Page 74 of Playoff
Why was she so worried about Fitch? “You can look at me, and I’ve seen you naked. More than once.”
“That’s different.” I wasn’t sure how she judged that, but I liked being different. “Okay. I don’t normally go to a lot of hockey things, so I’ll just continue with that. And if Fitch doesn’t say anything, we’re good.”
“Golden.”
“We pretend we barely know each other.”
“What’s your name again?”
I could hear the smile in her voice. “Sorry, I don’t share that with strangers.”
“Or with your hookups.”
“What?”
“I shouldn’t have said that.”
“You know, you didn’t tell me your name either.”
“I didn’t want you to know who I was.”
“Ditto.”
I settled onto my bed. “That’s got me a little curious. Why do you care if people you sleep with know who you are and that your brother plays for the Blaze?”
There were background noises, like she was settling on her bed. I forced my brain away from that image. “You can’t see it, but I’m rolling my eyes at you. This is a hockey town. People who know I’m Justin’s twin want to take advantage of that.”
“How?”
“Suddenly they’re all friendly. Asking me to events, lunches, whatever. Then I mention anything about my family, and they ask, pretending they don’t know, or skip that step and tell me what big fans they are. Do I go to games, what’s it like being the sister of a player. Some flat-out ask for stuff. Some just have it in their expressions, waiting for me to offer.”
I hated that for her. She was a great person on her own, but people would overlook that because her brother played hockey. “Yeah, I can see that. People want tickets and shit. But if you’re hooking up with a guy, being with you is better than a seat at a game. Can they not ignore it?”
“You’d think so, wouldn’t you?”
“Really? Someone got off and then asked for a ticket?” What kind of ass…
“One guy I’d started dating stayed over for the night, and I found him in the kitchen the next morning asking Justin for a selfie.”
I laughed. Then I laughed some more.
“It wasn’t funny.” But she sounded like she was trying not to laugh as well.
“I’m not laughing at you, I swear. I’m just imagining JJ, coming out with bed head first thing in the morning to get some coffee, scratching his balls and finding a fanboy there with a jersey and a pen.”
“Justin’s hair was a disaster.” She snorted.
“Tell me you broke up with that doofus.”
“Immediately.”
It was important that she knew that guy had been an idiot. “Well, as someone who’s had the good fortune to share your bed, I can say that guy was a moron.”
“Yeah?” Her voice was quiet.
Had she doubted herself? Did she have a hard time trusting people who knew who her twin was? I could at least assure her about that. “Yeah, being with you is worth more than a selfie.”
“Maybe that’s just you. Justin isn’t your favorite player.”
