Page 51 of Your Pucking Mom

I nodded, letting the words sink in. He was right. We would be traveling together for the time being, and even though it was in short spurts, it meant I had to see him.

“What does that mean?” I asked.

“I have a proposal.” My lips twisted as I settled with the gentle hum of the plane.

“What’s that?”

“I say we approach this as friends,” he suggested, his voice low and tinged with an undercurrent of tension. The atmosphere in the plane seemed to thicken as his gaze locked with mine.

“Just friends?” I echoed, my voice barely above a whisper, the words carrying a weight of anticipation as I waited for his response.

He nodded, his eyes never wavering from mine. “Exactly,” he confirmed, his tone laced with an intensity that made my heart race. “No expectations, no complications. Just two people enjoying each other’s company.”

My mind raced with a whirlwind of conflicting emotions as I considered his proposal. Given the magnetic pull that always seemed to draw us together, could we maintain a purely platonic relationship?

“Not even as a joke?” I challenged, my voice betraying the desire that simmered beneath the surface.

He leaned in closer, our knees pushed against each other, and the force of physical touch sent a jolt of…somethingto my core.

“No jokes,” he murmured, his face so close to mine. “But I can’t promise what might happen if you come to the ice after the game. When the adrenaline is pumping, all bets are off.”

I swallowed hard, his proximity igniting a fire within me that I struggled to contain. “Okay,” I said, though my voice wavered with unspoken desire. Deep down, agreeing to his proposal would fuel the flames of our forbidden attraction, but at that moment, I couldn’t bring myself to resist. I was addicted to Ledger Cole and wanted him in my life.

“Good.” He shifted back into his seat, then adjusted his pants and cracked his neck.

“Friends,” I said, shaking my head as if that’d convince me further.

“Just friends,” he repeated.

25

ledger

As if I could ever be just friends with her. I needed to get her comfortable with me, because going a month without seeing her smile was too fucking much for me to handle. I never wanted to be in this position again. Being her friend was better than not being in her life at all.

I was walking on a tightrope because of her son. He was my teammate, the kid I was mentoring before and after practice, and shit, he wasn’t as bad as I liked to think he was.

The plane hit some turbulence, and Auburn was back to white-knuckling the edge of the seat.

“Hey,” I said, trying to get her attention, but when that didn’t work, I grabbed her knee. The touch made her head spin so quickly in my direction I thought it would fly off.

“Tell me about Austin.” If there was anything I’d learned from my time as friends with Stassi, it was that mothers loved gassing up their kids.

She smiled, the color coming back into her hands. “He’s my pride and joy. I know he got in trouble at the start of the season, but I promise he’s a good kid. He loves hockey?—”

“I know. I see a lot of myself in him.” Her face warmed so deeply, and she shifted in her seat, crossing one leg under the one still touching mine.

“You do?” she asked.

I gave her a soft smile. “Tons. I was full of talent. Hockey was my life growing up. I used to idolize players from different teams. While other kids had posters of bands on their walls, mine were full of NHL players.”

She let out a snort.

“I’m going to ignore the fact that a sound like that came out of you.”

She snorted again, then covered her mouth. Little did she know it was the fucking cutest thing I’d ever heard. I’d pay to bottle it up to listen to it on repeat.

“And your parents?”

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