Page 32 of Accidentally Fudging the Beast
I wish I could believe him. But I can feel the eyes on me, every single one of them weighing meup and down, and most deciding that I just don't belong at his side. The puck bunnies literally want to claw my eyes out right now.
His teammates don't look at us the same way, but they do look. Every time one of them passes by, they shoot Trent a look—sometimes approving, sometimes curious, but there's always a look.
I'm torn between running and sticking around to see what happens if I actually do start screaming. If I make it to the end of the night without vomiting from nerves, I'm awarding myself a gold star. And maybe a giant glass of wine.
After spending a few minutes in the kitchen while Trent inhales cookies at light speed and I pick at a finger sandwich, we drift from room to room, nibbling at more snacks and making small talk.
I try to keep up, but the volume is set tostadium at full capacity. Every time someone talks to me, I have to guess at least half of what they're saying. Like right now. Either the North Pole was burned down with a flamethrower, or Brock Anderson wishes he had a flamethrower. I'm not entirely sure.
I'm ready to give up guessing when Trent presses a glass of spiked cocoa into my hands. "Drink up," he orders, then wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me into him. "They're doing white elephant in the den, and you'regoing to need it. It'll be a bloodbath."
I down the cocoa in one gulp and follow him, letting the sugar and expensive liquor burn a path straight to my stomach.
Even though he warned me, I amnotprepared for the chaos of the den. The room is full of hockey players, all yelling over each other and stealing gifts from one another like overgrown children. The gifts are, predictably, a mix of gag and actual luxury. There's a heated toilet seat, two different gaming systems, an expensive watch, tickets to Bali, a Speedo that looks like a crocodile's mouth, fart spray that seems to be a hot ticket item, and a literal ham.
Trent and I settle on the couch, with him perched behind me, his arm draped over my shoulders like he's staking a claim. I try to focus on the chaos, but every time I look up, someone is staring at us—sometimes grinning, sometimes smirking, but always staring. It's disconcerting as hell.
But it's not until I stand to get another drink that all those looks finally begin to make sense, shaking my world on its foundation.
"Yo, Kirk!" Paxton Hill, one of the rookies, shouts across the room. "How'd you finally manage to convince Dani to go out with you?"
I freeze in the doorway.
"You've been following her around like a puppy for months," another of the rookies adds, laughing. "We weretaking bets on whether she'd figure out you were full of shit and take out a restraining order on your big ass."
Wait, what? They knew that he was faking an injury just to spend time with me?
Trent just laughs in response. "She couldn't say no after she nearly killed me."
"Ah, so you're blackmailing her," Karsen says. "Sounds about right. You've been threatening to maim us for months if we smiled at her wrong."
"He threatened to beat me with my own damn skate if I even looked at her," Cale mutters.
"You still aren't allowed to look at her," Trent growls, his eyes locked on me with an intensity that leaves me breathless. "She's mine, and I will end you."
The entire room hoots and catcalls. But I just stand there, my Solo cup clutched in one hand and my heart hammering as the intensity of his declaration sears through me.
My mind spins, trying to fit all of this new information into place, but I don't even know where to start. I mean, I've been half convinced that he's been high as a kite for the last twenty-four hours and would eventually snap out of it. But…he's been threatening the entire team about mefor months. They all know how he feels about me. This isn't just something he decided yesterday. This isn't a result of his brush with death or a residual effect of the drugs they gave him.
He wants me. Apparently, enough that he's told everyone. Literally, the whole damn team knows how he feels about me.
The revelation is so huge, I actually have to sit down.
"You good, Sunshine?" he asks when I plop beside him, my knees weak.
The man I've been obsessed with…has been a little bit obsessed with me, too.
"Yeah," I say, my mind still reeling. I'm not just good, though. Right now, I'm freaking great.
Nearly an hour later,the den descends into another round of chaos, but Trent barely notices. His eyes are locked on my face. And even with the team erupting around us while one of the rookies in an elf suit does a festive striptease toGrandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer, I'm two seconds from launching myself at Trent.
I'm trying like hell to cover it with aggressive cocoa consumption, but that's only making me hotter. All I can think about is the fact that everyone knows how he feels about me. All I see is the way he's watching me like he's desperateto get me alone.
When I'm ready to burst, he finally makes a move. Between one breath and the next, he's crowding into my space, his lips against my ear. "Let's get out of here for a minute."
I nod, not trusting my voice, and he instantly shepherds me out of the den. His hand low on my back sends heatwaves through my system.
We pass the tree, where a pair of teenagers are making out beside the stairwell, and a line of little kids fight over who gets to sit on the inflatable Santa's lap.
