Page 21 of Play It Sinful

I’m still in shock, and all I can do is watch him shake hands with Tallulah. I don’t know if I should be glad for her interruption, or mad as hell. In the end, annoyance wins. She’s been gone all week, why did she have to show upnow?

“Hey, I didn’t expect to see you today,” I say.

“Oh, I just came by to grab some clothes. I’ll be out of your hair shortly.”

“Don’t stress. I have to go,” Sean replies. “It was nice to meet you.”

She narrows her eyes. “Hey, aren’t you on the hockey team?”

“Yeah, I’m?—”

“I thought you were already late.” I start pushing Sean toward the door. “Thanks for helping me.”

“Yeah, no problem.”

“I’ll call you later,” I say before I shut the door in his face.

I feel horrible, but I can’t let my roommate know who Sean is. It’ll be too easy for her to figure out he’s my stepbrother.

“You didn’t have to get rid of your boyfriend on my account.”

I shake my head. “He’s not my boyfriend. He’s a distraction, and I have lots to do today.”

She smiles knowingly. “Oh, I know all about distractions. But don’t let academics get in the way of good times.”

“No doubt, no doubt.”

Shit. Why I’m speaking like Jake Peralta fromBrooklyn 99?

I start unpacking my art supplies, but it’s to keep busy. I can’t believe I kissed Sean again, and this time, I don’t have an excuse. I simply wanted him. What’s wrong with me?

A few minutes later, I receive a text message from him.

SEAN: I’m sorry about what happened.

ME: We were both to blame.

He starts typing, but the message never comes through. Fuck. It means he was going to say something but changed his mind. After a minute of me watching dots appear and disappear, his message finally arrives.

SEAN: We can’t do this again. It’s best if we stay out of each other’s way.

My stomach drops through the earth. Are you fucking kidding me?Hecame on tome, and now he’s bailing. That’s such a Sean thing to do. Just like he wouldn’t take responsibility for starting that fight at the bonfire when we were younger.

ME: Agree. Best idea your stupid brain ever had.

SEAN: Was that supposed to be a burn?

Jackass. I’m tempted to reply, but by some miracle, I’m able to exert self-control. Ghosting is a much better response.

CHAPTER 8

ASHLEY

Ihaven’t heard from Sean in three weeks. When he said we should stay away from each other, he truly meant it. But out of sight doesn’t mean out of mind. The pest pops up in my head too often, and thanks to hockey being the most popular sport on campus, there are posters of the hockey players everywhere.

Determined to prove Sean doesn’t have a hold on me, I agree to go the first hockey game of the season. Tickets sold out within minutes, but thanks to my new friend Blair Westwood, I got tickets for me and the girls. It seems everyone I meet has a connection to a hockey player. If that’s fate’s twisted sense of humor shoving Sean down my throat, I’ll have to swallow him down.

You’ve already done that, Ash.

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