Page 10 of Your Biggest Downfall (Ravens Hockey #3)

austin

The worst part about drinking was waking up sober. I stretched out and leaned down to grab a bottle of vodka I kept tucked under the bed for moments like this.

“Hair of the dog,” I muttered, or whatever the saying was.

There was one thing I hadn’t been entirely honest about yesterday.

Technically, I didn’t lie, but when Nova had said I wasn’t drunk all the time, like when I was playing, she was wrong.

I had started drinking before games to take the edge off.

Usually, I’d sweat it off in the first period, but I remembered getting fined once for starting a line brawl right at puck drop.

I had taken one shot too many, and the adrenaline made for a nasty first period.

As soon as the referee dropped the puck, chaos erupted.

I charged forward, clashing with an opposing player, and within seconds, fists were flying.

The brawl escalated quickly, with teammates jumping in and the ice turned into a battleground of shoving, punching, and grappling.

Fueled by adrenaline and the alcohol still buzzing in my veins, I felt every hit and push as an outlet for my pent-up frustration.

Finally, the referees pulled us apart and sent us to the penalty boxes.

Sitting there, panting and bruised, I’d faced the consequences.

I took a deep swig when I got up and realized that the spot next to me was still occupied. I turned around to see Nova sprawled out on my bed. She hadn’t left. And damn, she looked good wearing my shirt.

When she puked on me yesterday, I brought her to my room, cleaned her up, and let her pass out on her side in my bed.

I didn’t want to leave her in case she puked again, and I didn’t want her to choke on it, so I figured it was best to stay.

In truth, I expected her to be gone in the morning, so I was surprised when I woke to find her still here.

I pulled the covers over her and made my way to the living room to assess the damage, but not before taking one last lingering glance at the woman lying in my bed.

She wasn’t the first person to be in that spot, but she might have been the most beautiful, especially with what she’d confessed to me yesterday.

My mom wasn’t sick, but I could relate so deeply to her need to escape.

I knew what that felt like, the desperation to run from a reality that felt exhausting.

I looked down at the bottle in my hand and realized it was my only way of leaving, my only refuge.

I wondered if she had felt the same last night.

Fuck. I’d been so close to kissing her until Jeremy interrupted.

I wanted to forget the void of shit both of us had been through.

I wanted to taste her, to lose myself in her, to run away from everything that haunted us.

I wondered if she’d wanted it too, if she’d felt that same aching need to disappear, even if for a moment.

The living room was a mess, remnants of the night scattered around like forgotten dreams. I stood there, feeling the crushing loneliness that always seemed to find me in the quiet moments. I didn’t want to be here anymore, but all I had was the cold comfort of the bottle.

I sighed when I saw a bunch of the guys crashed on the floor with the blonde I remembered as Nova’s friend. They were all sprawled out around her, wrapped in a blanket.

What a duo those two were. They looked like total opposites in every way, but somehow the whole Luna-and-Nova thing just worked. I started picking up a few empty cans around the marble kitchen island, then opened the cabinet to grab some Tylenol. I also poured a glass of water for Nova.

“You’re going soft on her,” a raspy, feminine voice crooned from the other side of the island.

I turned to look at Luna, whose hair was wildly all over the place. She was wearing the blanket she’d been sprawled out in. “On who?”

“I assume that’s for my bff who puked on you last night?”

I shrugged. “She’s just sleeping.”

Luna laughed, her voice low. “She’s been through a lot of shit, Austin. This is the first time she’s gone out. Be gentle with her. She’s... impressionable.”

I figured as much.

Luna leaned on the counter, lifting the blanket up so it still covered her. “Be gentle with her, Austin.”

I huffed out a breath. “Listen. Nova is cool. We work together. I appreciate her as a friend.” I lifted the glass of water up. “Lemme give this to her while you get dressed, then I assume you’ll want to leave.”

Luna shrugged and looked at the guys still sleeping on the ground. “I could go for another round, but she might freak out again.”

I shook my head and laughed as I walked back down the hall toward my room.