Page 127 of Secret Obsession
“I’m not fucking pouting.”
He shrugs. “Okay.”
“I’mnot,” I snap. “I just…”
“He’s upset about his car,” Steele interjects. “Which means we’re absolutely going out tonight.”
Not exactly true. More like, I’m worried about what my wrecked car means. Clearly, the break-in at Willow’s place wasn’t an accident. Not if the hit-and-run is related. And let’s be honest. It’s fucking related.
Going out will be about a quarter as fun as it usually would be, since Willow is back home with the other girls. Before her, I had fun enough at our outings. Usually dealing with my brother’s antics and getting drunk, getting hit on by girls…
That never ended well, because there was exactly one girl I wanted to make out with, pretty much from the moment I first set foot on campus.
But anyway, now I just want to go home and keep her safe.
“Hey,” Greyson calls, holding up his phone. “Rhodes is in town. He wants to meet up for lunch and said he’d pay.” He snorts. “He texted us an address.”
I follow my friends off the ice. We didn’t bother putting anything in the locker room, so we just squat and unlace our skates in the hall, wiping the ice and water off our blades and tucking them back in our bags.
We dump them off in our rooms and meet downstairs.
Twenty minutes later, we’re walking through the doors of a fancy-as-fuck restaurant. Greyson takes over, that whole money and privilege thing coming through loud and clear. He’s used to places like this, and the cocky smile he offers the hostess says that he gets exactly what he wants.
“Hey.” Jacob strolls in behind us. “We’ve got a reservation already.”
The hostess’s eyes go wide. While Greyson may have charm, I suppose Jacob has… fame?
Weird concept.
“Mr. Rhodes.” She clears her throat. “Yes, we have your table ready.” She glances at us with new eyes, and I can practically see her thought process. She’s wondering if we’re teammates she simply didn’t recognize or other people of importance.
We get a private table in the back, away from the other customers. It’s quiet, and a little dark, anddefinitelymoody. For a lunch, it might even be a little over the top.
“You guys are going back to CPU tomorrow?” Jacob asks.
Knox nods. “Yeah, bus is leaving by eleven.”
Jacob smirks. “Or… you could skip it and come tomygame tomorrow night.”
I sit up straighter. With our schedule, it’s difficult to get to the NHL games. They tend to coincide—plus the fact that Crown Point doesn’t have an NHL team in general. The closest one is Boston.
Greyson and Steele exchange a look, then over to us. Part of me wants to go—but the other part just wants to get back to Willow. Which is insane. But sue me, I love the girl.
“Sure,” Knox agrees, without fucking consulting any of us.
I bite my tongue.
“Yeah, man, we’d love to. We can fly back,” Greyson agrees. “Or rent a car.”
“Guys—”
Steele kicks me under the table. “What’s been going on with you?” he asks Jacob. “You seem…”
More fit? Tanner?Broaderthan the last time I saw him, not including when he was giving me the tracker to inject into Willow. That was in the dark, and he didn’t get out of his car. I’d guess taller, but I don’t think that shit’s possible. He does seem like he’s taking better care of himself. Spring semester last year was rough—he played fine, but he was definitely self-destructing on the inside. All because the professor he became infatuated with fled Crown Point.
He still signed with a team.
“I’ve been good,” he confirms. “Playing at this level is insane. It requires all of my focus, so I haven’t had time to think about anyone—anything else.”
