Page 73 of The Playmaker

The rink swirls around me. “I thought…all these years…”

“What?”

“Guys didn’t like me. I just sort of blended into the background.”

He lets out a laugh. “Yeah, right. Believe me, guys noticed you. A lot of guys noticed you, but they were too damn chicken shit to stand up to Cason. That guy’s crazy, you know.”

I stand there dumbfounded. “I can’t believe this.”

“Believe it. You are the prettiest girl I’ve ever set eyes on, Nina. There wasn’t a guy on our high school team that didn’t want to date you. Cason frightened them off.”

“I guess none of them thought I was worth the fight.”

He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. “They were idiots. You’re worth the fight.”

I lift my head, take in the intense green eyes gazing at me. Cason hadn’t scared Cole off. He’s here with me now, unafraid of a beatdown from his very best friend, telling me I’m worth the fight. My heart races faster, pounds against my chest. Is it possible that there can be more between us?

A burst of happiness races through me, but he goes serious again. “What will happen if you don’t get this series written?”

“I don’t know.”

Troubled eyes look past my shoulder. What is it he’s not telling me?

“Your books pay the bills, right?”

“Yeah.”

“If you can’t pay the bills, will you have to move home?”

My stomach cramps. “That’s the last thing I want to do.”

“Cason talked about finally getting his own place here in Seattle. Maybe you could move in with him.”

“No. I love my brother, but I don’t want to be underfoot. I want to do things on my own.”

“It’s okay to ask for help. I mean…if you wanted to, you could stay at my place as long as you want.”

I stand there for a second, think about what he’s saying. Tabby straight up and told me he didn’t bring women into his home—ever—yet here he is, asking me to stay. Is he feeling the closeness between us, too? Do I dare hope?

“Are you serious?”

“As serious as a concussion.”

I laugh, and he opens his mouth to say something else, but he closes it when Jess calls from the boards.

“I’d better get going.”

He pulls me to him. “What time will you be home?”

Home.

There’s that word again. Oh, how I want that with Cole.

“Around four, but I don’t want you home until around five. Enjoy the day out with your sister, and soon to be brother-in-law.”

“Why can’t I come home before five?”

“Because I have a surprise for you.”

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