Page 160 of Dear #47, You're the Worst
Chapter37
Juliet
The four-city road trip feels like living in a beautiful dream I’m afraid to wake up from.
I stay in Hunter’s hotel room every night, which feels indulgent and messy and private in the best way. I spend my days in PR meetings, media coordination, and putting out the occasional fire that comes with managing a team full of athletes with too much money and not enough impulse control.
Beck Tate lands in the hot seat not once but twice for growling at a fan in public. Alex Thorne, his co-captain, is right there with him. He won’t stop going on podcasts and opening his giant mouth about anything and everything. It’s infuriating what these guys get up to in their downtime.
But at night? I watch every game, seeing Hunter in his element on the ice. I kiss him in public like I’m actually allowed to do it. We fall asleep tangled up together in unfamiliar beds that somehow feel more like home than my apartment ever did. I have the feeling of hanging balanced on a very high precipice, but Hux is here with me.
It feels dangerous and yet the rush is intoxicating.Heis intoxicating.
He looks at me with those blue-gray eyes, clearly feeling… something. And I’m hooked. I’ve bought a ticket to this ride, I’m hanging on for dear life, and he knows it.
It makes me ache, the way he softens when no one’s watching. Sometimes I think he hates the whole damn world… but then he looks at me and his smile is the exception. He traces patterns on my skin like he’s trying to memorize the feeling. He whispers my name, and I’m drunk on it, powerless, beyond infatuated.
I’m not ready for this to end. I’m not sure Hunter is, either. We haven’t talked about it in specific, but it seems like we will just ignore the end of our contract and… live together? That part is murky.
There’s a stretch in Denver where everything feels close to perfect. I don’t use that word lightly, but this? This might actually be it. Waking up next to Hunter, working a job I love, feeling like I belong somewhere for the first time in my adult life.
Could life really stay like this? It’s hard to imagine it ending, but also hard to believe it could last. Because it’s fragile, I’m trying so hard to hold it. It will break.It has to.
My phone buzzes with another text from my mother. A link to some prestigious law fellowship with a note that says, “It’s not too late to apply.”
I delete it without opening the link, then send back a quick reply
I love my job. I’m not interested.
Her response comes immediately. A condescending thumbs-up emoji.
Someday you’ll understand.
I stare at the message for a long moment, then delete the entire conversation. I’m done explaining myself to people who refuse to see me.
“Everything okay?” Hunter asks, looking up from the game footage he’s reviewing on his laptop.
“Just my mother being my mother.”
“Want to talk about it?”
“Not really. Feel like distracting me instead?”
He pulls me onto his lap, kissing me until I forget all about condescending text messages and parental disapproval. This? This is the best feeling ever.
* * *
The next morning, Ivy shows up at the Denver arena for the morning skate with a red-headed girl who looks like she’s running on pure sunlight.
“Everyone, this is Mollie Tate,” Ivy announces. Ivy sounds proud, like she’s already decided Mollie’s going to be a favorite.
Mollie towers over me at five-seven with an extra curvy hourglass build. Her hair is coppery strawberry blonde that falls in a messy wave, catching the light when she turns her head. Freckles dust her cheeks and shoulders, and her blue-green eyes are wide and expressive, practically glowing with nerves and excitement. She’s wearing a riot of a floral dress, bold lipstick, and oversized sunglasses shoved on top of her head like she forgot they were there.
“Hi!” she blurts, too loud, too quick. “I’m so excited to be here. This is amazing.”
She laughs at herself when the words tumble out, a little embarrassed but not enough to hide her enthusiasm.
“She’s Beck’s sister, but I found her by accident when I was searching for someone who knows the ins and outs of TikTok.” Ivy beams at her, squeezing her arm. “Mollie’s our new social media hire. She’ll be working on content for the team channels. I brought her here to dive into the pool headfirst.”
