Page 61 of No Promises, No Lies

“Colt King?” I ask for confirmation, bewildered. Though it makes sense, now that I think about it. Liv nods before turning her attention back to parting the crowd.

Wait—if Liv istrying her chanceswith Colt tonight, that means theteamshe is referring to is…

Oh no.

My suspicions are confirmed when the crowd finally tapers off and reveals a roped off platformed VIP area packed full of Breakers players.

We stop momentarily for Liv to rise onto her tiptoes, whispering into the VIP bouncer’s ear.

“You didn’t tell me ‘the team’ meant thehockeyteam,” I hiss at Sadie and Elle behind me, narrowing my eyes accusingly.

Elle shoots me an apologetic smile while Sadie replies, “Well, I mean all the Belles are here, too,” She shrugs. And sure enough, mixed in with the hulking hockey players are the rest of the Belles skating team. Natalia’s smile drops to a frown the second she spots us.

I shut my eyes tightly as my friends push me against my will into my VIP version of hell.Maybe he won’t be here… He hates people. Why would he be here?

Tough luck. My eyes fly open, locking immediately onto Aidan’s. In the neon glow of the club lights, his green eyes arebrighter than I’ve ever seen them. The second he recognizes me, they darken to green flames.

“Welcome, ladies.” Colt King wraps his arms around Liv’s shoulders and mine, drawing me unwillingly further into the team’s center and closer to myfavoriteIrish defenseman. Aidan’s eyes flash with unmistakable violence as we get closer and I force myself to look away. Someone hands me a beer and I take it, needing something to do with my hands.

“You know, my last team didn’t have a cheer squad.” Colt looks between Liv and me, batting his long, dark eyelashes. “I’m looking forward to working alongside you ladies.”

A few of the guys shout their agreement and raise their glasses.

“Ain’t that right, O’Rourke?” Colt shouts over to his teammate. I laugh nervously, finding it hard to tear my eyes away from the simmering glare Aidan is shooting at Colt and me.Colt is all too aware of what he’s doing, smirking at Aidan—actively trying to rile the enforcer up.

Sensing my discomfort, Elle tugs me out of Colt’s grip. He doesn’t seem to mind. He wraps himself closer around Liv, who fawns under his undivided attention.

“Wanna dance?” Elle’s eyes shoot toward the dance floor, giving me a much needed out.

I nod, a little too exuberantly. I take a long pull of my beer as we sneak away, Sadie trailing after us.

One song and one more beer in, I’ve almost completely forgotten about the brooding Irish enforcer back in VIP, mostly thanks to Elle. The girl is absolutely magnetic to be around. She’s like the sun, extending her rays of sunlight to everyone around her.She and Sadie have me laughing to the point of tears as we compete in an impromptu dance-off to see who can come up with the most ridiculous dance moves.

Our fun does not go unnoticed, and soon I find myself with a tagalong. When the music takes a turn into a sexier beat, I feel him slide up. I let him grind up against me for a few minutes before spinning around to put a face to the firm body pressed up against mine.

A slow smile creeps across my face at the sight of the attractive blonde whose hands are on my hips. The way he’s dressed, his moves, the look on his face, all of it screamsplayer. I’m hardly looking for a boyfriend, so what do I care?He’s perfect.

Reading my look of approval, my dance partner slithers closer. His warm breath tickles my ear when he leans in. And despite holding a glass of what looks to be alcohol, I don’t smell alcohol on his breath. “What’s your name, gorgeous?” He pulls back to flash me an overly whitened smile while he awaits my answer.

I have to tip onto my toes to get close enough to his ear, wrapping my arms around his shoulders for stability. “Rory,” I tell him with a smile on my lips, still vibing to the beat of the song. “Rory Collins.”

He beams in response before giving me his own name, “Cameron—Cam Reeves.”

“Nice to meet you, Cameron—Cam Reeves,” I repeat with an amused smile, and he laughs.

Cam notices my empty beer bottle. “Need a refill?” he asks.

I follow his gaze to the empty bottle and shrug my shoulders. “Sure, why not?”

He wraps his hand around the neck of the bottle, taking it from me. “Be right back.” With one last wink in my direction, he disappears into the thick crowd surrounding us.

Almost immediately, I feel hands on my hips, spinning me around. Sadie and Elle’s excitable screams force me to cover my ears.

“Oh-my-God, he-is-gorgeous,” Elle rushes out, straining to follow Cam’s trail through the crowd.

“Agreed, Rory. You should totally tap that.” Sadie sips on her glass of clear liquid, smirking at me.

I laugh at my friends’ assessments, because I plan to do exactly that. Cam looks like he’s the type who wouldn’t mind a quickie in a back alley or bathroom.

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