Page 50 of Breaking the Ice

“That it was the dumbest thing you’ve ever done.” He throws back the covers and hops out of bed. His black boxer briefs cling in the most distracting fashion as he paces across the room. “The smart move now is to get an annulment. Right? That way no one will think less of you.”

My heart sinks. He’s probably correct. But disappointment floods through me. In the light of morning, without alcohol fueling our choices, when he finds me in his bed, Evan doesn’t actually want me.

“Yeah,” I say, then clear my throat because my voice came out rusty. “No hard feelings, of course. But that makes sense.”

Then the pounding starts up again, followed by the beep of a keycard in the door lock.

“She better not be naked in here,” a familiar voice mutters.

Oh shit.

I scramble out of bed. Evan hurries to throw on sweatpants—low, clingy, gray ones. What a totally inconvenient thing for me to notice.

“Bella?” my mom calls out, worry lacing her words. “Are you here? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, Mom. What’s going on?”

Moving through the bedroom, we meet them in the living room part of the suite. My mom, my dad, and a lady who I think is from the university stand there, all with matching frowns on their faces.

“Hi?” I test the waters, but I’m met with stoney silence. Why did they break into our hotel room? “What’s up?”

“You tell us, Bella,” my dad practically growls as he starts pacing the kitchenette area.

“We couldn’t find you in your room. We have questions.” My mom hands me a cup of coffee and sips her own. She keeps her gaze trained on me, like she’s not sure what I’m going to do or how I’m going to react.

The university lady holds out her hand for me to shake. “Hi. Kayla Barnes. Public Relations.”

I pump her hand, taking in her sleek brown bob, pencil skirt, and crisp white blouse. She’s so professional, and it serves to underscore how slovenly I look right now, wearing only Evan’s hockey jersey and no pants.

He clears his throat and leans against the doorway. “We can explain.”

“I sure hope so,” my dad practically growls. “Because what it looks like right now is that you two got drunk and made the biggest mistake of your lives on my watch.”

“Yes.” Evan winces, scooting closer to me so my shoulder brushes his arm. “No. I mean, we’re going to fix it.”

I bring the coffee to my lips and gulp too much, burning my tongue, but I need something to do with my hands.

“If we get out in front of this early, I think we can get a handle on the message,” Ms. Barnes says, and my eyes fly to her. What is she doing here? “Obviously, I care about your welfare, but we have to think about how the university looks, too, because of your connections to the team.”

“Uh-huh,” I say, because it seems like she’s expecting a response. What am I agreeing to?

“So I’ve been thinking, would you be willing to keep this up for the rest of the school year?” Ms. Barnes' gaze drills into me, and the sweat breaks out on my hairline.

“Wait just a minute.” My mom steps closer to Ms. Barnes, and all the public relations training in the world could not prepare her for my angry mama bear. “You want them to stay married?”

“We decided to get an annulment,” Evan says, wrapping his arm around me. “It’s for the best.”

Everyone attacks at once.

“You don’t want to stay married to my daughter?” my mom yells, while my dad chimes in, “Best for who? You?”

“Now, everyone, just calm down,” Ms. Barnes tries to say over their nonsense, and Evan shrinks behind me. My parents continue to berate us until I pull out my teacher voice.

“Hey!” At my outburst, silence reigns. I take a deep breath and gesture towards the couch and chairs in the sitting area. “We’re going to sit down and solve this like adults.”

My dad mutters about adult behavior but complies and takes a chair. Everyone else follows him to the chairs while Evan and I get the couch. I tug on the hem of Evan’s jersey, trying to get it to cover as much of my legs as possible. Awkward silence descends, and I have no idea what to say.

Ms. Barnes breaks it. “While this situation may not be ideal, I think I have a solution. Would you be willing to stay married?”