Chapter Thirty-Eight #2
She looks down at what she’s wearing. “Am I dressed okay for that?”
I peer over at her, letting my eyes trail over her again, and nod. “You look perfect.”
“That doesn’t answer my question.” She laughs.
“You’ll be fine,” I say. “Trust me.”
She settles back in her seat, still eyeing the road like she’s waiting for a big clue to reveal itself. By the time we reach the overlook halfway up the mountain, the sky has gone deep blue, and the town lights below are coming alive.
I pull into the lot and park. Brinley leans forward, staring through the windshield.
“Oh,” she hums softly.
Spread along the edge of the overlook are a handful of clear domes, each lit from the inside with warm yellow light. They look like giant glass bubbles sitting along the ridge.
“What is this?”
“They’re heated igloos,” I tell her as I get out of the truck. “I reserved one for dinner.”
Her eyes widen as she climbs out.
“You did not.”
She turns slowly, taking in the view of the valley below us.
“I did.”
“This is…” She shakes her head.
“Too much?” I ask.
She looks back at me.
“No,” she says quietly. “It’s perfect.”
A host leads us to one of the domes near the edge of the overlook. I intentionally booked the one furthest away from the others, wanting space and privacy.
Inside, it’s warm despite the cold temperatures. A small table is set for two, and along the back is a curved couch facing the valley.
Brinley sits across from me, glancing around like she can’t quite believe it.
“You planned this?”
“Yeah.”
Her fingers trace the edge of her wineglass.
“I guess you really meant it when you said this was a real date.”
“I told you.” I smile.
Dinner comes out not long after, and for a while we sit there and talk about small things—classes, Brinley debating switching her major, and the team.
But eventually, the conversation shifts. I can see it coming the moment she goes quiet, staring out at the lights below us.
“Can I ask you something?” she says.
“Always.”
She glances over at me.
“Why do you think my father left town?”
I lean back in my chair. I figured this question would come up.
“You want my honest answer?”
She nods.
“I think he’s more involved in what’s been going on behind the scenes than anyone realizes.”
Her brows pull together.
“I don’t believe he was the one pulling the strings, but I think he’s a key player. And when rumors started swirling, and headlines with his name started popping up, he had to be removed.”
She listens carefully, not interrupting.
“It’s not just about money moving through the program, though. Other things haven’t added up too—games where things don’t make sense. Calls that feel off. Plays being run that shouldn’t be.”
“You think he was doing these things intentionally?”
“We’re not completely sure,” I admit. “Those were the notes I was keeping, though. Tracking things.”
I pause for a second.
“But when people started digging around this season… when the questions got louder… that’s when he bailed.”
Brinley looks down at the table.
“You think he ran.”
“I think,” I say carefully, “he knew something was about to come out, or he was forced to leave to avoid making it worse.”
Outside, the wind moves through the trees along the mountain. Brinley lifts her glass and takes a small sip, then looks back at me.
“I guess he has a history of doing that… Of running when things get hard. Of not facing the consequences of his actions. We all deal with consequences for our actions, don’t we, Rowden?”
I push my chair back and stand, walking around the table before she can say anything else. When I reach her, I pull her up out of her chair and into my arms.
Her head settles against my chest like it belongs there.
“I don’t want to think about him tonight,” I tell her.
She tilts her head back to look at me.
“Tonight’s supposed to be about us.”
Her mouth curves just a little.
“One day, in a couple of years, we’ll graduate,” I say, sliding my hands down to rest at her waist. “We’ll move on from life in Rixton.”
“Where will we go?”
I shrug. “I hope to be drafted into the NHL, so who knows where I’ll end up.”
She nods slowly, like she expected that answer.
“I could go anywhere,” she says after a second. “With you.”
The way she says it is simple. Like it’s not even something she has to think about.
“You sure about that?”
“Yeah.”
I smile, lifting my hand to cup her face.
“It wouldn’t be forever,” I tell her. “Just while I’m playing.”
She raises an eyebrow.
“And then after that?”
“After that,” I murmur, brushing my thumb across her cheek, “I’d let you decide where we go next.”
“You wouldn’t want to come back to Rixton?”
I glance out to the valley again. Rixton sits below us like it always has. I’ve spent my whole life here, so in a way, it’s all I’ve ever known.
I shrug.
“I’ll go wherever you want to be.”
She studies me for a minute, her eyes searching mine.
“You know,” she says quietly. “Rixton feels more like home than anywhere I’ve ever been.”
“Yeah?”
She nods. “Yeah.”
The plates on the table are empty now, our dinner long finished. The host has already stopped by to check on us once, but no one seems in a hurry to push us out.
I pull her closer, sliding my hands around her waist.
“C’mere.”
Her arms loop around my neck as I lead her over to the couch, tugging her into my lap.
She laughs softly and settles against me.
“I’ve been waiting to do this all night,” I whisper before I lean down to kiss her.
It’s slow at first—the kind of kiss that makes everything around us fade away. But then she moans quietly against my mouth. The same sound she made earlier tonight, before we left. Hearing it again now makes my grip tighten around her waist.
She shifts in my lap, her fingers sliding into the back of my hair.
“Coop,” she murmurs.
God, I love it when she uses my nickname.
“Yeah?”
Her lips brush my jaw.
“I need you to touch me.”
For a second, I just look at her. “You sure?” I ask quietly.
She nods once.
Her breath catches when my hand slides along her thigh beneath her dress. She presses closer, kissing me again before I can say anything else.
I pull her tighter, my hand settling at her waist as her fingers curl into my shirt.
“I’ve got you, baby. I promise I’ll give you everything you need.”