Page 15 of Call the Shots
“You know June?” I asked, finally tearing my eyes away from her.
“You’re definitely not from around here,” she giggled. “Everyone knows June Basil.”
“Hey, Clarissa,” June said simply before pointing at me on her way out. “Don’t talk to me, Bear.”
“Go crash a golf cart,” I retorted.
She threw up her middle finger and I easily matched it, to the shock of Clarissa.
“I’mclearlymissing something.”
“How do you know her?” I asked, craning my neck to watch June.
“It’d be hard to find someone who doesn’t know June. Her dad’s Freddie Basil, June was homecoming queen, her ex is King, one of the stars on the Romans?—”
“That’s the guy with the tattoos and the scars and shit?”
“Yeah. I think he has some kind of vow of silence thing? I don’t know. He doesn’t speak, like, ever,” Clarissa said. “The two of them werealwaystogether, I can’t believe they broke up.”
By the door, people caught June’s attention—she quickly squeezed shoulders, wrapped others in hugs, and listened to whatever they had to say. She was like a celebrity. They parted for her but reached out to touch, to bring her into their circle, trying to convince her to stay a little while longer.
A flash went off next to me. Not at June, atme.
Clarissa blushed bright red. “Wow, it’s my turn to apologize, I’m so sorry?—”
I tried to shake it off. “You could’ve warned me. I would’ve smiled.”
“My friends won’t believe I’m on a date with you,” she blurted out.
“Big hockey fans?”
The blush darkened and I waited a couple of seconds, holding on to the hope that was what she was talking about.Come on. Please.Just one date without the reminder. But the longer the awkward silence stretched, the more I knew it wasn’t my power play goals that had her friends excited.
“The videos were great,” she whispered. “You did a public service with them. Usually guys are so quiet but you’re so vocal, you literally made dirty talk ASMR.” She licked her lips, sinking her teeth into her bottom lip. “I have them all downloaded on my laptop, my friends and I swapped them for weeks.”
My throat tightened, throttling any response. I wanted to ask her to delete the picture she took but yeah—like that’d happen. Sure. Right. I shrugged on my jacket. I didn’t want pizza or any more time with Clarissa.
“Bear?”
I shook my head. “Whatever.”
“Did I say something wrong? It’s a compliment?—”
“Thanks. Glad you enjoyed yourself,” I said sarcastically. “Click the like button and subscribe for more.”
“I didn’t mean to offend you?—”
“And I didn’t mean to waste my time.”
I had to double-back around the line to leave, shouldering my way through a crowd that didn’t part for me like June. Because I wasn’t a celebrity like her. I didn’t belong at Marrs, I didn’t have a place here.
“Bear,” Denali called, trying to motion me over to join him and Elijah for lunch. I ignored them and kept pushing.
Denali and Elijah were my teammates, they weren’t my friends. I learned how much your team could kick you when you were down. I wasn’t interested in spending time with the Michigan forward who’d do anything to get a stupid captain badge or the dirtiest player in college hockey.
Fuck ‘em. I was better off on my own.
CHAPTER 7
