SWNOVELS The Forbidden Freshman: Chapter 52
I secure my pads and throw on a hockey jersey, yanking it down before brushing my hair off my forehead. I’m fired up and ready to put in a good practice today. I’m focused and—
The locker room door swings open, catching my eye. I glance over in time to see Liam storming in, looking kind of dark.
“You okay, man?”
He wrenches his locker open and shakes his head at me.
“What’s up?”
His jaw clenches, which means he doesn’t really want to share. I stare at him for a little longer, wondering if he’ll change his mind, before shrugging.
“Okay. Well, maybe you can burn it off on the ice.”
“I was in the library.” He sighs, pulling off his shirt, his tense muscles flexing as he gets changed. “I heard these girls being real bitchy, you know? So I figured I’d swing past the table on my way out, make sure whoever they were harassing was okay.”
“Was she or he or… they?”
His lips dip into a sharp frown. “It was Mikayla.”
“What?” I swivel to face him, my voice coming out hard and snappy. “Who was it? What’d they say?”
“It was those Sig Be girls. They were going on about how she’d made a huge mistake by choosing you over them and that you were gonna cheat on her. Just talking general shit, circling her like vultures.” He grunts while I let out a string of curse words that draws the eyes of almost every guy in the room.
“What’s going on?” Asher calls from his locker.
“Nothing!” I bark.
“This about our girl?” He moves closer, and I can’t help a quick growl.
“She’s not your girl, she’s mine!”
“She’s ours,” he argues back, and my fingers curl into a fist. Ever since moving in, Mikayla’s become like our house mascot. It’s cute and all, but not when Asher starts talking shit about her belonging to all of us.
I stalk toward him and fist his collar. His eyes spark with challenge, and I’m seconds away from brawling when Liam’s hand lands on my shoulder.
He glares at Asher. “Would you shut your damn mouth? This isn’t helping.”
“I just want to make sure she’s okay. I heard you say something about circling vultures. And Mikayla might be your girl”—Asher gives me a pointed look—“but that doesn’t mean the rest of us want to see her getting harassed or hurt. We’re allowed to care about her too. She’s an awesome chick, and if someone is making her life hell, we’re gonna do something about it.”
I relax, letting go of Asher’s collar and shoving him away.
Liam quickly tells the guys what he told me, and they all mutter their disgust. Casey crosses his arms, looking just as dark as Liam.
“That wasn’t what got to me the most.” Liam shakes his head, resting his hands on his hips with a heavy sigh. “For a second there, she looked… so beaten, you know? That’s not Mick. She’s tough. That’s one of the things we love about her. She doesn’t take shit. But she just sat there today. Didn’t say a word.”
My insides crumble. I knew she was struggling. It’s been impossible not to notice her quiet spells and the look on her face when yet another post or video pops up on social media. I’ve tried to shield her from it, show her how much she means to me, but I can’t protect her from everything, and it kills me.
“Where is she now?” I ask.
Liam tips his head toward the door. “I brought her to practice with me. Figured she could study in the stands or something. They can’t get to her here.”
I flash him a grateful smile and head for the door. The guys make a clear pathway for me, all appreciating my need to get to her, but I’m blocked before I can even reach the doors.
Jason crosses his arms, barring my way. “We’ve got practice. You can deal with your love life later.”
I’m about to shove him back with a few harsh words when Coach steps in behind him.
“Okay, guys, let’s get on the ice.” He claps his hands.
“I just need to see—”
“Ice, Galloway! We’re already running late. Get your ass out there. Whatever it is can wait until after practice.”
“It really can’t,” I try to argue, but the look on his face leaves me zero room for argument.
“Shit,” I mutter under my breath, knowing I can’t muscle my way past Coach just to give my girl a kiss, to touch her face, look in her eyes, reassure myself that she’s okay, tell her I’d never cheat on her.
Coach is a hard-ass, and he’d never understand.
So I spin with a scowl, ignoring Jason’s snicker, and head for the rink.
As soon as my skates hit the ice, I look into the stands for Mikayla.
She’s halfway up the bleachers, huddled against the cold. Liam’s jacket is around her shoulders, which pisses me off, because it should be my jacket.
Dammit, why didn’t I go to the library today?
Gliding across the ice, I raise my stick at her. She gives me a small smile and waves back, so I blow her a kiss off my glove. That makes her smile a little wider, and that tightness in my chest starts to ease.
I should be grateful that I’ve got a team ready to protect my girl when she needs it.
And I am.
I’m grateful Liam was there today, but it’s up to me to make sure she understands that those girls were lying. Choosing me over them wasn’t a mistake. I’m not going anywhere, and my eyes aren’t wandering either.
No one can hold a candle to my lil’ mouse.
She’s it.
She’s everything.