Total pages in book: 130
Estimated words: 129323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 517(@250wpm)___ 431(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 129323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 517(@250wpm)___ 431(@300wpm)
“Cassidy,” I correct, pulling her back to my side.
She grins up at me. “Not much to tell. We met at Starbucks, exchanged numbers, and that’s the story. I’m currently taking some time off before grad school, so I figured I’d follow Slate around for a bit.” She winks at me.
I pull my bottom lip into my mouth. We hadn’t discussed the specifics of how we met. Her on-the-fly thinking is a turn-on. She didn’t miss a beat. Let’s just hope we both remember this story later.
“Not sure how I feel about having a girl around all the time. Girls talk. You could ruin my reputation.” Hudson groans.
“Poor boy, you worried if the ladies find out you fuck multiple a night, your dick will fall off?” Mason sticks his hand up for a high five, but I turn to Cassidy, trying to play it off like I didn’t see it.
“Shut it, man.” Hudson takes a long pull of his drink and sighs.
“Don’t worry, boys. My mouth is shut. All your secrets are safe with me.” Cassidy grins up at me before looking at each of my idiot friends.
Mason raises his hands in the air. “That applies to me too, right?”
She laughs. “I’m only here for the drinks. Speaking of which…” I hand her my beer, and she takes it. Got to hand it to her, she’s good at this. Didn’t even bat an eyelash about sharing a drink. I guess in the grand scheme of things, I did have my cock inside her. “Besides, no one needs to hear me gossip to find out shit. I’d say that exposé has your exploits pretty well covered.”
It’s my turn to choke out a laugh, and the others join me.
Not only is she hot as hell, but she’s witty too.
If I were ever to settle down, I’d imagine it would be with someone like Cassidy. Smart. Funny. Gorgeous.
What the fuck?
I immediately chase that thought from my head.
I’m not on the market now or ever. I like my privacy, and marriage and a family are not in my future.
We make our way toward the back and find the rest of the crew, plus a few additions. A couple of guys I can’t stand are here, and I already regret this outing. Billy Lewis is the one guy I’d go to jail to put on his ass. He’s an obnoxious asshole who has an inflated sense of his own skills.
He fucking sucks, which is why he’s a reserve.
You can’t tell him that, though. He’s convinced himself he’s a god.
As if the prick could sense my thoughts about him, he looks up. “Fuck, I didn’t know you had it in you,” he slurs.
“Had what?” I don’t even try to contain the bite from my tone.
“A girl. Didn’t think I’d see the day.”
I take a step forward, and Cass’s arm shoots out to stop me. “What the fuck does that mean?”
He shrugs like an arrogant ass and takes a drink. “You’re a perpetual bachelor. I thought…”
“That’s the problem, Lewis. You thought. Never been too good at that.”
“Fuck off, Slate.”
I’m about to knock this douche out, but Cassidy grabs my hand. “Let’s go,” she says, motioning toward the other side of the bar where Mason and Hudson are currently seated.
I nod before shooting one last glare at Billy.
When we’re out of earshot, Cassidy turns toward me. “What was that about?”
I take a deep breath. “He’s just a dick. Nothing I can’t handle.”
Her eyes widen. “It didn’t look like you were handling it very well. Don’t let him get under your skin. He seems like an ass. One who gets great pleasure out of taunting you.”
I look down at her large blue eyes, rimmed in black. She’s fucking gorgeous, but tonight, she’s something else entirely.
“That he is, and that he does.”
I smile, grateful she pulled me away. I rarely make appearances at these things, and none of the other guys deserve the night being spoiled because I showed up. I like control, and there’s something about Billy that causes me to lose it. Every. Time.
He’s slimy, and I don’t trust him for a second.
This girl is good for me. Too good. I can get used to this.
But it’s for a short time, and that’s something I need to get through my head.
This is only to help me through the season. To help me relax so I can play the season of my life. Keep my spot on the team and win the Stanley Cup.
When that ends, so does this arrangement.
It has to.
12
CASSIDY
I slept the entire flight to Redville.
It’s not that we were out late last night, but I've been exhausted with all the changes in my life.
It wasn’t a long flight, only an hour, but I welcomed the time alone. Since Aiden flew on the team plane, he booked me a regular commercial flight and said he’d meet me at the airport when I land.