Page 46 of Rule Breaker

“Did it work?” Jace asked.

“Did what work?”

Jace rolled his eyes. “The T-shirt. Did you get kissed?”

“I did, once. But she gave me a peck on the mouth. Followed by a friendly, ‘Hey Kayden, cute shirt.’ No tongue,” I sighed. “Just my fucking luck.”

“Maybe tonight your luck will change? I hear the party’s going to be massive.”

There was only one set of lips I was thinking about. Not that I’d ever get the chance to kiss Maddox—or that I should want to. Maybe Jace was right. There were plenty of hot women on campus and I’m sure there would be plenty at the party tonight. I needed to get out of this weird headspace when it came to my feelings for Maddox.

“Looking forward to it.”

Jace nodded and stood up. I finished lacing up and followed him and the rest of my teammates as we lined up in the gallery.

I looked over my shoulder and spotted Maddox at the back of the line. When his gaze hit mine, I quickly looked away. I paced in place, shifting from one foot to the other, keeping warm, listening to the boom of music that filtered through the rink. Then the reverberation of the crowd chanting, “Cougars! Cougars! Cougars!”

When we finally got called out to the ice, the game was the only thing I was thinking about. Maddox was only a teammate.

Out here, there was no room for distractions. The only thing I wanted was to win.

Maddox

Yes, it was me. I’d bought Kayden that fucking bracelet making kit. I’d ordered it along with the journal I gave him. But I kept the kit under my bed until today, second guessing myself.

Why had I done it? That part, I was still figuring out.

But there was no way in hell I’d ever admit it. And no one would ever find out. If they did, I’d never hear the end of it. Icould only imagine the razzing from my teammates. Not that I gave a shit what they thought of me, but still. It was none of their fucking business.

I’d been careful to arrive extra early, hiding the kit in my backpack, and then dropping it quickly in front of Kayden’s stall before anyone could see me.

Then when Kayden arrived, I had a sudden moment of panic. What if he was embarrassed by the gift and everyone on the team started making fun of him? Fuck, I didn’t intend for that. Not after what he told me about being bullied. Thankfully, my worries were laid to rest. I was so relieved to see him laughing when he opened the gift, proudly telling everyone what it was. I had my ear pods in, so it looked like I was listening to music. But I wasn’t.

And I had to give him props. Kayden didn’t temper his enthusiasm for anyone.

Maybe that’s why I bristled so hard when he came at me with that sunny aura of his. His attitude reminded me of things I’d lost, of feelings that were out of reach. It also got me thinking about my mom, who was, in fact, very similar in nature to Kayden. Thinking about her was always bittersweet—there were memories I clung to when I had nothing else, and lonely wishes that she was still here for me to talk to.

I swear, sometimes the skin of my shoulders grew hot, like she was holding me, healing me, telling me everything was gonna be okay.

“Rocher! Moss!” Coach yelled. “Let’s go!”

Time to get my head in the game. Now wasn’t the time to think about personal shit. It was time for the left side of my brain to get fucking moving.

When I shuffled into the hallway, I was hit by the blast of roaring students.

“Cougars! Cougars! Cougars!”

Mask on and lined up, I was ready to go.

Coach waved us on, and we took to the ice for our pregame warmup. I expected a big turnout for our home game, but nothing prepared me for the sight and sound of this college crowd. It was heady, energizing, and terrifying all at the same time.

I glanced over at the box and spotted Sean sitting beside Axel, Finn, and the rest of the guys. I wondered how Sean was dealing with being the backup. He’d had surgery on his achilles tendon near the end of last season. He’d recuperated well enough, but Coach kept putting me in net. I’m sure Sean was frustrated as hell. Watching and waiting when all you wanted to do was play was the worse.

Kayden and Silas were on the first line, along with Dane, Jace, and Ethan. Kayden skated in my direction, and I braced myself for whatever he was about to say to me, willing him to go away. Fucking up my concentration was the last thing I needed right now.

But he surprised me. Kayden tapped the bar twice and skated back to his position. Then, there was no time for me to think about other players, or silly gifts, or a defenseman who was taking up way too much of my headspace.

Out here, there was only me facing off against that puck.

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