Boarded by Love (6 page)

I know Skylar; we have the same English class. She wanted to have sex with me, but I’m pretty sure that girl could kill me with her thighs. Since I like my girls a little squishy, Skylar is out of the question. She may be freaking gorgeous, but I want to have sex with a girl, not Zangief from
Wreck-It Ralph
.

“Okay, she’s going for business?”

He nods. “She wants to open her own dance company.”

“Do you know her schedule?”

He shakes his head. “Only that she has geometry and English in the morning on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. We always met for lunch at the pit since it was right beside the core class building.”

I process all the info before standing up to head out. “Cool, thanks.”

Before I can reach the door though, he says, “I’m telling you, dude, it’s a waste of time. That girl has her shit locked up like a nun. She isn’t going to just sleep with you.”

I look back at him and shrug. “Who said anything about sleeping with her?”

Before he can say anything, because I know exactly what he’s going to say, I open the door and shut it before heading down the three flights of stairs to my room. I know I shouldn’t be surprised that Allen said that. I mean, I’m not shy with the ladies, and I make sure to please each one who wants my attention, but still, maybe I want something more. Okay, maybe I’m a complete liar. I haven’t wanted someone as bad as I want Claire in a long time, and I can’t wait to get in her pants, but a part of me wants to get to know her too. She interests me, and maybe she’ll be the kind of girl to calm me down. Teach me a lesson about being with a woman. Make me a one-woman man.

Hey, miracles can happen.

When I open the door, Jayden is at his desk, his nose in his book. He looks up and nods before going back to reading. Like me, he has dark hair and light green eyes. We’re both built the same way, strong and lean, but Jayden might be a tad bit bigger than me. Being a defenseman, it’s expected for those hard hits. I’m a center, so I’m leaner for speed.

Ripping off my pullover, I throw it on the bed before throwing my wallet and keys on our bureau where pictures of our family sit. In the middle, surrounded by pictures of Angie, is a picture of me, Jayden, and Jace at the ages of six, seven, and eight. We’re all wide-eyed and excited in our green jerseys for the rec league we played in. We always spoke of how we would all be in the NHL, on the same team, and how everyone would be scared of us because we were the best. I still believe that will happen, and I honestly can’t wait. That’s when life is going to be awesome.

I head to my own desk that holds my books and start my homework. I hate it, but it has to be done to keep my scholarship. We don’t say anything as we both work, but when I’m done, I lean back in my seat and run my hands down my face. I want to call my mom and check in on her. My dad has been gone for almost a month, working on a big case in New York with one of his NHL clients who’s divorcing his wife, and I know that Mom gets lonely. I know that Lucy, Jace, and Angie are there, but sometimes they make it worse. With Angie being so young, only a year, she gets into everything and Mom tries to take on so much. I made a promise a long time ago that when I got my first big check from the NHL, I was going to buy her a week at some ritzy spa. Somewhere she doesn’t have to do anything but be pampered. I wish my dad would do that for her, but he’s selfish. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a decent man, very well-respected, but that doesn’t mean he’s a good husband or father.

“Mom call you?”

I glance back to find Jayden in his bed, lying on his back. I nod before saying, “Yeah, dinner tomorrow?”

“Yeah, Dad is coming in, apparently.”

“That’s what I heard. How long you think he’ll stay?”

“Maybe a day or two. He said something about coming to our opener, though.”

I nod. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

Jayden laughs. “Agreed.

My dad is somewhat of a workaholic, but like my mom says, he does everything to make sure she doesn’t have to work and everyone’s college is paid for. Not mine, though; I don’t want to owe him anything. I want to know I did this myself if this is what I’m supposed to do. If I’m not supposed to play in the NHL, that’s fine, I’ll deal with that when it comes, but at least I’ll know I did it myself. I’m not sure what my issue is with my dad, or if there is an issue, but I just can’t have him pay for me. I have to make my own way.

“Talked to Jace today, too. He said that they are saying now that he might need to do a year in college, just to see how he’ll adjust before they throw him in the NHL.”

“Really? How’s he taking it?”

“Pissed, of course. He doesn’t want to go to school – he wants to play.”

“Don’t we all?”

“Yeah, but Mom is wondering where he will go. The scout said something about Wisconsin.”

“Mom isn’t happy, I take it?”

“No, she cried at the thought. I told her I’d talk to him, that maybe I can get him to come here.”

“Yeah, it only makes sense that we all come through here before going into the draft.”

“I think he wants to see what’s going to happen to you.”

I smile. “We know what’s happening. I’m gonna play for a great team while y’all play school for another year.”

“Ah, fuck you,” Jayden says, sending me an envious look. “I’ll be up there soon and hopefully on the team that kicks your ass.”

“Whatever,” I tease as I stand up, chucking my jeans off before settling into bed.

Silence fills the room as we both play on our phones, but then Jayden breaks it by asking, “How do you think Mom’s gonna handle it when we all are playing all over the US?”

I shrug before glancing over at him. “I’m not sure. I don’t like to think about it.”

“Maybe Nashville will want you?”

I shake my head. “I don’t think they’re looking. Maybe they’ll want you or Jace?”

“Jace has his heart set on New York, and I want Chicago.”

I nod because I know this. While I don’t want to leave my mom, I know Nashville isn’t looking, but maybe they’ll start once the season starts. I know it’s not my responsibility to look after her, it’s my dad’s, but I can’t help but want to be there for her. Make sure she’s good. She’s always done that for me.

“Who was the redhead you were talking to today?”

Meeting my brother’s gaze, I smile. “Claire Anderson. My next conquest.”

Jayden laughs. “Lord help us all.”

“Oh, shut up. She’s hot though, right?”

He nods. “Really hot. Too hot for you, to be honest.”

I laugh at his smirk. “Please, she’s just right for me.”

“No girl is ever right for you, apparently.”

“Maybe that was true, but I’m starting to reconsider it.”

Jayden sits up, shaking his head. “I don’t believe that for a second. I bet ya a hundred bucks that you won’t get her and date her for more than a week. If she does give you the time of day, you’ll get bored, like you always do.”

Sitting up, I hold my hand out to him. He takes it earnestly, and I can see in his eyes that he thinks this is an easy bet. He couldn’t be more wrong.

“You got yourself a deal.”

I
throw open my dorm door, and Skylar looks up at me from her bed and then looks back down at her books that she has around her. “Hey, you.”

“Hey, yourself,” I say, throwing my bag on my bed. “What are you doing Tuesday around six?”

Before she can answer, I crawl into the bed with her, fitting myself in the little bitty space that doesn’t have books and other crap on it. She sends me an impressive look, since it wasn’t an easy feat fitting my long legs in the space she allowed, before saying, “Nothing.” She thinks for a minute. “Yeah, nothing.”

“Good, we’re trying out for the Bullies’ dance team.”

She looks up and gives me a wary look. “Why on earth would we do that? We already have classes we do for Reese, and then we work all the time, and we have school.”

Skylar works at Ms. Prissy’s too, but instead of a dancer, she’s a cocktail waitress. She did work onstage in the past, but her brother came in while she was dancing. Thankfully, he didn’t notice her, but it ruined it for her, and she refuses to go onstage anymore. She’s right that we work a lot, but we can talk to Ms. Prissy and fix our hours if needed. When I say that, she shrugs.

“Yeah, I guess, but I hate those dance chicks. They are such bitches.”

I smile. “’Cause they are jealous of how beautifully gorgeous you are.”

Skylar scoffs as she rolls her hazel eyes. She really is gorgeous, and I’ve always thought so. Wide hazel eyes with freckles along her nose and cheeks. Her brown hair cascades down her shoulders in a wavy, beachy look, and her smile is always unstoppable. She’s beautiful and everyone thinks so. That’s the main reason I have to go find places to study when she has guys over. She isn’t a slut at all, but she doesn’t hold back from the guys. She loves them. I wish I were like that again. Sometimes I feel weird for not being the least bit attracted to anyone… Well, no, I take that back. Allen was okay, and I would have slept with him eventually, but Jude, he has me feeling all kinds of feels that I’m totally not used to. My clothes basically evaporated under his intense green eyes.

Jesus, he was gorgeous. Shaking my head, I meet Skylar’s eyes as she says, “Whatever. I really don’t want to, and probably won’t make it ’cause they’re bitches, but yeah, I’ll do it with ya.”

“Of course you’ll make it. We are amazing dancers.”

She shrugs and I lean against her. I know she’s stressing over her homework, and I want to help, but I have no clue about chemistry. She wants to be a vet, and while I support her and want her to succeed, I know it’s going to be hard. Her classes are freaking challenging as hell.

“It will be fun,” I promise, and she looks back at me.

“Yeah, I know. I’m just freaking out over this crap,” she admits, giving me a sad smile as she points to her books and endless notes.

“I know. If you don’t want to do it, I understand. You have a lot going on.”

“Yeah, but I need a distraction when I’m not working on this shit. It will be good for me.”

I smile, wrapping my arms around her. She has always been my friend, a real friend. Everyone hated me when Phillip started me at the school in his district. I was the new “rich” girl with a hotshot, hockey player uncle. I was kind of a standoffish bitch too, so that had a lot to do with why people didn’t like me. Plus my hair was bright red, and people assumed I was an easy, emo chick. I wasn’t emo for one, and maybe I might have been easy in the past, but once Phillip gave me stability, I was a completely different girl. I wanted things. I wanted to make him proud, I wanted him to love me, but he did no matter what I did, and I’m so thankful for that.

“You know that the hockey team is at the tryouts, right? And they judge the girls.”

“Huh?” I ask, leaning up to look at her.

“Oh yeah, they have little paddles with numbers, and the captains take their opinions into consideration. It’s kinda stupid ’cause the guys only judge you on your looks.”

I smile. “We’re in then. We’re fucking hot.”

She laughs like I wanted as I crawl out of my spot and go to my side of the room. Pictures of Phillip, Reese, and me are everywhere, along with pictures of Skylar and me. While I love my pictures, my favorite ones are the ones of the kids. I love my Dimitri and then Reese’s sister Harper’s kids, Ally and Journey. I spend so much time with them that they are almost like my sister and brothers. I even have pictures of my extended family, which is all of Phillip’s teammates and their families. As I glance at all of them, like I always do, I can’t help but think how I went from having no one to love me to now having so many that I am sometimes overwhelmed with love.

With a smile on my face, I reach for the pink flyers that Ellen was posting everywhere and chuck them in the trash as my smile grows.

Jude Sinclair.

Hmm. He was something, that’s for sure, and I can’t help but think of him. I told him that I’d probably never see him again, but I wish I could see him right now. I should have given him my number; I should have let him pursue me, instead of running the other way. I usually don’t regret blowing guys off, but I am regretting it like crazy right now.