Page 122 of Call the Shots
His eyes dropped to his phone, checked out of the conversation. “Beau, you said you didn’t want the badge?—”
“When I got the badge! Shit’s changed!”
I couldn’t believe it. When I was voted in as alternate captain, I could’ve told them to suck my dick if they wanted me to do the extra work. I could’ve! Instead, I kept track of gym slots, I did inventory checks, and I attended meetings with Denali, Cleo, and June. I didn’t have to do any of that shit but I did!
“Riley Townsend will be taking your role.”
I swiveled over to stare at my replacement. A freshman who’d been part of college hockey for thesummerwas takingmyrole? A captain role? Riley’s lips curled for a deeper smirk, watching me flounder.
“This—I?—”
“Bear?” Denali said, his voice low. “Vernon’s agreed to release the checks if Riley’s appointed without issue.”
The fucking injustice astounded me. I was so close to unleashing on Vernon and Riley. Calling them every name in the book, telling them to fuck off. Anger burned hot in my chest, but the reality of the situation kept me rooted in place. I thought about Montoya carefully counting his dollar bills atGianna’sand Sully cancelling the trip to see his family because he couldn’t afford it.
Fuck.
There was anger—yeah—but even bigger than that were the swells of disappointment, welling up inside. Without another word, I stormed out of the office.
Fine. I never wanted the stupid captain role anyway.
“Bear?” Buttons called. “Where are you going?”
Montoya was next. “Bear?”
More and more of my teammates tried to get my attention on my way out of the Colo. My shift wasn’t done but I could only lie to myself for so long. The truth was, I worked fucking hard and maybe…
Maybe I wanted to be a good captain.
“Fuck!” ricocheted out of me. I slammed the front doors open, leaving my team behind.
My notebook had been specificallyfor captain duties, but it morphed into something else. I hauled myself into bed with my pen in hand and wrote in loopy, illegible writing,scratching down everything I wanted to say to Coach and Riley until the words blurred together. Swearing under my breath, I grabbed my phone, pulling up June’s contact before I thought it through.
I hesitated. My thumb hovered over the button to call.
I wanted to talk to her but if I did, it’d be me whining for an hour.Oh, boo hoo, I don’t get an A on my hockey gear.Yeah. Not boyfriend material, that’s for damn sure.
With a flick of my wrist, I tossed my phone away and buried myself in the notebook, scribbling the same sentence over and over again.
I want to call you so fucking bad
I could only stay in my dorm for so long before my teammates knocked on my door. They knew I didn’t want to discuss what happened, but Fridge, Nick, and Montoya held a pizza night in Fridge and Nick’s dorm. The three of them gamed while I ate a slice of pizza upside down on the chair, my legs looped over the back, head hanging off the cushion.
Watching June’s story on Vanysh.
I took another bite of pizza and clicked June’s story again, the seventieth or eightieth time.
The only good thing about the day.
Sparkly, shimmery silver clung to her hips like liquid heaven, swaying halfway down her thighs. This was what fabric was made for. Her hair was pulled up so only a few strands outlined her face, exposing the curve of her neck, bringing all attention to where the necklineplunged.
Her lips were dark red, and I was a big dumb bull every time I saw that color. And hereyes. Her eyes sparkled just as much as the dress.
It was the best part of my day by far.
Jeez. Round of applause. Encore, encore.
What does that dress look like from the back? I’m a visual learner.
