Page 56 of Rookie Moves

When his eyes meet mine, I swallow the lump forming in my throat.

“We…” I say weakly.

“I know, Colbs,” he whispers, glancing back down at the photos. “I know.”

Without a word, we put the photos in our wallets and make our way outside. The silence on the walk to the burger place isn’t awkward, but there’s an obvious shift in the air between us.

Does he regret agreeing to this?

Thankfully, by the time we sit down to eat, we manage to shake off the cloud that’s been shadowing us since the arcade. There are TVs mounted on the walls showing various sports channels, and we get talking about the game tonight.

“Is it bad I really want the Steelheads to win tonight?” Tyler chuckles as we go through security after dinner.

Someone in a Boston Gargoyles jersey gasps next to him, and I cover my mouth with my hand to stop myself from laughing.

“Oops, sorry!” he calls after her, then snickers. “Maybe I shouldn’t have said that so loud.”

“You think?” I laugh and lead him up the escalators to the upper level.

Even though we’ve not long eaten burgers and fries, we order hot dogs and two sodas because we have the appetite of two hungry pigs. Tyler pulls his wallet out to pay, but I quickly shove him away from the card reader with my shoulder.

“Let me pay for these,” I say, tapping my phone against the card reader before he can reach around me. “You paid for the hotel and for dinner.”

“But—”

I pass him the hot dog and cup of soda. “Don’t argue with me, Beckmann.”

A slow grin twists his lips. “Or what?”

I don’t answer, just lean in and take a bite out of the end of his hot dog. Tyler gasps, eyes widening. I grin around my mouthful of food and pick up my own.

“You sneaky fuck,” he chides, but it’s all in jest.

We head over to a tall table to eat our hot dogs, and I let Tyler take a bite out of mine to call it even. I’m not that much of a menace.

We take our seats in the upper bowl, and look down at center ice. There are still a few minutes until warm-up starts, but it’s already starting to get busy.

Glancing around, I notice how nobody is paying any attention to us. They’re all focused on the ice or talking to the person next to them, unaware or unbothered that I’m here.

For the first time since we arrived at the arena, the swarm of nerves in my stomach settles, allowing me to relax, and it gives me the confidence to do something I wouldn’t normally get the chance to do.

I move my hand to rest between us and hook my pinky finger into Tyler’s like we did on the bus. The second my finger curls around his, he looks over at me, those dark brown eyes flashing with surprise, and then a smile lifts the corners of his mouth, lighting his entire face.

Maybe tonight can be everything I want it to be, and I can pretend that it’s not going to come crashing back down again tomorrow.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

TYLER

Colby’s gone unusually quiet. Not that he’s a loud guy by any means, but I can sense he’s all up in his head, rather than enjoying himself like I’d hoped.

Today has gone better than I expected it to. Being around him is easy. He has such a calming presence to him when he isn’t being pressured, and I’ve had a lot of fun so far.

Even if the evidence of what’s going on between us was like a jump scare in those photos.

We look like we’re in love, and while it scares me half to death, there’s also this sense of relief that I’m not alone in this feeling.

I know we need to talk about it. Make it clear that exploring something more isn’t an option.