Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 79564 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79564 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
“What the hell was that?” he asks in a low voice delivered through gritted teeth. It gives me the impression he wants to yell but is containing himself.
This doesn’t bode well for me as Callum Derringer is about as cool, calm and collected as they come.
“Just some frustrations being played out,” I reply vaguely, not about to give Penn up. While I hoped to spur something from him by scratching open his past, I don’t want to get him in trouble. “Just know I deserved his anger, but it’s all good now.”
“Doesn’t look all good,” Callum retorts, glancing back at the line where Penn is waiting. Shoulders hunched, head down, anger still vibrating off him. When Callum’s eyes return to mine, they’re glacial. “He is our star player and while every man on this team is important, we cannot afford to have his head fucked with.”
“With all due respect,” I say quietly, “his head is already fucked and everyone knows it. Maybe it’s time for management to do an intervention with him.”
Callum blinks at me in surprise, his expression softening. “Is he in trouble?”
I blow out a breath. “I don’t think so.” I glance back at Penn, disappearing from view. “I just think he’s haunted.”
CHAPTER 28
North
The house is quiet and it’s irritating me. I’m stretched out on the couch staring at a crack near where the wall meets the crown molding. The remote rests limply in my hand. The TV flickers with the muted chaos of some action movie I don’t care enough to follow. I’ve been flipping through channels for the last hour, restless and bored, trying to drown out the ache.
I shouldn’t be thinking about her. It’s been five days since Farren walked away from me, and there’s been nothing. Not a text, not a call. Nothing.
That asshole Rafferty had given me hope before I boarded the plane to Detroit. He’d said Farren was figuring things out, that she wasn’t done with me. And like an idiot, I believed him.
But again… nothing.
By day three, I’d given up on it. She would have reached out if she wanted to talk and I refuse to ask Rafferty anymore about it. I’ve spent the last few days mourning not what was lost, but what could’ve been. The what-ifs are always the hardest, especially when I know I was ready to give her everything.
The road trip didn’t help. I threw myself into the games, just like Penn. Whatever demons he’s dealing with, he exorcises them on the ice, and damn if it didn’t work for him. He somehow managed to get out of his head and was virtually unstoppable, racking up points like he didn’t have a care in the world. I played well too, but every time the adrenaline faded, the hollow ache came back.
Now I’m here, stuck in this house that suddenly feels too big, too empty. The silence is suffocating and I can’t sit here anymore. Maybe I’ll go for a run. The sidewalks are clear after a few days of warmer weather. Anything to get out of my own head.
Just as I’m about to get up, the doorbell rings.
For a split second, hope flares.
Farren.
It has to be her.
Who else would show up unannounced?
I roll off the couch, tossing the remote on the cushion and stride to the door. My heart hammers as I press my eye to the peephole.
Rafferty’s face stares back at me.
Disappointment punches through my chest, leaving me deflated. Of course, it’s not her. I open the door, my expression no doubt as sour as I feel. “What are you doing here?”
He doesn’t answer but gives me a shit-eating grin before stepping to the side. With a dramatic sweep of his arm down the porch steps, my gaze follows and lands on Farren.
She’s standing on the sidewalk, her luggage piled beside her. She looks tentative, her hands fidgeting with the strap of her bag. A small, unsure smile plays on her lips, and it’s the most beautiful damn thing I’ve ever seen.
“I kicked her out of my condo,” Rafferty says casually, like this is the most normal thing in the world. “She has nowhere to go, so she’s your problem now.”
Before I can process what’s happening, he jogs down the steps toward his car parked at the curb. “You’re welcome,” he calls over his shoulder before climbing in and driving off.
I stand there, dumbfounded, staring at Farren. She meets my gaze, her smile faltering slightly under my silence.
“Is the offer to move in still open?” she asks.
I swallow hard, my heart pounding. “As just roommates? Or as more?”
She hesitates, her eyes searching mine. “I don’t know,” she admits, her voice trembling. “But I need to tell you why I freaked out last Friday.”
The weight of her words hits me, and I nod, stepping aside. “Come in.”
I help her with her luggage, bringing it inside as she slips off her coat and shoes. The tension makes my skin crawl as we settle onto the couch in the living room. She looks nervous, her hands twisting in her lap, and I ache to pull her into my arms but I’m afraid to move.