Page 7 of Ice Dance Hockey

He’s not done yet. He skates around the ice, executing one death-defying feat after another. My hands clench a hundred times. My gut swims in a state of eternal nausea. I don’t like any of this. That’s ice. Ice is hard. He’s not durable. The math only goes one way. What if he falls?

Logan doesn’t. Not once. All his moves are crisp and perfect. He’s … well, he’s me if I were a figure skater. The music, which I’d forgotten about, ends. I also forgot why I was here, but it tears back to me like a streak of lightning. It requires a physical shake, but I shed the terror I experienced moments before. I can understand why he loves figure skating. It must be thrilling while you’re up there, knowing one fuck up could be your last.

The best kind of adrenaline.

Walking down the steps, I clap the applause of a thousand crazed figure-skating fans. He scowls.

“What are you doing here? It’s not your time yet. I’ve been appropriately scolded, warned, and lectured. I’ll be off the ice at five am. Not a second before.”

He’s like a tiny tiger baby with sharp claws. I don’t mind a little blood. This could be fun. “I’m here to apologize for yesterday. We got off on the wrong foot.”

He laughs, removes a water bottle from his bag, and sprays a little on himself before he downs several gulps. Water drips from those long lashes of his as he blinks them away. Well, shit. He’s stunning.

“Do people actually believe the bullshit that comes out of your mouth?”

I frown. Am I smiling wrong? I never get responses like this. People kiss my ass, literally, all the time. Theydobelieve my bullshit.

“If your angle is Jack, he’ll be waiting outside from now on. They had a fight about you yesterday and he doesn’t want to give Merc the impression he’s flirting with you.”

My face screws up in confusion. “Why would he have that impression?”

Logan smiles. “Because I gave him that impression.”

The little idiot. He’s going to ruin everything. If I can’t be around Jack, I won’t get the chance to remind Jack how much he loves me. “Why would you do that?”

“I want them to break up,” he says, not sorry about it.

“I want them to break up, too,” I admit.

“True,” he says as if he’s some sort of human lie detector.

I’m not going to get anywhere with my usual strategies, I might as well tell him as much as I’m willing to. “I need a fake boyfriend. My aim is to convince my father that I’m into someone else so that he’ll stop trying to sabotage Jack’s hockey career, while simultaneously winning him back from your brother.”

His eyes rake up and down my body. “What would I get in return?”

Normally, I wouldn’t show all my cards, but he’s made it clear he’s not dealing with anything less and this is too important. I shrug. “I’m filthy rich, famous, and powerful. Name your price.”

His eyes widen briefly, but the shock is quickly replaced with a smile that’s like the Grinch when he realizes he can steal Christmas. “Wow, you’re not kidding. Jack means a lot to you, doesn’t he?”

“More than someone like you will ever understand.” I don’t like this, being vulnerable with a complete stranger. One who’s fine with ruining his brother’s life—the same brother that took him in without a second thought.

“You don’t know a thing about me.”

“I’m not going to stand here arguing with you. Do we have a deal or not?”

“We haven’t negotiated the terms.”

He’s already infuriating. This might be a bad idea, but it’s the best one I’ve got now that I’m short on time. “Let’s hear them then.”

“I want my half hour of ice time back.”

I predicted that one. I probably don’t need two hours anyway. “Jack knows me too well, it’ll be suspicious if I suddenly give up the ice time I was hell-bent on keeping.”

“I pegged you for a guy that does this sort of thing often. Was I wrong or does anything Jack make you stupid?”

When this is over, I’m going to toss him over a cliff. “I don’t understand.”

“You’re not going to be able to convince Jack you’re really dating me any more than I’m going to be able to convince Mercy that I’m really dating you. You need to get your dad off Jack’s back, we’ll just tell them what we’ve negotiated. Problem solved.”

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