Page 26 of The Obvious Check
“What? No.”
“I think you need a break. Whenever I’ve asked you out, you’re either working or studying. That can’t be good for the soul.”
“I can’t take the time off and risk losing my job.”
“Not even for one night?”
I shake my head. “No. I’m—” My stomach twists. I’m getting too close to admitting the truth. All because his eyes are so deep and he makes me feel like I’m somebody. I might be struggling my ass off, drowning in debt with Luke’s loans, but I’m not about to tell Cade that. “I’m not like you. My scholarship only covers tuition and books. I have to pay for everything else, so every penny counts.”
His face screws up. “Do you think the school pays for me?” He sounds offended, and I can admit, I might’ve said that a little more arrogantly than I’d planned. “I’m not on a scholarship. Those are reserved for the football team. I pay for everything myself.”
“How?” I ask before I can stop myself.
A smile eases out across his face, the tension from earlier feels far away. The guilt twisting up my insides hasn’t gone, though. “I had a side gig last year that paid really well.” There’s a little twinkle in his eyes, and I know exactly what he’s talking about.
The fights.
The first time I was sent to work during one of those brutal spectacles, he was there. Cade’s not just any fighter. He’s majestic. He has a way of moving around the ring that catches his opponents off guard, and I found myself mesmerized by him. He won that match and a little fragment of my heart that night. A fragment he hasn’t given back since, probably doesn’t even know he possesses.
“Oh, yeah?” I play dumb because if I out him, then I out myself.
“Yeah.” He pauses. “I paid for my tuition using my signing bonus from my hockey club.”
My brows furrow. “Hockey club? Didn’t you just say you aren’t on a scholarship?”
“I’m not. I’m talking about the NHL.”
“Wait, do you mean a professional sports team?”
He laughs. “Yes. I was drafted to the Atlanta Anglerfish back in high school. I’m here until the end of the year.”
Atlanta? He’s moving there at the end of the year? My stomach bottoms out. What am I supposed to do when he’s gone? Nothing, because I’m of no consequence to him.
“Didn’t you know?”
I shake my head. “No.”
“Does the idea that I play professional sports make me infinitely more appealing to you now?”
“No. I don’t watch hockey. Honestly, I thought it was a summer sport.” The reality is Cade doesn’t need to do anything to be more appealing to me. Beautiful. Powerful. Confident. He’s already the most attractive man I’ve ever met.
He throws me a bemused smile, and something about it makes me feel at ease. “You’re thinking of field hockey. I playicehockey.”
“Oh.” My face burns with embarrassment.
“Wait a minute. Did you think I’d invited you to a field last night?”
“Uh, yeah.”
He shakes his head, looking mildly amused. “Well, that might explain why you didn’t want anything to do with the tickets. Hockey’s a great game. Fast-paced and a lot of fights. I’m sure you’d like it if you gave it a chance.”
“Yeah. I’m sure I would.”
“Have you ever been to a rink before?”
I shake my head.
“We should change that.”
