Page 38

KAYDEN

I got news so good I nearly pissed my pants when I heard it.

I was contacted by a scout from an NHL team.

Like, the National Hockey League. A guy named Leon Purvis who once played for the Leafs himself.

Anyway, Leon said he’d been watching the Larkin Lions ever since the team really caught fire early in the season.

Said he’d really admired our ability to keep up the heat.

Leon said he’d never seen a young player with my grit and determination.

He said I have what it takes to make it big, and he didn’t want to see my talent wasted.

I’m sorry, I don’t mean to act like the arrogant prick Erik De Ruiter has made me out to be, but I can’t help my excitement.

Anyway, this Leon Purvis dude said I would be a great fit for the Toronto Maple Leafs but couldn’t commit to anything yet, though I was “on the radar.” I would have to keep up the exceptional performance—his words, not mine—and the final decision would come down to team executives on draft day.

He then said between him and me that he thought my chances of getting drafted were excellent. Even the idea of the NHL taking notice infused a new energy into me, and I could barely sit or hold a thought in my head. For a moment, I even forgot about the shit going on between Erik and me.

I sure hadn’t anticipated my boyfriend’s reaction, though.

“You’re serious?” he asked.

The total lack of enthusiasm and spirit in his voice told me loud and clear he didn’t really mean that. “You know how these things work,” I said. “A scout wouldn’t be coming to me about this directly unless I had a serious chance.”

“Don’t get your hopes up, dude. You could be in for a serious letdown.”

“Come on, I’m not getting ahead of myself. I know it’s not ironclad. And sure, I would start at the bottom of the minors, but I can work my way up to the big leagues in no time. They’ve seen how I’ve turned the Larkin Lions around.”

“How we turned the Larkin Lions around.”

“You know what I mean, bro. How I turned the Larkin Lions around.”

His eyes fell shut and he shook his head a little like I was impossible. Nothing I said would please him.

“All I’m saying is that I’ve made a huge contribution to this hockey team. It’s being noticed. Aren’t you happy to hear that?”

“What team is interested in you?”

“The Toronto Maple Leafs.”

“Oh really? The Leafs?”

“Yeah, what’s wrong with that?”

“Oh, I don’t know. You’ve looked down on Canada and Canadian teams and Canadian everything so much that I wouldn’t have thought you’d be caught dead playing for a team north of the border.”

“You know I’m mostly kidding about that stuff, right?”

“Mostly kidding, eh?”

“That’s right. The Leafs wouldn’t have been my first choice, but I can’t knock it.”

“Sure, you can. Your first choice was to play for the Buffalo Sabres, and you acted like no other team would do.”

“Well, yeah, but?—”

“That was part of the plan you had completely mapped out for yourself, wasn’t it?”

“Yes, but?—”

“Along with the minimum of six Stanley Cup rings, a mansion with a sports car in every garage, three sons, and a busty, blonde wife.”

I’m telling you Erik was practically incapable of having a conversation without bringing up certain things.

I also realized that he hadn’t answered my question.

I’d asked if he was happy for me, and he’d avoided and went on a rant instead of swallowing his pride like he was supposed to.

Maybe he hadn’t done that on purpose, but it didn’t matter.

I would’ve thought he would be at least half as excited as I was.

“Okay, I get what you’re saying,” I said. “That was my plan at the beginning of the year. I needed to dream big, have a huge goal to work towards. But things change. You know that.”

He nodded because he knew damn well our friendship was living proof of that.

“When things change, you’ve got to amend your plan,” I said. “The NHL is still my main goal and always has been. And who’s to say that I won’t get a chance to play for the Sabres?”

“Like, if another scout comes knocking?”

“Right.”

Look, I’d already heard from one scout, and things looked pretty damn promising. The idea that another team could come along didn’t sound so delusional.

So, what was Erik’s problem?

“It could happen, couldn’t it?” I asked.

“I’m sort of amazed that one has already talked to you. I haven’t heard of any of the other guys being contacted yet.”

“But they might. You never know. The Lions could be in big demand.”

I wanted to think that I was special, that I’d been the only one contacted for a very good reason—I was the best, period. I would become hockey royalty soon enough. This was my destiny, and the proof was beginning to materialize. But I couldn’t tell my boyfriend that. It would only cause trouble.

“What ever happened to focus?” he asked.

“Huh?”

“Come on, Kayden, you know what I’m talking about. Focus . That’s been your mantra all season.”

“Of course it has. It’s crucial.”

“Aren’t you worried that getting a big fat hard-on over your chances to go pro will be a distraction?”

Well, shit. I probably shouldn’t have been surprised that Erik would find yet another way to turn things around on me, but I was. He had me on the ropes right now but I would bounce back.

“Look,” I said, “you know how great a job I do at keeping myself focused at all times.”

“But if this were anything else, you’d be telling me about how much of a distraction it would be for the whole team.”

“Oh, I would not.”

“Yes, you would. You’ve already given me the doomsday spiel. I haven’t forgotten, you know.”

“If you’re talking about what I think you are, they’re two separate things.”

“Not in my world, they’re not.”

I’ll admit it: I was an idiot for letting myself fall deeper into this argument. The more I pursued it, the more he would find ways to turn things around on me. Sure, I could keep my mouth shut, but then I wouldn’t be Kayden Preston.

On the other hand, they really were two separate things. And would it have killed him to shut the hell up and just be happy for me? I hadn’t heard a “congratulations” or even “that’s awesome!” out of the guy.

Again, if I pointed that out to him, he would twist the whole thing, paint me as the bad guy, and send me back to square one.

“So, what do you want me to do?” I asked. “Tell the scout I’m not interested?”

“That’s not what I’m trying to say. I just want you to be consistent, that’s all.”

“I thought I have been consistent. All I’ve ever talked about was making it big one day. Now it looks like that day might be coming sooner than expected.”

But I knew that this wasn’t what Erik really wanted to hear. I knew he was talking about the fact that I hadn’t agreed to come out to the team. And yeah, I was willing to adjust one part of my plan and not another. But it’s not like I had a written contract.

I would try to smooth this over as only I could.

“But there’s nothing to worry about,” I said, throwing my arms around him. “No matter what happens, you’ll always be my number one guy.”

I kissed his lips, hoping that would fix everything like it usually did.

“Great,” he said, pulling away from me. “That makes me feel so much better.”

“I don’t know what else you want from me.”

Erik said nothing more, just looked away. Big freaking surprise, huh?

Look, this guy was being totally impossible.

I couldn’t even take it all that seriously.

He just had to rain on my parade. The problem was, I knew damn well I hadn’t heard the end of it.

Like, if I said anything about this, he would say I was getting distracted.

If I fucked up on the ice, he would blame it on being contacted by the scout.

I could put it all aside for now, but I knew this topic would come up again and again the closer I came to realizing my NHL dreams. Erik or no Erik, I would let nothing stand in my way.