Page 10

10

QUENTIN

C oach Reiner and his assistant J.D. named Liam as captain for the hockey team this year. Every captain came up with three goals for the season, and everyone had their own flavor of it. Liam was not only fast on the ice, but he was also smart as hell and demanded we all meet at the library for a team meeting.

Even though I saw Logan every day, our inside jokes growing more and more, I couldn’t help but look for her. It had been two weeks since we cooked together that night, and I found myself wanting to be near her all the time.

Doing homework? Why not do it with her?

Grocery shopping? I had to tag along with her, in case Gage was there. She started her internship, so she was gone more. It was silly to think it, but it was almost like she was avoiding me. I shouldn’t care because my entire life was hockey since the intense schedule left me little free time, and those precious moments of nothing should be spent resting. Yet once the season started in a few weeks, I’d have nothing but hockey. Literally, nothing. So, I kept looking for moments with Logan every chance I got.

My phone buzzed, and my hope surged, wishing it was Logan with a sarcastic comment. When I saw my mom’s name, my hope burst like a sad balloon.

Mom: HELLO. Are you ignoring me like your dear sister too?

Mom: Don’t be foolish. ONE DINNER. It won’t hurt you. It’s not like your coaches are doing you any favors. They freaking accepted Theo Sanders last year. You can’t trust them.

Annoyance prickled along my skin. Was this the shit Audrey put up with for years? My mom never used to speak to me this way, demanding and rude. This new side of her was horrible. No wonder my sister told her to fuck off. I wished I had her balls though. Instead of addressing it, I ignored my mom, like a coward.

I shoved my phone in my pocket. I refused to answer her like that.

“Okay, guys, listen. We can work hard and play hard, but that doesn’t mean winning games. It means studying, getting our GPAs up. Too many guys come through here without a backup plan. Sanders inspired me last year—a full career outside of hockey if needed. We’ve all had injuries,” Liam paused, his gaze finding mine in sympathy, “that can derail our plans. Reiner put this role on me, and I want to push us to be better. We can be more than athletes. Coach agreed with me, but we want to do mandatory study tables. I’m asking for volunteers to help keep us on track.”

A few of the guys grumbled. It was a weird mix of new blood and old, those who loved to party and those who wanted a career. Not everyone made it to the NHL, and most were okay with it. There was a fine line between playing the sport you loved because you always had versus a livelihood.

Theo graduated last year with a degree in nursing, so if he got hurt or changed his mind about hockey, he could immediately jump into a job. What did I have?

Nothing.

No real way to earn money. No backup plan. No partner to help me when I was upset, no family besides Audrey and Theo. My mom turned cruel because she was alone, and I didn’t want that. Her heartbreak and solitude changed her, and that was my fear. I’d be that if I didn’t get into hockey—and I’d truly have nothing then.

That was why I had to play fucking well and not get injured. It was all I had, and nothing could get in the way. Nothing.

“While I’m not gonna babysit you and make sure you’re doing assignments, we all are gonna be at the library once a week. Coach and I agree that we don’t want to see grades drop. Now, any questions?”

“What if we don’t show up?”

“Then you run,” Liam said, smirking. He was one of those people who was authoritative. It made sense to have him be captain. One of the guys said he had big dad energy, and it showed. “This isn’t a choice, it’s a requirement. Every captain makes a goal, and this is ours: we have a collective team GPA at 3.”

That got a reaction. People cussed and leaned back in chairs. I tensed. My GPA wasn’t near that. It wasn’t bad, but I never put a lot of effort into classes freshmen year because I assumed—like a dumbass—that I’d be drafted and then leave early. Just like what happened between me and my sister, I got my ass handed to me, and I was humbled.

Now I was living in the consequences of my own actions, and it was fucking annoying. Just another difference between Logan and I and why I should leave her alone. That girl was going places, and I wasn’t yet.

“Hey, Q, weren’t you with her at the party a few weeks ago?” Tyler nudged my arm and jutted his chin toward the main counter. A help desk sign hung above Logan, and she smiled at a punk kid who stood before her.

He had to be a freshman, but he clearly saw what I did in Logan—her beauty. The kid pretty much drooled. His face was red, and he leaned against the counter, chest puffed out and trying to impress her.

I saw the way Logan looked at me. She preferred dudes with muscles, not that scrawny punkass. Liam kept talking, but my attention was on Logan and the pathetic guy trying to flirt with her. Once Liam stopped, I got up and made my way toward her. When her gaze found me, her face lit up.

It wasn’t the same with fans. Not like this. Her eyes sparkled, like seeing me made her day better. No one smiled at me like that.

“Hi, Quentin! What are you doing here?”

The punk scoffed. I didn’t spare him a glance. “The team is doing study tables to help us keep our GPAs up.” I swallowed down a weird bout of nerves. I didn’t get nervous. Must be the newness of the study tables and the fact I had no career plans besides hockey. I scratched the unpleasant feeling in my chest and admired Logan’s outfit. She wasn’t wearing her usual baggy shirt and shorts.

She wore a dress. It had a million colors on it, all in different shapes, but the colors matched her earrings, and she looked like a fucking rainbow.

“Oh, that’s awesome. I love that the team is doing that.” She pushed her hair behind her ears, blushing as she glanced down. “I’m doing clinical hours for one of my classes. I work the help desk one day every two weeks. We do a rotation.”

“Logan signed up for more than she needed because that’s who she is.”

The punk-ass kid had the audacity to enter our conversation. My eye twitched before I stared at him. He was half my size, big glasses. He could’ve been nice. I did recognize that, but it was a small acknowledgement because he needed to read the room. Logan didn’t look at him the way she stared at me.

“Hunter,” Logan chided, rolling her eyes. “I don’t mind. This one is paid too, so that’s super helpful.”

Her worries about money returned, and an idea formed. She was brilliant and loved working at the library, so before I could overthink it, I blurted out, “Logan, you could tutor some of the guys on the team. Make some extra cash.”

“Pretty sure hockey isn’t Logan’s thing,” the dude grumbled.

My patience was up with this guy. He needed to learn real fucking fast that she wasn’t interested in him. Thank god we had the perfect ruse for that.

“What time are you off, baby?”

Logan’s throat bobbed as she took a shaky breath. “Uh, in two hours.”

“I’ll hang around until then.” I leaned across the counter and kissed her cheek, lingering right underneath her jaw. I loved the way she sucked in a breath and how she smelled like peaches and books and how she dug her fingers into my arm, almost like she didn’t want me to pull away. One, two, three seconds of lingering, and I leaned back and winked. “Have a good shift.”

Without looking at her again, I walked away and could almost imagine the shock and confusion on that kid’s face. I went straight to Liam. “Hey, does the team hire tutors?”

His eyes widened. “Yeah, we have in the past. I’d have to run it by J.D. What are you thinking?”

“Logan is my roommate, and she’s smart as hell. She could totally help tutor some of the freshmen on the team. I’m sure she has friends who could too.” I gripped the back of my neck, staring at her as the kid remained chatting with her. I loved that I could physically see she was annoyed.

Her shoulders tensed, and her nose scrunched when she didn’t like something.

“That’s not a bad idea. I like the idea of it being someone you know too.” Liam nodded a few times and pulled out his phone. “Let me talk to J.D. and let you know. We could even have her help check in players for us, take some of the burden off me.”

“If she’s compensated for it, she’d be great.” I did want to discuss it with her before just saying she was in. But, if she took extra shifts at the help desk, then this could maybe be more fun? Hell, what if she hated it? “Let me know if it’s a possibility and I’ll talk to her.”

“Will do.” Liam paused, assessing me. “She could help you out, you know.”

I froze, roots growing from my feet to the ground. Did he mean I was a shitbag? Did he know truly how fucking awful I had been?

“We all saw you at the party, my dude.” Liam smirked. “Plus, you haven’t really cared about schooling. She seems to. She could help you figure out what the hell to do.”

Relief flooded through me. That made sense. “Got ya.”

“Hey.” Liam frowned and put a hand on my shoulder. “I know we aren’t close, but you’ve grown up the last year. Sanders helped you, and you’ve changed. You aren’t the punk-ass freshman anymore, but you still seem lost.”

I shoved my hands in my pockets, planning my escape from this conversation. Didn’t need anyone telling me shit. “Thanks, Liam. I’m good.”

He narrowed his eyes but relaxed. “Okay, glad to hear it. I’ll get back to you on tutoring.”

With a quick nod, I walked away and said goodbye to some of the other guys. Preston grinned at me and joined me as I made my way toward Logan. He stopped me, putting his arm around me and punching me in the side.

“What the fuck?”

“Just missed you, roomie. You gonna kiss my cheek too?”

“Get away from me.” I shoved him off, more amused than I cared to admit. “What are you doing?”

“Hanging with you? I assumed you were waiting for Logan to head back to the house. Despite your surly attitude, I like hanging with you.”

It was pathetic how those words felt like a hug. It was easier pushing everyone away, having no attachments. That meant you hurt less when they left because everyone left. Even though Audrey and I still talked, she lived states away. It was life.

“Have no idea why.”

“It’s your personality. It's magnetic,” he teased.

“Okay, fuck off.”

Preston and I found a table, and he tossed a bag of pretzels at me. “Listen, I have this idea for my business class. They want us to mock create an LLC and what we’d invest in first. What do you think of a traveling vet called Puck Bunnies?”

I barked out a laugh. Preston was an idiot with a huge heart. He told me all about his plan, and before I knew it, Logan walked over to us, her bag slung on her shoulder and a shy smile on her face.

“Hey, sexy, I’m off.”

Preston chortled. “Sexy? Nah, nah, nah, you can’t call Q that. He’s more rugged or gruff. Lumberjack-y.”

“I was talking to you, Preston,” she quipped. Preston jumped up to hug her with a loud laugh, the two of them having an easy comfort together. She leaned into him and sighed. “While I like seeing you, it’s weird having you in my domain. That’d be like me going to skate in the stadium.”

“Rink,” we both corrected. She rolled her eyes before sliding into the chair across from me.

“Okay, rink, whatever.”

“Logan Hart, we’ve been friends for years, and you know better.”

“Hate to break it to ya, Preston, but I haven’t been to a game here.” Logan’s eyes flared, her brown orbs almost glowing in challenge.

I sat up straighter. This was unacceptable. “You’ve never been to the rink to see a game?”

Logan rubbed her lips together twice before shaking her head. “Nope. Never been ice skating either.”

“I can’t even look at you. All those times Jordan went…” Preston said.

“I helped my parents with my baby sister. We’d watch at home though. I never missed watching a broadcast, Preston, so calm down.”

Preston leaned back onto the chair so it stood on the last two legs. He pushed it more, then, in slow motion, his arms waved around in circles like windmills. Over and over until he fell all the way back.

“Oh my god,” Logan yelled, jumping out of her chair and running toward Preston. His face froze, like the dumbass had shocked himself.

Preston was ridiculous, and of course this would happen to him.

“You alright?” I nudged him with my foot, slightly concerned. I knew his ego was hit, but his body was fine.

“Preston, oh sweetie.” Logan frowned and ran a hand over his face, neck, and shoulder. “Are you okay? What do you need?”

Preston’s gaze met mine, and I swore his eyes narrowed in challenge before he winced. It had to be fake. He leaned onto Logan so his head was against her stomach. “My head hurts.”

“Oof, we should get you back. We can get you some ice.”

“Yeah, that’d be great.” He nuzzled her, his face getting closer to her chest. White-hot annoyance stabbed me in the gut.

Why was he doing that? Why would she let him? First the punk-ass kid and now Preston…why did these dudes think it was alright do act this way around a girl who wasn’t single? Sure, it was fake, but there were bro-codes.

“She can’t take care of you tonight, Charming.”

Both of them looked at me. Amusement was all over his face, while hers held more confusion. “We have plans,” I said, before my mind caught up to me. “My girlfriend and I are due at a party.”

Logan’s face paled before she tilted her head to the side. It was the cutest fucking gesture, and she did it every time she had a question. “Do we? What party? It’s a Thursday?”

“Oh, Log.” Preston laughed and pushed up to get back into his seat. No evidence of any real pain either. Fucker. “Thursdays are for riding the rails.”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“It’s… there’s a bar we all go to ride the rail. No idea where the name came from, but you go and have to drink like forty different types of beers to earn your name on a plaque,” I explained. “We don’t have to drink, but we need to go to enjoy the chaos.”

“We need to?”

“Yeah. Tonight, all the athletes will be out. Football, in particular,” I lied, straight up to her. Her ex might be out, didn’t really know or care, but I wanted to spend time with her. Plus, if we were pretending to date, then we should send a better message.

Logan stared at me, nerves all over her face, before she nodded. “Okay, let’s do it. Let’s ride some rails.”