Page 26

Tucker

Preston is not only off the team but out of the league. Preston ruined his shot after getting into an on-ice fight with Bex’s ex-boyfriend right before the Frozen Four. The team needs Preston. He’s the glue that holds us together. Our mojo is off without him. Everyone on my line feels it, too.

We got this.

I’m up against the boards, fighting for possession of the puck, when a winger blocks my exit, sandwiching me against the Plexiglas.

But with my puck-handling skills, I don’t need luck.

I’m scrappy enough to create space between me and the player on my right.

Just enough time to tap the puck to Trent.

My brother sets off down the ice with the rest of us trailing behind, his only opposition the defenseman crossing his path. Trent switches from his dominant side, sweeping the puck to his left. As he approaches the net, he takes the shot, and the puck slips past the goaltender.

We did it .

Our team is advancing to the Frozen Four Finals. My heart races, my pulse pounding loudly in my ears from the adrenaline rush coursing through my veins. The goal horn is like a dull hum as it blares through the packed rink. Everything around me becomes one giant blur.

Our teammates rush over to Trent and me, pulling us into a group hug. I knew we could do it. After losing Preston, I wasn’t so sure we could pull this off. But we did. Somehow, we put this setback aside and won as a team.

We smack the gloves of our opponents, and afterward, I look into the crowd for Preston. He’s too busy high-fiving Bex to notice me. But what surprises me the most is seeing Sam sitting on the bench next to Jemma.

What is she doing here?

Part of me hates her.

But all of me loves her.

I’m so conflicted by my feelings for Sam.

I haven’t told my friends because they would kill her for selling information to The Queen.

I want to understand her situation, though.

I know she works hard to make ends meet, but it’s so hard to ignore the facts.

She sold me out for money. It hurts like fucking hell every time I think about what she did to me.

Sam raises her hand and mouths something I can’t make out. She’s beautiful, her skin free of makeup, a bright smile on her face. I’ve missed her so fucking much. The pain of her betrayal keeps me from feeling anything other than anger.

I hold up my gloved hand, torn between my love and hate for her.

Does she deserve a second chance?

I never allowed her to explain the situation to me.

Maybe I should hear her out.

On Monday after class, I wait for Sam’s office hours to open before I stop by to see her. I stand in the entryway and knock on the door.

Startled, she jumps, clutching her chest. “Tucker,” she breathes. “You scared me. I wasn’t expecting anyone for another hour.”

“I know. I checked your calendar online.”

She sinks into the leather chair and nods for me to sit. “I’m glad you’re here.”

I get comfortable in the chair and drop my bag on the floor at my feet. “Thanks for coming this weekend.”

She smiles. “I wouldn’t have missed it for anything in the world. I really am sorry, Tucker.”

“I know.” I sigh. “I’m trying so hard to forgive you. I love you, Sam. I want this to work, but we can’t have any more secrets.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Everything.”

Sam leans forward, folding her hands on the desk. “Where do I start?”

“From the beginning.”

“Okay.” She blows out a puff of air. “The Queen approached me at the beginning of the year. She said she needed information on the men’s ice hockey team and would pay me enough to make it worth my while. And she did. Working for her made my tuition a little more bearable.”

“You could have taken student loans,” I growl.

“I have loans and a partial scholarship, but Strick U tuition is expensive. The Queen offered to pay off the balance at the end of each semester. I still hated you for tossing me aside like a piece of trash. It didn’t matter that it was years later. The old wounds were still there.”

“I want to understand,” I confess. “I want to forgive you, Sam. I get that your life is harder than most. It’s a lot harder than mine.

I won’t pretend that I know what you’re going through or that I get what it’s like to want something and not be able to afford it.

But your reality doesn’t make mine hurt any less. ”

“Don’t feel sorry for me,” she counters. “I don’t want your pity.”

“I don’t pity you. I never did.”

It’s the truth.

“I wish I could take it all back.”

She blinks a few times. Her eyes are glassy under the lights.

“If I could change the past, I would. I didn’t expect to fall in love with you, Tucker. I never knew it could hurt this much to live without someone. I haven’t felt this much pain since my mom died.”

Her voice cracks at the mention of her mom. She never talks much about her parents.

“I want it to stop. I need it to stop. Take away my pain, Tuck. Please. I’m sorry. I love you. Forgive me.”

I jump out of the chair, and she stands, reaching out to touch me. I slip my fingers between hers and pull her into a hug. Her skin is so soft and warm against mine. She smells of citrus body wash, and I drink in her delicious scent.

Sam presses her face to my chest and bawls her eyes out, her sobs shaking through me. I hold her head as she cries, waiting for her to get it all out before wiping the last tear from her cheek.

“I love you, Sam. I don’t want to be without you either. So, how do we fix this? We need to get that bitch out of our lives.”

She shrugs. “I don’t know. She doesn’t use names. I communicate with her in person every month and via e-mail.”

“Okay, give me her e-mail. We can start with that. Maybe Jamie can figure out who she is. He’s been looking for months with no leads. It’s been driving him crazy.”

Sam lifts her cell phone from the desk, flips through her e-mails, and then scribbles the address onto a piece of paper for me. I shove it in my pocket, hoping her e-mail address holds the key to finding her.

“When are you meeting her again?”

She pushes her hands to her hips and sighs. “I’m not. She said, and I quote, ‘my services are no longer needed.’”

“Maybe she knows.”

Sam bites her bottom lip, thinking it over. “Maybe. Most of the information she shared on her blog didn’t come from me. I didn’t tell her about Jemma. She found that out on her own.”

“The pot brownies were all you, though.” I wink at her. “Thanks for that.”

She frowns. “Were they pot brownies? I was guessing.”

I nod. “Yeah. I was so hammered I didn’t even remember eating them.”

“You think Jamie can find her with just an e-mail address?”

“I hope so.”

“Is Jamie like a hacker or something?”

I smirk. “Or something.”

She chuckles, running her fingers down my arm. “I hope he takes her down. Someone has to stop her.”

“You might go down with her,” I admit.

Sam presses her lips together tightly. “I know. But it’s a risk I’m willing to take to get you and your friends some justice.”

I bend down to kiss her, but she places her hands on my chest to push me away. “Not in the office. With the door open.”

I glance at the door. “Meet me at my house after you’re done work. I’m taking you to dinner.”

“Dolce?”

I nod. “I owe you a makeup date.”

She smiles and then steers me toward the door. “I’ll see you later. Now, go before my next appointment shows up.”

I return her smile, disappearing as fast as I came, feeling better about my future with Sam.