Chapter 47
Damon
Brandt’s a good guesser, but he’s off. I shrug. “Does it matter?”
He straightens and looks me over. “Probably not. After all, Hawk’s going to Columbia in a year. You’ll find your way back onto someone’s list for college hockey. Maybe somewhere in New England or Michigan. And Cam? Cam’s your wildcard, but he’s definitely focused on Crowne Mawr.”
Interesting pivot, but I let him continue.
“And EvanAnn?” He smirks and gestures to her shaking the director’s hand. “She’ll go places with or without the showcase. She’s got a long list of colleges she’s considering.”
My eyes narrow at that comment, but he doesn’t notice. He’s watching Evan.
“She could go anywhere, but probably not the places you’re going.
” Brandt shrugs and relaxes back in his chair.
“You guys are a ticking bomb just waiting to go off. Maybe that was the plan all along. Throw her off her game. Maybe your parents will split you up. Or maybe you’ll make it through the school year, but after this year…
” He makes an exploding motion with his hands.
He shakes his head and puts on his sunglasses.
“It’ll be a fun ride, but all rides end. ”
Evan and Chase move away from the director. Evan chats at Chase and he watches her with a smile. My heart burns seeing her give him attention.
“You know there are other options to keep your bed warm for the rest of the year,” Elizabeth says. She touches my knee.
I glare at her, but she smiles at me like she isn’t doing anything wrong. This is all a game to both of them.
I stand and glance at Brandt. “Whatever game you’re playing, you need to stop before it gets you in trouble.”
Brandt chuckles. “I’m not like Olivia. My emotions don’t drive me. But something tells me they drive you. I’m going to sit back and watch the sparks fly when you go reclaim your ant.”
He takes a sip from his glass as humor dances in his eyes.
Manipulative asshole.
I glance toward Evan and Chase as they walk over to a man and woman. Chase introduces Evan, and she turns on again. Ready with the right answers. Are these the drama professors at the college she wants into? This would be the equivalent to the coaches I need to get in front of.
Chase keeps his hand on her back. When he notices me watching, he smirks and leans down to kiss her hair. She doesn’t pause in talking with the people, but she shifts away from him.
I should go claim her. Fuck our parents. But I also know Evan doesn’t want that, so I walk the other way. Maybe there’s a bar inside where I can add some rum to my Diet Coke.
“There you are.” Tom’s voice stops me as I reach for the glass door.
When I turn, I freeze at who stands next to Tom.
“Roger, this is the young man I’ve been telling you about. Adam’s son.” Tom’s smile is huge.
I offer him my hand. “Damon Storm, sir. Huge fan.”
Roger Farrell laughs and takes my hand. “Hopefully of my coaching as well as my hockey career.”
“Both, sir.” I straighten as we shake. He’s been coaching at Yale for the past five years. Before that, his team won the Stanley Cup with his help. “I’d hoped to meet you when I was in the USHL.”
Roger gives me that pitying smile people give you when they know your sob story. “Tom told me about your accident. It sucks to have to sit out a year and miss an opportunity like that.”
I nod, but keep my gaze from drifting to Evan. Without the accident, I never would have gotten a chance to know her. She just would have been the daughter of Heather, the bitch who moved in with my dad while I was gone.
“I’ve been watching your stats for years,” Roger says and gestures for me to join him in some chairs.
“I’ll leave you two to it.” Tom waves before heading off toward Evan and Chase.
We sit and he talks about the program at Yale a little. I ask questions when I need to. Yale would have been a stretch for me with my grades last year, but this year I’m focusing. It’s not Boston, but it’s definitely a step up from a new D1 program.
“I’d love for you to come visit for the weekend in a couple weeks.” Roger meets my gaze. “You’re the kind of player we’ve been looking for. Good grades, excellent school, and a coach who trains his players as if they’re already in the NHL.”
“We have the best coach.” I agree. “And I’d love to visit.”
“Your parents and sister can come with you too.”
Sister. “She’s not my sister. My dad and Heather aren’t married.”
Roger doesn’t even skip a beat. “That’s fine. Your dad is a good man. It’ll be nice to see him on campus again. He got his law degree from Yale, I’m told.”
I nod. Is that what this is? Legacy? Does it matter to me how I get in?
Not at this point. I’m just happy to have the opportunity again. Even if I apply to the Ivy Leagues, there wouldn’t be a guarantee I could get on the team. Most teams already have their new players chosen for next year.
“We’re always happy to have legacies. Even if your dad didn’t play hockey.”
I smile and we chat for a few more minutes before shaking hands and going our separate ways. I didn’t keep an eye on Evan while talking to Roger, and now I look for her. Chase is standing with Elizabeth. Flirting.
But I don’t see Evan. I circle the pool and find Evan sitting with Sandra Cox. What if Brandt is right? If I go off to Yale, Hawk’s going to Columbia, and Cam goes to Crowne Mawr, where does that leave Evan and us?
Where would she even go for the internship? LA? And her colleges are all over the place. I’ve looked over the list Chase had. There’s a couple in the northeast, but how do we all see each other?
Would she have time to travel if she gets an internship and college? And I’d have hockey, Cam’s joining a fraternity, and Hawk will dig into school. None of us will see each other except maybe at breaks if I don’t have a game and Evan doesn’t have a performance.
I drag a hand through my hair. Maybe we do have an expiration date. A fist closes around my heart. I’d lose my best friends and my girl. Sure, we might keep in touch, but will that be enough? Maybe we need to start looking at what kind of future we might have together.
Is it too soon to be looking at that? Will that freak Evan out?
Her gaze lifts and she looks around. Her eyes find me and she smiles so fucking big my heart hurts. The future is months away. We have time to come up with a plan.
EvanAnn
“We’re taking submissions over the next month.” Sandra Cox tells me. Me! “I’d love to see your application.”
“This means everything to me.” I’m not about to be shy about this opportunity.
“When Tom told me about you and what you’ve done at Anteros, I knew you’d be a perfect fit for the program.
” Sandra smiles and touches my arm. “It’s a year-long internship, but you’ll be working with me the entire time.
My interns usually have their choice of colleges or work when they finish. And we’ll keep in touch.”
The amount of industry contacts I could make in a year makes my head spin. I turn and look for Damon. He was talking to a man earlier, but now he sits alone, and his focus is on me. I can’t help but smile.
“Here’s my contact information.”
I get out my phone so she can AirDrop the info to me.
“I’m really looking forward to reviewing your application.” She points to the information on my phone. “You can access the application here.”
I nod. “I’m so glad I got to meet you. You really are who I want to be someday.”
Sandra stands with me, and she kisses my cheeks. “You’ll go far, EvanAnn.”
She leaves me, and for a second, I just breathe in the fresh air. Fuck. Sandra Cox is excited about my application. I want to run to Damon and jump into his arms.
“How did it go?” Chase comes up beside me. His hand hovers near my arm, but I glare at it. He doesn’t touch me, thankfully.
I give him my practiced smile. “It went well. Thank you.”
“You should give your boyfriend a hug.” He arches an eyebrow.
“I will give my boyfriend a hug as soon as we’re alone.” I move away from him a little, and he drops his hand.
“You could be a little more grateful, EvanAnn.” Chase closes the distance between us and leans down so no one else can hear. “I got you one-on-one time with your future, and you didn’t even have to suck my cock.”
I narrow my eyes at him. He’s right on the edge of the swimming pool no one is using.
The blue water ripples from the gentle breeze.
I give him a fake grin and move like I’m going to give him a hug.
He opens his arms, and I shove him enough that he loses balance.
I’m careful to scramble away so he doesn’t drag me in with him.
He lets out a yelp as he crashes into the pool. I cover my mouth to hide my smile but keep my eyes wide.
“Oh my god, babe,” I say. “Are you okay?”
Chase runs his hands through his wet, dark hair and lifts his gaze to mine. He’s careful to hide his anger, knowing he’s the center of attention. “Must have slipped.”
He swims to the ladder and climbs out. Mom stops beside me.
“Are you okay?” she asks.
I almost giggle but hide it. “I’m fine.”
I turn to look for Damon, and his blue eyes dance with amusement. Chase makes his way inside as his mom offers him a towel. He snatches it from her. Damon walks over to us.
“Seems like a fitting end to the party.” Damon nods to his dad as Adam joins us. “I’m ready to go when you are.”
I wish we’d come separately from our parents. That we could take off on his bike and ride up into the hills.
Tom approaches us, shaking his head. “I don’t know what to do with that boy. You’d think he’d be more graceful from all the acting classes we bought him.”
I shrug. “I might have thrown him off balance.”
Swallowing my laugh, I glance at Damon. He doesn’t give anything away, but I really can’t wait until we’re alone so we can laugh about it. Cam and Hawk will be pleased too.
“You should stay for dinner, EvanAnn,” Tom announces. “It’ll just be us and Chase. Seems like you two haven’t gotten a lot of time together lately.”
“I already have plans to hang out with friends. Chase said he’d be busy tonight.” It’s just a line in the part I’m playing as Chase’s long-suffering girlfriend.
“That’s too bad.” Tom glances toward the house. “I have to say goodbye to people. Hopefully, we can get together again soon. I’d love to hear about who you talked to and what opportunities might have come your way.”
“It’s a little busy right now with family, the play, and school. Thank you so much for introducing me to Sandra Cox. She’s amazing.”
Tom smiles. “I knew she’d love you.”
“Who wouldn’t?” Damon says softly. He’s close enough to my back I can feel the heat coming off him. But far enough away to be appropriate.
“I always knew my little girl would go far.” Mom touches my hair and smiles with a little sadness. Like she’s remembering Dad and his love of movies. I could use a hug, and it looks like she needs one too.
I step into her and wrap my arms around her waist, resting my chin on her shoulder. “I love you, Mom.”
She hugs me back and rests her head against mine. “I love you, too.”