Page 168 of Lose You Twice

Taking an extra-large bite of apple, I give myself time to come up with an answer as I chew, knowing this conversation can go one of two ways. The old Caity Calloway would be forgiving, excited even, that Kai and I are giving things another chance. New version? Unsure.

Hopping off the counter so that I’m prepared for a speedy exit, I answer her carefully. “Actually, it’s Kai, Mom.”

She stops washing the potato. Her eyes are even more shocked at those words. “Oh.”

I give her a look, biting the inside of my cheek. “That’s all?”

“Honey, you’re an adult. Both of you are.” She dries her hands on a kitchen towel before coming to stand in front of me. “If you want to give things with him another shot, then do it. He’s a wonderful boy, and I know you two were inseparable. I never figured out what happened, but I didn’t feel it was my place to pry.”

“That’s the thing,” I say, shaking my head. “Nothing really happened. We just drifted apart. Obviously, being back in the same place as him has made things a little weird, at least at first, but it’s like I’m pulled to him. Maybe it’s just because in the past he’s brought me comfort, something familiar, but I really think it might be more than that, and I think we owe it to ourselves to figure that out.”

She gives me a soft smile. “And that, my dear Wrenley Mae, is exactly why I’m not worried. I don’t want you to get hurt, either of you, but you have a great head on your shoulders and always choose the right path.” She kisses my cheek. “Now, you better get going, or you’ll be late.”

At the rink, I try to put the date out of my head and fail almost immediately.

Game days are usually easy to disappear into. There are towels to stack, tape rolls to refill, water bottles to line up, spare laces and jerseys, and all the small moving pieces that make a team look seamless from the outside. Donnelly barks orders; Weston is extra loud. Grayson and Asher are here and focused, the calm before the storm.

Then Kai walks in, and my whole body forgets how to act normal.

He’s in his game-day suit, looking absolutely sinful, so much so that my mouth goes dry.

Dark jacket, white shirt, tie neat at his throat. Game-day Kai has always been a problem, but this version feels personally designed to ruin me. He looks composed, serious, locked in for the game, and still, his eyes find mine the second he steps into the room.

“Calloway,” Weston says, sliding into my peripheral vision. “If I score tonight, I’m dedicating it to you.”

I snort. I swear he’s making it a point to rile up Kai. “Yeah, that’s a no.”

Grayson pipes in. “What if you dedicate it to personal growth?

Asher passes behind him. “He’d have to experience some first.”

Weston presses a hand to his chest. “Goalies are cruel because their cages trap emotion.”

Asher doesn’t slow down. “Nah, you’re just annoying.”

Kai stops near the shelf beside me while everyone else is distracted. He doesn’t touch me, not really. His hand reaches for a roll of tape he does not need, and his knuckles brush mine for half a second.

It is embarrassing how quickly my body reacts.

His mouth barely moves. “You good?”

I glance up. “You ask that a lot.”

“I like knowing.”

I could make a joke. I almost do. But he’s looking at me like he wants the real answer, and tonight, I’m too tired of dodging things that feel good.

“I’m happy nervous?” I admit, realizing that doesn’t make the most sense but hoping he understands anyway.

Kai’s face changes, a real smile taking over, reaching clear to his eyes. It makes me want to kiss him…badly. But I can’t do that here.

“Me too,” he says, giving my hand a soft squeeze as he heads toward his stall.

I don’t know why that settles me, but it does. Maybe because Kai Mercer doesn’t look nervous before games. He looks locked in, sharpened, terrifyingly competent. Knowing some part of him is under there feeling the same bright, restless pull makes me feel a bit less ridiculous.

The game helps burn off the rest of the anxious energy, or maybe it just gives me somewhere else to focus it for the time being. PCU scores first, Grayson tipping the puck in front of the net, but the other team answers before the end of the period. And by the third, with the score being tied at 2–2, the game has turned tight and physical enough that Donnelly mutters under his breath every time someone goes into the boards.

Kai is everywhere.