Page 56 of Hard to Break

I hesitate, glancing at the TV just in time to see the Kodiaks miss another easy shot. I make a split-second decision.

“I’m going out.”

I leave Waffles, promising to be back soon.

When I arrive, the party is in full swing, the bass thumping through the walls.

“You need a drink!” Dante offers me a beer in the kitchen.

“Nah, I’m good.”

“Come on. It’s been a rough week and I need a buddy.” He clocks my reluctance. “I’ll give you all the dirt on Hawkins,” he says, a slow grin creeping across his face. “He was on my high school team.”

Well, fuck. This could be a chance for me to get insight into our biggest competition.

It’s a worthy cause.

So, I accept the beer he hands me.

He tells me more about Hawkins’s reputation, that in high school he not only engaged in a ton of trash talk, but more than once suggested playing dirtier. That before finals, tried to break up the other team’s captain and his girlfriend.

I file that away as I find myself drinking more and more. It’s less about keeping pace with him and keeping him talking, and more trying to dull the ache of being separated from my team and Brooke. Conversations swirl around me, but I barely register the words.

I see the final score on a TV out of the corner of my eye. Guilt settles into my gut.

Go to the gym. Keep your head down.

My agent’s words come back to me.

I slam my empty cup on the table and stumble outside, the cool night air hitting me like a slap in the face. In my drunken haze, an idea takes hold.

Calling a limo is easy.

I stop at my place to get Waffles, chuckling as he licks my face excitedly. “We're going on an adventure, buddy.”

I tuck him under my arm and head for the arena’s side door.

I navigate the dark hallways, memories of better times flooding back. Waffles trots ahead, his tail wagging as he explores this new playground. His enthusiasm is contagious, and I find myself grinning despite the heaviness in my chest.

After swiping into another two security zones, we end up in the locker room, and I sink onto the bench in front of my locker. Waffles hops up beside me, his warm body pressed against my thigh.

“What are we going to do, Waffles?” I whisper, burying my face in his soft fur.

Waffles cocks his head, his ears perked up. For a moment, I swear he understands every word. I lean back, my head spinning with anger.

But then Brooke’s face flashes through my mind, her eyes filled with disappointment and hurt. She wouldn’t want this. She wouldn’t want me to throw away everything we’ve fought for, everything we have.

I run a hand over my locker. For the first time since everything happened, it strikes me that someone was in here.

Getting in here requires ID. There’s no way someone wandered in here and left drugs in my locker by mistake.

And I saw the faces of every guy on my parade out of here. None of them did this.

So, who did?

I don't hear the footsteps approaching until it's too late.

“Hey! What are you doing in here?” a gruff voice demands.

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