Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 98134 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98134 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
He laughs. “Fuck you, man.”
“Hey. If you’re not going to the karaoke thing, why don’t you go hit the weights with me in the garage?”
He cracks his knuckles and looks that way, clearly tempted. “Fuck it. Let’s go.”
I clap him on the shoulder and head into the garage. If I can’t sleep with Andi, I need some way to get the tension out of my system. Lifting heavy shit is probably the best outlet I can think of. Plus, I’m glad to feel like Jake is finally loosening up. He’s normally my closest friend on the team. Having him pissed at me all week has been annoying me.
“So,” I say once we get in the garage. “You basically said I can date your sister. Did I get that correct?”
He tosses a towel at me. “No. I definitely didn’t say that.”
26
ANDI
I wake up and slap blindly around, trying to find my phone. It’s not under my pillow where I usually leave it. Instead, I find it placed neatly on the nightstand, right beside one of my bras. I blink through the sleepiness and tap the screen. Midnight.
Dim awareness starts to return to me. I remember sitting on the couch while all the guys took turns trying to figure out how to get my skate off. I remember Jesse bringing me everything I could possibly need. I remember the crackling fire and the Christmas movie playing in the background and snow drifting down outside the windows. I’m smiling at the memory when I roll back over and then suddenly yelp with pain.
I forgot about my ankle, and the way I rolled over made the blanket tug against my toes, turning the ankle.
I sit up, pushing the covers down and reaching to rub my ankle. I see the skate is off. I don’t remember that happening. I’m also still fully dressed in the clothes I wore today.
I rub my head and it starts to make sense. I fell asleep and Jake or Jesse must’ve carried me here.
Jesse.
The thought hits me with a jolt. He must have been so disappointed. After last night with Meemee interrupting us, he was probably expecting tonight to… well.
I’d been excited all day, too. Sure, part of me was freaking out about it, but I was excited.
And then I notice the big shape on the couch beside my bed. In a split second, my heart is in my throat.
“Holy fucking shit! AHH!” I scream, reach for a pillow, and sling it toward the intruder with all the power of a sleepy toddler. It misses by several feet and the figure on the couch rises up like a vampire in a coffin.
I try to scream again, but only a whispery, pitiful squeak leaves my throat. I’m pointing, scooting back on the bed, painfully aware that I can’t run because I’m crippled. This is how I die. Dead in somebody else’s guesthouse. Dead before I ever got a chance to get laid by a dreamy NHL player. It would almost be funny if it wasn’t so tragic.
“Andi,” the voice says. It’s deep and familiar. “Calm down. You’re going to wake everyone up.”
I frown, leaning forward in the darkness. “Jesse?”
He rubs the back of his head. “Yeah. Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I was sleeping in my bed and then I started imagining you waking up in the middle of the night to pee or something. I wasn’t sure if you’d be able to make it to the bathroom on your own. And I didn’t want to wake you… so I was just waiting here. But shit–” he chuckles a little. “I can’t seem to stop scaring you to death today.”
“It’s past midnight,” I say. “So now you scared me yesterday and today.”
“Right. Well, um, did you need help getting to the bathroom or something?”
“Are you going to help me get my pants down if I do, Jesse? Was that your plan?”
“Uh,” he says. He’s kind of adorable when he’s uncomfortable. I probably shouldn’t put him through it so often, but I can’t help enjoying the sight of him sweating. “I hadn’t really thought through the logistics. I just didn’t want you to be alone out here.”
“Okay,” I say. “I don’t need to pee, though.”
“Alright.”
There’s a long pause.
“But I am pretty cold.” I’m also a liar. Jesse must’ve cranked up the heat because I’m definitely not cold. “And that couch is too small for you.”
Another long pause.
“You want me to come in your bed?”
I shrug, then realize he can’t see me in the dark. “If you want to.”
I laugh at the sound of sudden movement. In less than two seconds, Jesse has moved from the couch to the bed beside me. I can see the faint shape of his smile in the darkness.
“Okay, then,” I say.
“Andi?” he asks.
“Yeah?”
“I need to at least touch you. We don’t need to… but at least let me help you.”