Rookies Say It Better: Book 2 in The Minor League Mayhem Series

by Heather C. Myers

  Lily clenched her jaw. It was clear she didn’t believe him, which was fine by Alec. Alec didn’t feel like he needed to explain anything. She either took his word for it, or she didn’t. There was no in between.

  “How?”

  “How, what?” Alec pushed off from the sink and brushed past her sister. “She told me with her mouth, but that wasn’t until after the asshole showed up here, threatening her.”

  “I’m sure it didn’t help that the video of the two of you kissing at the Spectrum went viral,” she said.

  Alec grinned. “So, you saw that,” he stated.

  “Everyone saw that,” Lily snapped, doing a good job of keeping her voice low. “You better have some kind of idea of what you’re doing, Alec. You better not be fucking around with Noah’s feelings. If you say you know, I believe you. Then, you should also know she’s really vulnerable right now.”

  “What does that even mean?” Alec asked.

  “It means, she might not actually care about you,” Lily said. “She might want to feel love and to feel safe from anyone who would show her such kindness. I just don’t want you to take advantage of that.”

  Alec clenched his teeth together for a moment, looking at his sister with obvious frustration. He wanted to growl at her. He wanted to tell her that he would never stoop so low as to do that to Noah, especially knowing her history. He wanted to tell her that he might be feeling inexplicable things for her that would keep him from doing such things to her even if he wanted to. But instead of saying anything, he released his hold on his jaw and rolled his shoulders back. He couldn’t show that he cared too much. He didn’t want her to get more involved in things than she already was.

  “Don’t worry,” Alec forced himself to say. “I’m not going to take advantage of that.”

  He wanted to say more. He wanted to tell Lily that they were both helping each other, that they were in this weird bubble of feeling together. The sex wasn’t part of the plan. It wasn’t supposed to happen. But he sure as hell wasn’t going to apologize for it now that it had. Hell, he would be open to the possibility that he would be able to do it again.

  He liked Noah, and maybe that was a stupid thing to feel, but after everything that had happened last night, at least he could admit it.

  “Alec,” Lily murmured, taking a step towards him. “What is it?”

  “What?”

  “You have this look on your face,” she said, tilting her head to the side so her hair spilled over her shoulder and her eyes swept over him. “Like you’re sad.”

  “Me? Sad?” He scoffed, but it felt forced. “That’s impossible.”

  “Hmm.”

  Alec didn’t like the way his sister looked at him, like she knew something about him that he didn’t know. It made him feel stupid, and he hated, more than anything, to feel stupid.

  “Well, sis, thanks for the lovely midnight chat, but I’m,” he jutted his thumb over his shoulder “going to leave now. Going to go back to bed. I have a game tomorrow, after all. I wouldn’t want to not sleep and play shitty.”

  “Will you be going to sleep?” Lily asked.

  “What I do behind closed doors is none of your business,” he said. He turned and headed for his room. Just as he curled his fingers around the knob, Lily’s voice stopped him.

  “Alec,” she called, though not loud enough to wake anyone else up.

  “What?” He turned around, giving her a look.

  “I’m being serious,” she said, slowly following him down the hall. “If you know what she’s going through, be sensitive about that. Don’t take advantage of her.”

  “I’m not,” Alec said defensively. “Jesus Christ, what is it going to take for me to show you that I’m in love with her?”

  Lily’s eyes widened. Alec’s eyes widened. Before either of them could say a word, Alec opened the door and all but closed it. He refused to think about what had just come out of his mouth. It was too early, too late, whatever technicality it was. He needed sleep. Lots of it.

  16

  Noah

  The last thing Noah wanted was to be back at the ice rink, where Pat Zummo spotted her before, but she knew she had to do this for Alec. He had done more than he needed to when Aaron showed up. He protected her. He made her feel safe. The lease she could do was pretend to be his girlfriend, attend their game, and cheer for him in the stands. That was what good girlfriends did, and that was what she would do for Alec.

  As she waited for Lily, she began to fiddle with the edge of her shirt. She wasn’t sure if she was dressed appropriately for the game. Most of her didn’t care, but there was part of her that hoped she looked nice. Noah didn’t want to take advantage of Alec. She knew part of the thrill for the player was showing off his status, and that included the women he saw.

  “You okay?”

  Noah looked up, only to find Lily emerge from her room. With dark skinny jeans, a white Mayhem shirt, and her hair pulled into a ponytail, she looked like the girl next door, sweet with a hint of sexy. Lily always knew exactly who she was. Noah envied her for it. Even now, there was a confidence in herself that Noah so badly wanted to have but couldn’t possess. Well, she didn’t think she could. Maybe, once this whole Aaron thing was finally behind her, it would be. She had an appointment with a detective tomorrow to file a report. Noah didn’t know if there was anything that could be done, but she wanted to try. At least there would be documentation of the incident that occurred.

  “Yeah.” She nodded once. “Just nervous.”

  Lily nodded in return. “I get that,” she said. “Come on. I’ll drive.”

  Once the two were in Lily’s car, Lily turned on the radio but made sure the volume wasn’t too distracting. She backed out of her spot and headed for the light.

  “I ran into Alec last night,” she said. “This morning, technically. He told me what’s going on between the two of you.”

  Noah swallowed, but her throat was still dry. She placed her hands on her denim-clad thighs, hoping the denim would help keep her palms from getting too sweaty. Her heart jumped. She wasn’t sure what to expect from Lily, but she hated feeling like this, hated feeling twisted up and nervous, waiting for the other shoe to drop – not just from Aaron, but everyone. She wanted stability. She wanted to trust people and their emotions and that even if she made a mistake, they weren’t going to be angry with her.

  You can’t control how others react to things, her mother always told her. But you can control yourself.

  Noah always thought that was bullshit. Weren’t emotions random bursts of feeling that came up without a warning? How was she supposed to control that?

  “I get it,” Lily continued when Noah didn’t say anything. “Actually, that’s a lie. I don’t get it. My brother is an ass and doesn’t deserve you.” She paused and glanced quickly over at Noah before keeping her eyes on the road. “He says things are complicated between the two of you.”

  Noah snorted at that, and shook her head. Of course, he did. Why wasn’t she surprised by that?

  “I guess you could say that,” she said.

  “You disagree?”

  “I think Alec makes simple situations more complicated than they have to be,” she replied, shifting in her seat. “I think we all have reasons for doing things. We all want to feel safe, loved, even if we don’t feel like we deserve it. I care about your brother, and he cares about me. We both realized it at the same time, and decided we owe it ourselves to try and see if this will work. If it does, that’s wonderful. And if not…” She let her voice trail off.

  There was a moment of silence in the car as Lily digested this information. Noah turned her head so she could look out the window. Shopping centers and cookie-cutter houses passed her by. Everything looked the same – which was by design in Irvine. The greens were rich and vivid, planted between building and stores, trying to add life to an otherwise suburbia. There was no trash anywhere. Homeless people weren’t allowed to camp out within the city boundaries. If p
olice officers happened to see one, they transported the homeless person to a shelter in Santa Ana, just to keep up appearances. It wasn’t just that the city was safe and affluent, it needed to appear that way.

  “I know my brother is an ass,” Lily said, twisting the steering wheel in her hands, “but he feels things. He may not show it a lot of the time, but he does.”

  “I know,” Noah said, picking her head up from the window so she could look at her friend.

  “Do you?” Lily said. She got into the right-hand lane as it merged with the bike lane. “I just want to make sure. I don’t want you to hurt him.”

  “Hurt him?” Noah looked at her friend, unsure how she felt about that statement. On the one hand, she understood that Lily was being overprotective, and for good reason. At the end of the day, Alec was her brother and Noah could respect that. On the other hand, the very notion of Alec caring about Noah to the point where he could be hurt was unfathomable. “Can anyone hurt Alec?”

  “You wouldn’t think so,” Lily admitted through a sigh. “But you can. I just don’t want him to get hurt with you. I think you have the power to do that to him, whether you know it or not, whether he admits it or not.” She paused as they made their way through the parking lot of the arena. Lily pulled into one of three lines, waiting to be admitted to find a parking spot. “I know you’re going through a terrible time, Noah. And I’m here for you. But Alec is also my brother. Somehow, for some reason, he cares about you. The last thing I want is for anything – or anyone – to hurt him.”

  Noah dropped her gaze into her lap. She didn’t disagree with what Lily was saying. She had a lot of drama, and she didn’t want it to affect Alec’s career. After what Alec had done for her, he didn’t deserve that.

  “I don’t want to hurt him,” Noah murmured, though she wasn’t sure if her friend heard her at all. They had parked the car and were ready to attend the game.

  Noah had never been a huge sports fan, probably because Aaron was really into sports. That was how he and Pat Zummo met and became friends – through sports. Apparently, Aaron recognized Pat as a sports journalist at some seedy sports bar, and offered to buy him a drink so Aaron could pick his brain about some team. Noah didn’t even remember what sport they were discussing. It could have been hockey, but it could have been anything else.

  When sports were on, Noah felt free. Aaron wasn’t watching her anymore. He wasn’t focused on what she wore or didn’t wear, she wasn’t focused on all of the millions of mistakes she had made or was about to make. All he cared about was that game, which meant, Noah could breathe again. Whether she showered or read or snuck out of the house, it didn’t matter. Aaron’s sports unlocked her freedom, so while she didn’t understand them, she appreciated them.

  Now, sitting in a stadium with other passionate fans, Noah felt like she didn’t have the right to be here in the first place. She wasn’t a fan of the team, not in the way these people were.

  “Have you ever been to a hockey game?” Lily asked from beside her before throwing a piece of popcorn into her mouth.

  Noah shook her head.

  “You’re in for a treat,” she said. “It’s so much better when you’re here, in person. The game is just…” She let her voice trail off. “Well, watch. I don’t want to ruin it for you.”

  Noah wasn’t sure how that was possible, but she didn’t say anything else. The two Zambonis were sweeping the ice, and the monitor above was counting down. There was about five minutes left before the game began.

  She hoped she was doing the right thing by being here. She knew she represented Alec, that she was here as his pretend girlfriend to show Seraphina Hanson and everyone else that Alec had a brain and not just a dick, and he could use it when he chose. For some reason, though, she was nervous. She ran her palms across her thighs as the referees and linesmen came skating out. The audience reigned down a chorus of boos. Noah was so surprised by this, a chuckle burst out of her.

  Lily glanced at her from the corner of her eye. “I think that’s the first smile you’ve had since I can remember,” she pointed out.

  “I didn’t realize the officials could be so openly booed,” she admitted.

  Lily just grinned. “Just wait,” she said.

  Noah pulled her eyes back to the ice. The announcer introduced both teams. More boos filled the stadium, louder this time, when the opponents were out there. Alec would be starting. All throughout the national and Canadian anthems, Noah tried to focus on the flag. Instead, all she could see was Alec. He looked so different in his jersey with all the padding. His helmet hid the majority of his face. His lips were pressed in a stoic frown, pale green eyes drilling holes in the ice. Noah didn’t think he even heard the music that floated around them. He must be concentrated on the game that was about to take place.

  Once the anthems were over, the starting lines from both teams skated onto the ice and positioned themselves correctly. Alec was in the center. From what Noah knew, he was going to take the faceoff, which essentially meant he was going to win the puck for his team.

  The referee dropped the puck. Alec positioned his stick to toss it back to a defenseman. And the game began.

  Throughout the two and a half hours, Noah found herself more and more riveted with each passing second. She didn’t even hear Lily try and explain the game to her. She didn’t care. It was relatively easy to pick up, though during the first intermission, Noah had Lily break down what icing actually meant and why it wasn’t allowed.

  By the second intermission, Noah had a painful throb in her pelvis that not even crossing her legs tightly together could fix. She wanted Alec. She wanted Alec the way she had had him last night, except she wanted to do it differently. She wanted to explore all of her options. She wanted him in every way she could have him.

  As she watched him pass to Jack, she tried not to let the fact that she had never felt like this before. When it came to sex, she had enjoyed the activity, but it wasn’t this addictive thing she couldn’t be without. After Alec, she realized she was just experiencing it with the wrong person.

  Jack shot the puck and the goalie blocked it with his pads. Unfortunately for him, he left a fat rebound. Alec was in the crease to capitalize on it. Without hesitation, he shot it. The puck hit the back of the net. The Mayhem scored. The crowd cheered.

  And for the first time, Alec glanced over at Noah and nodded once. Moisture pooled between her thighs. She wanted him. And she was going to do everything she could to have him.

  17

  Alec

  The first thing Alec did when he got out of the locker room was find Noah just outside with Lily, take her into his arms, and kiss her. Part of it was for show. He knew that. But the other part was more than that. He was on fire tonight, and he believed it was because she was there, watching him. He wanted nothing more than for her to watch him do everything now. When her eyes were on him, he felt as though he could do anything in the world.

  Instead of stiffening up or pushing him away, Noah wrapped her arms around him, fingers going through his hair. Immediately, she opened her mouth up to him, letting him slide his tongue inside. He pushed her against the wall, not caring who saw, who was around.

  Hey, Seraphina told him to make the most of this, to really sell it, and he was more than happy to oblige.

  “Okay, okay,” Lily said, slapping his back. “Jack’s here. We can go.”

  “You guys go,” Alec said. “We’ll catch up with you later.”

  Alec didn’t notice if Lily was glaring daggers into his back or rolling her eyes. He didn’t care. All he wanted was Noah.

  It was such a strange sensation, he had difficulty putting it into words. After a game, he should be tired. Sometimes, when he wasn’t playing as hard as he should have been, he wasn’t. But most nights, his body was tired up until he stepped into a nightclub. Up until he decided which woman he was going to take him for the next couple of hours.

  But with Noah, he was ready. He didn’t want to deal
with Coach’s speech and with Xander’s speech. Xander might have been his captain, but the dude was in his thirties and playing on an AHL team. Sure, he knew that it probably had to do with his concussion last year. Hell, he probably shouldn’t be playing anymore, but that clearly hadn’t stopped Xander from doing just that. In a way, Alec admired him. But not enough to pay attention to him when Alec knew Noah was waiting outside for him.

  “Dude, I can feel you brimming with excitement,” Jack said as they peeled off their gear. “What is with you?”

  “Me?” Alec asked. “You just used the word brimming in a sentence. What’s with you?”

  Jack made a grunt of acknowledgment. “I can’t help it,” he said. “Your sister has a vernacular I could never have. I guess I’m picking things up from her.”

  Alec rolled my eyes, but the mere mention of Jack’s relationship with Alec’s sister didn’t bother Alec as much as he initially thought it would. He released a breath, pulling on a shirt that immediately stuck to his back because of his sweat.

  “You never answered my question,” Jack pointed out, unlacing his skates. “You okay? Does this have to do with Noah?”

  Alec grunted. “What did Lily tell you?” he asked. “And don’t say nothing because I know my sister. I love my sister. And I’m sure she tells you everything.”

  Jack smirked. “She does, and she did,” he agreed. “She mentioned that you and Lily were together.”

  “Hanson put me up to it,” Alec said quickly. He didn’t understand why, but he felt compelled to keep the truth of his feelings for Noah under wraps, at least for now. It was like there was a secret he had, and by telling people the truth, it made it less meaningful. Everyone knew he and Noah were together. Everyone thought it was real. No one knew it was a calculated move on his part, on Seraphina Hanson’s part, to keep himself focused and to show the fans that he was trying to turn a new leaf. No one knew that Alec found himself falling for her for real. And if Jack knew… Well, Alec wasn’t sure how he felt about that.