Page 15 of Ice Lord Incognito
She shook her head. “I like this Aviva, and how kickass, take-no-names, fuck-all-the-haters she is. But I’ve gotta admit—she’s scary.”
“Perfect,” I said. “I like being scary.”
Looking in the mirror, I tossed my curly-wavy brown hair over my shoulders, squaring them as I prepared for battle.
A battle I was going to fucking win.
The arena was packed.Tovah had asked the sports editor at The Daily Queen for a favor, and they’d gotten us great seats—center ice.
I tried not to stare at Jack as he warmed up, but it was impossible, especially based on the way his ass moved as he practically humped the ice. At least he couldn’t see me staring.
But I was distracted from Jack stretching when an older man with blond hair walked out on the ice. He was busy staring at the tablet in his hands as he talked to a player. If you didn’t look closely, he looked kind, dignified.Normal.
But I knew better. I knew Joshua Jensen, the true one, even if I’d never spoken to him. The bespoke suit and commanding nature couldn’t hide the narcissist underneath. Often, the worst of humanity hid their horrors behind a friendly smile, because they’d learned how to imitate friendliness and manipulate people in order to set them at ease. Powerful men especially used their charisma and seeming respectability to hide whatever evil inclinations lay beneath.
But peel the suit back, and people would see the weak, pathetic, power-hungry abuser. I’d make sure of it.
“You okay?” Tovah asked beside me. “You’ve got that ‘take no prisoners’ look in your eyes.”
“I’m fine,” I growled.
She glanced over to where I was staring.
“You can’t kill him,” she said immediately. “I know it would be fun, but I don’t want to visit you in prison.”
My teeth ground together. “You’d get used to it.”
The buzzer sounded the beginning of the first period. Isaac faced off against Tabb U’s center, and the second the puck dropped, he stole it and sent it wide to Jack, who hit it up the weak side. Tabb’s defensemen slammed him into theboards, but he pushed the puck between the boards and his stick so that he kept control. Once the other winger had shoved the defensemen off of him, Jack continued toward the goal.
And that’s when he spotted me.
My heart pounded as he stared up at me from the ice. He didn’t lose track of the puck for a second, and reluctantly, I marveled at him. Even with his focus on me, he still managed to fake out the defenseman and pass the puck back to Isaac. A moment later, the horn sounded, signaling a goal. The scorebox changed: 1 Reina, 0 Tabb. I barely paid attention, unable to look away from Jack as he skated toward the bench, his eyes never leaving mine.
I could read his lips from where I sat.
What the fuck are you wearing?
I winked at him.
Take it off. Now.
I shook my head.
He shook his, then drew a line across his neck, before pointing at Dave. Dave hadn’t noticed either of us.
“Here we go,” I murmured.
The buzzer sounded, signaling the end of the first period.
Jack skated over to Dave and said something. This time, Dave’s head turned toward me. I sat up straighter, hoping the number on the jersey I’d borrowed was visible. Even though I couldn’t see his face through his goaltender mask, I could imagine the conversation going down.
Why the fuck is Aviva wearing your jersey?
I have no clue, Feldman.
You better have some clue. If I find out you touched her?—
Why the hell do you even care if I touched her? You treat her like?—