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“Always solid to have a backup plan.” He winked.
That simple gesture rattled me. It was playful and flirty and fun. All the things I wasn’t. I pressed my lips together. I needed a distraction from him. “You can send the notes to me whenever you get them done.”
“Sure will, but it sounds like you’re kicking me out? I hoped I could hang here with you for a few hours.” He frowned and cracked his knuckles on his left hand. “I might’ve assumed you’d be down for that, so I apologize. You probably want space. Mm, yeah, okay. I can go?—”
“No!” I blurted out. “I don’t want you to go.”
“Huh.” He grinned wide, the playful spark coming back. “You sure?”
I nodded. “I like the company.”
“Whoa, Auds. That’s a big move for us. Alert the media.”
My lips quirked. “Stop. Don’t be annoying. You’re not horrible to be around.”
“Okay, you’re gonna declare your love for me soon. Could you scale it back?”
Damn. I smiled before I could stop it. Theo’s face changed as he stared at me, his lips parting and his eyes widening. His nostrils even flared. “What is it?”
“You have a fucking beautiful smile.” He pursed his lips and shook his head before letting out a little laugh. “Seriously, it’s a good thing you don’t flash that around all the time. It’d cause car accidents.”
He was teasing. That was a joke. There was no way he thought my smile was beautiful. Yet, my voice caught in the back of my throat, and my skin felt too tight on my body. You have a fucking beautiful smile. No one in my life had said those words to me. They made me feel… alive in ways I forgot existed. A blush crept down my neck, and I rubbed it, willing the flush away, when I realized I hadn’t responded. “Thank you for saying that. That was very kind.”
“It’s the truth, Auds.” His gaze zeroed in on my mouth again. “I’d never be foolish enough to tell you to smile more. Fuck those weird men who say that, but just know that I’ll remember every time you do. That’s for damn sure.”
I sucked in a breath as fire licked my skin, starting at my head and neck all the way down to my toes. His words had a way of affecting me so much it alarmed me. I knew what attraction was, as I’d read about it. But to experience it like this, with him? Overwhelming. It had to be a fluke. A weird byproduct of my mood.
Yeah.
I wouldn’t feel this again, I was positive. So, I focused on my studies and not Theo the rest of the afternoon. I’d use the next two days to get this weird blip out of my system. Crushing on Theo, the guy who hurt Quentin, would only complicate my mess of feelings.
And I couldn’t afford any more distractions.
8
Theo
It was Monday afternoon, and it was weird to be dreading one interaction with a Hawthorne and anticipating one with the other. I was meeting Quentin in ten minutes to talk about our mentorship and then I’d see Audrey tomorrow at our first all-day clinical.
Had I thought about her a thousand times since the library? Yup. Probably even more. The way she embraced the hug like no one had hugged her in years or how she blushed hard any time I was decent to her. Or the fact we’d both experienced something many didn’t: being the oldest sibling and the role you had if tragedy hit your family. Maybe it was the fact we had that in common that had me interested in her. Not in that way because yeah, that wouldn’t work. Even though her pillow lips and long eyelashes were my weakness.
I cleared my throat and leaned back on the bleachers, forcing thoughts of her away. Meeting with her brother while thinking about how hot she was would be a terrible choice on my part. And I could still control my mind enough to make it obey.
The door to the rink slammed open, and Quentin walked in, causing a damn scene. He wore a boot on his left leg and a scowl mad enough to start a war. The kid was all energy, reckless aggression, and anger. He channeled it to the wrong things, yet he refused to listen to anyone. It made me question why Reiner put him on the team, but from the research I did, Reiner enjoyed pet projects. He liked taking guys who were a little rough but super fucking talented and reforming them to be the best versions of themselves. I admired it about him but didn’t love the fact I was part of the plan.
“Thanks for meeting here,” I said, drawing his attention. He rolled his eyes like the child he was and plopped down ten seats from me. “Oh, cool, let me just pick up and move to you. It’s your world, right?”
“It’s the least you can do since you ruined my fucking career, you piece of shit.”
Nice. He was spicy today. I grabbed my coffee and patience, took a huge swig of both, and neared him. He looked like shit, actually. Dark circles under his eyes, messy hair. My first thought was irrational: why the fuck was he worn-out when he wasn’t working himself to the bone like his sister? He had no reason to be tired.
“Look, you can be pissed all you want. Won’t change a thing. You can tell whatever lies you want to everyone else, Quentin, but we both know you deserved my hit last year. You play dirty and think rules don’t apply to you, and you got your ass handed to you by a more skilled player. That sucks, but?—”
“That’s not true!” he yelled, his eyes bulging out of his head. “You’re not better than me.”
“That’s your takeaway here? Dude. I’ve already signed with a team. I’m going pro after this year. What offers do you have? Zero. And want to know why? Because you’re a bad teammate on the ice.” I stared at the ceiling, not loving my approach so far. I just didn’t have enough energy to be gentle with him. I already knew I’d spend the night regretting this whole interaction, but I couldn’t stop myself.
“How am I a bad teammate? How did I start freshmen year if I was so terrible then, huh? Just because you have an offer doesn’t mean shit. You probably bribed your way in.”
