Page 39

Crew

I was hating my life. Every fucking second of it.

I’d been hesitant to leave home and go out with the group on New Year’s Eve, but I hadn’t spent a New Year’s without Lane since we met, and I didn’t want to start now.

Kota was strutting around Stallion’s in a tight red dress, her dark hair resting in light curls past her shoulders. It was like trying not to stare at a shiny diamond in a pile of rocks.

I felt like I was putting on a show. To everyone else, I thought she was the enemy, and trust me, she still kind of was, but most people didn’t want to bang their enemy.

And even less people already had.

I figured maybe if I drank more, it would be easier to ignore her— and her nice ass fucking legs. But the more I drank, the more I seemed to zone in on her.

I knew I’d been subtly trying to seduce her, but right now, it seemed like the tables were turning.

Even though it was winter break, tons of people came back to spend their New Year’s Eve at Cedar. Stallions was busy, and usually, my eyes would be wandering around the bar, checking out every pretty girl.

But tonight, I seemingly only had eyes for one.

It was infuriating that Kota looked that fucking good . It was almost unfair. I couldn’t stop staring at her, yet I couldn’t have her either.

“Here, man,” TJ said, appearing next to me with a shot.

Unlike the one I took earlier from Jett, I didn’t bother asking what it was before shooting it back. “Thanks,” I muttered, handing the empty glass back. He set it on the table beside him, along with the countless other empty glasses that had been piled onto it throughout the night.

“So, uh,” TJ started, causing me to stiffen from whatever dumb shit he was about to say, “hear me out.”

“What?”

“I know you hate her, but... she’s hot,” he said, his eyes flicking over Kota. “Do you mind if I get with her?” My jaw tightened, and I refused to look at him. I was growing so agitated from this entire night that it felt like smoke was starting to radiate off me. TJ spoke again, “Judging by the look on your face, I’m assuming you don’t like that idea.”

I couldn’t tell what was bothering me more. The fact that he was asking, or the fact that I didn’t have the right to be mad at him for it.

“No,” I finally replied. “I don’t. At all.”

TJ nodded. “Noted.”

“Trust me,” I said, “you don’t wanna try anyway. I can almost guarantee she’d laugh in your face and then bite your head off.”

TJ raised a brow, his smirk growing playful. I still wasn’t looking at him, but I could feel his eyes on me, and I hoped he didn’t see right through me.

“You sound like you speak from experience,” he said.

The lie came out easier than breathing. “No, I haven’t tried with her, if that’s what you’re assuming.”

He shrugged, accepting my answer. “Wouldn’t blame ya if ya did.”

Just knowing that my friends were eyeing her made me want her even more. I was losing my patience with the whole subtly thing. And every time I glanced at her, my patience weakened more and more, thinning like ice.

The type of ice you fell straight through.

Jett appeared. “Are you coming over after this?”

“Probably.”

“Cool,” he said before tapping TJ. “You wanna head back soon and get things ready before people show up?”

TJ nodded with his beer to his mouth, downing the rest of it before setting it on the table. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “I’m gonna go talk to Lane and make sure he’s coming.”

He was gone before anyone could respond, and I watched as he questioned Lane to ensure he’d be attending the party. When Lane glanced at me, I gave him a quick nod.

TJ and Jett disappeared through the crowd of people and I wandered back to where Cody and Matt were in the middle of a useless argument.

“What now?” I asked.

Cody turned to me, his eyes ablaze. “Matt doesn’t believe in the Lochness Monster.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” I mumbled to myself, rolling my eyes. I swore these two fought over the dumbest shit. Half the time, I wasn’t even sure how these topics came up in a conversation in the first place.

“Well, you don’t believe in Bigfoot,” Matt shot back.

“That’s because there’s no actual evidence that Bigfoot exists,” Cody snapped.

“Same goes for the Lochness Monster then.”

Cody shook his head rapidly. “Hell no. Do you have any idea how big that lake is? It could easily be hiding in the water.”

With my buzz, it was hard to gauge how hammered they both actually were, but for their sakes, I hoped they were fucking obliterated. Any level of sobriety in this argument would’ve been embarrassing.

“Lake?” Matt practically yelled, slamming his beer on the nearby table. “It’s not even in the ocean? It’s totally fake then. How the hell would no one have found it by now if it’s just in a fucking lake?”

“It’s a big lake!”

I was getting the feeling that this fight had already been going on for quite some time.

I butted in. “They’re both fake. Now both of you, shut up. Let’s go.”

Both of their heads turned to me with record speed, eyeing me in disbelief.

“What?” Cody said.

“Let’s. Go,” I said sharply, leaning forward. But unlike when I got in Bobby’s face, my teammates weren’t quite as intimidated.

Matt raised a brow at me, his eyes slightly narrowed. “You don’t believe in either of them? What about aliens?”

“The Chupacabra?” Cody added, arms crossed.

Shaking his head, Matt turned back to Cody. “What the fuck is the Chupacabra?”

“Oh my God,” I muttered, seemingly to myself. I ran a hand over my face. “Are you guys coming to the house right now or not?”

“Not now!” they both shouted at me.

“Jesus,” I said, turning on my heels.

Lane nodded at me as if he’d been looking for me. “Hey,” he casually tapped me on the shoulder. “Bridget and I are gonna stop at our place before the party. You got her?” he asked, motioning towards Kota.

I stole another glimpse of her, the same way I had been all night. This time, she was standing beside Cody and Matt with her hands on her hips. I couldn’t tell if she was part of the argument at this point or if she was just listening for entertainment.

“Yeah,” I sighed. “I got her.”

“See you at the house,” Lane said, guiding Bridget out of the bar.

Part of me hoped that Kota didn’t want to stop at home before we went to the hockey house. I wasn’t sure if it was because I didn’t feel like making the pit-stop, or if I was just simply afraid to be alone with her.

Let’s be real though. It was definitely the latter.

It was ironic how I’d been eyeing her all night, secretly wishing we were alone, and now, I was scared to be alone with her. But I told Lane I had her, so I needed to suck it up and do what I promised.

Warily, I made my way over, and without acknowledging Cody or Matt, who were both still very invested in their debate, I lightly gripped onto Kota’s elbow to make my presence known.

She nearly jumped, but seemed to relax slightly when she saw me.

“Are you ready to go?” I asked.

Her eyes darted past me, skimming across the bar. “Where are Lane and Bridget?”

“They left. They wanted to stop at our place before going to the house.”

“Oh,” she said, sighing. “Alright, yeah. Let’s go then. I need to stop at home too though.”

Fuck.

I knew it was inevitable that I was about to do something fucking dumb.