Chapter 20 Parker
I was beginning to think I’d lost my touch.
Mackenzie had turned me down. Although, I suppose it wasn’t all that surprising.
One moment she’d been telling me about her mom, the next she was struck by a painful cramp, and then I’d started begging her to kiss me.
Not exactly my smoothest move. But the sparks that had been flying between us were undeniable, so it had seemed like a solid strategy at the time.
That was half the problem though. When I was around Mackenzie, any ounce of rational thought seemed to escape me—and I didn’t have much rational thought to begin with.
Maybe Cammie was right about me. Mackenzie was forbidden, and I’d always liked a challenge.
She was an itch that couldn’t be scratched.
It had started as a slight inconvenience, but the longer I resisted it, the more it was slowly driving me insane.
I’d been joking when I suggested we kiss in her bedroom, but I wasn’t laughing when she turned me down today.
Despite this latest rejection, I was certain it wasn’t all one-sided. Fireworks didn’t just appear in the sky for no reason. There was a rocket and a flame, so an explosion was inevitable. The fuse just needed lighting.
Unfortunately, for now, the itch remained. All day, I’d struggled to get Mackenzie off my mind. Even in art class, while working on my comic strip, my head wasn’t clear. I’d even started sketching characters that looked a little too much like her.
As I got ready for practice that night with the rest of the team, Elliot hobbled into the locker room. A few guys bumped fists with him as he slowly ambled past. My greeting wasn’t quite so friendly.
“What are you doing here, Ford?”
“Just caught up with the athletic trainer,” he replied.
“And?”
Elliot grinned. “Want to know when I’ll be back playing again, huh? Makes sense. I’d be missing me too after the last two games.”
I got the feeling he was about to give me his thoughts on Mackenzie’s performance, so I raised an eyebrow, daring him to continue. I didn’t want to have to give him another injury.
“Don’t worry,” he said as he carried on past me, giving me a firm pat on the shoulder. “Trainer says the boot might be off sooner than he first thought, and I can rescue this season from disaster.”
I struggled to hide my disappointment. I knew if Mackenzie had enough time to show everyone what she could do, Elliot would never get the starting goaltender spot back.
“Oh,” he continued. “The Raiders game last night was crazy. Your brothers are on fire.” It was probably the hundredth time I’d heard someone praise Reed and Grayson today. I was happy for them, but I was a little over talking about it now.
“That goal Reed scored…” Elliot let out a low whistle. “You’ve got some big shoes to fill. Though Coach hasn’t even made you captain, has he? Maybe your feet just aren’t big enough.”
His words were flippant, but the way his eyes lit with silent victory showed he knew exactly how hard that blow had landed. My hands tensed to fists, and I had to remind myself I was supposed to be staying out of trouble.
I leaned forward in my seat and nodded at his boot. “Just worry about your own foot, Elliot. And maybe give the shower stretching a rest, yeah?”
The guys around me sniggered as Elliot’s cheeks grew hot, but I stood and left the room before he could say anything else.
I hated the fact there was even a possibility he might say something in response. Ford never would have taken a swipe at me if my brothers were still on the team. No one dared mess with any of us when we were together. When we were the infamous Darling Devils. But everything was different now.
I didn’t want to need my brothers’ support.
I wanted my team to follow me because I was a great leader.
I wanted idiots like Ford to keep their thoughts to themselves—or never have them in the first place—because they respected me.
But that wasn’t going to happen until I figured out how to become a captain like my brother.
Unfortunately, Ford’s words followed me onto the ice and messed with my focus.
I knew I was putting a lot of pressure on myself to perform, but there was still no sign of Coach Foster changing his mind about me.
I wished I didn’t need his approval, but I couldn’t help feeling like no matter how hard I tried, I’d never get it.
As practice finished up for the evening and I made my way off the ice, Mackenzie caught my eye only to glance away instantly.
Was this how it was going to be between us now?
Awkward? I didn’t do awkward. Mostly because I didn’t usually care.
But Mackenzie and I still had a hockey game to win this weekend.
I couldn’t have her avoiding me. Before I could work out how to fix it, she had disappeared to the girls’ locker room.
“What was up with you tonight?” Seth asked as we walked out to the parking lot.
“Nothing was up with me.”
“You barely said a word to anyone all night.”
“Aw, Walker, you keeping tabs on me?”
“Someone’s got to,” he replied with a smirk. “Mackenzie did well.”
I shrugged.
“Don’t pretend you didn’t notice. I saw you watching her.”
“We both know I’m her real coach. Of course, I was watching her.” It had nothing to do with this morning. Absolutely nothing.
“Well, I think your hard work is paying off.”
“I hope so. I guess we’ll find out tomorrow.”
When we reached my truck and started loading our bags in the trailer, I caught sight of Mackenzie in the distance. She was lugging all her gear toward the road.
Seth paused at my side and followed my gaze. “She usually catches a ride home with Owen and his sister, right?”
“No idea,” I grunted, despite the fact I was well aware she always climbed into Jaz’s waiting car once practice was over.
But Owen had missed today’s session because he was sick, and that meant Jaz wasn’t here to drive Mackenzie home.
She wasn’t actually planning on walking with all that stuff, was she?
I tossed my keys to Seth. “Want to take my truck for the night?”
A knowing smile started to form. “Nice night for a walk, huh?”
Hardly. It was freezing.
“Yep.”
He released a breathy laugh, like he didn’t have it in him to question my decisions anymore. “Okay, I’ll take your truck home. I can swing by yours in the morning and drop it off.”
“Thanks, man.” I was already jogging after Mackenzie.
I probably could have offered her a ride with me and Seth, but I kind of preferred the idea of walking with her. I hoped a little time together might help dispel any awkwardness still lingering from this morning. I needed us to be good, especially with a game tomorrow.
As I caught up with her, she glanced up and pulled the headphones from her ears, leaving them hanging around her neck. “Parker?”
“What are we doing?” I asked, tucking my hands into my pockets as though I was out for a casual stroll.
“I’m walking home. I’ve no idea what you’re doing.”
“That’s a long way to go with all your gear.”
“It’s not that far. I’ve been walking here for our morning sessions all week.”
“You what?”
She rolled her eyes. “No need to overreact. It’s fine.”
It wasn’t even close to fine. “Why didn’t you ask me for a ride?”
“Because I didn’t need one. Besides, I think we spend enough time together.”
“I’m sure we could survive an extra couple of minutes in the truck.”
“I’m not sure that I could.” She frowned and peered around. “Where is your truck?”
“Uh, Cammie borrowed it.”
“And your gear?”
“With Seth. I’m not stupid enough to carry it home.”
Her eyes flashed with annoyance, but instead of responding she quickened her pace. “Okay, well, have a nice night.”
I didn’t let her get very far as I quickly stole her gear bag off her shoulder and heaved it on to my back. Damn, it was even heavier than my own crap.
“Hey!”
“Lucky for you, your house is on my way home.”
She tried to grab her bag back, but I didn’t let her.
“I don’t need you to carry my things for me.”
“And I don’t need to drink coffee when I wake up, but it’s better for everyone if I do.”
“That’s completely different.”
“Can you stop being stubborn for five minutes?”
She hesitated. Surely she realized I wasn’t going to give up. That she was up against someone just as hard-headed as her.
“I’m walking you home,” I added. “What’s the worst that can happen?”
She lifted an eyebrow at me. “Have you met yourself?”
“I’ll be on my best behavior.”
“You don’t know the meaning of the word.”
She glared at me, then suddenly seemed to accept the fact it was pointless. “Fine.” She groaned and continued walking.
Feeling very pleased with myself, I fell into step beside her. I was struck by the scent of roses as we walked. And glancing at her, I noticed her hair was wet.
“You had time to shower before leaving?”
“Not all of us enjoy being sweaty.”
“Well, some of us have a trauma relationship with the locker room showers.”
She chuckled softly. It was so cute, it was almost worth losing my clothes for.
The corner of her mouth was tipping upward, and there was a sparkle in her eye as she stared at the path ahead.
With her wet hair piled on top of her head and her cheeks still flushed from practice, I started to wonder why I was being so hard on myself for wanting to kiss her again.
Mackenzie was beautiful. My stomach clenched and I quickly focused back on the sidewalk.
I was supposed to be making things less awkward between us.
I gritted my teeth, trying my best to remind myself that Mackenzie Foster wasn’t interested in me.
That her father would bench me if he caught me so much as glancing her way.
Mackenzie was completely out of bounds for me.
Forbidden. Unfortunately, the more that word echoed in my thoughts, the more it only seemed to be heightening the appeal.
Why couldn’t I be the kind of guy who ran from danger, instead of charging straight into it?
I found my attention drifting toward her again, and this time she caught me. “Is there something on my face?”
“No.”
“Then why do you keep looking at me?”
Instead of answering, I reached out and pulled her headphones off her neck. “I’m wondering what kind of music you like.”
Surprisingly, she didn’t try to fight me. “Has anyone ever told you that you don’t understand personal space?”
“Yep.” I placed her headphones over my ears. Her music was still playing, but the moment I heard the song she was listening to I jerked the headphones off. “Who hurt you?”
She rolled her eyes and took her headphones back, returning them to her neck. “Some of my music might be a little dark.”
“A little dark? Listening to two seconds of that gave me an irrational urge to paint my nails black and steal my sister’s eyeliner.”
“That might be a good look for you.”
“Everything’s a good look for me.”
She fought a smile, and I found myself a little mesmerized as I silently willed her to let it spread wider. Yeah, it couldn’t just be the fact she was forbidden. I would give just about anything to turn that subtle curving of her lips into a full-blown laugh.
When we reached Mackenzie’s house, I walked her to the front door and placed her bag down by the step.
“You can feel free to thank me at any time.”
“Thank you for stealing my bag, or thank you for annoying me the whole way home?”
“Either or.” She really hated it when I did something nice for her. It kind of made me want to do it more. “I usually accept verbal or written thank yous, but I’ll also accept a bunch of flowers. Kisses work, too…”
She reached down, grabbed her bag, and pulled out her house key. “Good night, Parker.”
I grinned and started to back away. “See you tomorrow, Mackenzie.”
She disappeared inside and I was surprised to find a flash of disappointment shoot through me.
Already it felt like the space at my side was too empty.
Did I miss her? I didn’t want to miss her.
I didn’t want to like her. But if I didn’t, then why did I ditch my truck tonight?
Why did I carry her things? And why did I walk her home when she lived on the opposite side of town?
I had a long trek home to consider all three questions.