Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 99921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 500(@200wpm)___ 400(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
“One of the parents wants to talk to me,” he said. “Sorry. I’ll only be a few minutes more.”
“No problem.”
He pulled a jacket out of his bag and wrapped it around my shoulders. “Be back.”
“Okay.”
Fox’s jacket was heavy—the kind of weight you probably need when you spend hours in an ice arena. But that wasn’t what warmed me. It was the smell. I couldn’t help myself. I raised one shoulder to bring it closer to my nose for a sniff.
Mmmm…
Musky, with a hint of leather. Masculine, just like everything about the owner. It made me wonder if the scent was even a cologne. I smiled to myself. I wouldn’t be surprised if Fox’s pheromones alone smelled this good.
Of course, that was the moment Fox walked back. His eyes narrowed. “What are you grinning about?”
“Nothing.” I hopped up from the bench. “You ready?”
“Yep.”
On the drive here, I’d been worried the trip home would be even more awkward than the car ride with Fox this morning. But my experience in the arena had changed the vibe. I’d barely buckled in and started the car before my questions started.
“How long have you been coaching the team?”
“I guess about three years.”
“You skate really well.” My eyes were on the road as I pulled from the parking spot, but I heard the smirk in Fox’s voice.
“That’s sort of a prerequisite when you play professional hockey.”
“You’re allowed to skate with your bad knee? You said you blew it out and it ended your career.”
“It holds well enough to skate around for coaching. But I can’t play at the intensity level the league requires.”
I nodded. “It must’ve been hard to have your career end so early.”
Fox was quiet for a minute. “It was a rough time, yeah.”
“Seems to have turned out well, though. Opal said you run a few jobs at a time these days.”
“I got lucky. Some guys don’t know anything but hockey.”
I took a deep breath and nodded. “I get it. I’ve given a lot of thought to changing careers myself. But I have no idea what I would do. All I’ve ever wanted to do was work in research.”
“Why would you change your career? Didn’t you go to school for most of your life to get where you landed?”
“I did. But...”
Fox looked over at me. “Sometimes you don’t get over what happens, Josie. You have to figure out how to walk around it instead. Otherwise you’re stuck in the same place forever.”
I sighed. “Yeah.”
“Is that what you’re really doing down here? Hiding from what happened?”
I shook my head and shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe…”
Fox looked out the window. “You can only run for so long. Eventually whatever’s eatin’ you catches up.”
I forced a smile. “Yeah. Plus, I can’t run to save my life. We used to have relay races in elementary school during gym class. I was always the last one picked.”
Fox chuckled. He was quiet for a while, but this time it didn’t feel weird or awkward.
“Thanks again for picking me up,” he eventually said.
“Anytime.”
“Probably be the last time. Two of the guys asked me if you were single on my way out.”
“The players?”
He nodded with a laugh. “They’re definitely the most cocky, confident bunch I’ve ever coached.”
I smiled. “Their coach must be rubbing off on them.”
Back on Rosewood Lane, I turned into my driveway. Whatever lack of awkwardness I’d appreciated on the trip home quickly disappeared when I turned off the engine. Neither of us got out right away. We sat in the dark, me looking straight ahead and Fox looking—I wouldn’t know because I didn’t dare glance over.
When I couldn’t take the silence a second longer and thought I might burst, I turned and said, “Fox,” at the same moment he turned and said, “Josie.”
He lifted his chin. “You first.”
I shook my head. “No, you. I didn’t have anything important to say.”
Fox nodded, yet he took a moment to look out the window before speaking again. “The last woman I went out with, I took out to dinner twice. I stayed at her place the second time, and I had to take her to Starbucks for coffee the next morning because I couldn’t remember her name.”
I scratched my head. “And you’re telling me this because…”
“Another time, I was early to meet a date at a bar. Saw an ex-teammate and we got to talking. He asked me if I wanted to grab a bite at the restaurant next door. I said sure. It wasn’t until I passed the woman I was there to meet that I remembered I was there to meet her.”
“Are you trying to tell me you’re forgetful?”
“No, Josie. I’m trying to tell you I’m a shit boyfriend. My ideal date is fuck first, eat some pasta, then go home and sleep in my own bed. I’m selfish, and I like my life the way I like my life. Simple. You are anything but simple.”