Page 80 of Grumpy Darling

“Me?” I gasped. “Why do you think I’d be any better than Abby?” Had Bonnie forgotten about my traumatic experience with Damien at the party?

She flicked a hand to dismiss my concern. “Well, haven’t you been practicing?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess. But not for this.”

“You’ll be fine,” she said. “You’re friends with half the team, and you actually know hockey. It’ll be easy.”

“But I’m a horrible writer. And I’ve no idea what to ask.”

“You’re not horrible at it in the least,” she insisted. “And I’ll help you with the questions. I know you haven’t done anything like this before, but I’ll be editing the piece, so you don’t have to worry if it’s not perfect on the first try.”

“I don’t know, Bon . . .”

“Just think about it. Even if you only do the interviews and record them for me, it would be a big help. It’s going to be a great article. Not just your usual boring player stats. You’re always trying new things. Why not this?”

I considered her point as I drove. The thought of having to write the actual article and have anyone read it was daunting, but Bonnie sounded like she was going to be supporting me every step of the way. And if she wrote the questions, the interviews might not be that hard. It wasn’t exactly on my bucket list, but that was no reason not to try it. I’d been so focused on my first kiss recently, I’d kind of forgotten why the list existed in the first place. There was one important detail, however, that Bonnie hadn’t clarified yet.

“How exactly does this help me with Damien?” I asked as we pulled into the school parking lot. It was still early, and there were only a few other cars there, which was a relief because I felt like I needed a minute before we headed into school.

“You need a reason to debut your killer new clothes, right? If you talk to Damien wearing any of the outfits I made you try on, he’ll be the one spilling his drink.”

“But I’m supposed to be ignoring him. Shouldn’t I run this plan past Grayson first?”

Bonnie rolled her eyes. “Coach Darling’s ignoring tactic is only going to get you so far. And besides, Gray already said the flirting you did in front of Damien had worked. Now it’s time to seal the deal.” She added a wink for emphasis.

“I guess so,” I said, still not sure this was the right plan of attack. I pulled the car into one of the many free spaces and slumped back in my seat. The engine was still running and the heat pumping, making the idea of getting out and walking into school even more unappealing.

Bonnie continued, sensing my hesitation. “And if you’re worrying about a repeat of the last time you tried to flirt with Damien, then don’t. I’ll be giving you a whole list of questions to fall back on. It can’t fail.”

That would definitely help. Half the reason I’d made a fool of myself when I’d tried to make a move on Damien before was because I had no idea what to say. I might actually have a shot at a normal conversation if I was reading a list of prepared interview questions.

“I just need to know if you’re in by the end of school,” Bonnie continued. “Coach Ray has already agreed that someone can interview the guys during practice tonight.”

“Tonight?”

“Yep. Is that a problem? Have you got other plans?”

“Well, no.” Although, I thought I’d have a little more time to come to terms with the idea.

“I think you could do a really great job at this, Paige.”

I sighed and leaned forward to shut off the car. It was so much harder to turn Bonnie down when she was being this supportive. “Okay, fine.”

“Fine, as in, you’ll do it?”

“Yes, I’ll do it.”

“Excellent.” She clapped her hands. “This is going to be great for both of us. I get my article, and you get one step closer to your first kiss. It’s a win-win.”

“Yeah, hopefully.”

Hopefully, I wouldn’t ruin Bonnie’s article.

Hopefully, I wouldn’t make a fool of myself in front of Damien.

And hopefully, I would have my first kiss before the week was done.

The alternative was trudging through life with unrequited feelings for my best friend, and that just wasn’t an option.

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