Page 43 of Absolutely Not in Love
That means I only have tonight and tomorrow night with Gracie to see if—oh man.Is that how bad this is? I’m considering my days, my weeks, in terms of timewithGracie and time without her?
All I know is when she touched me last night, her fingers grazing over my skin, something inside me clicked and settled—like I’d finally found something I didn’t know I was looking for, but now I can’t imagine life without it.
I feltwhole, as cheesy as that sounds. Whole andalive.
Like her touch woke up a part of me that was dormant, and now everything is brighter, sharper, more intense. Which is so cheesy I can’t even stand myself, but I genuinely feel like I was living in black and white until Gracie touched me and flooded everything with color.
“Are you good with that, Felix?” Coach Davis asks.
I freeze. I havecompletelymissed everything Coach has been saying.
Logan chuckles beside me, then says under his breath, “New kid. Third string goalie. He’s your roommate in New York.”
“Definitely good with that,” I say, nodding toward Coach.
He lifts a brow. “Should I put Barnes in a room nearby so he can make sure you get to games on time?”
If I didn’t know Coach Davis so well, the jab might have been intimidating, but if he had an actual problem with me, he isn’t the kind of coach who would call me out publicly.
“That won’t be necessary, Coach,” I say.
Coach Davis’s eyes flash, then he says, “Does someone want to fill me in on why our usually unflappable goalie is daydreaming today?”
A few of the guys laugh, looking back at me, but no one answers Coach’s question.
“Okay,” Coach says. “I see how it is. Y’all are making me think I asked the wrong question. How about this one? Felix, what’s her name?”
To this, the team breaks out in a series of cheers and catcalls, those standing closest to me reaching over and pounding me on the back.
Coach Davis smiles wide.
A few years ago, this kind of attention might have made me uncomfortable, but I know these guys. I know they have my back even when they’re making fun of me.
“It’s nothing, Coach,” I finally say. “Focused on the team. Focused on the game. I promise.”
“I don’t doubt that at all,” Coach says. He lifts his hands to dismiss us. “That’s all, men. See you tomorrow.”
I skate past Coach with everyone else but pause when he calls my name. “Hey, Jamison.”
I spin around and face him.
He smiles. “You know youcanhave a little fun when you aren’t on the ice.”
I duck my head in acknowledgment. “I’ll do my best.”
I appreciate Coach’s encouragement, but that’s easier said than done. Especially if the woman I’m interested in isn’t interested back.
But the way she looked at me…I swear there’s something there, something I’m not making up.
I hurry through showering and getting dressed, ignoring the guys as they rib me over my “mystery woman,” several of them mentioning Ivy by name and asking if she’s jealous.
Logan meets my eyes and smirks, and I make a mental note to make sure, if things ever go anywhere with Gracie, to explain to her whatIvyactually references before she meets anyone else on the team. Talk about creating unnecessary trouble for myself. Nothing like creating a cheating scandal when the only thing I’m “cheating” with isbooks.
Weirdly, my conversation with Gracie last night was so focused on music, we didn’t even get into books, but I’m betting on Logan’s assumption that she likes to read with my next move.
As soon as I’m in my car, I look over at the stack of books I swiped from Gracie’s apartment this morning. It wasn’t like I was sneaking around—I had to meet the disaster repair people over there anyway. They were able to remove all the standing water last night, but they came back first thing today to take care of the ruined drywall, door casings, flooring, furniture, and anything else damaged beyond repair. They didn’t think it would take longer than today, so I’m hopeful I’ll find the space cleaned out, fans in place to dry out the subfloor, by the time I get home.
But ruined books, pages swollen and warped from exposure to so much water—that’s not something the disaster repair people will fix. That’s why I grabbed them this morning.
