Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 63124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
“It’ll be a pain in the ass, but we’re all going to deal with it,” I replied, knowing I would have to rally the team to suck it up.
“And you have to stay for at least two hours. Phones will be kept in the locker room,” Coach Jacobson ordered before blowing his whistle, making everyone jump or wince. “Now, get to it!”
I rose to my feet and followed the guys into our locker room to put on our skates. We skipped our usual equipment, opting for our casual clothes.
“The only way this night ends well is if I get laid,” Stephen told me while we waited for the others to get ready.
“You’re playing with fire if you’re trying to mess around with one of those girls,” I warned him. They most likely wouldn’t be particularly friendly to any of us, so he didn’t need to get his hopes up.
“Playing with fire is fun,” Mikael chuckled as he approached us.
“Until it burns you,” I pointed out. However, I did see the appeal. Fire was beautiful and intense, and Leah embodied it. I wouldn’t mind talking to her tonight, but if my team didn’t mingle, I wasn’t going to mingle either.
Once everyone was ready, I led them out to the ice where the girls were already skating around, gliding backwards or skating along the edge of the rink in pairs. My eyes zeroed in on Leah, and to my surprise, she waved. A confused look filled my face as I turned to see Jed and Colm lifting their hands to wave back.
“You know her?” I asked them.
Jed shrugged.
“We talked to her once in the cafeteria,” he replied.
“And she was really nice,” Colm added as he gave Jed a pointed look. “We should relax for a night. Talk to them. Get to know them. Coach Clinton was right about us both representing Yale.”
I saw that as a chance to talk to Leah. That was the only thing that interested me about this little meet and greet.
“Fine. You hear that, guys? One night. Let’s just have some fun. Or try to,” I told the others on my team.
“Why not?” Anthony smirked before kicking off and skating toward a pair of redheads.
I motioned for the other guys to disperse before making my way over to Leah, who was talking to a blonde girl.
“Was this little skating party your idea?” I asked her, cocking my eyebrow at her in a teasing motion.
Leah scoffed and shook her head.
“Trust me, it wasn’t,” she assured me.
I chuckled and turned to her friend.
“Hugo,” I introduced myself.
“Lily,” she replied. “I’ve heard plenty about you.”
“Careful. Don’t stroke his ego,” Leah told her, prompting laughter from the both of them.
It looked like I was being ganged up on. I glanced over at Stephen and motioned for him to come over to me.
“This is Stephen. He’s my center,” I said as I threw my arm around his shoulders.
“I’m the center too,” Lily replied as her eyes leveled with Stephen’s. “You any good?”
Stephen laughed.
“I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t,” he told her.
Lily shrugged.
“I don’t know. A lot of people are here because of Daddy’s money,” she said, her eyes lingering on me for a moment before she skated off.
Ouch. I watched her go with a tightening jaw, wanting to defend myself and tell her that I worked my own way here. Of course, it helped to have alumni as parents, but I still had to get the grades and be good enough to make the team to be here.
Stephen nudged me.
“It’s cool, man,” he murmured, knowing that one stung a bit.
I nodded and focused on Leah. She was the one I wanted to talk to anyway.
“How’s practice going? Doing better during scrimmages?” I asked her.
Leah’s gaze hardened for a moment before she relaxed and smirked.
“Yeah, now that I’m not distracted by the clown brigade. You should spend more time on the ice instead of watching us in the stands,” she told me.
Stephen laughed.
“Damn, you’re feisty,” he said to her as he glided closer to her, backing her up toward the wall. “But every feisty girl has a sweet side to her.”
Leah’s back hit the wall as she gazed up at him. Her tongue subtly caressed the corner of her bottom lip.
“Not for you, player,” she replied as she placed her forefinger against his chest to keep him from getting closer. “I’ve heard that you get around plenty. You won’t be adding me to your list.”
Stephen slowly grazed his hand along her wrist and up her arm as he grinned at her, working that charm of his that had girls lined up to meet him.
“Aw, you’re not just a name on a list, baby,” he told her, his fingertips grazing the back of her upper arm.
I couldn’t help but smirk as I watched, enjoying the way her body tensed and her lips parted ever so slightly. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, she was affected. The only thing that could make this better was if I took Stephen’s place. The night was still young, though.