Page 39 of The Game

Beau’s assessing me, and I don’t think he’s finding me wanting this time around.

“Nice. Welcome, rookie. Come on in. Grab a controller. We’re playing Mario Kart.”

“Sweet. My name is Hail, though.”

“Nah, you’re the rookie for now. Deal with it. Maybe next year you’ll earn a nickname of your own, but we won’t be around to use it.”

Dev snorts at Beau’s comment. He’s not as invested in his book as he was pretending to be.

“Fine,” Hail grumbles. But I’m pretty sure he’s just happy to be here. Maybe keeping him at a distance has been part of the problem. Only a tiny part. He’s still a ginormous dickhead all on his own.

“I’ll sit this one out.” There are only four controllers, so I settle into the big red chair off to the side.

“Nah. You can have a turn. I’m gonna order some food for dinner.”

I snag the controller before it can hit me in the face when Beau tosses it.

“Who do you wanna be, Coco?” Grant asks, scrolling through the selection screen.

“Iggy Koopa, obviously.” I click over to make my choice.

“I’m going to be Bowser,” Hail says. “What the fuck?” JJ snatches the controller out of his hand, choosing for him.

“Nope. You’re Baby Peach.”

I stifle a snort at Hail’s glower as JJ hands the controller back to him. “How come he gets to choose his own character?” He tosses a head at me.

“Because he’s a senior, and he lives here. You, my rookie friend, have the privilege of visiting and therefore we get to make the decisions.”

“Not fair.”

I catch Dev’s eye as he looks up over the top of the book he’s reading, lips pressed together in a thin line as he snorts. We share a nod before I settle back in my seat to focus on the screen that’s a little too large for the small room.

Actually, to be fair, five hockey players are a bit much. Six when Beau gets back. Dev is sprawled in a burgundy leather recliner that would probably look big if his massive body wasn’t overflowing it. JJ and Grant are taking up too much space on the couch, leaving no room for the rookie while I sink into the other armchair.

I’m almost breathing hard by the time the game is over. Rainbow road is the worst. “That was a tough one.”

“Shut up.” A pillow hits me in the head to punctuate Grant’s point. “You smoked us all. You’re a ringer.”

I shake my head. “Nobody asked me about my skill level. I’ve been playing Mario Kart with my dad since I could hold a controller.”

“Well, you could have told us that.”

“Could have. But it was more fun this way.” I’m smirking on the outside, but on the inside I’m warm and fuzzy in a way I haven’t been here in Michigan.

“Don’t be a sore loser, Grant.” Beau walks back in, leaning on the doorframe with a smile on his face. He looks like a king surveying his peasants. I guess he kind of is the king now. Team Captain. Could have been me. In another lifetime.

This can’t last, right? In retrospect, my old team in Miami was kind of toxic. I thought we got along well, but looking back, I know my old coach fostered a level of competitivenessthat led to backstabbing and trying to steal the spotlight. We still had fun in our off hours, but it wasn’t the same as it is here. I’ve missed so much.

I’ve been spending so much time remembering those good times and not remembering all the little things that led up to the big, shitty thing that drove me away. There aren’t any signs of that kind of behavior between these guys, except maybe the dumb-ass rookie. Everyone genuinely seems to want to work together to make the team better, and I’m for it. But I still don’t quite trust it.

Chapter 15

Playing The Villain

Jazz

I’m almost vibrating outof my skin as I roll the black tights up over my knees. Halloween is absolutely, without question, my favorite holiday of the year. I’m so glad Cole invited me to the party at his place. I’d go out to the bar, but I don’t really have a girl gang right now to back me up. He told me I could invite my business friends along, so we’ll see if any of them show up. It would be nice to have some of my own crew there, especially Amira.

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