Page 120 of Ice Mechanic

I cringe at the flashy headlines and ugly comments underneath the posts.

Chance looks better with Fina.

Fina, go get him! I’m rooting for you!

Fina and Chance McLanely would be such a power couple.

Renthrow reads over my shoulder. In a low voice, he assures me, “It’s just gossip. It’s not that serious, McLanely.”

I answer him with a grunt.

Gunner mouths to Renthrow, “What’s going on?”

I leave Renthrow to explain, put the phone to my ear and stalk out of the locker room.

“Come on, April, pick up,” I murmur as the phone rings.

The tunnels are packed with crew members.

“Hey, Chance!”

“Chance, great game!”

I rummage up a smile for the staff and duck into an empty room just as April picks up.

“Hey, Chance,” she says.

I sigh in relief. She’s not ignoring my calls. That’s a good sign.

“Did I wake you?”

“No, I’m at the garage.”

I check the time on my phone. “You’re working this late?”

“I couldn’t sleep.” A banging sound punctuates the words. She must have me on speaker.

“Why couldn’t you sleep? Did something happen?”

“No,” she says tightly.

I release a breath.

“How was your game today?” April asks.

“Great. We won.”

“I know. I saw the news.”

“Did you, uh,” I pull my collar away from my neck, “did you read anything else online?”

“Like what?”

“Irrelevant news.”

“Why would I read it if it’s irrelevant?”

Silence rings between us broken only by a loudbang!And the sound of metal dragging on the floor.

---