Offside: Chapter 60

I leaned against a pillar in Northview Arena’s concourse, waiting for Chase to come out of the dressing room while excited Falcons fans poured out the doors, chatting excitedly about the three-one win. One of the goals had been Chase’s—luckily, his time off during his suspension hadn’t hurt his game any.

Coincidentally, Chase’s first game back was at home and against none other than Callingwood. The game was significantly less dramatic than previous matches between the two schools, mostly because Luke was gone. Within a few days of the video leak, his parents flew up and hauled his sorry ass back to Texas. Apparently, they had to make a deal with the district attorney to get permission for him to leave the state.

With his departure, an invisible weight had lifted off my shoulders. I hadn’t realized how keyed up I was about the ever-present chance of running into him until it was no longer a possibility.

Derek told me there were rumors Luke’s parents had him working at one of the fast-food restaurants they’d invested in. It was poetic justice, given how Luke looked down on service jobs. That was in addition to being expelled from Callingwood and essentially shunned by the NHL. No team would even talk to him.

Kristen was gone too—suspended indefinitely, which would surely turn into an expulsion after her hearing.

The scandal was slowly losing its legs, probably because Stewart’s team had been relatively successful in tamping down on the video. Over the past week, things had started to return to normal. Today almost felt like an ordinary day. Almost.

None of it erased the pain, but it was a start.

Scanning the lobby, I found a vacant red bench and made my way over to it. I checked my phone for a status update from Shiv, who was at home scrambling to finish a sociology paper due at midnight. She was the queen of procrastination. It had to be an incredibly stressful way to live, but her grades were solid, so I guess it worked for her. I, on the other hand, would have flunked out of college and been committed for a nervous breakdown if I tried that strategy.

Her latest text reported that she was nearly done and would commence packing for our weekend trip to Dallas’s parents’ cabin shortly. How she’d managed to write a ten-page paper in one day, I’d never know.

I strongly suspected Shiv wasn’t a light packer, though, and that it would be a while before she and Dallas were ready to leave.

I glanced up just as Derek rounded the corner. His gaze fell on me, his expression brightening. Locking my phone, I pushed to stand and met him in the crowd.

“Hey,” I said. “How was your first game as captain?”

The minute Luke got in trouble for the video debacle, he implicated Paul. It wasn’t clear whether Paul had been involved or whether Luke was shirking responsibility. Derek had been asked to step in and assume Luke’s previous role.

“Good.” Derek shrugged. “Team is still adjusting, but we’re pulling through. The energy is a lot less toxic, uh, now that he’s gone.”

I didn’t doubt that.

“You guys played well, considering all the upheaval.”

“Yeah, not bad.” Derek gave me a half-hearted smile. His warm brown eyes scanned my face, and his mouth twisted into a frown that was eerily reminiscent of our father. “I wanted to apologize again, though.” He rubbed the back of his neck and cleared his throat. “I was wrong.”

Hold up. I blinked, doing a double- and triple-take. Derek admitting to being wrong? And apologizing? Hell had officially frozen over.

“About what?”

Of course I already knew, but I’d make him say it anyway.

“Carter,” he said. “You were right; he’s good to you. You seem happy.”

Happy was an understatement.

“Crazy happy.” A goofy grin broke out across my face. I couldn’t even attempt to hide it. “He’s my person.”

“That’s great, B.”

I nudged him with my foot. “You’ll find your person someday.”

Someone bumped into me from behind, jostling me slightly. Derek grabbed my elbow and steadied me, giving me an uncharacteristically bashful smile.

“Actually, it is getting kind of serious with this girl Kim I’ve been seeing.”

My mouth dropped open. “Shut up. And you’ve been hiding this? When do I get to meet her?”

“Whenever you want.” He shrugged. He was making an effort to seem casual, but it was obvious that he was nervous.

“Tomorrow? Name a place and time.” I laced my fingers together, stretching out my hands and rolling my shoulders. “I’ll bring a list of questions. I have to play the role of protective little sister.”

Derek laughed. “Think you’ve got that backward.”

“Nope.” I shook my head. “After Jill, I want to be sure this one is legit. Or she’ll have to answer to me.”

I was still grinning at my brother when Chase strolled up from the other direction and threw an arm around my shoulders. He was running hot like a furnace on full blast, like he always did after games, and the comforting warmth of his body radiated through his dress shirt.

“It’s true,” Chase said. “James is pretty terrifying.”

Derek pursed his lips and looked off into the distance, pretending to give it some thought. “Well, she did have a biting phase in preschool.”

Oh my god. It was one time. Jenny Martin started it when she stole my Barbie and shoved me to the ground. I was merely defending myself.

Okay, maybe I escalated the level of aggression a little. I was four, after all.

Chase squeezed my shoulders, barely fighting back laughter. “You don’t say.”

“I’m going to kill you, Derek.” I narrowed my eyes at him, then at Chase.

Chase straightened his expression, feigning innocence, but it was futile. I could see the gears turning in Chase’s brain.

“No. Nope. Nuh-uh,” I said. “Don’t think you two are going to get chummy and start to conspire against me.”

Chase winked. “Too late.”

“Oh, it’s definitely happening,” Derek said.

“Absolutely not.”

Clearly, I’d have to become friendly with Derek’s new girlfriend and exact my revenge.

“Does this mean you can show me old pictures of her now?” Chase rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Specifically, the ones from junior high? She’s never let me see any of those; claims they’re too embarrassing.”

And for good reason. I had braces, acne, and the worst haircut known to girlkind. My hair was cut in a blunt bob above the shoulders, and the natural waves made it stick out at the ends like a triangle. As far as I was concerned, pictures from that time period should be disposed of permanently—preferably with fire.

I’d seen Chase’s childhood photos, and he’d never had an awkward phase. He went from adorable chubby baby to cute toddler to nice-looking kid to hot teenager. It was patently unfair, and quite honestly, it seemed impossible. Everyone had an awkward phase; that’s what kept people humble.

Then again, the lack of one explained a lot about Chase.

“I’ll kill you both,” I threatened.

Derek excused himself to catch up with his team, and Chase dipped his head, nuzzling my cheek with his nose. “You can bite me any time you want.”

With my arm still around Bailey’s shoulders, we navigated through the parking lot over to my truck. I held the door open, waiting for her to climb in, feeling lighter than I had in days. Maybe weeks. I was back on the ice, we’d won our game, and now Bailey and I were heading out of town to spend the weekend with Dallas and Siobhan at his parents’ cabin.

My plans consisted of doing sweet, sweet nothing aside from eating, drinking, and trying to convince James to skinny dip in the hot tub with me. The cabin was in the middle of nowhere, so neighbors weren’t an issue. And we could make a schedule or something with Dallas and Shiv, right? Book some time slots?

“What’s their cabin like?” Bailey asked, buckling her seat belt.

I pulled out of the parking space and braked to let a group of Falcons fans pass. Their faces were painted crimson. It was awesome. I loved super fans.

“More of a mansion than a cabin, to be honest. Four bedrooms and five bathrooms, I think. It backs up to the lake, sick hot tub. You know, the works.”

Their “weekend getaway” home was ten times nicer than the house we lived in. And our place was pretty damn nice.

“Why am I not surprised?” She laughed, then her expression turned wistful. “Ah, to be rich.”

If I had it my way, she’d at least be comfortable someday. If she ever let me pay for things. It was still a battle with her most days. At this rate, I’d be stuffing money under her pillow like the fucking tooth fairy.

I signaled left out of the parking lot. “Ward texted and said Shiv was going to take a quick shower before they headed out too.”

“Really?” Bailey groaned. We both knew there was no way she’d be showering alone. And their two-person showers weren’t exactly quick or water-conserving. “She hasn’t even finished packing yet. You said it’s, what, a two-hour drive? They’ll be a while.”

Bailey was right—we planned to make dinner once we were all there. Their scheduling would make for a late evening, but that meant more time for the two of us alone.

“Looks like we have time to kill.” I put my hand on her knee. “Want to take a little detour along the way?”

Bailey eyed me suspiciously. “Are you still trying to get truck sex?”

That wasn’t my original plan. But if she was offering…

“I’m always trying to get truck sex, but I was thinking hot chocolate.”

Half an hour later, we made our way up the staircase to End of the World with two cups of salted caramel hot chocolate in hand. Naturally, I had converted Bailey to the only appropriate flavor choice. Though her blowjobs were better than the salted caramel by a mile.

It was a brisk, chilly day and no one else was around, which afforded us our choice of benches. We grabbed the one with the best view, but the instant we got settled, my phone vibrated from inside my coat pocket. I pulled it out, expecting it to be Ward, but it was his father instead.

Bailey stared at my phone. I swiped the screen and put Stewart on speaker. It was easier than giving Bailey a replay after.

“Hi, Stewart.”

“Chase,” he boomed. “How are you doing?”

Bailey’s attention snapped to my face as if she’d been wondering the same thing.

“Decent.” All things considering. My life hadn’t totally fallen apart. People were talking about me, but they always had. It was just amplified temporarily.

“I have some news,” he said. “I just got off the phone with Los Angeles.”

My body went rigid. Bailey’s grip on her cup of hot chocolate tightened, and her breath stilled. We both froze, waiting for Stewart to continue.

“They’d like to see you stay and finish out your fourth year of college.”

I must have been holding my breath too, because I let out a heavy exhale. “Okay.” Then I nodded. Stewart, of course, couldn’t see me, but it was more of a reflex than anything.

After several conversations with Stewart, I’d been expecting it and had made peace with it already.

Sure, I was disappointed. My future was veering in a direction I hadn’t planned for, but a small part of me was relieved by this outcome. I liked my life the way it was now, so I’d welcome another year of it.

I stole a glance at Bailey, and for once, I couldn’t read her expression. But I had a hunch she felt much the same way I did.

“It’s not a punishment,” he stressed. “They want to shield you from negative attention while the case is ongoing. As a rookie, the media would eat you alive over this. Waiting a year gives things a chance to cool down.”

He was right. The last thing I wanted was to be known for a scandal instead of my gameplay. It would probably always follow me, but by the following year, at least it would be old news.

After I ended the call, I shifted my weight and turned to face Bailey.

She touched my arm, studying me with concern. “How are you feeling about that?”

“It could be worse.” I shrugged. I could have been dropped from my contract altogether, so this was a win. “And it means more time with you.”

If not for James, I probably would have been devastated. But I could keep playing high-level hockey, and I could still live with Dallas and Ty next year. And best of all—I’d be here with her.

“Still,” she said, “it’s okay to be disappointed. I wouldn’t take it personally if you were.”

“Maybe a little, but I’m good, I promise.”

Bailey scanned my face and sucked in a breath like she was going to speak. Instead, she slowly let the air out and gave me a soft smile. She didn’t believe me.

“Promise, James. When have I ever hidden how I felt?”

She laughed. “Fair point.”