Page 72 of These Pucking Boys

I pull my arm free from his grasp. “If the truth comes out, your reputation will also take a blow.”

“I can survive the scandal. Can you?”

Every fiber of my being is urging me to tell my father to go to hell. I don’t want to give in and obey his orders, but hockey is everything to me. I’m not ready to give it up. I worked too hard to be where I am now. Plus, I’d be letting my teammates down too.

“I’ll be at Providence tomorrow,” I grit out.

He pats my shoulder. “Good boy. Come on, Greg. There’s someone I’d like you to meet.”

Gregory’s eyes glint with satisfaction. He always loves to witness my father humiliating me. My entire body shakes with barely contained rage as I watch them walk away.

“Jake, are you okay?” June touches my arm, and I flinch.

I forgot she was next to me, witnessing everything. Shit. What does she think of me now?

“No.”

“Anything I can do to help?”

I hold her stare. “Yes. Let’s get out of here.”

CHAPTER 30

JUNE

We left the party nearly an hour ago, and my stomach is still tied in knots and my heart consumed with worry for Jake. He hasn’t said much during the drive to I don’t know where. He only said that he was taking me somewhere peaceful after he texted Lachlan asking him to check on the pets.

The radio is on, but the songs that have played since we got on the road haven’t registered. I keep thinking about how awful Jake’s father and brother were to him. I can’t imagine growing up in that type of toxic environment. It makes me appreciate my parents more. They can be a pain in my butt, but I know they love me.

I sneak a peek at Jake for the umpteenth time and find him frowning. “A penny for your thoughts,” I say.

“What?” He turns to me.

“You looked like you were concentrating really hard on something.”

He gives me a half smile, then returns his attention to the road. “It’s nothing. We’re almost there.”

“And where isthereexactly?” I glance out the window, trying to guess where we are.We left the freeway some time ago, but I didn’t notice the signs.

“Hermosa Beach. I have a beachfront condo.”

My eyes widen. “You do?”

“Yeah. I usually rent it short-term, but it’s vacant now.”

He turns onto a quiet street that leads to the beach, then pulls up the driveway of a sleek two-story modern construction. I can’t see all the details in the dark, but it has a lot of windows. The garage door opens, and the lights inside turn on automatically, revealing a spacious three-car garage. It’s empty besides some storage units and a large fridge.

If I owned a condo by the beach, I’d live there full-time. But I get why Jake doesn’t. It’s far from the arena, and with LA traffic, he’d spent most of his time stuck on the road.

I get out of the car and wait for him. Instead of circling around the front, he walks to the rear, opens the trunk, and pulls out a duffel bag. I stare at it but don’t say anything. I don’t want to assume he planned to come here and didn’t tell me to pack an overnight bag.

“This is my gym bag. I always have it in my trunk,” he says as if reading my mind.

“Okay.”

He loops his free arm around my waist and pulls me closer. “I don’t want you to think I planned this and didn’t tell you.”

“I know you wouldn’t do that.”

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