Page 43 of Fake Skating

“She doesn’t suck as much as I thought she would,” Kyle said from his spot beside me on the park bench.

“Must be Mick’s genes,” I said in agreement.

“I can hear you, y’know,” Dani yelled from where she was scrambling on the ice, and I fucking loved the attitude. She was giving my friends shit and laughing, looking cute as hell in one of Mick’s old jerseys as she tore around like the scrappy little shit that she was.

“If you can hear me, answer this, Collins,” I yelled. “Why do you keep slamming into the boards?”

Since the game started, she’d be running just fine and then, boom—she’d go full speed into the boards before turning and getting back to it.

“Because I fall down every time I try to switch directions,” she said, running and holding out her stick like it was a baton and she was in a relay race. “I think it must be my shoes. So it’s easier to just slam into the wall.”

“Did Mick teach you that?” Kyle asked, laughing.

“No, but I guarantee he’d appreciate it. He’s a ‘do whatever it takes’ kind of guy, and I would rather body-slam the wall than keep falling down.”

“I actually respect that,” Richie said.

“So do I,” agreed Kyle.

“Yeah, because I’m sure that’s her goal,” Cassie said as she smacked the puck. “To gain your respect.”

“I think everyone who isn’t playing should just shut up,” Dani said, panting a little as she straightened and leveled a glare in our direction.

“Oooh,” Richie said, giving me a grin.

Dani had, for some reason, thought that we were going to be playing.

But it was hockey season—no way would we fuck around on the ice when the tournament was in play. Even if we were stupid enough to want to, Coach would kill us.

Her team got their asses kicked, of course.

But I was impressed.

Dani went hard, even if she didn’t go pretty.

When she came off the ice, she was whining to Cassie about how sore her thighs were, holding one of Mick’s sticks (which we’d all freaked out about when she showed up).

“Do you want me to carry you?” I asked.

Her gaze shot to mine, the tiny furrow between her brows letting me know I’d surprised her. She covered it by saying, “I’m still mad at you.”

“You can’t still be mad,” I said, distracted by the way her brown eyes looked when she teased me. “It was a misunderstanding. I never told you we’d be playing.”

“It was implied.”

“Was not,” I said.

“Fine, you can carry me because my thighs are burning,” she replied, smiling in the relaxed way that was becoming more frequent, like she was finally feeling comfortable here. “But I reserve the right to still be pissed at you.”

“Good girl.” I turned and pointed my ass in her direction. “Get on.”

“Wait, no—your shoulder,” she said quickly, stopping herself. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

Fuck, fuck, fuck. I straightened and turned around to see not only Dani looking at me with worry on her face, but the guys, too.

“What’s wrong with your shoulder?” Kyle asked.

“Zeus?” Richie looked over at me with raised eyebrows, waiting.

“He hurt it in a game,” Dani explained, “and it’s—”

“Fine,” I said, cutting her off and smiling. “It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not,” she said, looking at me like I’d lost my mind. “It’s killing him—”

“Honey,” I interrupted, very aware of the way the guys were looking at me, “I might’ve been a little dramatic about the shoulder.”

Her eyes narrowed. “What?”

I could tell she wasn’t buying it but couldn’t figure out why I was being dishonest.

“You were being such a good nurse,” I said, hoping she wouldn’t be pissed at my lie. “I maybe leaned into it a bit.”

Richie started laughing, and I just shot her a look and said, “Get on.”

“Okay,” she said, handing me her stick while eyeing me suspiciously. “But we’re going to talk about this later.”

And she jumped onto my back.

“Must we?” I asked, which made Richie laugh even harder.

“We must,” she said into my ear, and I swear to God she touched my earlobe with her lips on purpose, sending a shiver down my spine.

“Devil woman,” I said under my breath as I grabbed her legs, which made her giggle.

“Why are you keeping your shoulder injury a secret from your friends?” she asked as I carried her toward my car.

Don’t focus on the feel of her breath on your neck.

I tried, but it was impossible.

“I’m not,” I lied, trying to sound casual. “It’s just not that big of a deal.”

She lowered her voice. “You absolutely were keeping it a secret. You lied like it’s not even an injury. Why can’t you tell them?”

Her lips are too close to my neck.

“It’s not that I can’t tell them; it’s—”

“So it’s fine if I talk about the way you can’t lift your arm over—”

“Please let this go,” I begged, glancing at her over my shoulder, glad the group had spread out during the trek to the parking lot. “Please?”

“Alec.” Her eyes moved over my face. “ Of course I’ll keep your secret. But, like, you really can’t tell me?”

She said it like it hurt her feelings, and it reminded me so much of the old her that I lost my damn mind. I set her on the trunk of my car and told her the honest-to-God truth.

“I don’t want anyone to know about it, okay?” I said quietly, reaching out a hand to adjust her (my) hat. “It’s getting better—I can tell—but if scouts or recruiters think I’m busted up, it could affect fucking everything.”

She blinked fast, kind of staring up at me like she was weighing my words.

“Everything,” I repeated, desperate for her to understand.

“Well, then,” she said quietly, “we’re going to have to get some more patches on the way home, aren’t we?”

I wanted to hug her, but I restrained myself.

“Fuckin’ A right we are.”

“No way.”

Richie looked down at my phone and started laughing as we walked around to the back of Bryce’s house. His dad was ice fishing at Mille Lacs, so he was having a few people over. “I didn’t know Mick knew how to smile.”

The picture of Dani and Mick was so fucking funny that I couldn’t stop looking at it and showing it to everyone I knew, even a day later. Dani looked cute as hell, laughing in her fuzzy hat and long braids, and it felt like the perfect shot of the Dani I used to know.

“Normally I’d agree,” I said around a laugh, “but he’s different around her.”

We went in the back door and straight to the basement, because that was the only place we hung out when Bryce’s parents were gone.

And holy shit—the party was in full swing already, looking like a fucking casino with all the card games going on down there.

King’s Cup at the table by the laundry room, Fuck the Dealer (my favorite) at Bryce’s dad’s bar, and some variation of beer pong on the Ping-Pong table.

Everyone not engaged in a game was standing around, talking and watching the Minnesota Wild on TV. “Sleep When We’re Dead” was booming out of a speaker somewhere.

Richie grabbed beers for everyone but me, and I’d just taken a sip of my water when Kyle said, “Oh, it looks like Dani’s already here.”

“What?”

“Over there, with Lillie and Cassie.”

If we were in a movie, I would’ve done a spit take when I turned around. I followed his gaze over to the corner, and sure enough, there was my Dani, smiling at something Lillie was saying while holding a red cup.

And she looked fucking hot that night.

Her long hair was down, her lips were red, and she was wearing a crop top under her flannel shirt that exposed a few inches of bare skin between the bottom of her shirt and the top of her jeans, bare skin that my eyes didn’t want to look away from.

There was nothing wild about her clothes and she was barely wearing makeup, but to me, she looked insanely gorgeous.

Because Dani seemed to be coming alive, more and more every day.

She laughed as Lillie spoke, and the sound of her laughter made my fingers flex.

This hybrid version of Dani Collins—part who she used to be and part something new—was someone I wanted , God help me,someone I suddenly felt panicked for, like I needed to get to her immediately before someone else beat me to it.

I didn’t even realize I was walking in her direction until her eyes met mine, like I’d made it impossible for her not to see me because I was suddenly there , in front of her.

“Al!” she yelled, grinning at me and launching herself into my arms.

I wrapped my arms around her waist and said into her ear, “Are you drunk, Collins?”

She pulled back and gave me a flirty grin. “Just because I’m happy to see you doesn’t mean I’m drunk.”

“It usually does for me,” Richie said.

Richie, who I’d forgotten even existed.

“But I’m assuming you’ve never kissed him,” she said, smiling at my friend like she meant it as she pulled out of the hug. “That’s what bumps him from whatever to I am so happy to see you status.”

Wow, she was turning it all the way up.

My girl was definitely buzzed.

“Gross,” Richie said, but I could tell by the way he was looking at her that he was surprised she was being so outgoing. “I’ll just take your word for that.”

“By the way, I meant to tell you after the last game, Richie,” she said. “Great job. I saw you smacking that stick around lots of times, so… y’know… go, hockey.”

He shook his head, but he was laughing when he said, “I swear to God there must’ve been a mix-up in the hospital. Mick Fucking Boche’s offspring would never.”

“But she does… and she just did,” Dani said with a smirk. “And, oh yeah—nice apple.”

“What?” he said, looking at her like she was nuts.

“You had an assist,” she said. “Which in hockey is sometimes referred to as an apple.”

“Oh, we’ve got a hockey expert right here,” Richie said, fully laughing with her now.

“That’s right, Richard ,” she teased, and something in my chest was warm as she messed with my best friends. I felt happy or proud or just relieved that she was finally being herself around them.

“Although you didn’t exactly look like an expert at the park today,” Vinny said as he joined the group. “How sore are you? Crashing into the boards so many times had to sting. You pretty bruised, Boche?”