Chapter Twenty-Six
JAKE
The clock is counting down the last few seconds of the game.
We’re tied, one-to-one, and the crowd is on edge.
We won the game last night, but that doesn’t make me care any less about this one, and it’s the same for the fans.
I can practically feel their heartbeats pulsing in the air as I move down the ice, waiting for my opening.
I’m half-focused on the clock, half-focused on the other team’s net as I wait for my forward to pass me the puck at the exact moment.
We’ve got one chance… I cannot miss when the time comes…
Just before the clock hits zero, my forward fakes out the goalie, slaps me the puck, and I shoot it without hesitation. When it flies past the goalie and sinks into the net, the buzzer goes off, indicating the end of the game.
The crowd goes wild—the home side furious, and our traveling fans are losing their minds, cheering for us.
My team rushes toward me, and we celebrate, high-fiving and roaring like we’re warriors returning from victory on the battlefield.
“Way to go, Ashford!” one of the guys yells.
“Great shout!” Another shouts as he smacks me on the shoulder.
We soak in the victory a little longer before making our way out of the rink and to the visitor’s locker room. I feel fucking awesome, but there’s a part of me that wishes Abbie and Lilah were both here to see me. I want to celebrate with them more than anyone else.
Thinking about them fills me with a longing I’ve never experienced before. As if I’m missing something vital.
The usual routine isn’t cutting it anymore. Once upon a time, I’d be planning on going out with the guys, getting a little wild, and shutting the bars down.
Now, I’m not so eager to partake. If anything it sounds exhausting and not worth the effort. The carefree bachelor life I’ve been living, and thought I’d always want to live, doesn’t appeal to me like it used to.
I just miss Abbie and Lilah.
As the other guys continue joking and riding the high of the win, I get my shower and get dressed. When I’m cleaned up and ready, I make my way out of the locker room to head to the bus that’ll take us to our hotel.
Stepping out into the hallway, I see a familiar face and freeze.
Oh, shit.
It’s Cassandra. She’s dressed in short shorts and a jersey with my number on it.
Her long hair is pulled back into a high ponytail and she’s wearing bright red lipstick.
She spots me immediately and smiles, her eyes going big.
As she rushes to me, I actually take a step back, physically recoiling from her. “Jake…!” she cries.
“Get the hell away from me,” I hiss, stepping back and throwing my hands up in a stop sign before she can get too close. “You want me to call the cops?”
She stops, but she doesn’t leave. Instead, she sticks her bottom lip out in a pout and crosses her arms.
“Come on, baby,” she purrs. “Don’t be like that…”
“I’m serious, Cassandra,” I snarl. “Get the fuck out of here. You know I have a restraining order against you.”
She rolls her eyes, looking irritated. Jesus Christ, the nerve of her to show up here after everything she did and act like nothing’s wrong!
“Jake, come on…” she tries to plead, but my teammates start walking out of the locker room behind me. “I just want to talk.”
“Holy shit, is that Cassandra?” I hear one of the guys declare in clear disgust. “Don’t we have her on a list or something to keep her away from our games?”
“Stalker alert,” someone else calls out.
“Come on, Jake,” Drew says as he passes by, knocking his shoulder against mine. “Don’t give her the time of day.”
Cassandra looks shocked at the guys’ biting remarks and jabs, but they know what she put me through. Several were there the night she roofied me and saw how strange I was acting when I left with her, and then when I thought she was pregnant, I couldn’t hide my devastation from my teammates.
She’s banned from the stadium in Boston, so it’s shocking that she has the balls to show up here, when we’re at an away game.
“Watch your drinks around that one, guys,” I loudly tell them as I fall into step with the group to head toward the bus. “She’ll try to fuck you over.”
Some of the guys chuckle, but others shoot her cautious looks.
Cassandra glares after me as I leave with my team but thankfully doesn’t try to follow.
That said, as I walk away, her eyes won’t break their lock with mine, and for a moment, I imagine how Abbie must feel — knowing this insane person is watching her every moment, unwilling to let go no matter what barriers you put up.
The ride back to the hotel is loud. All the guys are excited and talking over one another—it’s like we’re a bunch of high schoolers.
“Who’s up for drinks?” someone shouts, earning cheers from the rest of the team.
“Yo, there’s a strip club just a few miles from the hotel,” another guy announces. “Let’s party!”
More cheers. I grin and shake my head but don’t join in. Honestly, I don’t have any interest in going out, especially to a strip club.
All I want is to go home to Abbie and Lilah.
Holy shit. When did I start thinking of the apartment as home?
I was missing them before I saw Cassandra, but running into her again has only reinforced how I feel. Especially how I feel about Abbie.
She’s the exact opposite of Cassandra. She’s real, honest, and she values me for more than what I can give her. Cassandra made me feel dirty. Like something to be used and manipulated for her benefit, no matter my thoughts or feelings. It’s a lot like how Mom and Kevin treat me.
Abbie’s not like that, though.
Hell, she stood up to my family and told them to their faces how fucked up the way they treat me is.
I’ve never had anyone do that for me before.
I was always too ashamed to bring friends around my family growing up—I didn’t want anyone to know how shitty they are to me.
Abbie didn’t make me feel ashamed. She made me feel seen, really seen. Maybe for the first time in my life.
She’s proven that she cares for me, but a part of me has been holding back.
Not committing. Not giving her my all, and that’s not fair to her.
I hurt her when I ghosted her, and I regret that.
She’s never done anything to make me think she doesn’t care about me.
She wears her heart on her sleeve, and I’ve been a fool to keep us at a distance from each other.
I won’t take her for granted again.
Fuck, I miss her. I miss her so bad.
The bus pulls up to the hotel and we all get off to head inside. Most of the guys are planning to go out, but not me. In fact, I don’t really want to stay here at all.
Why should I wait until tomorrow to go home? Standing in the middle of the hotel lobby, while my teammates mill around, talking about how they're going to get shitfaced tonight with tits in their, I decide to just leave.
The game’s over. It’s not like I have to stay for any reason. If I head straight to the airport, maybe I can catch an earlier flight home.
Then I can tell Abbie how I feel. Hopefully, after fucking her until she’s screaming my name.
But I want her. I want to be a family with her and Lilah. I don’t care if Lilah isn’t mine biologically—I want to be in her life. I want to watch her grow up with Abbie by my side.
Turning, I make my way back out of the hotel and order a car to the airport.
When I get there, I head for the nearest check-in counter.
“Good evening, sir,” the attendant says as I approach. “How can I help you?”
“Do you have a flight to Boston tonight yet?” I ask, my heart racing with anxiety.
She looks down at her computer and types on the keyboard for a few moments before nodding.
“We have a flight leaving for Boston in forty-two minutes,” she tells me.
“Great! I’ll take any seat available on it.”
She books me on the flight and hands me my boarding pass and I turn to hurry through security and find my gate. By the time I get there, they’re starting to board. It’s all such a whirlwind of activity that I don’t have a chance to text Abbie until I’m actually seated on the plane.
Pulling out my phone, I type her a quick message to let her know I’m on my way.
Jake: Hey, Abbie. I’m coming home tonight, and I want to talk. I’ll see you soon.
I send the message and put my phone on airplane mode, then I sit back and try to relax, though I’m certain that’s going to be impossible—not until I’ve got Abbie in my arms again.