What Are The Chances (Phil-U #2)

70 You’re meddling

CHAPTER SEVENTY

You’re meddling

RILEY

I tapped my phone against my lips as I waited by the front door. I’d contemplated messaging Will, giving him a head’s up that I was coming, but I’m sure Grace had mentioned something to Levi anyway, and I’m sure he’d then passed that information onto Will. Nothing was sacred in that group.

Before Parker had left to make it to Allentown for a dinner date with Tanner, she’d laid out my outfit. Apparently cargo pants were back in. She’d paired a beige pair with a tight white long sleeve and black and white Jordans, and she’d topped it off with her iconic green bomber jacket.

I’d put it on without question. At least I looked confident even though I sure as hell didn’t feel it.

Right on time, Levi’s SUV pulled into my drive. Before I could second guess myself, I headed for his car.

“Hey, Riley,” Grace said, leaning over the console to hug me as I climbed in.

She’d edged Levi’s driver’s seat all the way towards the dashboard. I’ll bet Holloway wouldn’t even be able to get back into his car when it was like this.

I jumped when a voice came from the back seat.

“Hi, Riley.”

Lana Holloway was buckled in the middle and was looking so freaking flawless it was like she was on her way to shoot a magazine cover.

“Hey, Lana. I didn’t know you were coming.”

“Ah, last minute decision,” she mumbled .

The drive to campus didn’t take enough time. Before I knew it, we’d parked. Then we’d entered the concourse. Then we’d walked into the arena. And now we were finding our seats.

There were three together. Four rows from the front.

“That’s us,” Grace said.

Lana led the way, walking effortlessly in her heeled boots down the steps. Once seated, I narrowed my eyes at Grace. There’s no way she’d managed to score an extra ticket last minute for Lana beside us.

I danced my gaze between them. “ Last minute, huh?”

Grace smiled sheepishly. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want you and Will to fall out because you’re too stubborn to talk to each other.”

Lana smiled impressively. “Look at you, Grace. You’re meddling. I love it.”

Like most Friday night games, this one was sold out. Now I had nothing to hide, I’d shamelessly done my research before leaving. I’d gone through the other team’s roster. I knew which of their players to look out for. They had a star d-man, and their goalie was statistically the best in the league. They’d no doubt be on shut down Holloway and Caufield duty. Good luck to them.

I was excited to watch Will. So long as he wasn’t – shit . I’d completely forgotten about his shoulder. Had he not asked me to tape it because it was healed or because he didn’t want my help? I really hoped it was the former because there was nothing I could do now. Or could I?

I pulled up my contacts and chaotically swiped through them until I located Beth’s number.

RILEY: Hey Beth, it’s Riley. I know this is random, but can you please tell Will Caufield I’m here if he needs anything.

Given she spent most of her time pointing her phone at the players, I only hoped she was still paying attention to her own notifications. After hitting send, I tightly held my phone in case she messaged back.

“Can you believe this is going to be your life for the foreseeable future, Grace?” Lana teased.

Grace shrugged nonchalantly. “I like it. I love sport.”

“Tell me that after you’ve spent your entire childhood bouncing from arena to arena while your brother and his best friend played game after game.”

“It was the opposite for me with Tanner,” I admitted. “I was so obsessed with watching him that one year I begged mum to let me try out for the team.”

“No way,” Grace laughed. “What happened? ”

“I was so terrible that Tanner’s mum had him take me out for ice cream where he gave me a full spiel about how it helped him more when I was on the sidelines cheering him on.”

Grace burst into a fit of laughter. It was funny now. At the time it had been humiliating. Tanner loved reminding me about it to this day. The only thing I was skilled at was my puck accuracy. I could nail a shot, but I couldn’t skate well or do anything else, which was quite imperative in hockey.

Lana slid to the edge of her seat, her brown eyes zeroing in on me. “I’m so glad you brought that up. I’ve been dying to get the details.” She leaned in closer, her glossy hair falling over her shoulder. “The hottie from Allentown is your brother?”

I nodded. “Same dad, different mums.”

“I looked up your dad on the way over. He’s a total silver fox, which is no surprise because both you and your brother are freaking hot.” She waggled her eyebrows. “ Especially your brother.”

I scrunched up my nose. “Gross. Besides, he’s taken now. By my best friend apparently.”

That detail seemed to interest Lana. “Parker, right? The girl Ryan was seeing for a while.”

“That’s the one. Tanner and Parker are cute together,” I admitted. “I’ve never seen my brother so... monogamous.”

It was nice talking about Tanner without hiding the details of who he was to me. That had been the worst part of all the lies. I’d never been ashamed of my brother. He’d never been a secret to me.

“Levi mentioned he might be heading to Texas with Will,” Grace said.

That was the latest rumour. One Tanner had spoken about in-depth with me. He was leaning towards Texas more and more each day. He likely wouldn’t have as smooth a run as Will to the league. It might mean a year in the Bobcat’s farm team, or maybe even a bit longer. But that was a better scenario than him miserably giving up his dream and praying he had punished dad enough.

Lana’s eyebrows lowered. “How awkward would it be going to his games if Will was playing?”

Grace interjected. “Not awkward at all. Because by that point, Will and Riley will be back together. Right?”

I really hoped so.

I eagerly checked my phone, but there was no reply from Beth.

Now there was definitely nothing I could do because the arena lights had just dimmed. The game was about to begin.