Page 61 of Bad Teammate
With an unsteady wobble, Niko rose to his feet, my guitar still in his hand. He held it out to me as if he wanted to give it back to me. I reached for it, but he yanked it away at the last second. Then, in one fast motion, he violently brought the guitar neck down across his knee, snapping the fretboard in half. Speechless, my jaw dropped. I was stunned. He tossed the broken instrument into the cushion next to me. I picked it up and the splintered head, dangling from the strings, noisily fell to the floor.
“Asshole,” I growled. “Did you really have to do that?”
Cockeyed and swaying, Niko sneered at me and muttered something.
Julia sighed. “He said, ‘Don’t be mad, I only fooled around with it.’ ”
Whatever, you drunk psycho.
“Are we done here?” I asked. “I need to get some sleep. We’ve got a game tomorrow. Tell Niko he better show up to the morning skate on time, because after this, I’mdonecovering for his ass.”
They went to his bedroom. I hid the broken guitar back in the closet and shook my head.
God damn it.
Yeah, it sucked that he’d broken my guitar. But what hurt most of all was the thought of what I had to do Katerina now—and right after she’d opened her heart to me, too.
Game over.
21
Katerina
I woke up with a smile still on my face.
After last night, I felt like a whole new woman. Yes, I was still a virgin—but at least now I hadhope.Because I’d found a man I liked, a man who respected me, a man who was just finewaitingfor the right momentto have sex. I mean, that said it all, didn’t it? And really, that wasallI’d been waiting for all this time. I’d never intended to wait this long; it wasn’t like I was saving myself for marriage or anything like that. I just wanted to wait for the first man who could sweep me off my feet. Or give me thetingles,as Alina might say.
Which Derek’s kissescertainlydid. Just thinking about his lips put butterflies in my stomach.
My pajamas had been strewn about the room last night in the throes of passion, and I was still nude when I climbed out of bed. I smiled when I noticed Derek had picked up my clothes, neatly folded them, and left them for me on the far corner of the bed.
So cute. So thoughtful.
Alina was right. Older men weresomuch sexier. It had nothing to do with Derek’s money and status—I couldn’t care less that he was a famous athlete. Actually, it’d be better if hewasn’t;that way we wouldn’t have to sneak around. But no, Derek’s appeal had everything to do with the way he carried himself. He was just so mature and dependable seeming. I felt so safe with him—he wasn’t like the sleazy guys closer to my age who would do or say anything just to try to get laid. Derek was different. He knew how to take charge and lead.
Simply put, he was a man.
I knew things would go smoothly with us—I wasn’t even worried about having to sneak around behind Sasha’s back. Sasha was so aloof and unsuspecting. And hell,ifhe somehow found out (which he won’t), so what? What could he really do? Okay, he could throw a little temper tantrum, but that was it. He didn’t own me. He couldn’t control me or who I happened to fall for.
Fall for,I repeated, catching myself.Okay. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
But … really?
When I thought of last night, my giddy heart began to thump in my chest, and my blood ran hot. He made me feel like a flustered schoolgirl.
I hoped to see him when I emerged from the bedroom and made my way to the living room. But, once again, there was no sign of Derek on the couch. All his linens were folded and put in a stack.
I went down to Sasha’s bedroom and knocked on the door. There was no answer, so I let myself in. He was still asleep. I woke him up like I used to when we were kids—I hopped onto his mattress and began to jump.
“The hell, Katya?” He groaned. “What time is it?”
“Time to wake up!” I jumped and jumped, but he didn’t move. “Jeez. Why are you so tired?”
“I was out late.”
“Oh! Right! How was your night with Ju~lia?” I asked in a teasing tone.
“Fine,” he said. He pulled the comforter over his head to try to get away from me. “How wasyournight?”
