Page 72 of In the Defensive Zone with My Enemy

“His new flavor of the week.” Instead of placing one at a time, she slams a small stack of books onto a shelf, making the whole thing shudder.

“Hey, take it easy with that. I did build it, after all.” I’m trying to lighten the mood, but inside, I’m seething at this guy.

“Sorry.” Her voice sounds uncharacteristically quiet. And she’s staring at her hands.

Rising from her bed, I drag her resistant body into a hug. “Do I need to have a talk with Brandon?”

She’s stiff at first, then softens.

“No,” she mumbles against my shirt.

I take a deep breath, drawing courage to ask what I feel I have to know. “Did he do anything to hurt you?”

She sighs, then looks up at me. “Maybe just my pride? I thought he really liked me. Guess I wasn’t interesting enough.”

I snort. “Not likely. You probably intimidated the hell out of him.”

She throws a pillow at me, which I catch.

“Kins, I meant that as a compliment. You deserve a guy who appreciates what a strong person you are. Brandon didn’t strike me as having the guts for it.”

She blurts out a laugh. “No guts, no glory?”

“Sounds about right.” I hand her more books.

She cradles the stack against her chest. “Thanks, big bro. That helps.”

“Good. Now, get me some food before I faint dead away.”

She pushes me with a gentle shove. “You got that from the back of one of my books, didn’t you?”

I flash her a mischievous grin. “Maybe.”

“You’re the worst.” She grabs her jacket and keys.

As we walk out, the door across the hall opens, and a girl around my sister’s age smiles at us. “Hi, Kinsley.”

My sister points at me. “Sarah, this is my obnoxious brother, Luke. The hockey player I told you about.”

I side elbow Kins, evoking a satisfying grunt as I shake Sarah’s hand. But as her brother, I’m feeling kind of proud that Kins talked about me. “Nice to meet you, Sarah.”

She pauses our shake as she leans in to study me, then her eyes widen. “Wait here a minute. Don’t goanywhere!” She dashes into her room, leaving her door cracked, but not enough to see what she’s doing.

I shoot a questioning glance at Kinsley. But she shrugs and holds her hands up, indicating she hasn’t a clue.

Sarah rushes back out, holding a magazine to her chest. “My brother just got drafted by the Rangers, so of course, I had to get a copy of USA Hockey Today to clip the article.”

She flips open the magazine to a two-page spread, then hands it to me. I’m expecting to see a resemblance between the guy in the picture and Sarah, but then I realize the full headshot is me. And I recognize the other pictures, too. My eyes drift to the byline.

Sophie’s name sits right there under the headline. And it’s in a national magazine.

Sarah holds a pen out with a shy smile. “Do you mind signing it?”

Everything inside me locks up. Like a robot, I scribble a loose signature on the main photo and hand her pen back.

“Thanks! Can we get an us-ie?” She stares at me with expectant eyes and a wide grin.

Kinsley snorts, then laughs at the Ted Lasso reference.

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