Page 25 of Stay (Stay #1)

CASSIDY

I don’t hear from Cole for the rest of the weekend.

By Sunday night, I finally break down and shoot him a text.

He answers it, but like the car ride to the rink, the distance is palpable.

And because I’m unwilling to put myself out there, I don’t bother to contact him again.

It only confuses me more as to what we are to one another, if anything.

I thought for sure he’d be waiting outside the dorms early Monday morning for our usual run, but I failed to see the text he sent late Sunday night saying he wouldn’t be able to make it. So, I ran by myself. Instead of being an easy and relaxing job, it just felt lonely.

He’s pulling away.

I can feel it happening.

Even if I wanted to fix what’s wrong, I wouldn’t know how.

When he doesn’t show for Psychology later that morning, I begin to wonder if something is really wrong with him. For ten solid minutes, I debate the merits of shooting him another text when someone in a back row barks out a laugh. As I swing around, my gaze slides over a familiar dark head.

My breath catches.

Cole is sitting at the back of the amphitheater-style lecture hall. I blink and realize that Sammy is parked next to him, and their heads are bent toward one another. Shock and hurt crash over me as I spin around, not wanting either of them to catch me staring.

After class is over, I purposely linger, slowly packing up my stuff before taking a deep breath and turning toward the exit.

It’s a relief to find them both gone.

Tuesday night, I attend my first official practice for the women’s intramural hockey team.

Since Sammy owns a car, she offers to pick me up.

Even though she’s the last person I want to hitch a ride with, I don’t have much of a choice in the matter.

Not having my own transportation means I have to bum rides.

And as much as I’d like to hate her, I can’t blame her for wanting to be with him.

Cole is amazing.

Maybe I’ve only spent an hour or so with Sammy, but she’s pretty and athletic. And she’s nice. But not in a sweet, simpering, phony-baloney kind of way. It’s more like a I’ll kick-your-ass-because-I-don’t-take-any-shit-from-anyone kind of way.

So, yeah. I bet Cole is totally into her.

Who wouldn’t be?

They certainly looked all cozy sitting together in Psychology yesterday. It also explains why he hasn’t bothered to call or text.

I can only gnash my teeth together. At this very moment, I’m being eaten alive by jealousy.

With a grumble under my breath, I toss my bag into the trunk of her rundown Honda Civic before slipping into the front seat beside her.

“Hey,” she says with a grin before pulling away from the curb at breakneck speed.

My wide gaze flies to hers as a devilish smile curves her lips. All thoughts of Cole and her together disappear as I grab the oh-shit bar as she squeals around a corner.

“Holy crap, are you trying to kill us?” I gasp as she continues to pick up speed.

Oh my god, my life is literally flashing before my eyes as she takes another corner .

“I like to drive offensively,” she says with a laugh. “And I like speed.”

Her gaze locks on mine.

With my heart lodged in the middle of my throat, I point to the pavement that feels like it’s hurtling toward us at warp speed. “Look at the road, look at the road!”

My gut roils. Any minute, I’m going to be sick.

“Jeez, Cassidy.” She shakes her head. “Calm down. I’m actually a really good driver. I’ve never been the cause of a major accident.”

The cause of…

A major accident ?

Oh crap.

The arena is only five miles away, and we arrive in record time.

Oblivious to the fact that I’m in the midst of a heart attack, Sammy chats about the girls on the team, practice schedule, and travel dates.

Since this is an intramural team, the university doesn’t provide transportation, and we need to arrange our own rides.

Even though Sammy offers to drive me to all the games, I decide that I need to make friends fast with the other players.

I would die if I had to ride with her and Cole to a game.

No.

Way.

In.

Hell.

Just as we slam to a stop in the parking lot, she fires off questions, asking me about my hockey background.

I can’t help but freeze up, not wanting to give her too much information.

As we walk into the arena and change into our hockey gear, I give her a Cliffs Notes version of my hockey career, making sure to gloss over my college experience, which means I don’t tell her about it at all.

By the end of my spiel, she seems satisfied, and we begin warmups by circling the ice.

The ninety-minute practice is over in the blink of an eye. Just like last time, it feels so good to lose myself in the drills and scrimmage. I pour all my heartache, uncertainty, and anger at myself onto the ice .

By the time it’s over, I’m a sweaty, exhausted mess. I huff and puff my way off the ice, hoping I’ll be tired enough to fall into bed and sleep without dreaming of Cole.

My stomach twists into knots as I walk toward Sammy’s car before sliding onto the passenger seat.

Before I can mentally prepare myself for the roller coaster that is Sammy’s driving, we’re hurtling toward campus.

Maybe it’s the exhaustion or the fact that I keep my eyes tightly closed, but her driving doesn’t make me nearly as nauseous as the ride to the rink.

“Do you want me to drop you off at Cole’s?”

My eyelids fly open as my head snaps around. “What?”

God no. I think about the text message I sent and his brief, impersonal response.

There is no way in hell I’m showing up on his doorstep like some kind of pathetic loser.

One side of her mouth hitches up as she refocuses her attention on the road. “You guys are seeing each other, aren’t you?”

“Ummm.”

How am I supposed to answer that question?

For starters…isn’t she seeing Cole?

I saw them sitting together in class and it was pretty obvious from their interaction on Saturday morning that they’re familiar with one another. I’d just assumed Cole had moved on…to her.

“I’m not really sure.”

Sammy’s dark gaze flicks to mine as her speed slows to ten miles above the legal limit. I no longer feel like I’m careening toward my death.

She smirks. “He likes you.”

I don’t want to ask.

I don’t want to.

But I have to.

Could I be any more pathetic?

“So, how do you know Cole?” As soon as the question is out of my mouth, my teeth sink into my lower lip .

A few soft chuckles erupt from her. It makes me feel like an even bigger idiot. “He’s my cousin.”

For the second time in a matter of minutes, my head whips toward her as I repeat stupidly, “ Your cousin? ”

That’s a plot twist I did not see coming.

Another burst of laughter follows. “Yeah, we’re cousins. Our moms are sisters.”

“Oh.” There are so many thoughts crashing through my head.

“You thought we were something more, huh?”

The question is asked slyly, as if she didn’t know exactly what I’d been thinking. The smile curving her lips, however, tells a different story.

“No, I didn’t.” Of course, I’d thought they were something more. They look ridiculously cute together.

She snorts before raising a brow. “Are you sure?” Her voice brims with undisguised humor. The girl is practically chortling.

It’s not a good look.

“Okay,” I finally reply through stiff lips, “maybe I thought you two had something going on.”

“You could have just asked him.” This time, when her gaze darts to mine, I don’t think about the road in front of us. “Or me.”

I shake my head and focus on the darkness flying past the car. “Maybe I should have.”

Questioning Cole would have made me look jealous. Or like I actually cared about seeing him with other girls.

Crap. I really am in trouble.

“I’m making an executive decision and dropping you off at Cole’s. It seems like you two have some serious shit to hash out.”

What!

Eyes widening, I shake my head. “No, that’s not a good idea.” In fact, it’s the worst idea I’ve ever heard. Even if they’re not together, he’s still distancing himself from me.

I’m struck with another thought that makes my chest spasm.

What if there’s another girl at his place ?

“Please,” I plead, barely able to contain the anxiety roiling through me, “don’t. Just take me back to the dorms.”

“Well,” she says, taking the corner onto his street so fast that I clutch at the handle, “I think it’s a freaking fantastic idea.”

My tongue darts out to lick at my lips as desperation claws at my insides. “I don’t know if he wants to see me.”

Already my chest is tightening up.

“He does.”

At this point, I know there’s no way to sway her and mentally scramble for a reasonable explanation as to why I’m showing up unannounced at nine o’clock at night.

As his house comes into view, she shoots into the driveway before braking abruptly.

Thankfully, I’m still strapped in, or my head would have crashed through the windshield.

Then again, maybe that would have been preferable to the humiliation she’s forcing on me.

“You drive like shit,” I whisper as my heartbeat hitches.

She throws the car into park before pulling out her phone and tapping the screen. A few seconds later, her phone dings in response and Cole jogs down the front steps toward the car.

I track his movements before whispering from the corner of my mouth to Sammy, “I don’t know you very well, but I’m going to kick your ass for this.”

Not taking the threat seriously, she bursts into laughter.

Her gaze slides to mine. “On the ice, I think you could probably do it. Right here and right now, not so much. I’ve got at least twenty pounds on you.”

“But I have rage on my side,” I mumble.

My cheeks heat as Cole’s gaze settles on mine in the darkness.

I might have grown up playing hockey, and have even thrown a punch or two, but an all-out brawl—nope. I’m not a fighter. So, she’s probably right about kicking my ass in a fight.