“God, you’re impossible.”
He offered only a tiny shrug this time, but somehow that seemed a lot worse than the normal ones. It said he knew how infuriating this was and didn’t give a shit. Worse, he knew I would go along with whatever he said.
“I’d better get back inside,” he said. “The guys are going to start wondering what we’re doing out here.”
“Yeah, you’re real funny.”
And you know what he did? He turned and headed back into the restaurant without another word. He acted like he could win any argument by snapping his fingers—or just deciding that the conversation was over.
Dammit!
“Yeah, well, I’ll let you know, okay?”
He didn’t look back. He probably didn’t believe me. That was understandable. I didn’t believe I was so close to caving in myself.
19
ERIK
When I make up my mind, I stick to it. There’s no in-between. Kayden didn’t understand that, but he would need to become a quick learner if he expected to get anywhere with me.
You’re probably wondering if he said anything more about sex or a first date after our little interlude behind La Nova Pizza. This is Kayden Preston we’re talking about. He never shuts up, ergo he said plenty.
He made little comments and dropped hints—always about sex itself, but not about our smoking hot hookup, and never about going on a date. Anything he could do to approach the subject without tackling it head-on. That didn’t surprise me. I know guys like him far too well. They hear, but they don’t listen. They reject the usual rules because they only apply to other people. And they act like they’ll always get whatever they want, even if you’ve made your position abundantly clear.
But he was all-business on the ice, right?Right?
Sorry to disappoint you. He stayed exactly the same with the skates on as when they were off. He eyed me when our teammates weren’t looking. He whispered little comments whenI was close enough to hear him, but never loud enough for the guys to notice. He acted like he was joking, but I could tell he was dead serious. In other words, he got away with anything he could. I didn’t respond to the comments. You can’t give guys like him any satisfaction. The moment you do, you’re playing their game, which is totally bad news.
But I knew Kayden was as determined to win me over as I was to reject him. Wait, rejection is the wrong word. That implies I wanted nothing to do with him no matter the circumstances. No, I wanted to keep him in check and control the narrative. Soon, he turned his aggression back to hockey, slipping in front of me, and stealing every puck. He’d grown even more competitive than before.
I could deal with that. It was hockey. What I couldn’t deal with was how he handled it. When Kayden stole the puck yet again, he grinned at me widely before racing up the ice. I chased him, determined to steal it back but also wipe that smile off his face.
“You’ve got to make a point, don’t you?” I asked.
“Don’t like it? Come stop me.”
He wasn’t wrong. That’s hockey. You never want your opponent stealing the puck from you, but it’s your job to stop him. If you can’t stop him, you’ve got to chase him up the ice to reclaim it.
But the edge in his voice…it went way beyond hockey. I’m not stupid. I knew what routine he was putting on. He was pissed that I’d rebuffed every one of his not-so-subtle advances. He totally wasn’t used to that. He wouldn’t let me keep doing it either. Think of it as his way of saying No More Mister Nice Guy.
But I wouldn’t back down.
“Maybe I will,” I said.
“Okay, come on, bro. Let’s see what you’ve got.”
That sounded like a challenge to me. I was game.
Before I could do anything, he pushed me. It wasn’t hard enough to qualify as a shove, but he used enough force to cancel out an accident. He was sending a message, saying he didn’t need to spend much energy to push me out of the way. He considered me that much of a lightweight.
That I was nothing.
So, that was how he wanted to play. I would show him I was no wimp.
When he stole the puck from me yet again, I chased him up the ice. When I advanced on the puck, he escaped, and I slammed into the boards. Totally a bad look, I know, but I had no quit in me. I came back with a vengeance, speeding up beside him and elbowing my teammate in the side. Then I jammed my stick in front of his, trying to sweep the puck away but failed. I wouldn’t stop until I had it. If Kayden wanted competition, I would give it to him. When I checked him into the boards, the puck came loose, and I swiped it away.
God, that felt like such a triumph. I even laughed a little from the excitement. Maybe that sounds crazy, but it really isn’t. No matter what you could say about Kayden Preston, he really was an amazing hockey player. You’ve got to celebrate the little victories any time you get an edge over him.
