Page 127 of Pinkie Promise

Hunter has been picking me up from my lowest points since the first moment that he met me.

Am I mortified about the fact that Hunter most likely forced his mom to hire me and that, when I told him that I needed to do this thing alone, he didn’t freaking listen? Yes. But most of all, the strongest feeling in my chest is an all-encompassing tide of gratitude, making my heart physically ache because I can’t believe that he would be so considerate. Hunter barely evenknewme back then, and he still went out of his way to get me the cash that he knew I was desperate for.

Hunter Wilde is the perfect man, and my long-neglected heart doesn’t know how to handle all of his love.

I jump as I hear a door close behind me, and I whip around with my hand clutching my chest.

Willa – Hunter’smom– is standing right there, her eyes wide as they look into my own, and suddenly I know that she’s been here the whole time.

“I…” I shake my head, unsure of what to say.Thank you for hiring me? Sorry that you fired your son?

There are only two things that I’m sure of.

One, I’m very overwhelmed.

And two? I love Hunter Wilde.

I untie my apron, give her an apologetic look, and in less than three seconds I’m out of the front door.

Chapter 31

Hunter

Can’t deny it, I’m feeling pretty good.

The culmination of years of training and dedication means that our team is one game away from becoming the NCAA’s Frozen Four champions, a win that will be even greater knowing that Fallon is going to be in the stands, on our home turf, watching us win it.

One bad thing that happened in the lead up to the final is the fact that Tanner is now sporting a less than ideal injury. During our last game one of the opposition players spent all three periods body-slamming him and, in the final round, he fully rammed him to the ice.

The ref paused the game and we pulled the guy off of him but not before it became clear that Tanner was going to have to be out for the rest of the game.

The attack was so unprovoked that even Tanner was in shock, but he still managed to give the guy a clean right hook before we pulled him over to the team box.

I checked the back of the guy’s jersey to see if we knew him, to see if he had some kind of personal motive, but the name Brennan didn’t ring any bells.

Benson didn’t give Tanner a second of shit for it, probably because it was the most unbelievable on-ice assault that any ofus had ever seen, and after the final two minutes played out we took Tanner to the hospital to ensure that nothing was broken.

So now Tanner is in recovery on the couch, nursing his mild sprain, although I know for a fact that he’s going to insist on at least one period’s worth of play during the final.

I don’t blame him for a second – not only has he worked his ass off on this team, he also previously captained it. It would be a slap in the face if he wasn’t involved in us securing the biggest win we’ve ever gotten.

I duck my head as I lock up my truck, smiling as I think about how fucking lucky I am right now. On my way to collect my girl, ready to bring her back to my place. I breathe out a laugh as I think about how Tanner is probably going to try and crash our movie night and, because Fallon’s such a sweetheart, she’ll probably let him.

I check my phone again as I trudge towards the diner, the last message in our chat staring back at me.

Can’t lie, after what she said, I kind of thought that she was going to send a cute picture of her smiling up at me in her adorable uniform during her break. Then again, she was literally on shift, so maybe her tables got real busy and she didn’t have the time.

Doesn’t matter. I get to see her now and that’s the important thing.

I pull open the door to the diner and step inside, rolling my shoulders as I scan the room for her. When I don’t see her at the tables or behind the counter I send her a quick text to sayI’m here, baby. Then I slip my phone in my pocket, cross my arms, and wait.

My leg starts bouncing after three minutes pass.

Something just… doesn’t feel right. In normal circumstances, she would have responded to my message if she was held back inthe kitchen or something. She knows that I’ll wait as long as she needs me to.

But all of this silence? It doesn’t bode well for me.

I decide to breach customer etiquette and duck around the counter, even more alarmed than before when I realise that she isn’t in the kitchen.

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