Page 145 of Power Play

“Jesus, Hartwell. Miller. Wait—did you change your name?” Lexi asks.

“Not until I retire. I love him so much, but I want my name on the back of a jersey. Not his.”

“Oh, he’ssogoing to take yours.” Maven grins. “That boy wants the world to know you’re his.”

“I wouldn’t be opposed to that.” Emmy glances at me. “He keeps asking about you, Piper.”

“What? What about me?”

“I don’t know. He mentioned something about Liam and a secret and his favorite book trope? He wants to know if you’re wearing anything different these days that you weren’t wearing two months ago? I have no fucking clue what he’s talking about.”

“Tell him she’s wearing a smile because she is.Lookat how she’s glowing,” Lexi says.

“Okay, enough with the flattery. I have no clue what Mav is talking about, Emmy. I’m not wearing anything—” I snap my mouth closed, the chain of my necklace heavy against my skin. I touch the ring hidden under my shirt and turn bright red. “Oh, my god.”

All three girls look at me, and I busy myself with zipping up my bag.

Liam and I agreed we wouldn’t tell anyone.

I don’t know how Maverick found out, but hearing he’s kept his mouth closed around Emmy, the woman he tells everything to, surprises me.

“What’s wrong?” Maven asks.

“Nothing.” I shake my head. I’m not going to violate that trust I have with Liam, no matter how badly I want to tell my friends about what I’m hiding under my clothes. “I panicked about my passport, but I remember where it is.”

“I’d pay money to see you pull that prank on Liam when you’re at the airport.” Lexi grins. “He’d probably freak out.”

“Kind of like how I’m freaking out.” I groan and climb on the mattress, taking the spot between Emmy and Maven. “I’m nervous about meeting his family. I’m nervous about how we’re supposed to act around them. I’m nervous because Liam and I slept together, and I’m nervous because Idefinitelyhave a crush on him.”

“Holyshit. You cannot unload all of that on us twenty-four hours before you leave the country.” Maven grabs the pillow behind my head and hits me with it. “You slept with him and we’re just now hearing about it?”

“I’ve been busy!”

“Yeah, riding his dick,” Lexi chimes in, and I bury my face in my head.

“Yes, we’ve slept together. Yes, he’s amazing in bed. Honestly, the sex I had with Steven doesn’t even count. Heneverfucked me like that.”

“Details,” Emmy demands. “And don’t leave out a thing.”

I tell them about our first time and our second. I hold back on the video we made, not wanting the gossip to get back to someone who might tease Liam about it. I let them know how good he is. How patient and considerate he is while also having a filthy mouth I dream about.

“And now we’re coming up to the end of all of this, and I’m kind of sad.” I sit up and bring my legs to my chest. “I know I’ll find someone else. I’m not going to be single forever. But then I think about him sleeping with another woman and… I don’t know. I don’t like it. Which is insane, because he’s told memultipletimes he’s not interested in a relationship.”

“Neither was Maverick when I first met him. He was the ultimate playboy, but look at him now,” Emmy says. “He spendsFriday nights sending me articles on what cribs are best for newborns, and I’m not even pregnant.”

“Yeah, but Liam’s reasoning is his job. He knows how quickly things change in this sport, and he’s afraid if he’s distracted, if hockey isn’t his sole focus, he’ll lose everything he’s worked so hard for.”

Lexi shakes her head and stretches across the foot of the bed. “So show him he can have both.”

“How do I do that?”

“I mean, it sounds like you’re already doing it. You spend time together. He’s playing incredible hockey. And, whatever you’re doing in the bedroom is acting like a stretching tool too, because he’s in the trainers’ room less than he was last season.”

“Yeah, because I really make sure to prioritize his hamstrings when we’re sleeping together,” I draw out, and the girls all laugh. “I respect what he wants and what he doesn’t want. I’m not in love with him. It’s a crush because he’s giving me attention and treating me right. I bet if I went to the bar around the corner and started talking with a guy I met there, I’d feel the same way.”

“What if you didn’t?” Maven asks.

I don’t know.

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