Page 66 of Worth the Risk
“Just doing what I can to fuck with the head coach,” I tell him, then quickly look around to make sure no one overheard me. “Shit. I didn’t say that. Okay? You didn’t hear me.”
“Alright, sure. You want to tell me what’s going on?” he says quietly. Stone has always been like an older brother to me. Even with his miserable upbringing, he has a calm and peaceful presence. But the less people who know about Woodward’s antics, the better.
“Nah. Just dealing with some shit. You don’t need to worry about it. Things are looking up. Hopefully, I won’t be raking in the penalties,” I tell him.
“You gonna let me touch this monstrosity of a haircut? Did Edward Scissorhands touch you up recently?” Stone shudders. He pushes me toward his chair and immediately throws a smock over me. “How you get women looking like this is beyond me.”
“Please. They don’t care what I look like. Just how much is in my bank account and how I fuck,” I tell him.
“Ain’t that the fucking truth,” he murmurs.
“Besides, I got a girl now. No more playing the field,” I say proudly.
Stone stares at me incredulously. “No fucking way. Mr. Hotshot Hockey Star has found a woman? I don’t believe it.”
“Believe it,” I boast. “Best fucking thing that has ever happened to me.”
“Damn. Another one bites the dust,” Stone teases.
“What? You don’t think about settling down? You’re getting up there, old man. Gonna put you out to pasture here soon.”
Stone rolls his eyes. “No pasture for me. I have no interest in settling down.”
As he begins to cut my hair, I see a flurry of activity at the door. “I thought that was you!” Arianna rushes in with a big smile on her face, but the smile turns to a frown immediately upon seeing Stone. “Oh. You.”
“Hello, Princess. What do we owe the pleasure of your company for?” Stone taunts.
Arianna throws a hand on her hip as she glares at Stone. “Nothing for you, old man. I’m here for my brother.”
“I’m not a fucking old man,” Stone mutters.
“Stop calling me princess, and I’ll stop calling you old man,” Arianna says.
“No.”
“I’m not a princess.”
“You certainly act like one, Princess. Tell me, what shopping have you done today? Did Daddy give you his credit card?” Stone seethes.
As I watch the insults get volleyed between Stone and Ari, I’m suddenly aware of the ridiculous sexual tension that oozes between them. This is fucking foreplay. And I’m horribly uncomfortable. Have I blocked this out, or have they been this way for a while?
“Okay, umm, let’s redirect here,” I call out. “Ari, what are you doing here?”
Arianna stops glaring at Stone to look at me. “Oh. I was picking up door prizes for the Children’s Hospital fundraiser we’re doing in a few weeks.”
“With Gia on maternity leave, are you running the event?” I ask.
“No, we got a replacement. I’m just helping out.” Ari turns to Stone. “It’s all the shopping I do.”
“Clearly,” he mutters.
Ari turns back to me. “You should come have lunch with me. I’d love to introduce you to the new special events coordinator.”
I notice a wicked gleam in her eyes. “I was headed that way anyway. Just saw Stone and figured I’d grab a quick cut.”
I almost said I was going to kill two birds with one Stone, but I’d bet anything the only person who would laugh at my pun would be Hannah.
“What’s that smile for?” Arianna asks.