Page 33 of Twisted Play

The feral kitten inside me wanted to snuggle right up to this man, tall and strong and handsome and?—

Tristan looked down at me, eyeing my tote bag full of books before sliding it off my shoulder and onto his, ignoring my protest. Cole’d done the same thing, and the same butterflies took flight in my stomach.

“Hey!”

“Hay is for horses,” he teased me, and that feral kitten fucking purred deep in my chest, stretching and begging for more.

I didn’t date. I didn’t do relationships. I didn’t do anything that would distract me from my goal—graduate, go to med school, become a doctor, practice sports medicine.

“What are you doing?” I asked, smiling despite myself. I slammed the lid shut on my fears and decided to enjoy this handsome man’s company. I deserved a moment of pleasure, no matter how fleeting.

“Hopefully charming you,” he said. “I didn’t think you’d give me the time of day.”

“I almost didn’t,” I admitted, but Rory was right. My life was utter shit right now, and I wanted to feel good for amoment. Tristan’s determined attention healed a crack in my soul, even if I knew he was just fucking with me, and this could only end in tragedy. “Today seems to be your lucky day.”

“I’ll keep holding your books hostage then, just in case,” he said with a grin, pulling me against him and wrapping an arm around my shoulders like we’d been dating for years.

And I let him.

God help me, I let him.

13

TRISTAN

My dream girltucked herself under my arm like she belonged there. I wasn’t stupid. I knew good girls like Eva didn’t date hockey players. If she was smart, she’d stay far away from me and any other player, but I sure as fuck intended to do my best to convince her otherwise.

Teasing Cole about her had driven the point home. If I didn’t make my move, she’d never know I existed. I’d been obsessing over her gorgeous curves, the way her green eyes tilted up when she smiled—when Iearnedone of her rare smiles—since she showed up to practice the week before classes started.

I shoved down the guilt at making a move on my best friend’s obsession. I liked her too, right? And he’d told me to go ahead—encouraged me, even.

“Bio-chem?” I asked her after a long, comfortable moment as we walked. “Are you pre-med?”

Immediately, I cursed myself for revealing how little I actually knew about her. Cole was the stalker—when he wanted to know something, he was like a dog with a bone,and I was sure he already knew everything about this stunning woman.

“I want to study sports medicine,” she said quietly. “What about you?”

“I need the piece of paper, but I intend to play for the NHL.”

Eva didn’t say anything. God, did I sound like a pretentious asshole? Was she regretting letting me walk her to the library?

“I’ll graduate with a degree in communications.”

When she didn’t shrug my arm off her shoulder, I counted it as a win.

“Why sports medicine?” I asked her, desperate for any sliver of information from this woman with sad eyes and an iron spine.

“My dad was a hockey player?—”

“Holy shit! Conrad Jackson!” I stopped in my tracks as I made the connection. I’d been too young to remember seeing him play, but he’d been a legend until he retired from the league due to injuries.

“Yeah, he got hurt pretty bad in a game and never recovered,” Eva said, continuing to walk. I hurried to catch up with her. “It’s been—” She squared her shoulders. “It’s been rough for him, and I can’t help but think that if he’d gotten adequate care, maybe he would have been able to keep playing.”

I didn’t know what to say. Noises of consolation? Affirmation? God, why was I so awkward when I liked her so much?

The library loomed before us, and I pushed forward to hold the door open for her. Her smile almost knocked me off my feet.

“Charmer,” she murmured.