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“What? Why would she call you and not me? I’m her father!” he cries angrily. I can hear the emotion in his voice, and I understand where it’s coming from, but I also want to protect my girl, even now. Especially now.
Nodding, I continue. “I don’t know, but her roommate thought it was better to call me. She was worried about getting Caroline home safely. Asked me to come get her. And I did. I walked in, and there was a guy standing over her while she was passed out on a bed, and I almost lost my mind. I think that’s what drew attention, me yelling at the guy, and when I picked her up and carried her back to her sorority house… people recognized me and took photos. It looked bad, but I wasprotectingher, Coach.”
“Is she okay?” Coach looks beside himself with worry. “Fuck, tell me she’s okay.”
“I got her home safe and put her to bed. Her roommate stayed by her side. I haven’t gotten to check on her yet today, but she was home and safe, and is probably still sleeping it off.”
He swallows heavily, staring off into space.
“Listen, sir, I had every intention of coming to you today when I saw the headlines, but you called me here first. So there you have it… That’s what really happened, and I know that you’re probably going to suspend me and, fuck, go to GM and ask for me to be traded, but I want to be clear that I would do it again if it meant keeping her safe, if it meant getting to be with her. I will always put her first. Over hockey, over any fucking thing. I love her, and I would do anything for her.”
When I’m done speaking, he’s stopped the pacing and is looking at me with something unfamiliar shining in his eyes.
“She’s my little girl, Hudson,” he says quietly, his voice breaking slightly. “She needed help, and I wasn’t there. How many times have I not been there for her? I’ve messed up for so goddamn long. I want so badly to do it over, but I can’t. I’ve only got the time left I have with her. I’m trying to be there for her now.”
“I know, sir. Caroline is amazing. She’s everything good in this world, and I’m lucky to even be a part of her life. I want to be there for her too. Your relationship is between the two of you, but you can still be there for her now, Coach.”
Rising from the chair, I take one last look at him. Our conversation is over. I’m not going to beg him to forgive me or to beg for my spot on the team.
I did what I did because it was the right thing to do. I protected the girl that I love, and at the end of the day, that’s the kind of man I want to be. And when it comes down to it, the only thing I need is Caroline.
“I know that my spot on the team might be in jeopardy, and I’m genuinely sorry that the gossip sites are spreading lies and making your job even harder than it already is. I never would want anything I do to hurt my team… my brothers. But I will never apologize for loving Caroline. I want to give her the world, and if she’ll let me? I’m going to.”
* * *
Caroline
“Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty.”
I groan into the pillow, pulling the comforter tighter around me as I burrow deeper into the mattress. I need at least another twelve hours of sleep. No, make that sixteen.
“Care, you’vegottaget up. C’mon.”
Seconds later, the blanket is pulled off, the cool air hitting my bare legs and arms, making goose bumps spread on my chilled skin. I crack one eye open and see Tatum standing over me, holding a bottle of water and two little blue pills in the palm of her hand, her eyebrows raised as if to say,Try me.
Begrudgingly, I sit up and rub the sleep from my eyes. “What time is it?”
“Three,” she says, extending her hand toward me for me to grab the pills, then the water.
I take both and crack the bottle open, tossing the pills down my throat and chasing them with a swig of water.
“Like a.m.?”
She shakes her head, “No, as in like p.m. As in you slept for twelve hours. As in you need to get up likeright now.”
I reach under my pillow in search of my phone, and then I realize just how hungover I am. My head is pounding incessantly, and my mouth is so dry that it feels like I swallowed an entire piece of cotton.
Jesus.
“How much did I drink last night?” The night itself is completely gone from my memory. I vaguely remember arriving at the frat house and taking a shot of tequila with Tate, and the rest… poof.
Gone.
A black hole in my brain.
Which means I blacked out, and that is slightly concerning since I have only done that maybe once in my entire life.
Tate laughs drily. “Oh, Caroline, darling.” Her ass hits my bed as she shakes her head. “It was bad. Like, really, really bad.”
