Page 90 of The Offside Rule
“Yup.”
That single word was so serious it made my throat tighten. He opened the door but didn’t step out. Instead, he looked at me one more time.
“Nerves aside,” he said, voice low, “I don’t regret you.”
“I don’t regret you either.”
CHAPTER 16
Hunter
By the time I pulled into the parking lot of The Orchard Table, I had convinced myself I could handle this. I had played in front of twenty thousand screaming fans and faced down defensemen who thought taking out my knees was a reasonable career strategy. Lunch with Cole and Holland Davis should not have been what made my palms sweat. Except none of those situations involved sitting across from my coach after I’d spent the afternoon with his daughter naked in my shower. I sat in my car for thirty seconds too long, staring through the windshield at the restaurant like it might burst into flames and solve all my problems. My phone buzzed.
Catherine: Are you here?
I looked toward the entrance and saw her standing near the host stand through the front window. Jeans. Blue shirt. Damp hair tucked behind one ear. Lips still a little swollen. My grip tightened on the steering wheel.
Me: Parking.
Catherine: Do I look normal?
I almost laughed, but nothing about this felt funny enough yet.
Me: You look beautiful.
Catherine: That’s not helpful.
I got out of the car before I could text something worse. The second I walked inside, Catherine looked at me. Just a quick flick of those green eyes, down my chest, back to my face, then away like I was any other person joining her family for lunch. She was doing well. I was already dying.
“Hunt,” Cole called from a booth near the window.
I turned and saw him sitting with Holland and Jaden. Holland looked bright and pleased with herself. Cole looked relaxed. Jaden looked like he would rather be anywhere else.
“Hey,” I said, walking over.
My voice sounded normal. Cole slid out of the booth and pulled me into one of those half-hugs hockey men did.
“Glad you came,” he said.
“Thanks for inviting me.” Guilt punched me in the ribs. Cole trusted me. He trusted me enough to pull me into family lunches and ask me about camp schedules and let me around his kids. And I had just crossed a line with Catherine so hard the line was probably in another zip code.
Holland smiled. “I’m very happy you’re here. You need real food.”
“I eat real food,” I chuckled.
“Protein powder isn’t food,” she said.
“It has nutrients,” I argued.
The hostess led us to a larger booth near the back, and somehow the only open spot was beside Catherine. Because apparently the universe had developed a very specific sense of humor. I slid in beside her, leaving what I hoped was a polite amount of space. There wasn’t enough space in the state ofTexas. Her knee was maybe three inches from mine, and my entire body knew it.
Jaden looked up from his menu. “Why are you sitting so stiff?”
I froze.
Catherine coughed.
“No reason,” I said. Too fast. “I’m good.”
