Page 9 of Shoot Your Shot

An hour later, she was in the passenger seat of my beat-up, barely running truck as we parked down by the beach. She wasn’t crying anymore, but it was written all over her face that she was still shaken.

In the time I’d lived with her family, this was only the second time she had been in my truck. The first was the night I’d picked her up when she was walking at night.

“I should have never let you go tonight with that prick,” I growled. “I fucking knew better. I could tell he was scum the first time I met him.”

“I think, in a way … I could tell too,” she whispered. “But then he seemed so nice. And no one else would ask me because”—she paused, growing bashful—“you know, my dad and all. Everyone is scared to get on his bad side. And as pathetic as this sounds, I wanted a first date.”

Her words came as no surprise to me. Everyone knew you stayed clear of Coach Hendrix’s daughter or else, and yet…Brandon somehow slithered his way to her. I wish it would have been me all along, but I couldn’t afford for him to sabotage my hockey career before it even got a chance to take off. So, besides giving her a ride home once, I avoided her. At least, until this particular night.

“Yeah, I was scared to get on his bad side too,” I said, thinking out loud. “And now, I wish I had just saidfuck itand asked you anyway.”

“You wanted to ask me”—there was no mistaking the disbelief in her tone—“to homecoming?”

“Buttercup, I’ve wanted to do a lot of things that I can’t do. I wanted to do a lot of them the night I picked you up on the side of the road, but I had to contain myself. All because your old man gave me and my brother a hockey team to play for and a place to live.” I shrugged. “I guess I was scared to fuck it all up.”

“And now?” her voice barely croaked out.

I looked at her again, my eyes searching her face. “I don’t know. If I acted on whatever this is, I feel like … he’d lose his shit.”

She gave me the smallest smile, her eyes twinkling in the moonlight as she moved a little closer. “Who cares, Kolt Kolburne? You don’t seem like the type to back down from a challenge.”

“Usually, I’m not,” I said honestly. “Usually, I don’t give a fuck about repercussions.”

She paused, her smile growing wider. “Well then … shoot your shot, big guy. See what happens.”

Her words took me off guard, and I needed a few seconds to recover, but once I did, I leaned in. Cupping her cheek, I brushed her hair back from her face, and I kissed her so fucking hard. The night wasn’t picture-perfect, but I knew right then that I’d never want to be with another woman for as long as I lived.

She was it for me.

Snapping myself back to the present, I wipe my eyes again. This fucking hurts, maybe even worse than the day she left, and I think that’s because this time, I know it’s over.

Losing Paige means losing her family too. And even though I spoke ill of her dad, her family is like my own. The right thing to do would be to sign the divorce papers when they land in my mailbox. I know they are coming. It’s just a matter of when.

I should sign them, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to.

I might be okay with letting her go, but she’ll always be my wife.

A Year and a Half Later

“How was your date last night?” Jill says, sipping her iced coffee and winking. “Did you … stay the night? You’re looking a little tired today.”

My mouth hangs open. “No, I didn’t stay the night, you weirdo.” I scoff. “Do you know what he wanted to talk about for the entire dinner? Protein shakes. Which ones are good. Which ones suck. Oh, and his workout regimen. And his favorite gym.” I widen my eyes at her. “And then, when I ordered French fries with my steak … he gave me a disgusted look.”

“I mean, I didn’t say he was the smoothest guy. But I’ve seen him doing pull-ups at the gym, and let’s just say … the snake was doing some swinging.” She grins, bobbing her head up and down. “I might be a happily married woman and all, but even I can appreciate a king-size dong when I see one.”

“Oh my good God. Something is not right with you, girl.” I shake my head, taking a swig from my coffee, knowing it’s not going to fix me. “Anyway, I need to go over my schedule, so if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go before you mention the worddongagain.”

“Well, that’s the issue. You aren’t getting any!” she blurts out before I get the chance to gather my things. “It’s been, like … two years.”

“A year and a half,” I correct her. “That isn’t even that long.”

“Paige! That is not healthy!” she scolds me before standing up and grabbing a broom. “You might need this. You likely have cobwebs up your cooch.”

“On that note, I am going to my office.” I walk away from her, holding a hand up. “Let me know when my first patient arrives.”

“A year and a half is, like … a zillion days too long!” she calls behind me, but I keep walking.

Jill has been my assistant since I opened my office six months ago. And before that, we worked in another office together. She’s hilarious, but not when she’s talking about my vagina.

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