Unbreakable(66)

“I don’t like labeling people, but I think the expression puck bunny fits in this situation,” Violet says, shaking her head. “Lilly told me that she slept with two other Smoke players this year and some player from Michigan that was on a visiting team. This was before everything went down at the cottage. She said she’s turning guys down unless they play hockey. Can you imagine?”

I snort. “Unfortunately, I can.”

Peyton makes a dismissive hand gesture. “I don’t care who she wants to f*ck. But it’s shitty to want to f*ck someone because of their job. If she just wanted to screw them because they were hot, now that I understand. But turning someone down because they don’t shoot a puck? Please.”

Violet nods. “But honestly, she had zero interest in Will until he joined the Smoke and became one of their leading goal scorers.”

I know I shouldn’t care, but hearing that infuriates me. I wouldn’t care if Will never picked up a hockey stick again in his life, as long as he was happy.

The announcer reminds the audience that there’s one minute remaining in the period. I spent way too much time letting Lilly’s presence bother me tonight. It’s not going to happen again.

“Don’t let her get to you, Em. You know Will doesn’t want anything to do with her,” Violet reminds me.

“Yeah, and you have to get used to girls like that if you and Will become a thing,” Peyton says. “When he gets into this league full time? It’s going to be even worse than it is now. He’s going to have to women falling all over him.”

I know they’re right, but it’s easier to accept girls I don’t know crushing all over Will. The fact that Lilly did so much nasty stuff behind my back and pretended to be my friend makes this very personal.

“Should we let her know that we’re here?” Violet asks.

“No way,” I say vehemently. “If I go over there, there’s going to be a scene. I want to rip that jersey right off of her back. Look, I don’t want to embarrass Will. This is his night, so I’m taking the high road.”

The final buzzer sounds, and we watch Will skate off the ice and head down the tunnel toward the locker room. Fans walk en masse up the stairs to take advantage of the break between periods.

“Well, I don’t have to take the high road,” Peyton says, standing on her seat.

“Hey, Lilly!” she hollers, waving her arms. “Lilly, over here!”

Lilly turns and looks around. She sees Peyton, and her eyes go wide.

“Nice getup,” Peyton says, gesturing to her outfit. “That’s real dedication, Lil. You’re such a super fan.”

Lilly narrows her eyes, and then she sees me. Her cheeks turn beet red as our gazes lock.

“Lilly, take it from me, okay?” Peyton tells her. “No matter what you do, he’s never going to sleep with you. You know that, right? Like, not in a million f*cking years kind of never. You could rub a lamp, ask a genie for three wishes, and it still wouldn’t happen. Anyway, it was great seeing you! We’ll do it again sometime, okay?”

Lilly turns and runs up the stairs, looking equal parts embarrassed and pissed off.

I wish I could muster up some sympathy for her, but after her nasty comments about Violet and all-around sneaky, lying behavior, I don’t feel a single thing.

Thankfully, there aren’t any little kids around to hear what was just said. There are plenty of amused adults, however.

“Peyton,” Violet says. “That might have been just a wee bit over the top.”

“She f*cked over Emmy, and it’s inexcusable.” Peyton jumps down from her chair. “Besides, nothing I said is untrue.”

She’s right. I can’t argue with that.

We go upstairs to take a bathroom break, and Peyton grabs another beer while I opt for a Diet Coke. I can’t be tipsy when I see Will later. As tempting as it is to numb my nerves with alcohol, it’s not a good idea. I don’t want my congratulatory hug to end with me puking all over his dress shoes.

We make it back down to our seats just in time to see the Wolverines come back out onto the ice.

I get to see Will take a quick lap around their zone again before their center lines up for the face-off.

“Will looks really big in his uniform,” Peyton says. “Then again, they all do. Especially that guy.” She points to center ice, where a tall guy with the name Jackson emblazoned across the back of his Wolverine’s jersey gets ready for the puck drop.

“That’s Caden Jackson,” I tell her. “He’s one of the biggest players in the league. I think he’s 6’6” or something.”

“He’s pretty hot,” Peyton says, watching as he wins the face-off. “I’d climb him like a tree.”

I give her an amused look as we settle back to watch the game. To my surprise, she gets really into the action on the ice. I’m not sure if it’s because she’s trapped and knows she has no other choice but to watch the game, but she put her iPhone away, and that’s a first.

During the second period, Will’s picked up a few more shifts, and he’s really working every minute he’s out there. He’s skating hard and making perfect passes, and he even checked an Ottawa player into the boards.

That made me cringe, especially since it was at our end and close to where we were sitting. The crunch of bodies going into the glass and the rattling of the boards is slightly terrifying. I’m just glad Will wasn’t on the opposite end of that check. Seeing him get slammed face first into the glass would be crazy scary. I know it happens sometimes, but I don’t want to see him get hurt—especially not during this game.