Page 6 of Fear of Intimacy

“Trevor texted me that he was on his way twenty minutes ago,” Wyatt added.

“See, this is why I said to get here early,” Josie muttered under her breath. Poor Josie was going to have an aneurysm before we even boarded our flight.

“Everything will be okay, babe.” Wyatt wrapped his arm around her waist and tugged her back into him. I watched her relax in his hold. When he leaned down to whisper something in her ear, I looked down at my phone.

“They are disgusting,” Lydia suddenly piped up next to me. I laughed at the way Lydia said it. With a mix of contempt and jealousy. I silently agreed with her, though.

Wyatt and Josie were probably the cutest couple I'd ever seen. The two of them melded so well together, and Wyatt literally worshipped the ground she walked on. I'd never seen my best friend so happy. From the moment the two met in their apartment building elevator, it was game over. Who knew getting stuck in an elevator with a stranger would lead to something so amazing?

Josie deserved that. She deserved a man like Wyatt. Someone who would put her first and love her until the end of time. He saw her broken pieces and helped her put them back together. The first time I ever saw them interact, I knew they were endgame.

While I was happy for them, there was this flare of jealousy inside of me. Not because I wanted Wyatt for myself. Itwas clear he only had eyes for Josie. But I wanted someone to look at me like he did her. Like she was the air he breathed. No one had ever looked at me like that. And sometimes, I wondered if I’d ever get lucky enough to have that same thing.

“At least I have you to get drunk with.” Lydia nudged me with her hip, jerking my attention away from the happy couple.

“We can get drunk together,” I promised. Being on a trip with two happy couples was definitely going to drive us to the bar.

“As soon as we land, I’m getting a margarita,” Lydia said before moving around me to go put her bag down by Josie and Wyatt’s.

With plenty of time before our flight, I let Josie know I was going to walk around for a few minutes. I didn’t want to sit longer than I had to since our flight was going to be brutal. Twenty-four hours with two layovers. The itinerary literally said it took a full day to get there. Only Josie would pick the farthest place to vacation.

There were a few benefits that came with knowing Wyatt, Bryton, and Trevor, though. Being who they were, we were able to get first-class seats instead of being stuck in the back of the plane. At first, I was pissed at them for using their name to bump us up to first class, but after realizing the flight was as long as it was, I relented. Only because I didn’t want to sit in a small cramped chair for twelve plus hours.

Walking around the airport for about thirty minutes, I finally made my way back to our gate. My body vibrated with excitement, with the intense need to get the show on the road. Arriving at the airport and having to wait was always the worst, especially when you got there hours before you were even set to leave.

The area around our gate was a bit busier when I got back, making me weave in between people and their luggage.I could barely see my group of friends huddled slightly off to the side near a wide span of windows. I didn’t miss the way some people kept looking in their direction as I got closer. Being the three biggest hockey players in Toronto, they all gained attention no matter where they went. I made a mental bet with myself that at least five people would come up to them before our flight was called.

I felt bad for them, seeing firsthand how intense the paparazzi and fans could be. There had been a few occasions when all of us got dinner and we came out of the restaurant to people snapping photos of us. Of course, I got it less than Josie or Mila since they were dating Wyatt and Bryton.

Unfortunately, I had experience with my picture being taken quite a few times, thanks to my parent's socialite parties, but having a camera shoved in your face is never fun or easy.

I am proud of Josie for handling it as well as she does, though. The first time the press learned about her and Wyatt’s relationship she freaked, as would anyone, but now she wasn’t bothered by it. Josie knew it came with the territory of dating the golden player of the Knights.

“I fully plan on sleeping the entire time.” I caught the end of Bryton’s sentence.

“Ask me again why we agreed to go somewhere so far away and fourteen hours ahead of us?” Lydia questioned.

“It better be worth it,” Landon muttered. My eyes looked at the pair. For two people that claimed to hate one another, they stood awfully close. I noticed the way Landon kept peeking over at Lydia without her knowing. Just quick glances but enough to show he felt some sort of way about the firecracker that was one of my best friends.

“I brought playing cards,” Trevor’s voice spoke up a second later. My eyes drifted to him reluctantly. Looking at him, I had to stop myself from biting my lip. Clad in a pair ofblack joggers and a gray sweatshirt with his brown hair mused, he looked like he just rolled out of bed. But despite that, he still was the most attractive man I had ever met.

I hated that. Hated that he was attractive and a good guy. It wasn’t often you found both in a guy, let alone a hockey player. Trevor may have been famous, but it didn’t seem like it had gone to his head. It was clear he was a ladies' man but from what I saw over the last few months, he wasn’t the cocky fuckboy that I initially thought he was.

All of that just made it harder to suppress certain feelings. Especially the ones that came up after he left my apartment two nights ago.

“Don’t let Tasha play you. She’s great at cards.” Josie laughed as Trevor’s eyes met mine. Ignoring the zap of electricity that ran through me, I let the corner of my lips tilt up in a smirk. Something close to surprise flitted across Trevor’s face before he returned a similar expression.

“We’ll see about that.” I didn’t miss the competitive look on his face. Of course, as a professional athlete, he was very competitive. Our game nights turned into more than a simple night of having fun. More often than not, they were comprised of yelling and claiming someone cheated or wasn’t being fair.

“I’d hate to kick your ass,” I said.

“Oh, kinky. I can bend over if you’d like.” I narrowed my eyes at his words, my inner competitive side coming out. Kicking Trevor’s ass at cards was the perfect way to start this vacation.

“You are cheating!”Trevor practically yelled.

“I am not!” I narrowed my eyes at his accusation.

“Yes, you are! There is no way you’ve won this many hands. Stand up.” Trevor shot back. Trevor’s hands came over to lift my leg, as if he’d find cards underneath me, causing me to slap it away.

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