. He"s earned the right to say what he wants to say."

"And as the daughter of a legend, so have I."

"You ever consider playing?" Culver asks, wiping his fingers clean on a napkin.

Evie shakes her head. "No. Those who can, play. Those who can"t, critique. I"m firmly in the second camp."

"True. But it"s a shame to let your insight go to waste. I bet what you told us tonight will be what coach tells us tomorrow. Right, Fraser?"

"Totally. And for what it"s worth, I think she"d make a great coach or assistant or whatever role she chooses to pursue."

"Thanks, guys. But I"m sticking with reporting. For now."

She drops her head after she says that.

Culver gives me a small nod, and I take the cue. "We should let you rest up, buddy."

"Thanks for checking on me. Appreciate it."

"No worries. Let me know if you need anything."

We exchange fist bumps, then Evie and I leave.

"You okay?" I ask, wrapping my arm around her as we head to the elevator bank.

"Yeah. Fine. Sorry. I shouldn"t have mentioned work. It"s depressing, and I didn"t want to bum you guys out even more. It"s been a rough night for both of you."

I press the button. "You can bum me out anytime you want to. Use me as a sounding board during our chat dates, if you want."

She smiles, but the sparkle doesn"t reach her eyes. "Thanks. I appreciate that. I"ve actually come up with an idea for a story."

"Care to share?" I ask as we step into the elevator.

"Not yet. But it"s gonna be big."

"I"m intrigued."

"Good."

"All right. Be vague and mysterious, then."

"I intend to. I will say this, though. It airs in two days, and I strongly recommend you try to catch it live."

"I"ll have to see where I"ll be and what I"ll be doing, but I"ll do my best."

We"re mostly quiet on the ride back to the hotel room.

I"m worried about Evie. I can tell when she"s masking her problems, and she"s masking big time tonight.

I"m concerned for Culver, too.

He"s two years older than me, and while twenty-seven isn"t ancient in normal-people years, the average retirement age for hockey players is between twenty-eight and thirty. An injury at his age could spell the end for his career, which I"m sure is the last thing he wants. Hockey is his life.

And I"m nervous about what I want to bring up with Evie. But it"s a good nervous, if that makes sense?

Spending time with her, whether it"s in person or on our chat dates, is changing me. I"ve taken Dawn"s advice to heart, and I"m opening up to Evie even more. It feels good. A bit strange since I"m not used to being like this, but good.

"What floor are you on?" I ask her once we"re in the hotel lobby.

"Fourteen. You?"

"Sixteen."

We hop into the elevator and ride up without a word.

I"m exhausted. Physically and mentally. Tonight"s been bruising, and I have an early-morning flight to catch tomorrow, headed to Florida for our next game.

When the doors ping open on the fourteenth floor, I step out with her.

She turns to me, clearly surprised. "What are you doing?"

"Escorting you to your room, naturally."

"Right. Because the fourteenth floor of The Four Seasons is renowned for being a place no young lady should walk unescorted."

"Especially at this late hour," I play along.

She rolls her eyes and giggles as we head toward her room.

"This is me," she says once we get to room 1409.

"There"s actually something I wanted to talk to you about."

"Okay," she says, opening the door and gesturing for me to follow her inside.

I turn to face her and take a deep breath. "As you know, you and I have…kissed."

"I"m aware."

"And I just wanted to check in with you to make sure you"re cool with it."

Her eyes narrow. "Are you asking me to rate you on a kiss scale of one to ten where one is accidentally kissing your grandma on the lips and ten is sipping hot chocolate by the fireplace on a cold winter night?"

I chuckle. "That couldn"t be any farther from what I"m asking. And since you"re not taking this seriously, I"m calling in a backup."

I pull out my backup from my pants pocket and hold it up in front of her.

"Ew. What is that?" Evie asks.

"A fry. From the hospital. I snuck it into my pants when you weren"t looking. Yes, it got smooshed, but its outward appearance doesn"t lessen the impact of its presence. I"m summoning the universal fry laws for this conversation."

"You"re summoning universal fry laws because you want to have a serious conversation? Do you hear the contradiction in that sentence?" she teases lightly.

"Don"t mock the fry laws, or you will pay a severe price."

"Okay, serious talk. I"m activating serious-mode now."

I drag a hand through my hair and glance down at the sorry excuse for a fry I"m holding. "Okay. So. I"m not super great at this, but I wanted to make sure you"re okay with the kissing since I"m pretty sure it was never part of the rules."

"Actually, I"ve scoured the How to Fake Date Your Best Friend"s Sister rulebook, and there"s no mention of real kissing."

"But did you check the Guide to Fake Dating Your Brother"s Best Friend companion guide?"

"I did. Nothing in there, either. The only reference I could find that vaguely relates to our situation was something about both parties being willing participants in anything else that may occur while in said fake relationship."

"Uh-huh." My eyes lock on hers. "And are you? A willing participant?"

"I am. Are you?"

"Very much so."

She reaches out and runs her hand down my chest. "I do have a question for you."

"Go ahead."

She looks down. "And I will remind you that you are holding a truth fry, so I expect nothing but complete honesty from you."

"Always."

Her hazel eyes darken. "Before we kissed at my apartment, you said something about waiting so long for this moment. What did you mean by that? Have you been wanting to kiss me for a while?"

"I have."

"How long?"

"Years."

Her eyes widen. "Years?"

I nod, glancing down at the truth fry, then blow out a breath before saying, "Since my senior year."

"When you used to come over?"

I nod again. "I would never have acted on it, then. I was much older."

"You"re still much older," she says with a smile.

I meet her eyes, and despite the inclination I have to stop talking and retreat into my shell, I push ahead. "I wanted to kiss you then. Not right away, just so we"re clear. That was never my intention when I first started coming over. But as we started hanging out, the way I saw you started to change…and the way I liked you started to change, too."

Evie"s soft hands slide over mine, and she takes the fry from me. "I wish you"d kissed me back then, but I totally understand and respect why you didn"t. And even though it"s taken you seven and a half years, I"m glad we"re kissing now."

I smile. "I"m a slow mover."

"Tell me about it."

"I also need you to know something else, Evie."

"What?"

"I would never kiss someone unless it means something. This isn"t a game for me. I"m not trying to make up for something I"ve wanted to do since high school. I have genuine feelings for you."

Her eyes bore into me. "Do you really mean that?"

"I do." My fingers skim down the curve of her arm. "I don"t know where we go from here, but I wanted to let you know how I feel."

Her eyes are darting about, and I can tell she"s processing it. It"s a lot to lay on her, I realize that. More than what she signed up for.

So, I add, "I don"t expect anything from you, and you don"t have to say anything back."

"I"m holding a fry, Fraser. I"m kind of obligated to say something."

I crack a tiny smile. "You really don"t. We can make a one-time exception."

"But I want to," she says, and I pick up on a trace of that unmistakable Evie determination. "I have genuine feelings for you, too."

There have been times in my life when I"ve been lucky enough to live out a long-held dream. Getting drafted into the NHL. Scoring my first game-winning goal in overtime. Being awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy for Rookie of the Year.

In all those moments, I had an almost out-of-body experience. Like I was watching them happen to me rather than them being things I was going through.

But hearing Evie saying those words, words I"ve wanted to hear her say for so long, I"ve never been more in my body.

Every blink.

Every breath.

Every heartbeat.

Every second that passes, I am here.

I"ve never felt more alive.

"I don"t know what we should do next, either." She looks up at me and smiles shyly. "Maybe we just keep going with this whole fake dating thing for a while longer and see where it leads?"

"That makes sense," I agree.

Her smile grows. "A try before you buy arrangement, if you will."

"Oh, is that what you"re doing now? Sampling the goods while you can still return them?"

"You caught me. And here I was, thinking I was being all cool and stealthy about it."

"You"re not being stealthy at all."

We kiss again, and there"s a heady mix of newness and familiarity about it.

I close my eyes, committing to memory every sound, every taste, every smell.

We don"t know what our future holds, so I want to remember these details about her for the rest of my life.

"Fraser. No."

"Awww, come on, Evie. Gimme a clue."

"No."

"First letter?"

"No."

"Rhymes with?"

"Still no and will always be no."

With an exasperated sigh, I flop down onto the hotel bed, drained from last night"s loss, the early flight this morning, worrying about Culver—he"s out for the next game but will hopefully return after that—and squeezing in a gym session after we checked into the hotel here in Tampa.

"Fine. You win," I concede before letting out a silent yawn.

"Sorry. The line broke up. What was that?"

The line did not break up.

"You win," I repeat, only so I can hear the satisfaction in her voice, when she shoots back with, "Has such a nice ring to it, doesn"t it?"

I laugh through my tiredness, then try my luck again. "So what are you doing in LA?"

"Fraser! I know what you"re doing."

"What am I doing?"

"Trying to get me to reveal what my segment tomorrow is about. Nice try, buddy."

"I have no idea what you"re talking about."

"I can hear the smile in your voice."

I bite my lip, but it doesn"t work. I"m grinning from ear to ear.

I"ve spent the last fifteen minutes trying to pry something—anything—out of Evie to get a clue about the subject of her segment.

But yeah, I"ve well and truly lost that fight.

I yawn again, not so silently this time.

"I should let you go," she says.

Normally, I"d fight her on it, but my eyes are already getting heavy. "Okay."

"Rest up. Oh, and Fraser?"

"Yeah?"

"If you can, I strongly recommend you catch my segment live. It"ll be worth it."

"I"ve already scheduled it in my calendar," I reply. "Goodnight, Evie."

""Night, Fraser."