“No. God no. She's always had a thing for me but I'm not at all interested. She's not my type. And if you wanna talk about workplace drama? You justknowshe'd make my life a living hell …”
“You swear you haven't touched her?”
“Yeah, Honor, I swear it.”
We were both quiet. I listened to her gentle breathing over the line. She sounded like she was annoyed and disappointed with me … but also relieved.
And I was aware of something. Something that excited me. The fact thatnone of thishistory would matter to her, if some part of her didn't truly like me. That shewantedme to be a good man, and not this meat-head jock that slept around. Damn—that was a good feeling. I felt compelled to actually be honest with her.
“Listen, Honor. It's true. For three years, I've been an idiot. Something's been wrong with me, okay? I haven't taken care of my body like I know I should've. I've partied. I've slept around a lot and I know I've broken more than a few hearts.”
The brusque gust of air told me she didn't like hearing that.
“But,” I added, “something about you is different. You're not amused by me. You're not impressed by me. And that drives me wild—it makes me want to be better. For you, I guess.”
She laughed. “Great. So I can't get rid of you no matter what?”
“Pretty much, yeah.” I grinned. “Did you know I haven't had a cigarette since that day I first gave you a ride home?”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It's true.”
“Well. I'm happy to hear that.”
“And oh—damn! Honor! Did you watch the game tonight or what?”
“I did. At the bar with Cora.”
“Well? What'd you think?”
“You guys killed 'em. And you played great. Cora said that was the best game you've played in a Blizzard jersey.”
“I think so too. I used my old stick, like you said I should. That's why I wanted you to watch.”
“Yeah?” That made her really happy—I could hear it in her voice.
“Yup. It's funny. Because honestly, I'm sure a lot of that was just mental. But that's exactly what I needed. A mental shift. It helped change my mindset, I guess.”
Honor was quiet. “So where are you now?”
“Back at the hotel.”
“Aren't you going out tonight? With the boys? Prowl the town for ass, and all that?”
“The boys already went out. I didn't feel like it.”
“…Really?”
“Yup. Actually, I came back here because I couldn't wait to talk to you.”
Honor scoffed. “Oh, get real, Hunter Rockwell.You're such a flirt. It's impossible to know when you're being honest.”
“I'm serious. I've been thinking about you ever since that night at your place.”
“Uh huh,” she said, as if she didn't believe me.
“Really.”
