Page 36 of Tempting the Goalie (Riverside U #5)
CHAPTER THIRTY
L uc
My head is against the headrest as we fly back to Riverside for another year of school.
Our senior year. Who would have thought my life would look the way it does.
I cut off all ties to my father. Elyna is working full time at the microbrewery and got Braden into one of the better daycares in town.
Izzy and I are solid. There is just one thing that’s been nagging at me.
“You’re awfully quiet,” Izzy says, looking up at me.
“I’m thinking.”
“About?” she asks.
“Everything, life, my dad, Elyna. I feel at peace,” I tell her.
“Then why does it sound like there is a but in your tone?” she asks.
“I’m not sure it’s a good thing that you know me so well. There’s no mystery between us.” I laugh.
“I think that’s a good thing. It’ll prevent either of us from getting lost in our heads,” she replies. This feels reminiscent of a conversation we had back home where I was getting in her head. Now the tables have changed and it’s nice being with someone who gets me so well.
“That’s a solid point. I like that we can just be open with each other. I bet it takes couples years or even decades to get to this point,” I note.
The flight attendant comes around to serve drinks. Izzy orders an orange juice and I do the same.
“Spit it out. What is your but?” she asks.
I chuckle. “That just doesn’t sound right.”
“Stop avoiding and spit it out,” she urges. Everything about her makes me smile from the cute way her ponytail sits high on her head to the way she watches me like she really cares about what I have to say.
“I want you to move into the hockey house with me,” I mutter quickly.
“And before you give your two cents, I just want to add that most of the guys are in a serious relationship, and it’s the only way we will be able to spend quality time together when things start to get hectic with early morning practices and away games. ”
“I see you’ve given this some thought,” she says.
“I know we said that we’ll make each other a priority but living together will ensure it,” I continue to explain.
“Yes.”
“Yes?”
“Yes,” she confirms.
“Just like that?” I ask.
“I mean, it does make sense. We should’ve spoken about it earlier, but I can understand why we didn’t. My lease is month to month but I still promised the landlord sixty days’ notice, which means I’ll be paying rent on my room. I won’t be able to contribute anything for the next two months.”
“I mean, if you’re going to be staying in my room, you wouldn’t need to. I should’ve said something sooner, but things always felt busy back home and the moments we did have together were spent doing other things.” I cock my brow and she knows exactly what I mean.
“Yeah, Asher is not letting me live down the two of us walking out of the bathroom in the loft together. He keeps telling me I’m his baby sister and it isn’t sitting well with him,” she cackles.
“Asher is less than a year older than me. It’s funny how he keeps using the I’m the older sibling card,” I say. “So it’s settled then. You’re coming back to the hockey house with me?”
“Yes.” She grins.
I reach my arm around her shoulders and give her a hug.
“It’s funny how much things have changed. You kept me away from the hockey house for years,” she reminds.
“Yeah, I admit that me compartmentalizing my life was just a little messed up. I wanted you all to myself. You saw what happened the night you came to Black Jack’s with me. The guys were shamelessly flirting with you.”
She scrunches her nose. “I remember.”
“Yeah.” I give her a crooked grin.
She laughs. “I didn’t know you had a jealous side.”
“I didn’t know I had a jealous side either,” I admit.
“Well, you have nothing to worry about,” she assures.
“I know,” I reply.
I kiss the top of her head, but I still have a niggling feeling in my stomach. Going back to school with both of us living different lives will somehow affect our relationship. I try to push the feelings away, but they settle in the back of my mind like an unwanted house pest.