Chapter 2
2
ECHO
Ben, the security guard, leans closer to me. “You need me to call the police?”
“No.” I wrap my arms more tightly around myself. “But thanks anyway.”
As he swipes his keycard and we enter the building, warm air rushes down on me from the heat pump above the entrance. I glance over my shoulder, relieved when the door clicks shut, and I can see Tyler still on the other side of it.
Without a keycard, he can’t get to me here. I’m not stupid enough to think that he couldn’t get his hands on a keycard if he wanted one, but for now, I’m safe. Even if he were to get inside, he doesn’t know my room number, and I always keep the door locked.
I learned the hard way how important personal security is.
When we reach the elevator, Ben presses the button.
“See you later,” he says as the doors sweep open, and I step inside.
“Bye.”
When the elevator doors close, I draw in several slow, deep breaths before pushing the symbol for the third floor. I ride in silence, grateful that there aren’t any stops along the way.
The doors glide open, and I hurry along the corridor, digging in my pocket for the keys before fumbling them. They drop to the floor, and I have to snatch them back up again, nearly getting knocked over by a guy coming out of another dorm room.
“Watch it,” he snaps.
I ignore him, and shove the key into the lock, twisting furiously. My hand is shaking, and if I don’t get to privacy soon, I’m going to hyperventilate.
Finally, the door opens. I step inside, slam it behind myself, and immediately lock it again. The room is empty, and I thank my lucky stars that my roommate, Martina, isn’t around. Unfortunately, she set up a diffuser before she left, so the room smells overpoweringly of vanilla. I don’t mind a little scent, but this is too much.
My throat constricts and tears well in my eyes as I stride to my bed and collapse onto it. I curl into the fetal position and let the tears fall. A sob racks my body.
I grab my phone and mess around until it’s connected to the wireless speakers. I select my bad mood playlist and turn the volume up loud enough that nobody will be able to hear me crying. Then I shut my eyes and relive the horror of seeing Tyler Kinsey again.
My stomach clenches with remembered fear, and my heart throbs from how much he hurt me. Even though it’s been more than three years, the pain lingers on.
I trusted him. I thought he was a good person, but he proved me wrong.
God, did he ever.
I gasp for air, my shoulders shuddering violently. Why is it that he can affect me so strongly after so much time?
Outside, someone hammers on the door.
“Turn down the music!” they shout.
I don’t. It’s either the music or the soundtrack of my misery. I can guess which they’d prefer. They bash once more, then try the handle and leave. No doubt a passive-aggressive note will be shoved beneath my door soon.
I lie there until I’m exhausted, both mentally and physically. I don’t know what it is about crying, but it wears a person out.
I wipe my puffy eyes on my sleeve and check the time. It won’t be dinner for a while yet. I grab my phone, drawn to social media in a way I know isn’t healthy. Still, I can’t seem to help myself. I open the app and search for Tyler’s name.
He appears immediately. Another tear leaks out the corner of my eye and I wipe it, the surrounding skin stinging. Tyler’s profile photo is a shot of him on the ice, clad in full hockey gear except for the helmet. The number 7 is plastered on his chest.
I sniff and click into his profile. Honestly, I’m surprised he’s not one of the many college athletes whose profiles feature photos of their naked chests and abs. As I scroll through his content, I quickly realize that none of the pictures are of him with women, except for a younger blonde I’m pretty sure is his sister.
Strange. I was sure he’d be enjoying all the puck bunnies he could get his hands on.
I roll into an upright position and rest my chin on my knees, still flicking through his feed. None of his photos are all that recent, except for a few featuring what I assume is the hockey team at his former university.From the “C” embroidered on his shirt, I can tell that he was the team captain.
God, he’d screwed them over by leaving in his final year. And he claims to have done it for me.
I snort. Yeah, right. Why would the king of the campus change schools in his senior year because of a girl he used to date in high school?
In secret.
At least, until he humiliated me.
I don’t know what Tyler is planning, but he’s full of shit, and I’m not stupid enough to fall for it. Not again.
Nothing good comes from Tyler Kinsey.
I need to stay away from him, and for the sake of my mental health, I should talk it over with a professional.
I call my therapist Dr. Rodriguez’s office and make an appointment for next week.
Thank God for my scholarship. The benefactor behind it arranged for the scholarship to come with a package of counseling sessions. There’s no way I’d be able to afford to see a therapist otherwise, and after high school, I’ve needed all the therapy I can get.
TYLER
After the security guard stares me down, I return to Full of Beans, the campus coffee shop. Echo’s two female friends have left, but the guy, Ryan, is still at the bar.
Just as we arranged.
“How’s Echo?” he asks as I pull out the stool beside him and sit on it.
“Not great.”
The barista approaches, and I order an americano and slip him some cash.
“About as well as you thought, or worse?” Ryan asks. “It was fucking scary seeing how she reacted to you. Do you really think that was the best way to let her know you’re here?”
I wince. Yeah, that wasn’t my finest moment.
“I didn’t realize she’d have a panic attack,” I say.
I’m aware she’s seeing a therapist, but I have no idea what her symptoms are, what they discuss, or whether she has a mental health diagnosis. My money only buys me so much access.
“Worse than you thought, then,” he huffs. If he weren’t such a nice guy, he might let me have it. But he is, so he doesn’t. That’s the problem with nice guys. They have no follow-through.
Fortunately, I’ve never had that problem.
“You should probably check on her after you leave here,” I tell him, because while I’m not a nice guy, Echo is one of the few things I actually care about. Not that I’ve done a great job of showing it.
“I will.”
He sounds offended by the implication that he needs me to tell him so. Perhaps he thinks it should be obvious, but I never like to take anything for granted. Especially not when it comes to her.
Ryan hesitates, then adds, “Are you sure you want to go through with this?”
I scowl and narrow my eyes. “Have I ever given you any reason to think I don’t?”
“No. But so much time has passed since you dated. You’re probably different people now than you were then. The connection might not still be there.”
“It is,” I grind out. “She may have changed, and I sure as hell hope I have, but my feelings for her haven’t. I lost her once, and I won’t do it again.”
Losing Echo tore me apart. If not for the knowledge that, one day, I’d be free to pursue her again, I might not have had any reason to go on. Those days were dark. And yeah, my behavior may have caused the darkness, but when you’re raised the way I was, it’s hard to see the light.
Ryan holds out his hands defensively. “I get it, man. I get it.”
Good, because if Ryan decided to get in my way, he’d regret it. Only one monster terrified me enough to keep me away from Echo, and now that he’s gone, I won’t allow anything or anyone else to interfere with our relationship.
“But how do you plan to win her over?” he asked. “‘Cause from where I’m sitting, it looks like she wants less than nothing to do with you.”
I grit my teeth. He’s lucky he’s been such a good friend to Echo.
Although he has a point. I’m starting at a disadvantage. But I’ve never let that affect me on the ice, and I won’t let it affect me now. Echo will be mine again, even if she doesn’t know it yet.
“First, I need her to get comfortable with seeing me around,” I tell him. “I’m in one of her classes, so she can’t avoid me completely.”
“Unless she decides to skip class,” he points out.
I shake my head. “She’s not that kind of girl.”
To my surprise, he laughs. “You’re probably right. She won’t risk missing anything important, and even if she was willing to risk it, she might turn up just to prove she’s not afraid of you.”
I like the idea of that—it’s something the Echo I used to know would do—but I get the feeling she is afraid of me now. Or, if not afraid, then at least apprehensive about being near me.
Is it purely because of how I hurt her, or is there more to it than that?
“I hope I can convince her to talk to me, at least in passing,” I continue, deciding to focus on my plan. I can mull over her potential fear of me later. “I know that might not work though.”
“Yeah, she can be pretty stubborn,” Ryan says. “I’d have a backup plan, if I were you.”
“The backup plan is to shower her with meaningful gifts.” We used to be incredible together, so surely, with a few well-placed gifts designed to remind her of that time, I can soften her toward me.
Ryan snorts. “They’d better be some gifts.”
“They will be.” I’ve already got the first one on order and it should arrive here soon. Regardless of whether gifts become necessary, she deserves them.
The waiter appears with my coffee and slides it across the bar. I cup my hands around it and inhale the rich scent, then blow across the surface.
“So…you never told me what you actually did to Echo,” Ryan says, bracing himself as though I might attack. “I know you broke her heart—that was easy to work out—but there must be more to it than that. She was a mess when she first moved here.”
I keep silent. If Echo has chosen not to tell Ryan what happened, then I’m certainly not going to.
“It’s not my business to share,” I say.
He arches an eyebrow. “It kind of is.”
“Then let’s just say that I don’t feel like sharing.”
“Fair enough.”
Despite his obvious dissatisfaction with this answer, I sense his respect for me grow.
“But let’s just get one thing clear,” he adds, holding my gaze: “No matter how rich and powerful you are, no matter how big your muscles are, or the fact you could probably kick my ass, if you hurt Echo again, I’ll make sure you regret it.”
I nod, my respect for him also jumping up a notch. Not that it was low to begin with. And as for me kicking his ass… He could probably hold his own, but he’s a baseball player and I’m a hockey player, so yeah, it’s safe to say I’ve got a few pounds on him and more experience with my fists.
“If I hurt Echo again, you won’t have to make me regret it,” I tell him, meaning every word. “Because I’ll self-destruct. I can’t exist in a world where I cause her more pain. I refuse to.”