Hooking - Kristine Allen Page 0,24
away. During the silence, I wanted to ask what she was wearing. It better not be something sexy. I found myself on the verge of asking for a selfie so I could see. Then part of me wondered if she actually lived with someone and that’s who she’d called out to. Was she with them when we’d met that first night? Was she planning on going out and cheating on them tonight?
I needed to stop. Things were getting ridiculous. All I’d wanted was another epic fuck with her. At least that’s what I wanted to believe. Instead, my mind was going crazy over her.
“No. But Alex, that’s irrelevant. Nothing can happen between us. You know this, and I know this.” Part of my spirit lightened at her admission. There wasn’t anyone in the picture at the moment. I could work with that.
A knock on the glass had me looking over my shoulder to see McGregor tapping his watch. I gave him a thumbs-up.
“Well, have fun but not too much fun.” I sounded like a grumpy old fart. She laughed. I loved the rich sound of it. “Drive careful.”
Drive careful? Jesus what am I? Her father?
“Will do. Good luck tomorrow night. I’ll be watching, so don’t mess up,” she teased with laughter still bubbling in her voice.
“Gee, thanks.” I gave a wry grin that was lost on her. “Later, Syd.”
“Bye, Alex.” The call ended. I ran a frustrated hand through my hair that had fallen over my face.
I stepped back into the warmth of the room. “’Bout time,” he said as he put his wallet in his back pocket. He glanced back at me. “You okay? You look like someone pissed in your skate.”
“Yeah, it’s all good. Let’s go.”
He studied me for a minute, not believing what I was saying. I could see when he decided to let it drop. “Cool. We don’t have much time.”
He was right. We had an early morning flight, a practice skate as soon as we landed, then the game tomorrow night.
We were silent on the way down the elevator. The door slid open silently, and the din from the bar could be heard from down the hall. Many of the guys were already there.
“Goddamn, took you two long enough! Were you getting your bromance on?” Beck called out when we approached. The rest of them laughed. McGregor and I both flipped them off.
“He was on the phone,” McGregor offered as he stepped up to the bar to get us each a whiskey.
“Calling your girlfriend?” Halvorson asked snidely as he raised his drink to his lips, holding eye contact the whole way. What the hell was he getting at?
“Fuck off.” I narrowed my gaze at him and accepted the short glass from McGregor. Ignoring Halvorson, I leaned on the bar and watched the TV absently.
Manicured nails slid over the white fabric of the dress shirt I still wore. Disgruntled, I dropped my gaze to the hot pink tips and raised them to the green eyes blinking at me. “Hi,” she said and bit her lip, trying to look cute.
It never failed. A few of the bunnies always found out where we were staying and showed up at the hotel bar. Each one hoped to hook up with a hockey player for the night—or for good.
“Hey,” I said and returned my gaze to the TV. McGregor and Beck stepped up, and I noticed one had already latched on to McGregor’s arm. With a raised brow, I gave him that really? stare. A shit-eating grin accompanied by a shrug was his response.
That niggling little voice in my head that was responsible for getting me in a lot of trouble told me the brunette was right up my alley. If I was fucking her, I wouldn’t have to listen to McGregor fucking the chick hanging on his arm.
A flash of midnight black hair caught my attention from the other end of the bar. Even knowing it wasn’t her, it still reminded me of Sydney, and the chick trailing her nails on my arm lost my brief interest.
Then I remembered she was out with Natalie. Maybe she was already grinding against some other dude like she had with me. Hell, maybe they were already on their way to his place. Anger simmered in my chest at the thought.
Turning toward the brunette, I gave her my most alluring smile. “Can I buy you a drink?”
The alarm was blaring in my ear as I lifted my face from the pillow it was