Page 18 of The Hat Trick

“Nice, are you guys playing tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I’ll let it slide this time that you don’t have my entire schedule memorized.”

Her soft chuckle makes me smile.

“You’re going to be really mad then when I tell you I’m not sure if I’ll be able to watch.”

I gasp, “You know what, maybe this casual thing between us isn’t going to work out after all.”

“Guess not, you’ve dodged a bullet though, I’m a handful.”

“I’m sure I can handle it.”

She’s quiet for a few seconds, I’m not sure if she hung up.

“I didn’t think you’d actually call,” she says quietly.

“Why?”

“Vince, come on, seriously?”

I really don’t know what she’s trying to say right now. She presents herself so confident most of the time, but I saw how flustered she was in front of her ex. That day I got a glimpse at what she tries to hide and I feel like that’s happening right now as well.

“I mean what I say when I say it, baby. So, if I tell you I’m going to call, I will. If I say I will continue to call you, I will. Understand?”

“Yeah,” the word is almost a sigh. “What time is it there, anyway? Don’t you need to go to sleep.”

“I should, I’ll talk to you later.”

“Goodnight, Vince.”

“Goodnight, Chandler.”

After we hang up, and I plug my phone in, I fall asleep almost instantly. My last thought being how she felt in my arms just last night. And how I wish I had that again.

8

Audrey finally came home after Vince left earlier and she instantly knew something happened. I didn’t deny it and she just laughed. Now, we are getting ready to watch the game together.

I worked today, and when I talked to Vince last night, I really wasn’t sure if I would be able to watch. It turns out, I was able to make it work. My job can be flexible at times. I work in marketing, it’s boring as shit, but sometimes I’m able to work from home and those are the best days in my opinion because my office and the people in it suck.

Audrey turned the TV on as soon as she came down from her room, so I’m half listening to the announcers talk about their predictions for the game, and how the two teams are doing already this season while I throw popcorn in the microwave for us.

“Dragons player, Matt McQuaid has had quite the season so far, currently on a five-game goal streak. I guess all that time he spends in the penalty box doesn’t hurt his gameplay.”

I scoff at the mention of the asshole on Vince’s team.

“Brent Collee, also on the Dragons, seems to be gearing up for his promotion of Captain in the coming seasons. Collee had a record-breaking last season, and he seems to be on track for another one this year.”

I had a brief interaction with that particular teammate, and he didn’t seem like an asshole. He seemed serious, but not in a bad way. He just seemed…focused.

The popcorn has finally popped, so I put it in a bowl, and bring it over to the couch where Audrey is already sitting. I tuck my lips between my teeth while I think about what happened on this couch when Vince was here.

Audrey knows I slept with Vince, but she doesn’t know where. Or that she’s sitting at the scene of the crime. I think about telling her, but then decide to keep that little tidbit of information to myself.

“Did you message Vince to have a good game?” she asks just as I shove a handful of popcorn into my mouth.

“No, why would I do that?” I mumble around the bite.

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