Chapter 12
Twelve
BASS
I stare at Kai’s beautiful ass in disbelief and wait for her to take back what she just said, but she doesn’t.
Yes,” she confirms her statement, and her expression is carefully blank. "I got caught up in the moment. It won't happen again."
“So you admit that there was a moment?”
“Morelli–”
"And what about Jack?” I cut her off.
A confused look covers her face. “What about him?”
“Is he a mistake, too, or is he the kind of guy you actually want? Will you kiss him tonight like you kissed me?”
"Excuse me?"
"I saw you with him in there. Laughing, letting him get close to you. Is that what you're into?”
She places a hand on her hip. “Bro, I apologize if I’ve given you the impression that you could ever ask me something so personal,” she says in the most unapologetic tone I’ve ever heard. “Who I talk to and why I talk to them is none of your business.”
"It’s my business if you're using him to avoid dealing with what's happening between us."
"What's happening between us?” Kai laughs, but there's no humor in it. "You mean this dual assignment that you're supposed to be taking seriously?"
“I am taking it seriously and don't pretend that's all this is."
"That's exactly what this is." Her voice is firm, but I catch the slight tremor underneath.
At this point, I know I should leave it alone.
Leave her alone. Hell, this connection I think is happening could totally be all in my head.
It’s not like I’ve ever been in a serious relationship before.
I don’t even know how to start one, and is that what I even want from her?
Maybe my dick is overthinking this shit.
“Listen, I get it. You’re a hockey star, and you’ve been conditioned to believe that any kind of attention from a girl means that they’re interested in you, but just so we’re clear, I’m not one of them.
I’m just trying to graduate from this place and then get a decent job.
Period. I don't have time for distractions. "
"Is that what I am?” Her dismissive tone is pissing me off. “A distraction?"
Kai’s tough girl game is good. I bet she’s been putting up that protective wall around her feelings her whole life. But after my question, when she hesitates for just a second, it’s long enough for me to see the truth she's trying to hide. I’m a distraction, but in all the right ways.
"Yes," she says finally. "You are."
But she doesn't move away when I step closer. And she doesn't protest when I reach up to pull a few strands of her hair stuck to her glossed lips.
"Then why are you still here?" I ask quietly. "Why haven’t you gone back inside to your corny friend Jack?"
Her breath catches, and for a moment, I think she might admit that whatever this is between us is not going away just because she wants it to.
Wrong again.
Instead, she steps back, breaking the contact.
"Because I needed air. And now I've had it."
She walks toward the house, leaving me standing alone by the fence like an idiot. But before she reaches the sliding door, she stops and turns back.
“Not that I owe you an explanation,” she says, “but Jack and I were simply talking about our projects. I don’t have a thing going on with every guy I talk to, unlike some people I know. Stop projecting your shitty behavior onto me.”
Damn, that girl is cold, and now she's gone, disappearing back into the party. I stay outside for another ten minutes, trying to figure out my next move. When I finally go back inside, I see asshole Jack by the beer pong table, but Kai is nowhere to be found.
She left.
Kai Vega is going to drive me insane.
But as I head for the door myself, I can't shake the feeling that her clarification about Jack was actually a good thing.
She wanted me to know they were just friends.
Which means she gives a shit what I think.
Which means this isn't over, no matter how much she wants it to be.
I drive back to the Ice House with my mind racing, replaying every word, every look, every fucking second of that conversation. By the time I pull into the parking lot, I've got it figured out.
Kai Vega thinks she's playing chess, but she just showed me her hand.
She called me a distraction—not an annoyance, not a waste of time, not someone she genuinely can't stand. A distraction. Which means I'm getting to her. Which means she's fighting something real, not just brushing off some random guy hitting on her.
And that clarification about Jack? She didn't owe me shit, like she said, but she gave it to me anyway. Because she wanted me to know.
Inside the house, Neo's snuggling on the couch with Violet, and Shane's in the kitchen making what looks like a protein shake. Typical Friday night chaos, but I'm not in the mood for it.
"You look like someone kicked your puppy. Where the hell have you been?” Shane asks when I walk in.
“Baseball party,” I mutter, grabbing a water from the fridge.
“I’m not judging, but um…why? Oh, wait,” he chuckles. “Let me guess. Vega again?"
I take a long drink instead of answering, but Shane knows me too well.
"What happened this time?"
"She's avoiding me. Has been for three days since..." I stop myself. The kiss isn't something I'm ready to share, even with Shane.
"Since what?"
"Since nothing. Since everything. Since I fucked up by actually giving a shit.”
Neo looks up from the couch. "About the project?"
"About her."
The room goes quiet except for the TV. Shane stops blending his shake. Even Violet, who usually minds her own business, is paying attention now.
"Oh shit," Neo says slowly. "You're serious about this girl?”
“I think it’s a good thing,” Violet adds. “Kai is cool people.”
"I don't know what I am," I admit. "But I know I can't just let her walk away from whatever this is."
"Maybe you should," Shane says carefully. "I mean, if she's not interested—"
"She is interested." I lean against the counter. "She's just scared. Or stubborn. Or both."
"How can you be sure?” Violet asks.
"Because she kissed me back. Because she keeps looking at me like she wants to say something she can't. Because she went out of her way tonight to make sure I knew she wasn't with another guy.”
Shane raises an eyebrow. "She was with another guy? A baseball player?”
"No. That's the point." I run a hand through my hair. "Look, I need to fix this. Our project deadline is next Monday, and if I don't get her to work with me again, we're both fucked."
"So this is about the project?" Neo asks.
"It's about everything." The words come out harder than I intended. "It's about proving to her that I'm not who she thinks I am. It's about showing her that I can be the kind of guy who deserves her time."
“I’m not trying to be a dick, dude, but this caring about what a girl thinks stuff doesn’t sound like you at all. I’m asking clarifying questions because I’m confused as hell.”
“Yeah, but you’re being a dick,” Violet mushes Neo’s head after that comment.
“Okay, you want to show her that you can be different.” Shane takes a swig of his shake. “And how exactly are you planning to do that?”
That's when it hits me. The plan. It's risky as hell, and she'll probably hate me for it, but it's the only way to get through those walls she's built.
"I'm going to make her an offer she can't refuse," I say.
"Meaning, Godfather?” Shane quips.
"Meaning I'm going to give her exactly what she wants—complete control over my image, my social media, my public appearances. Everything. For the rest of the semester."
Neo frowns. "Dude, that's—"
"Insane? Yeah, I know. But think about it. She wants to prove she can handle difficult clients? I'll be her biggest success story. She wants to graduate with an impressive portfolio? I'll make sure she has material that'll get her any job she wants."
"And what do you get out of it?" Shane asks.
"Time. Proximity. A chance to show her who I really am when I'm not on the ice.”
"What if she still says no?"
I think about the way she looked at me tonight—conflicted, guarded, but not indifferent. Never indifferent.
"Then at least I'll know I tried everything."
Shane nods slowly.
“What do you like about her?” Violet asks. It’s a valid question, so I answer it.
“She’s beautiful, she’s focused, and she doesn’t give a fuck that I play hockey.”
“All valid reasons,” Violet smiles. “So, when are you going to ask her?”
"Tomorrow morning. I'm going to show up at her apartment with her matcha drink and a proposal she can't turn down."
"And if she doesn't answer the door?"
"Then I'll wait until she does."
I head upstairs to my room, already planning what I'm going to say. How am I going to convince her that taking a risk on me is worth it, for both our futures?
None of this makes any damn sense, I think to myself, but I’ve had enough “relationship” conversations with my Mom to spot the signs of a real possibility versus a puck bunny.
And Kai Vega is definitely nobody’s puck bunny.
But I'm someone worth taking a risk on, too.
Someone worth loving.
She just doesn’t know it yet.