Page 37 of Ice Cold, Red Hot
I was hanging by a fucking thread.
We cleaned up after practice and I felt it—the chasm between me and the rest of the team. The rift that developed when you were kept apart, made different.
Even if I could fix this thing, I wasn’t sure I’d ever really be a part of it all again. It was possible I’d literally ruined everything.
I was pulling my shirt back on when Griff appeared at my side.
“Grab some food?”
I shook my head, not trusting my voice.
“Dude, come on.” Griff sounded exasperated. Frustrated with me.
“You go.”
“You don’t have to pretend you’re fine, Ren. Just hang out.”
“I’m not fine.”
“I know that, man, that’s what I’m saying.” He leanedin. “We’ve all been there. We’ve all been the one who fucked up.”
I spun to face him. “Yeah? How many of you got benched your senior year for throwing a punch that could literally cost you the rest of the season and maybe your life?”
I was in his face, ready to throw another one at my best friend. Cold fury, born in frustration, simmered just under the surface and I was barely keeping it in check.
“Yeah, okay,” Griff said, his voice low, his eyes never blinking. He spun on his heel and walked out.
Soon, it was just me in the locker room. I grabbed my stuff and headed out to the truck. As soon as I was inside, I started the engine, but then I switched it off again. For nearly an hour, I just sat there, staring at the dash. Thinking.
I said I’d fix this. If Ethan pressed charges though, it was out of my hands. If he was on the fence, I still had a chance to take care of it. And there was only one way to do that.
When I got back to the apartment, I’d made a decision. The guys were still out, and the place was quiet.
I opened my laptop on the desk and navigated to a site I didn’t access much. Lloyd & Brothers Bank. Where my trust fund lived.
As I punched in the access codes, Dad’s attorney’s voice echoed in my mind.
This is for your future. You have access, but it’s not to be touched except in emergency, with family approval. Understand, Shepherd?
I did not give a single fuck.
I transferred ten thousand to a dummy account and wrote down the log in information for the account I’d set up. Then I logged out, shoved the paper into my pocket, slammed the laptop shut, and stood.
I had an errand to run.
CHAPTER 18
CELESTE
I headed to the lab early. This allowed me to kill multiple birds with one stone. No chance of running into … anyone … in the apartment hallway, and it made me look like a go-getter to my new team.
As I stepped inside, my sneakers squeaking on the linoleum beneath the buzz of the fluorescent lights, I glanced down the line of terminals on one side. I was here first. Good.
But as I moved down the central aisle, glancing at the sorting bins and binders shelved on my left, I heard a distinctly masculine voice.
“Early bird gets the worm, eh?”
Ethan.
