The Forbidden Freshman: A College Sports Romance (Nolan U Hockey Book 1)

I’ve been living at Hockey House for over two weeks now, and yeah, it’d be so easy to call it home. Sleeping with Ethan every night is heaven. And now that his season has officially begun, it’s sometimes the only way I get to see him. Between practices, studying, and classes, his life is full. I don’t want to be another burden on him, although he never makes me feel that way.

I grip my pen, shuffling in my library chair and trying to focus.

I haven’t found a job yet. I seriously don’t know what I want to do right now, because my plan had been to simply study while I was here so I could throw all my energy into getting the best grades possible.

But I don’t have that luxury anymore.

Mom hasn’t contacted me once, and I haven’t reached out to her either. I got a couple of texts from Megan that I chose to ignore.

Megan: Are you fucking insane? Stop acting crazy!

Megan: I can’t believe you’re throwing this all away for some guy. Have you no standards?

Megan: So that’s it. You’re just gonna ignore me? Probably because you can’t justify your stupid behavior.

Megan: Mom was right to cut you off.

That last one stung like a bitch. I turned my phone off for two whole days after that. It was only the thought of Ray not being able to reach me that forced me to turn the thing back on. That, and Ethan getting frustrated with the fact that he couldn’t contact me. He had a really funny joke to tell me the other day, but he’d forgotten it by the time he got home.

“If I could have texted you, I wouldn’t have forgotten.”

“You could have just texted it anyway, and I would have seen it when I eventually turn my phone back on.”

He shot me a droll look. “It’s not the same. Turn your phone back on, lil’ mouse. Please.”

I gave in with a sigh, although I haven’t fully ruled out buying a cheap burner phone that’s just for Ethan and me.

While it was off, I’d missed several calls from Ray and a bunch of texts. She forgave me after I explained what went down but then made me promise not to do that to her again. She was getting ready to drive to Colorado and hunt me down.

So, I’m now contactable once more, and apart from Ethan and Ray, my phone’s been basically silent. I should be stoked about this, but somehow it’s like a bruise that just keeps getting bigger and more tender.

My mother, just like my father, has dumped me. Walked away because I didn’t do what I was told. I wasn’t good enough, and it cuts like a freaking knife through my heart.

Shoving my device a little farther away from me, I lean over my textbook, then glance up when my computer dings. It’s an email from my marketing professor with the link for our next assignment outline. I procrastinate on my current essay to read up about it and am actually looking forward to diving into this thing. My mind is already buzzing with ideas, and I’m trying not to get bogged down by the fact that I’m gonna have to put all this on hold soon.

I’m being stubborn about getting a student loan. I really don’t want to be saddled with a bunch of debt, so I think my best plan is to just see the semester out, then get a job and save every penny I can. Maybe I can take some community college classes—night classes or something—and keep chipping away at my degree until I have enough money to attend and get the qualifications I need.

It’s not preferable at all, but what other choices do I have?

“Oh wow, it’s the deserter.”

I glance up and spot Teah hovering near my table. She’s looking a lot hurt and a little annoyed with me. Still. Bella hovers next to her, trying to throw me the evils as well, although she doesn’t seem as invested.

And then Fiona swans up. Oh joy.

Between the three of them, I’m getting the stare-down of a lifetime. It’s basically impossible to ignore, so I just lean back in my chair and face it.

“I’m surprised you guys aren’t over this yet. Don’t you have better things to do with your time than obsess over the fact that I don’t want to be part of your little club?”

“It’s not a club!” Fiona gasps, her indignation almost comical. “It’s a sorority, you clueless loser.”

I roll my eyes.

“I can’t believe you chose that manwhore over us.” Teah’s trying to be snarking, but again, it’s coming out all wounded and raspy.

She’s taking this really personally, and I wish she wouldn’t. I don’t even get why. It’s not like we were best buddies. Unless she’s harboring some kind of secret crush on Ethan and it’s just jealousy. Since they posted those pictures of Ethan’s stricken face all over social media with headlines like Hockey star burned by freshman bitch and The mighty man goes down in burning flames, we’ve had to counter the rippling rumors with some open PDA. We’re together. We’re in love. And I think almost everyone on campus knows it.

Which has led to a variety of reactions. Girls still swoon and flirt around Ethan as if I’m not even standing there. Some of them sidle up to me, checking just how serious our relationship is and can I see it lasting. And then there’s the ones who are just plain pissed.

Like the Sig Be sisters, and any other campus girl who thinks I either don’t deserve Ethan or I’m a fool to fall for him.

Aimee thinks I’m the worst, but that’s because she didn’t best me.

I mean, I guess she kind of did. At this stage, I’m gonna be out of here by the end of the semester, but like hell she’s gonna see me cry over it.

“You’re gonna be sorry.” Fiona shakes her head.

I raise my eyebrows. “Is that some kind of threat?”

“No,” Bella scoffs. “It’s consequences. You chose a guy who’s gonna cheat on you over sisters who would have had your back no matter what.”

“He’s not going to cheat on me.”

“What makes you so sure?” Fiona’s mocking laughter grates my insides. “He’s slept with half the school. You’ve been dating for less than a month. You don’t know this guy. He’s gonna get bored, and his eyes will stray, and you’ll be left with nothing.”

Teah nods. “He’s never lasted more than a few weeks with any girl. He’s not a one-woman guy. Get ready for some serious heartbreak, Mikayla.”

“And you brought it all on yourself.” Fiona raises her manicured eyebrows. The look of smug glee on her face makes my stomach squirm.

“You’re wrong.” My voice is annoyingly weak and tiny as I try to counter them, but it’s getting harder to look them in the eye as they move around the table, circling me with their little taunts.

“He’s gonna hurt you.”

“You’re insane to think this will last.”

“And watching you fall will be a pleasure, because we warned you and you didn’t listen.”

I shrink further into my seat, gripping my pen and staring at my computer screen. It’s hard not to let their biting words sink in.

It’s hard to counter that ugly doubt.

I trust Ethan. I really do. He seems totally into me and I’m into him, and being together is easy and fun and⁠—

You trusted Dad, too, and he left without warning.

My stomach clenches and my vision starts to blur until I hear a bark behind me.

“Hey! Leave her alone.”

I flinch, swiveling in my chair as the girls scamper away, leaving a pissed-off Liam standing behind me. He stares after the girls, narrowing his eyes when Teah turns back to take another look. She yelps and clutches the binder to her chest, running after Bella.

“Thanks,” I murmur, dropping my pen with a heavy sigh.

“They’re relentless.” He sits down beside me and lets out an irritated huff.

“I guess they’ve got nothing better to do with their time.” I sniff, clenching my jaw and wishing I could brush their words off. I want them to be cobwebs I can flick away, but today’s verbal attack felt more like an onslaught of parasites. I can feel them crawling around inside me, eating away at my confidence.

I hate days like this. I should blame hormones. I’ve got the whole period thing happening this week, and I always hit a low day or two around this time, but it’s only being exacerbated by everything else I’m dealing with right now.

“You okay?” Liam rubs my shoulder, his compassionate smile enough to make my eyes burn.

“Yeah, I’m fine. They’re just words.”

“You know they’re not true, though, right?”

I sigh and nod.

“Look at me.”

I close my eyes, refusing to turn until he nudges my shoulder again.

“Come on, Mick. Look at me.”

With a huff, I spin in my chair and give him a pointed look.

He grins. “Ethan’s into you. He loves you. I’ve never seen him like this with anyone else before, and I’ve known the guy for years. Trust me. Trust him. He’s not going anywhere, and he’s not gonna let you walk away either.”

“Yeah,” I croak.

“You guys are good together. Don’t let some bitchy, mouthy girls screw this up for you.”

My lips twitch as I nod again.

“Come on. Let’s go.” He stands up and grabs my bag off the floor.

I close my laptop and textbook, gathering them against my chest. “Where are we going?”

“You can hang out at practice this afternoon. That way you can see Ethan as soon as we’re done.” He winks at me, and I follow him without question.

Watching the guys practice actually sounds like a pretty good way to spend the afternoon. It has to be better than hanging out here and potentially bumping into someone else who’s gonna taunt me or gush about the fact that I’m dating Ethan Galloway.

I don’t want to hear that he’s the hottest thing on two legs. I already know that, and I don’t need the added pressure of knowing how many people in this place want to get with him… or want to slap me for being the one who turned him monogamous.