Page 27 of Ice Bet

The bell on the door chimed over our heads. When I turned back to get one last look at Aasher, I watched him mouth the words,“Tomorrow night?”

I smiled deviously.

Before Sutton and I reached her car, I grabbed the milkshake out of her hand and gave it a quick sip before handing it back. “We need to talk.”

“About you and Aasher? Because there isdefinitelysomething going on with you two.”

There was, but it wasn't what she was assuming.

“I need to put him in his place.”

If he wanted to follow me everywhere and watch my every move when his teammates were around, then I’d give him a show. Irritation was fueling my impulsivity, but that was what he wanted, right? To irritate me? The spark was long gone, but I still felt the after-effects of his warm breath on my neck with his belittling insults.

“Oh, I’m so in.” Sutton did a little jump.

I thought for a second. “Actually, I need to put the whole hockey team in their place.”

“The whole team? Why?”

As soon as we were both safely tucked away in her car, I stole another sip of the chocolate shake. “Remember when I was trapped in my dad’s office?”

She nodded before putting her car in drive. She zoomed past Ford and Aasher so fast that gravel kicked up, and they were forced to take a step back.

“There’s a bet.”

Sutton glanced at me.

I sighed, looking out the window. “An ice bet.”

She pressed harder on the accelerator.

“And I'm the prize.”

11

AASHER

I shook with exhaustion,but the exhilaration of winning backed my speed as I flew over the ice. Two Englanders’ players shuffled as I dipped past with my hockey stick leading the way. Ford caught my eye, and he lifted the puck and sent it soaring in my direction. The contact traveled all the way to my bones, andthere wasn’t a single thought other than flinging the puck into the goal.

The buzzer sounded, and the crowd went wild.

Fuck yes.

The team flew over to me and tossed their helmets into the air, causing them to fall like rain droplets onto the ice. The fans screamed, and I smiled from the success.

“Fucking hell, that was a good game.” Efrain patted me on the back, and I nodded, still out of breath.

“Aasher!” I caught my name through the crowd, and I found Coach’s wife staring at me while she waved her arms frantically. I gave her a strange look when her blue eyes—the same color as her daughter’s—widened. She turned her phone around, and I was surprised to see my mom’s face on the other side of it, smiling proudly. She gave me a thumbs-up, and for a moment, I just stood there, wondering how different my parents’ lives would be if I had never dated the mayor’s daughter.

I smiled and put my glove up, signaling a wave. Then I turned around and skated toward center ice with the rest of my team to celebrate some more. Theo patted me on the back with his helmet in hand as sweat dripped down his face. “We’re fucking unstoppable this year.”

“We are.” I grinned.

We both knew that having a winning season and progressing to the Frozen Four was vital if we wanted to start off in the NHL on steady feet, and so far, the chances of that were good.

It didn’t take us long to get showered and cleaned up. The reporters kept their questions to a minimum, and Coach’s departing words were short and to the point, like always.

I pulled my bag over my shoulder and almost made it out of the locker room before he shouted my name from his office. I stopped mid-step.Fuck.

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