Chapter 34 Taking Control
Taking Control
Cole
The final buzzer echoes in my ears as I skate toward the bench, but the sound feels distant, muffled by the white noise in my head. We won—I know that much from the scoreboard and the way my teammates are slapping each other’s backs—but the victory feels hollow.
I’d spotted Harper in the stands with Maddie in the same spot where my teammate’s girlfriends always sit. I glanced at Sirus, knowing he was up to something. Then Liam noticed her, and my blood boiled.
I spent the rest of the game trying to shove that image out of my head, channeling the frustration into my skating. Every shift since then has been sharper, meaner—not the focused aggression that wins games, but the reckless kind that gets you penalties and makes your coach question your judgment.
In the locker room, I don’t linger. No post-game celebration, no analysis of plays, no ice baths to soothe muscles that are already stiffening. Just a quick shower that does nothing to wash away the image of Harper in the stands.
I’m shoving my gear into my bag when Sirus appears beside my stall.
“Good game,” he says, but there’s a question in his voice. “You coming? Team’s hitting—”
“I’m good,” I cut him off, slinging my bag over my shoulder.
He studies my face, probably reading the tension I’m not bothering to hide. “Everything okay?”
I don’t answer because the truth is complicated. My gut is pulling me toward—no.
In the parking lot, the cold air soothes my bad mood. There are still clusters of people heading to their cars, voices carrying across the asphalt. That’s when I see her.
She’s standing by a familiar car—Maddie’s BMW—arms folded against the cold, talking fast with her cousin. She’s wearing the same blue sweater from the first night we kissed, and even from this distance I can see the tension in her posture, the animated way she’s gesturing with her hands.
She hasn’t noticed me yet.
Part of me wants to get in my truck and drive home, let this continue until it dies out.
The other part—the part that’s been simmering with frustration all week—knows that if I walk away now, nothing will change.
We’ll keep circling each other, she’ll keep making these half-hearted gestures, and I’ll keep wondering what the hell I’m supposed to do with feelings for someone who can’t decide what she wants.
My gear bag thumps against my back as I cross the parking lot. The sound of my footsteps on the asphalt makes Harper look up, and I watch her freeze mid-sentence, whatever she was saying to Maddie dying on her lips.
Maddie’s eyes dart between us like she’s bracing for impact.
I stop a few feet away, close enough to see the way Harper’s breath clouds in the cold air, far enough that I’m not crowding her. My jaw feels tight when I speak.
“We need to talk.”
“Cole—” she starts, but I’m done with preambles and careful approaches.
“Not later. Not when it’s convenient. Now.”
Maddie takes a step back, giving us space but staying close enough that I know she’s listening. Fine. Maybe it’s better with a witness.
“You keep showing up,” I say, keeping my voice low but letting the edge show through. “Coffee, the croissant and sandwich, the root beer, now my game.”
Harper shakes her head quickly. “I’m––I’m sorry.”
“You’re sorry?” The words come out harder than I intended, but I don’t soften them.
She opens her mouth, closes it, looks down at her feet. When she finally speaks, her voice is smaller than usual.
“Yes, I’m sorry. I came to see you. To really talk this time. But I…” She trails off, and I can see her searching for the right words. Then she looks beyond my shoulder and her face turns white.
I turn around and see Liam. He meets my eye and then looks away. I turn back to Harper and shake my head.
“I’m not doing this,” I say.
“Cole––” Her voice goes tight.
“Playing in the middle of whatever’s going on between you and him. I’m not your safety net. I’m not your plan B while you figure out whether you want to keep running back to Liam every time he snaps his fingers.”
I clench my jaw. My words were harsh, but I don’t take them back. They’re true, and we both know it.
Before I can walk away, she blurts, “I don’t want him, Cole. I ended things the moment you asked me to be your girlfriend.”
I stare at her, clenching my jaw.
She quickly blurts to defend herself, “I hadn’t seen him in a while.
You know the night of the party where he hooked up with that girl?
The last time I hooked up with him was like a week or so before that, okay?
I haven’t been playing both sides. With him, it was supposed to be a one-time thing that turned into three.
I met you, and yeah, there was some overlap, but the blind date threw me off.
I wasn’t expecting… this…” She gestures, breathless, no longer concerned what’s going on behind me.
She steps closer. “What I’m trying to say is that I will tell you every detail, everything you need to know. I really like you, Cole. I wasn’t lying about that.”
“And you really like him?”
She shakes her head. “No… To be honest with you, I barely know him. It was a typical cliché party hookup. We weren’t…” She closes her eyes. “We weren’t doing anything serious. It’s so stupid, Cole.”
“It didn’t seem stupid to him.”
She shakes her head. “Not once did he tell me how he felt, so that’s not fair. He can’t put that on me. Out of nowhere, he invited me to the team dinner––”
“He invited you to the team dinner?”
She nods, not understanding the significance of Liam asking a girl to the team dinner.
Fucking Liam.
“What did you say?”
She laughs but there’s no humor in it. “Are you joking, Cole? He texts me out of nowhere to ask me to something I already agreed to go with you. I had no idea––I mean no idea––that he was your best friend. I swear, Cole. I didn’t know it would––”
I step closer, close enough that Harper can’t finish her sentence and has to tilt her chin up to maintain eye contact. Close enough that I can see the way her pupils dilate slightly under the tears in her eyes, the way her breath catches.
“Okay,” I say, letting the silence draw out. That’s when Maddie decides to get in the car, but I don’t pull my eyes away from Harper’s.
I swallow the lump in my throat and say, “Liam’s like a brother to me. I’ve known him for four years, and I’ve never seen him hung up over someone before.”
She searches my face. “What… what are you saying?”
“Have you talked to him?”
She inhales, which isn’t a good sign. I wait patiently.
“So, you know when I left coffee on your hood?”
I nod.
“He caught me.”
I almost chuckle, imagining it.
“He knew I was choosing you… he said that if I change my mind, he would…”
I stare blankly at her, imagining Liam putting himself on the line for this girl. I exhale. Wow.
She quickly catches herself. “I told him that I was sorry I let it drag on and that I don’t want to be with him.”
“You said that?”
“Not those exact words, but he knows. He knew at the team dinner, which is why he was upset.”
“Do you want to see where it goes with him?” I ask because I have to know.
Her breath catches, and her brows furrow. “No.” She shakes her head. “No, I already know.”
“You do?”
She nods. “Yeah. He’s impulsive and doesn’t communicate.
When I was with him, I felt alone.” She shakes her head, hugging herself.
“Truth is, I wasn’t looking for a boyfriend.
Maddie had other ideas… clearly… Then I met you and you were so sweet and polite.
Honestly, the contrast is like night and day.
I was hooking up with him, not knowing where I stood with him, and then I met you, and suddenly I realized, wow, this is the kind of man I want to be with.
You and I were instantly friends. I felt comfortable with you.
Coming over to play that board game was the most fun I’ve had in so long.
I––I… I’m really cold, Cole. Do you want to talk at my place? ”
I drop my bag and take off my hoodie. As I put it on her, I say, “If you want me, it’s me. All in. No him. No half measures. No hiding anything from me. You don’t even have to choose either of us. You can just forget about him and me and move on.”
I pause, letting that sink in.
“No, Cole—” She shakes her head. “No, I don’t want that. I want you.”
I look at her lips that are turning purple. “You should get in the car.”
“Cole––”
“I need time. Have a good night.”
I turn and walk to my truck. I’m freezing now that my adrenaline’s not pumping. I replay her words in my head. She wants me. She picks me. She chose me.
The next time we speak, it’ll be because I want her back. But I’m not sure if that’s what I want. First, I need to talk to Liam.