Page 102 of False Play
There was something seriously wrong with me.
I expectedHenry to take me to a popular place. Anything public that would have helped get some exposure, so people could take pictures of us and circulate them.
Instead, we were on a winter rooftop bar and restaurant that overlooked the city’s busy lights, sitting inside a toasty igloo with a fire pit, some good Italian food, and delicious drinks.
It was quiet, and intimate, butreallyfucking fun.
“You jumped off a fucking roof into a pool?” My drink almost spilled out of my mouth as I tried to keep my laugh in check at the insane college story Henry was telling me. “Are you insane?”
He raised his hands in defense. “I was a bored eighteen-year-old, okay?”
“Thank God for the early draft. Though now I’mwondering what sort of trouble you would have gotten yourself into if you’d ever finished college.”
“Why wonder? We all know my reputation.” He winked before he took a sip of his whiskey.
I thinned my lips without a word. There had been so many questions on the tip of my tongue for a while, because the more I got to know Henry, the more I realized the whole “bad boy” center forward reputation was utter bullshit.
But I kept my mouth shut and instead took a sip of my wine and sighed. “This was nice.” I waved my hand around. “One of the best fake dates you’ve taken me on, for sure,” I quipped.
Why the fuck do you have to keep saying the word fake?Seriously. We get it,my brain mocked.
I was desperate to keep a sense of normalcy. More than anything, I needed to keep reminding myself this wasn’t real.
Henry’s jaw ticked, but he took a swig of his whiskey and dropped the glass on the table with a soft clunk. “The night’s not over.”
“No?” I stared at him, shocked.
He smiled. “I have a surprise. I think you’re going to like it.”
My heart quivered. This had already beentoomuch. I wasn’t used to this kind of attention. To be honest, dating Joe consisted of going to work parties. The intimacy of it all, going to a simple dinner just because, or going line dancing for the hell of it, was never a thing. It was like hanging out by ourselves was a task, but I’d been so blind to it, I never realized it.
“This was more than enough, we don’t need to do anything else,” I said sheepishly.
“This was the bare minimum. If we’re going out, I will always make sure we have fun.”
My body froze for the slightest moment. He didn’t say fake, he didn’t mention the media attention or why we were really here. And before I could form a question, he simply stood,grabbed my coat, and helped me put it on without a word. I couldn’t speak, even if I tried. So many emotions were lodged in my throat. Both exhilaration and fear rested against my ribcage, making it impossible to breathe, because I wasn’t sure if the prospect of this being a real date made me nervous or really happy.
It wasa little after midnight when a car he had rented for the night dropped us off in front of Millennium Park. It was starting to snow, so flurries dusted our coats, and though it was cold, the park was beautiful and surprisingly quiet. Henry carried a gym bag on his shoulder, and he grabbed my hand like it was the most natural thing in the world as he guided us to an outdoor ice rink. Goosebumps sneaked up my arms at the simple touch. It was always electrifying, like lightning, but there was a comfort behind it now, too.
“Are we breaking in? It’s the middle of the night!” I whisper-shouted.
He smirked. “Are you scared, Jonesy?”
“Here I thought we were past that nickname.”
“That was rather naive of you,” he joked.
I took a seat on one of the benches, and he kneeled in front of me then riffled through the bag until he found my skates.
“Also, no. We’re not breaking in. I called in a favor. The rink is all ours for an hour,” he said.
I beamed. “Really?”
He nodded as he started putting my skates on. I knew better than to fight by now. It was the little things Henry liked to do the most, like he wanted to be useful. Part of me also liked these little acts of service. In a world where I’d always had to take care of myself because I believed I was too much of aburden, it was a nice change of pace. Being stubborn about it proved to be useless, because if there was one thing Henry knew how to do well, it was be persistent.
I liked that about him, you know? His tenacity. The way he showed the goodness of his heart without even trying. It was why I had been dying to ask him why, exactly, he kept this side of himself hidden. What was he running away from? Why was he hiding?
The man who referred to himself as the “king of the ice” and acted like the world owed him something was nowhere to be found. It was like he disappeared with a simplepoof. So why not show his true personality to the rest of the world?
