A laugh bursts out of me.
Kodie Rivers: We’ve only lost one home exhibition game. How would I know what you were wearing for our road losses?
My heart is a runaway train in my chest as I wait for herresponse.
I already know it’s going to floor me. That’s what Casey Watson does to me.
She takes everything I thought I knew about myself and my life and throws it into a fucking blender.
Casey Watson: I watch road games in nothing but a pair of panties with your number on.
33
CASEY
My laughter rings through my silent apartment as I picture his response to my message.
It’s not true, obviously.
But I kinda want it to be.
I can see myself lying on my couch in only a pair of green and white panties with the number fifty-five stamped on my ass, sending him pictures to open when he gets off the ice.
Only if they win, of course.
I giggle again.
Clearly, the vodka Parker and I consumed tonight is having an effect.
I want to say the alcohol is the reason I replied tonight. But it’s not.
The truth is that I’ve been typing and deleting replies to his apology for days. And it only got worse after our interaction outside Dad’s office.
My obsession with this man is growing to the point I can no longer control it.
At least toward the end of last week I could somewhat distract myself with prepping for my interview. But now, while I’m dealing with the anxiety of waiting for the outcome, thoughts of him are slipping back in again.
I laugh at myself. As if they ever really left.
He’s been a constant in my thoughts and fantasies for years now. I don’t expect him to go anywhere anytime soon.
My cell pings, and I lift it from the counter, my blood already at a boiling point from just the couple of messages we’ve exchanged.
Was I disappointed when he walked out of the suite earlier with his little girl’s hand in his? Hell yes. But I also understood it.
As a kid, I loved it when Dad came home with me after a game. He gave so much of himself to his team, to hockey as a whole, that getting him to myself was huge. I used to embrace every second I could have him just being my dad, and I have no doubt Kodie’s daughter feels the same.
She’s so freaking cute. I saw her with her grandmother, wearing her small Kodie Rivers jersey. And the way her entire face lit up when Kodie stepped into the room...I swear, my heart and ovaries exploded right there.
Kodie Rivers: I’m going to need to see photographic evidence of that, Troublemaker.
“Of course you are.”
Placing my cell back down, I stare at myself in the mirror as I braid my hair, ready for bed. My eyes are glittering with excitement, and my cheeks are flushed. I don’t need to look down to know my nipples are hard and pressing against the soft fabric of my tank.
Happy with the outcome, I tie it off with a scrunchie, snatch my cell from the side, and turn the light off as I slightly sway toward my bed.
I’ve got a nice buzz on, and I’m nowhere near ready to crash yet.
