novelxo Twisted Collide: Chapter 16
What a goddamn disaster.
I knew having her near would be too much to handle, but I had no idea just how bad it would be.
The way she looked at me before running off.
I really fucked up.
She looked seconds away from crying, and that’s one thing I can’t handle.
I’m finally walking out of the training facility, doing my best to put as much distance between Josephine and me as possible.
I’m meeting the guys at some dive bar Hudson has been raving about.
Why he’s obsessed with it is beyond me, but something tells me there must be a female involved, or many, knowing Hudson.
I pluck my phone from my back pocket and press call on my pinned contact. The call goes straight to voicemail. Disappointment stabs at my chest. There’s only one person I want to talk to right now: my sister, and her phone is off.
“Hey—Um, call me.” I hang up, tucking my cell back where it belongs, and continue my trek to the bar.
It takes me five minutes to drive there, and the only cars in the parking lot are the ones my teammates own.
This place actually holds promise. If we’re the only ones here, I won’t have to deal with the bullshit of people wanting to talk to me. Or worse . . . ask for pictures and autographs.
Throwing my car into park, I open the door and head inside, dragging my feet even after seeing the near empty lot.
The place is dark; only a few lights hang over the bar, and besides that, maybe one or two recessed lights illuminate the space.
My shoes stick to the dirty floors as I head to the bar, where I see Hudson, Mason, and Wolfe.
Aiden isn’t here.
That’s not a surprise since he spends most of his free time with Cassidy.
“Sin, didn’t think you’d show up,” Wolfe says, holding a fist out to bump.
“Here I am,” I deadpan. Everyone here knows I don’t want to be here, but Hudson was laying it on thick that I needed to hang with them tonight, so I came.
“What’s your deal, bro? Coach looked ready to kill you,” Hudson says, getting right to the heart of this little get-together and his insistence I show.
Guess I should have known what this was about. Practice was especially brutal, and not because Coach did anything differently. I was just off my game, epically.
The guys insisted I come here so they could figure out why I’m skating like shit. It’s written all over every one of their faces.
Not going to happen.
Fuck no, am I telling them that the team’s new intern is the reason I’m distracted. The reason I’m playing like a newbie.
Hudson nudges me with his elbow. “A drunk penguin has better balance than you had today.”
“You’re such an asshole,” Mason says, shaking his head. “But really, man, you good? You seem off . . . and not just at practice.”
“I’m fine.” My fingers drum on the bar. This was a bad idea.
I don’t talk about feelings and whatnot. Not with Molly, if I can help it, and definitely not with these jokers.
“You know you can talk to us,” Mason says, with far too much concern for my liking.
“I said I was good,” I practically growl.
Mason raises his hand in surrender. “Okay, I’m done. But if—”
“Thought you said you were done?” I fire back, leveling him with a look that says he better shut the hell up.
“Jeez, get this man a drink.” Hudson raises his hand, and the moment he does, I see why this is his favorite dive bar. “Whiskey?”
“Yep,” I mutter, reaching into my back pocket to grab my wallet.
“There will be none of that. Drinks are on me.” Hudson looks at the bartender with a smirk.
Great, I’m here to watch him flex for this girl. That is the last thing I need.
I’m already pissy for playing like shit at practice, and now I have to watch Hudson shoot his shot and inevitably win whatever game he’s playing.
“Oh, there she is,” Mason lifts his hand to wave someone over, and I pivot to see who he’s waving to.
Fuck.
As if this night couldn’t get any worse, Josephine strides over toward where we are standing.
She smiles broadly as she approaches, but her steps falter just a bit when her eyes land on mine.
“What’s she doing here?” I lift my brow at Hudson.
“I invited her.” He shrugs.
“And that’s a good idea, why? You heard Coach.”
“’Cause she’s hot,” Wolfe says, and I turn on him.
“You know damn well she’s off-limits.” My teeth are bared to him like a wild animal’s. He furrows his brow at me.
“And what Coach doesn’t know won’t hurt him . . . or me.” He smirks.
I open my mouth to respond but quickly think better of it. I want to fucking kill him for even implying that he would touch her. I want to remind him again about Coach, but I know damn well he doesn’t give a shit about her father. He doesn’t hold the same respect for Coach that I do.
The closer she gets, the wider her smile becomes. Great. Just fucking great.
As usual, she looks gorgeous. My heart rate picks up as my fists clench at my sides.
“What are we drinking?” Her voice sounds sexy as hell.
She needs to leave.
I look over at Hudson, who’s ogling her. The hot bartender is long since forgotten.
“Are you even legal?” I snap more harshly than I intended. She flinches slightly.
“I don’t know, am I?” She raises her brow in challenge.
I walked right into that one, and the only thing I can do is smash my teeth together.
Of course, she’s old enough since we’ve had this conversation before. I was being an asshole, and it backfired.
“Man, lay off her. There’s no need to be an ass,” Wolfe says.
I let out a groan while I rub my temples.
“The proper thing to do is apologize,” Hudson mocks, and I scowl at him.
“It’s okay,” she says, not bothering to look at me. “He doesn’t need to apologize. After the practice he had, I wouldn’t expect anything from him.”
“Oh man . . . she got you there,” Mason says, grimacing.
I’m not sure why her jab hurts as much as it does, but it hits its intended mark.
Straight into my chest, where it stings the most.
I hate when I let people down, and the way I played today let Coach down. It let my whole fucking team down.
Fucking his daughter also let Coach down, but I’m not going to go there.
Not now. Not ever.
It was a mistake, one I won’t make again.
Even if I want to.