Page 35 of Ice Cold Rival

Reece did though. “Youshouldbe sorry. We were?—”

I elbowed my mouthy fake boyfriend before he could say something else to make me blush. “It’s fine. I’m glad you came up so I could finally meet you.”

Mase stopped and turned to face us with his brows drawn low. “Finally?”

“Reece talks about you. About all of you really, but mostly you.” I chose to ignore the warning playing in the back of my mind. Reecedidtalk about all of them, and while I didn’t intend to embarrass him, I wasn’t sad about the faint flush on his cheeks.

Mase hummed a noncommittal answer and returned to foraging through the cabinets. While Mase’s back was turned, Reece gave me a wide-eyed look of betrayal. I shrugged and smiled. Reece and his roommates were obviously close, so I knew he was playing up the drama for my benefit.

His eyes narrowed at my pleased expression, and I saw retribution in my future. With Reece, I was pretty sure I’d enjoy it.

Mase pointed a banana at us. “You going to tell her about Kane yesterday?”

“I was getting to it, but all you clowns keep getting in the way.”

As if on cue, Eva burst through the door in a whirlwind of energy. I’d never met anyone quite like her. Tiny and blonde, she looked like she should be sweet and accommodating, but Eva got shit done. In the little bit of time I’d known her, everyone had deferred to her leadership.

I was both fascinated and terrified. There were enough people trying to make my life hell—I didn’t want to get on her bad side and make the situation exponentially worse.

She tossed her pink-streaked hair over one shoulder and propped her hands on her hips, skewering me with a pointed look. “Were you aware Tobias Kane is claiming you’re unstable and using Reece to get back at him for an imaginary slight?”

My lips parted, but I wasn’t sure how to respond. She sounded sort of pissed, though I couldn’t tell who she blamed.

Reece scoffed. “Kane is a lying asshat who needs to stop running his mouth.”

Eva’s gaze shifted to him, and I felt him stiffen next to me. “Oh, I heard all about your role in the conversation.”

My fear of Eva faded as I turned to stare at Reece’s guilty face. “What role?”

He pressed his lips together, sending Eva one last glare. “He was talking to some of the younger guys on the team at practice yesterday. Basically saying what Eva told you with a couple more insulting comments thrown in. He made it sound like you’d tried to rekindle your relationship—and that’s saying it nicely—but he couldn’t trust you not to hurt him again.”

The comments shouldn’t have surprised me, and they definitely shouldn’t have caused the wave of hurt I felt knowing the guy who’d cheated on me was spreading lies. What was wrong with me? He wasn’t worth a single moment of my time, but I couldn’t seem to separate my sense of worth from the overwhelming stupidity I felt falling for his bullshit for so long.

Mase slammed a cabinet door shut, making me jump. “Should have punched him in the face. Hard to talk shit when your mouth is swollen shut.”

I’d legitimately forgotten Mase was standing there, but his immediate defense helped me see not everyone believed Toby’s lies. “Thanks, Mase.”

He nodded, and Reece pulled me against his side, rubbing my arm. “You and I are on the same page there, but I’m trying this new thing where I’m mature.”

Eva snorted behind us. “Tell Kenzie how mature you were.”

Reece winced. “I may have used you to verbally eviscerate him. I also may have inadvertently made it sound like I was with you because I wanted to one up him.”

I raised a brow. “I thought you were good at talking?”

“In my defense, I was imagining running him over with Mase’s truck, so my mind was a little preoccupied.” He took my hands, his expression sobering. “I’m sorry. I might fuck it up once in a while, but I will always defend you.”

I squeezed his fingers where they held mine. “I know. Thank you.”

Reece kissed my hands, and a moment passed between us that had nothing to do with our audience. He was on my side, no matter what, and I believed him. It was a relief to know Toby hadn’t ruined my ability to trust.

“Whymytruck?” Mase muttered.

“I didn’t want to deal with repairing any of the cars when his hard head bounced off the hood. Your truck is basically a tank.”

“Fair enough. Keys are on the rack.”

13

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