“What was that with Harper?” Wes asked me out of nowhere. “I saw the two of you talking about something.”
I glanced over at him with my gaze slicing through his. “I’m going to tell you one time and this is the last fucking time.” My voice was as sharp as ice. He was my best friend but I knew how Wes operated. He ran through girls like it was his job. “Forget her name and stay away from her.”
Wes raised his eyebrows at me. “I take it that you’re not passing on her then?”
An exasperated sigh escaped me. I didn’t know what the hell I was really doing, but I knew that I didn’t want Wes to get any ideas about her. Our conversation was interrupted as Lincoln was checked into the boards by us. He lost his footing momentarily, but quickly recovered before skating after the asshole who slammed into him.
A few of the guys skated over for a line change. Without another word to Wes, I hopped over the boards, even though it wasn’t my shift, and sped across the ice, chasing after the puck and the pack of players. As I skated into their zone, Lincoln slid the puck to me. I received the pass and weaved through two of their players before sniping the small spot between the goalie’s leg and his stick.
The bull horn sounded throughout the building and it echoed as our fans cheered loudly. The boys on the bench were slapping their sticks against the boards and I went for a different celly this time, dropping to one knee as I pointed my stick toward Harper from across the ice. The guys on the ice all skated over to me and when I got over to the bench, the guys had their hands out and I bumped my glove against each of theirs. Coach Anderson looked less than amused that I was on the ice when the rest of my line was still on the bench.
I may have scored a goal, but there was definitely going to be hell to pay for that stunt.
I had a feeling it would be worth it in the end.
CHAPTER THREE
HARPER
The entire night flew by faster than I had expected. It was a complete whirlwind and I would be lying if I said that it didn’t leave me feeling completely exhausted. During the periods, I was busy trying to capture as many shots as possible and during the intermissions, I was swamped with editing hundreds of images to send off to the media team.
They liked to have images to share on social media and the various websites during the game, so it was essential that we had them edited and sent over while the action was happening. We got our assignments for the rest of the game after the first period and they had me positioned on the glass for everything.
It was hard to ignore Nico Cirone and his presence. He dominated the game and made his place on the ice well known. It was impossible to deny that he was an extremely talented player and he skated with purpose. He still had a lot to lose and couldn’t miss a beat with proving himself.
Between him and Weston Cole, they ran most of the plays. It was exhilarating to watch, but I also had to be mindful while shooting that I couldn’t just have a million pictures of the two of them. They weren’t the only players who mattered on the team and even though Nico had infiltrated my mind and shook things up, I had to push him from my thoughts as much as possible during the game.
I was closing my laptop and packing my things away when Ava found me by my station. She strode over with a huge smile on her face.
“Girl, you killed it tonight!” She adjusted her bag on her shoulder. “Did you check the Instagram account? They used your shot from the game-winning goal on it.”
My eyes widened and my heart pounded erratically in my chest. With it being my first day on the job, it was not what I was expecting to hear at all. “Are you serious?”
Ava showed me her phone and, lo and behold, there was the photo I took of Mac O’Reilly scoring on the Firebird’s goalie during the last ten seconds of the game. “This calls for a celebration, girl. Let’s go out!”
I gave her a small smile. “I have something else that I have to do tonight, but can we celebrate tomorrow night instead?”
“Absolutely,” Ava said with a smile as she nodded. “Tomorrow night. I’ll text you in the morning after I figure out what trouble we can get into.”
I laughed softly and shrugged. “I’m not usually one for trouble but fuck it. I need some excitement in my life.”
“Good answer.”
Ava pulled me in for a quick hug with a promise of talking in the morning before we parted ways. She disappeared from the media room before I did and part of that was because I was so nervous to walk out to my car.
I knew that Nico would be out there waiting for me and I wasn’t sure I was ready to face him yet.
I couldn’t hang out in here forever and after giving myself a ten-minute long pep talk in the bathroom, I finally sucked it up and headed out to the parking lot. Most of the members from the media team had already left and there were only a handful of cars remaining.
As I walked alone, I spotted my car where I had left it in its spot and parked right next to it was Nico’s sleek Mercedes Benz. He was leaning against the front of his car wearing a pair of gray sweatpants and a black Vipers hoodie. His phone illuminated his face and as I neared closer, he lifted his head as he spotted me.
Nico dropped his phone and tucked it into the front pocket of his sweatpants as he pushed away from the front of his car. My stomach did a somersault as I approached him and the nervousness was swirling around in my veins again.
“Hey,” he said, his voice soft and warm as he smiled at me. “How did your night go?”
His question caught me off guard with the simplicity of it. I shifted my weight nervously. “It went well. It was pretty intense and exhilarating at the same time.”
Nico flashed his white teeth at me and my stomach did a weird flutter thing that I instantly wanted to shut off. This man almost had me naked a few days ago and his tongue was inside my mouth. What the hell was this life I was living?
“I’m really glad to hear that.” He paused for a breath. “I would apologize for blocking your view during warm-ups, but it would be a lie. I needed to see you again and it worked out in my favor.”
I almost choked on my breath as he spoke the words. His arrogance wasn’t as evident the first night I met him. He definitely exuded confidence, but goddamn. This was a different side of him and I wasn’t sure if I was turned on or wanted to slap him.
“Ah, so you’re all about yourself and getting what you want?”
Mischief danced in his irises and he shrugged. “I’m used to getting what I want.”
I tilted my head to the side as I set my camera and laptop bags on the hood of my car. “Is that why you didn’t tell me that you were a professional hockey player?”
Nico raised an eyebrow at me. “Quite the contrary. If I tell women that, it’s usually a done deal that they’re coming home with me.” His tongue slid out as he wet his lips. “I wanted you to want me for me, not because of my status.”
“Are you always this forward with people?”
A chuckle vibrated from his chest and I swear I felt it in between my legs. Heat crept up my neck and quickly made its way across my cheeks as I clenched my thighs together.
His lips twitched. “You’re blushing.”
“No, I’m not,” I retorted as I ducked my head and grabbed my bags.