Page 147 of Breaking the Pucking Rules
“Oh my god,” I gasp, spinning around to see my best friend striding into the room. “Jesus, you scared the crap out of me.”
Parker studies me closely before muttering an apology. “What’s going on?” she asks, her eyes bouncing between mine. “Why are you up here hiding? Freya said…yay for her being back by the way.”
“I-I’m not hiding,” I stutter, sounding like that’s exactly what I’m doing.
“Did something happen?”
“Damn it, Parker. Can you stop reading me so well?”
She smirks. “It’s not hard, Case. You’re not a hider, and yet here you are shut away in your childhood bedroom as if you’re scared to face something…someone?” she guesses, her brow lifting.
“I’m not—I was just?—”
Her eyes open wider, silently willing me to tell the truth.
“Okay, fine. Something may have happened with Kodie last night,” I confess.
A wicked smile twitches at her lips.
“I hope it was him getting on his knees and groveling after what happened in Utah,” she says firmly.
“Uh…”
“Casey,” she whines. “Do not let him get away with that.”
I wave her off. I get it. What he said was awful, but I refuse to forget what I’ve done to him and be the kind of woman who gets hung up on a man’s mistakes while ignoring her own.
I played him, and quite frankly, he played me right back. Touché.
“It’s not that simple,” I argue.
“It really is.” Silence falls between us as her glare gets more intense. But eventually, I win, and her need to know the details gets the better of her. “So, what happened? Did he turn up at your door like a stalker in need of a celebratory blowy?”
“I wish,” I mutter, conjuring up the image of him standing at my front door looking all hot and desperate.
“So?”
“He messaged me last week to apologize,” I say, filling her in on the details I’ve held back recently. “I didn’t reply. But last night he messaged again and…well…one thing led to another and?—”
“Explains why your eyes are so glazed,” she points out with a smirk. “Even at a distance, he can make you cum that hard, huh?”
“Jealous?” I tease.
“Yes and no,” she hedges. “So you’re hiding up here, abandoning Freya, because he’s coming with his daughter and you’re freaking out.”
“Yes and no,” I echo.
“I think you mean yes, Casey.”
I throw my hands up and groan.
“What if everyone can see it?” I ask, voicing my concerns. “What if I can’t keep my eyes off himand others start to notice?”
“Casey,” she says softly, moving a little closer. “Are you really worried about your reaction to him, or is this about how he’s going to react to you?”
I hold her eyes, waiting for her to explain, but my heart is already racing, telling me that she’s nailed it.
“You’ve been living with his mega crush on him for years. No one has noticed yet, so I don’t think you have a problem, even if things have escalated. I think you’re worried about him?—”
