Chapter 73 Willow
Willow
The hotel room is exactly what I expected—sleek, high-end, and way too expensive for a derby trip.
Polished concrete floors, floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking a row of palm trees, and the kind of minimalist decor that screams corporate money.
Dad booked the entire floor for the team, of course.
Privacy, security, and a subtle reminder that he’s still pulling strings—even when he says he’s not.
After dropping bags and swapping travel clothes for swimsuits, we regroup in the hotel restaurant.
Daisy orders nachos big enough to feed an entire pack.
Knox gets into a heated argument with Cheese over salsa spice levels, while Twinkle claims two desserts before we’ve even made it through the mains.
It’s easy. Fun. Even with Landon there.
He’s eased into the team better than I expected. They don’t forget the history—especially not with me—but they trust him with the game. Trust him to help them improve. And it shows in the way they talk to him. Joke with him. Tease him about drills and strategy and his lack of flexibility.
Sure, they toss me the occasional side-eye. Daisy makes exaggerated crackling sounds, ready to break his kneecaps if he so much as blinks wrong in my direction—but I think they can feel it too. The shift. The way I don’t flinch anymore when he’s close. The way we talk.
Even Carson, Graham, and Hunter seem more relaxed. It feels like an actual vacation. A rare breath of air before we hit the fire of Nationals.
When we finally make it down to the pool, the mood is loose and full of laughter.
“Last one in buys breakfast,” Knox calls, already sprinting toward the edge.
We trail behind her—bare feet slapping cool concrete, towels slung over shoulders, full and a little tired from the day.
The pool glows soft and blue under the string lights, shadows dancing across the surface.
Palm trees rustle in the warm breeze. The air smells of chlorine, faint salt, and something citrusy from a candle burning near the cabanas.
The hot tub is set apart—nestled behind low hedges, the water bubbling and steaming, tucked just far enough to feel private.
I dive into the pool first, the shock of it stealing my breath and snapping me fully awake. It’s glorious. Clean. Cold. I break the surface laughing, already paddling into a loose lap. Daisy tries to race me and wipes out halfway through, her flailing limbs making more splash than speed.
The guys take their time. Graham eases in slowly, settling into the shallow end with a sigh as though he’s got fifty years in his joints.
Hunter dunks me without warning, then hauls me back up, water streaming from my hair as I sputter and curse him.
Carson cannonballs in with zero warning, drenching all of us.
Eventually, the lure of the hot tub wins.
“I’m going in,” I announce, wringing water from my hair. “My muscles are not ready for tomorrow without some kind of bribe.”
“It’s a thousand degrees in there,” Cheese groans from a lounger, sipping a mocktail with a slice of pineapple. “You’re insane.”
“Melting is my brand,” I toss over my shoulder, grabbing a towel as I pad toward the bubbling water in the corner.
The stone is warm underfoot, the air thick with heat as I step into the tub slowly. The water wraps around my legs, hot and soothing, pulling a sigh from deep in my chest. Every inch of me aches, and the jets bite into sore muscles in the best possible way.
I sink in up to my shoulders and close my eyes, letting the heat do its magic.
The team’s still loud across the pool, voices rising and falling in waves. Someone screams about cannonballs. Someone threatens to launch a flip-flop. I smile, eyes still shut, letting the chaos blur into background noise.
Footsteps approach—soft but confident. A towel hits the lounge chair nearby with a quiet thump.
“You’re seriously not boiling alive in there?” Landon’s voice slides across the water.
I smirk without opening my eyes. “Maybe I like to suffer.”
“Sounds about right,” he says, and there’s that familiar edge of humor in his voice. “Mind if I join?”
“It’s a free country.” I crack one eye open. “Though you might regret it.”
He steps in slowly on the far side, teeth gritted, breath catching when the water hits his thighs. “Holy hell. This is going to melt my skin off.”
“Told you.”
The silence between us settles, not heavy—just present. Familiar in a way that shouldn’t feel good, but kind of does.
The jets hum low. Steam curls off the surface. Tiny beads of sweat gather at my temples, sliding into damp strands of hair.
“Are you excited about tomorrow?” he asks after a beat.
I keep my head tilted back, eyes half-closed. “More like nervous.”
“You’re ready,” he says simply. “You’re going to do amazing.”
I glance at him—his face soft in the low light, hair pushed back, arms draped over the edge of the tub. His eyes aren’t teasing now. They’re warm. Steady.
“Or I’ll faceplant taking the star and end up a viral meme,” I mutter. “Maybe Finn can capture that for the ages.”
His expression flickers. “Finn?”
I nod. “A fan. Kind of obsessed.”
He shifts slightly, one arm sliding down to rest on the edge of the seat. “Yeah. I think I met him.”
I tilt my head. “Yeah?”
“If your fan’s the one who threatens people’s lives for hurting you, then yep. I’m pretty sure I’ve met him.”
My eyebrows shoot up. I sit forward a little, steam curling around me. “He threatened you?”
Landon gives a dry laugh, scrubbing a hand down his jaw. “You could say that.”
I move a little closer, curiosity overriding the distance we’d been keeping. “What did he do?”
“He cornered me by my truck after practice last week,” Landon says. “Didn’t raise his voice. Didn’t touch me. Just… got real close and said if I ever hurt you again, he’d make sure I disappeared.”
“Yeah,” I murmur. “That sounds like him.”
Landon studies me, his brow furrowed. “You don’t seem surprised.”
“I’m not.”
“You okay with that?” he asks carefully. “Because that wasn’t just protective. That was…calculated. And a little crazy.”
I run my fingers through the water, watching the ripples stretch toward him. “Finn doesn’t draw lines the way most people do. And I don’t think he knows how to love without it bleeding into obsession.”
“You think that’s love?” he asks.
“I think it’s his version of it,” I say quietly. “And yeah, that probably makes me messed up too—but I don’t feel unsafe.”
Landon leans back, arms resting on the edge of the tub, gaze fixed on the water. “He scares me a little.”
“Good,” I say without thinking. Then softer, “He’s supposed to.”
That earns the smallest smile from him. Not mocking—just tired. Understanding.
“You’ve got a whole world of complicated around you now,” he says, voice gentler.
“Yeah.” I meet his eyes. “But I’m not drowning in it anymore.”
We sit in silence for a beat. The bubbles hum. Laughter floats over from the pool. My skin tingles from the heat, from the closeness, from too many memories brushing up against the now.
“Thanks for not running,” I murmur.
Landon’s eyes flick to mine, something unreadable flickering there. “I did once already. I’m not doing it again.”
I nod slowly, my throat tight for reasons I can’t quite name. Then I tip my head back against the edge of the tub and let the silence stretch. The area is darker than the pool, with only the lights in the hot tub illuminating the area.
And stars slowly start appearing in the night sky. They seem brighter here. I’m not sure if I can see them in New York City; I don’t think I ever take the time to look up. Actually, the last time I remember looking at the stars was in Georgia. With Landon.
My heart beats harder in my chest, and my perfume spikes between us.
I’m glad for the smell of the chlorine blocking most of it out.
Still, I can feel my cheeks heat, and it has nothing to do with the warmth of the hot tub.
His fingers brush my shoulder, and it doesn’t feel deliberate, but my body almost demands more.
I shift closer without meaning to, and his hand brushes the back of my neck. He doesn’t say anything, but I can sense him tensing next to me. He’s as aware of me as I am of him.
His fingers brush the back of my neck again, feather-light. Maybe accidental. Maybe not. But I feel it everywhere.
The water hums around us, quiet compared to the laughter still echoing from the pool. My skin buzzes, heat curling low in my belly, confusing and old and brand new all at once.
I don’t move away. Neither does he.
Our shoulders are barely touching now, his arm close enough that I can feel the warmth of his skin through the ripples.
I turn slightly, meeting his gaze in the soft blue glow of the water.
The light casts shadows across his face, highlighting the jaw I’ve traced with my fingers, the lips I’ve felt.
His eyes flick down. Just for a second. Just enough.
I don’t think. I just lean in, only a breath. Barely a tilt of my head. But he’s already meeting me halfway.
And then—
A splash. A loud one.
“Jesus, it’s a sauna in here!” Daisy yelps as she drops into the hot tub. “You two are insane—wait…”
Her eyes bounce between us, eyebrows shooting up like she’s just walked in on something way more naked than this.
“Oh. Ohhhh. Carry on,” she says, hands raised, laughing as she starts to scoot away. “Don’t mind me. Just pretend I’m invisible.”
I blink, stunned. Landon clears his throat and shifts back slightly, his hand moving from my neck so fast it makes my heart pound.
Daisy freezes. “Wait, shit. You were about to kiss, weren’t you? Ugh—I ruined it. I totally ruined it.”
“You didn’t ruin anything,” Landon says quickly, voice low but polite as ever. He stands, reaching for his towel without looking at me. “I was just heading out anyway.”
I watch him step out of the tub, water streaming down his chest, muscles tight with restraint.
“Night, Willow,” he says softly, and then he’s gone, disappearing around the hedge with nothing but steam in his wake.
Daisy sinks lower into the bubbles beside me, grimacing. “Okay, fine. I ruined it. My bad. I thought you two were just marinating, not—” she twirls her finger in a circle between us, “emotionally sous-viding.”
I give her a flat look. “Did you seriously just say sous-viding?”
“Look, I panicked,” she whispers dramatically. “You were all glowy and close, and I thought someone maybe passed out or got cooked alive. I was trying to be the responsible one.”
I snort. “You cannonballed into the middle of a moment, Daisy.”
“Yeah, well…how was I supposed to know you were about to kiss your ex-scent match in a hotel hot tub like it’s a telenovela?”
I groan, burying my face in my hands. “You’re the worst.”
She nudges my shoulder with hers. “You love me.”
“Unfortunately.”
We sit in silence for a second, the bubbles gurgling between us.
Then she says, a little softer, “I didn’t know it was…real. That it still is. With him.”
I drop my hands and glance at her, my voice barely above a whisper. “I wasn’t positive either. Not until just now.”
She nods, quiet for once. “You okay?”
I hesitate. “Yeah. I think so.”
Even if everything’s complicated, and messy, and probably going to hurt, I’m okay.
She nods, her tone more serious than usual. “Whatever you need, Jinx. Even if it’s just someone to stand watch, so you can get that kiss in the hot tub next time.”
I laugh quietly. “Noted.”
She leans her head back, sighing. “Alright, enough emotional whiplash. My heart can’t take this many feelings in chlorine.”
“You started it.”
“Yeah, and now I’m ending it—with cheesecake. You in?”
I grin. “Only if we run and beat Knox to it.”
“Loser gets slapped with a wet towel.”
We scramble out of the hot tub, dripping and half-laughing, the heaviness between us dissolving just a little with every step.
The night’s not over. Neither is the mess in my chest. But for now—cheesecake and friendship are enough.