Chapter 21 Mackenzie
“There’s a cute boy at the front door.” It was Saturday afternoon, and Tessa had just entered my room. I was scattered and flustered as I’d been racing around the house trying to get my things together for today’s game, so the last thing I cared about was who was at our door.
“It’s probably just a delivery guy,” I said.
“A delivery guy in a Ransom Devils sweatshirt?” Tessa smirked. “He was asking for you.”
“What?”
“He said his name was Parker.”
“Parker’s downstairs? What’s he doing here?”
Tessa’s smile was wider now. “I think he wants to give you a ride to the game.”
“I don’t need a ride! The rink’s only a few minutes away. I’m walking.”
“Well, now you don’t have to.”
Why was my stepmom pushing this? I was surprised she was even okay with it.
“You’re really encouraging me to hop in a truck with Parker Darling, the bad boy of Ransom High?”
Tessa waved away my concern. “He seems like a very sweet young man. And like you said, it’s just a few minutes away. I’m sure you’ll be fine.”
Clearly my stepmom knew nothing about Parker.
“You know Dad would kill me for getting in that truck, right?”
But Tessa just smiled. “Dad’s not here, Kenzie.”
“As my parent, you’re supposed to be the cautious one, not me.”
“I think your dad is cautious enough for all of us when it comes to you. I’ve told him he needs to loosen up a little.”
“Yeah, good luck with that,” I muttered.
“It’s just a ride down the road in a cute boy’s car.”
I shook my head at her. Cute. Sweet. Where was she getting this from? I guess it wasn’t surprising that Parker had managed to hide his true self during the thirty seconds of conversation he and Tessa probably had at the front door.
“Go,” she ordered, pointing down the hallway. I let out a frustrated sigh.
“And good luck with your game today,” she called as I trudged out of the room, mumbling curses under my breath.
When I got downstairs, I found Parker waiting in the entranceway. Not only was he in my house, he also had my cat in his arms.
“I wouldn’t touch her. She bites everyone,” I warned. “Then again, you’d probably like that.”
But as Parker looked up, I realized Mitts was perfectly content in his arms. Little traitor. That cat didn’t like anyone. Not even me. Apparently, Parker was the exception.
“She seems happy enough,” he said as he scratched Mitts behind the ears and she purred loudly.
His grin was a combination of cheeky and innocent all at once, offering only the smallest glimpse of the devil he was inside.
When he smiled that way it was easy to see why so many girls at school adored him.
“What are you doing here, Parker?”
He gently placed Mitts down on the ground, but instead of darting off like she normally would, she started rubbing herself against Parker’s leg. Even my cat couldn’t resist him.
“It’s good to see you, too.”
“It won’t be good if my dad sees you here.”
He looked totally unconcerned. “I know he gets to the rink early before games. But I can climb up to your bedroom window again, if you prefer.”
I responded quickly to avoid my cheeks flushing. “Seriously, Parker, what are you doing here?”
“I’m driving you to the game. I figured given how stubborn you are, you’d be planning to walk again.”
“Well, I’m sorry you came out of your way, but I don’t need a ride.”
“Oh, so you’re not playing against the Chargers today?”
“No, I’m playing.”
“Someone’s picking you up then? Your stepmom giving you a ride?”
“Well, no.”
“Walking,” he scoffed. “I knew it. You realize, it’s freezing outside, right?”
“I don’t mind a little cold weather.”
“A little cold weather? The lake behind my house is already frozen over. Not great for your muscles right before a game.”
“My muscles will be fine.”
He grabbed my gear bag from just inside the entrance and started outside. “Come on, Mackenzie, let’s go.”
“Hey!” I chased after him, but he was already halfway to his truck. Damn his stupidly long legs.
“I didn’t ask for this,” I called as I raced to catch him up.
“I know.” He dumped my bag on the bed of his truck. “But I like winning. Picking you up helps me achieve that. I don’t need you wasting energy walking to the rink.”
I kept my feet rooted to the spot. It was bad enough I’d accepted so much of his help with hockey. I didn’t want to owe him any more than I already did.
“Also, I kind of like how much it pisses you off when I help you.” Parker pulled open the door of his truck for me and nodded at the passenger seat. “Just get in. We’ve got a game to get to.”
As much as I wanted to keep refusing, I was already nervous about the game and knew how tough it was going to be. Conserving my energy was probably a good idea.
“Fine. But no more surprise visits to my house. You don’t just show up at people’s doors unannounced, enthrall their cat, steal their gear, and force them into your truck.”
He was grinning again as I climbed in. “I’m just working on winning you Fosters over one at a time.”
I slammed the door shut and could hear his chuckles as he walked around to the driver’s side. He was still smiling as he got in and started the engine. It rumbled to life with a deep hum before music started drifting from the speakers.
“My cat clearly has no taste,” I said as he pulled away from the curb.
He laughed, flashing me that smirk again. “Clearly she’s the one member of your family who has any taste.”
“My stepmom seems to think you’re okay.” I was still pissed at her about that.
“Does she now?”
“Don’t get excited. She literally only just met you.”
“Too late. It’s already gone to my head.”
I despised my lips for tilting upward, and quickly kept them moving to stop an actual smile from forming. “Tessa also has the worst taste in men. She likes my dad after all.”
“Yeah, that’s true,” Parker agreed. “How’s it going, with your dad?”
Just the mere mention of him made my heart feel heavy. “Not great. He still hasn’t changed his mind about me.”
“A Foster being stubborn?” He feigned a look of shock. “No way.”
“I’m not nearly as bad as him.”
“Sure.”
“I’m not!”
“I guess you did eventually agree to get in the truck.”
“And I’m starting to wish I was walking.” It was nice and warm in Parker’s truck though. And we were already turning into the rink parking lot. Perhaps spending an extra few minutes with him wasn’t the worst thing in the world.
“You know, for someone who makes out like they don’t want to be around me a whole lot, you’re around me a whole lot.” He pulled into a parking space close to the entrance. But I didn’t get out of the car right away. Neither did he.
“I’m just using you for your wheels and your hockey skills.”
But he leaned across the console. “Admit it, you don’t totally hate me.”
“I-I do.” The feeling was still there, somewhere deep inside, I was sure of it.
“I don’t believe you.”
“You want me to be more convincing?”
He laughed softly. “I mean, you can try.”
“Fine. I loathe you.”
“You can do better than that.”
“I’d happily walk ten times the distance from my house to the rink in a blizzard, with no shoes, wearing nothing but a bikini just to avoid you.”
“Now that I’d like to see.”
“Ugh!” I threw my hands in the air. “Is there any way to shut you up?”
“I can think of one way…”
In the small confines of the truck, he felt so close, and I couldn’t stop my eyes dropping to his lips.
My breathing all but stopped. Thoughts of what it might be like to kiss Parker again invaded my head, and I held onto them for a little too long.
Just one kiss. The idea was both tantalizing and terrifying.
The sound of Parker’s door opening brought me back to reality. “Let’s go, we’re going to be late,” he said as he jumped from the truck.
I felt a little unsteady as I opened my door. Maybe I’d been holding my breath too long. My brain was clearly deprived of oxygen if I was contemplating a kiss with Parker.
By the time I’d found my feet, he was already behind the truck with both our bags.
I quickly took mine from him. Thankfully, he released it without a fight this time, and as we made our way inside, I kept my gaze looking straight ahead.
I didn’t know why I was being so awkward.
So what if I’d considered kissing him for a fraction of a second?
Intrusive thoughts happened to everyone.
When we reached the girls’ locker room, I was glad to be able to escape inside, while Parker went to join the rest of the team. The moment I was alone though, all my nerves and doubts about the game came flooding back.
I got ready and went to meet the team, but my nerves reached another level the moment I stepped onto the ice and made my way to the net.
After a week of training with Parker, I should have been feeling more confident than our last game.
But seeing our opposition made me want to run and hide.
Were those guys all taking steroids? They were even bigger than the Sharks players. That couldn’t be natural.
Get your shit together, Mackenzie. It’s just a game.
A game where if I take a hit I might literally end up in the bleachers.
“You, okay?” Parker asked as he skated past.
“Fine.”
“We’re going to win this one,” he said. “I can feel it.”
I nodded silently, fearing his optimism was seriously misplaced.
“And don’t worry,” he added. “I trust you.”
He flashed me one last smile before skating over to center ice. All I had to do now was trust myself.
“Don’t let me down,” I murmured to my posts as I readied myself for the faceoff.
The referee dropped the puck between Parker and the Chargers center, and it almost seemed to fall in slow motion. All I could think was please don’t come down here. It hit the ice, and Parker swept in, winning the puck. Game on.