Page 104 of The Draft

“That’s admirable. If she cheatedwithyou, then she’d probably cheatonyou in the future, and that’s not something you’d want.”

He pushed himself up, glaring at me as though I had just insulted the King of England, and he was imagining all the ways he could chop my head off. “People only cheat when they aren’t getting what they want out of their relationship. She wouldn’t cheat on me because I’d give her everything.”

“But she doesn’t want it?”

He chuckled, nodding to himself. “Oh, she wants it. She just doesn’t want to admit she wants anything to do with me.”

“Give it time. I’m sure you can wear her down.”

My phone continued to buzz in my jeans, but I kept ignoring it. The noise seemed to inspire Cade to pull his own phone out and start to swipe through messages. Ones I presumed were from the girl he was in love with.

“Maybe you should talk to her.”

“You don’t think that was the first thing I did? She doesn’t want me. It’s fine. I’ll move on.” He raised his hand, rolling over dramatically.

“Sure, seems like it.”

“Don’t act all high and mighty with me, Dash. You may think you and Reporter Girl have your shit together, but she’s fucking up your game.”

“So you keep saying,” I mumbled and ran a hand through my hair. I was fucking up because I was lying to my best friend, which had to stop. Cade had rolled over, so he was facing the wall. Since he wasn’t looking at me, I’d gained some of that courage I had earlier, and it all started to make sense. Cade had opened up to me, and it was only fair that I opened up about me and Madison. He had a right to know, and Madison deserved to be more than a secret.

“About that. Cade, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you.”

I took my phone out of my pocket and pulled up the note that I’d beenediting constantly for the last few weeks. Clearing my throat, I looked over at Cade, who was lying on his bed, grumbling something, and started reading off my note.

“I would appreciate it if you would let me finish everything I have to say before talking.” Taking a deep breath, I continued. “Cade. I remember the first day I met you. We were ten years old, on the ice. I was tiny back then, and some older kids pushed me, making me lose my balance. I was being laughed at, but you didn’t let it last for long. You beat the shit out of them even though they were double your size. From that moment forward, I knew you’d be like a brother to me, and over a decade later, I can say you still are. Every big life event, you’ve been there, and I don’t plan on that changing anytime soon.”

I took a break because my hand was shaking. He was finally going to learn about Madison and me, and I really wanted it to go well. “But with all that said, it wasn’t just you I built a relationship with. It was with your family. With your dad, who took me to hockey games when mine couldn’t. It was with your mom, who made me all the homemade dinners I’d missed out on. It was with Madison. The girl who was always there, trying to be just like her brother but usually failing miserably. I watched her go from gawky and awkward to heartbroken and beautiful. I don’t know when exactly it happened, but at some point, I started to fall in love with your sister. Who could blame me? She’s vivacious, caring, and sweet.”

Cade let out another grumble, but at least he was letting me finish.

“I know you hate the idea of her dating one of your teammates, and I completely understand if you don’t want me to date your sister, but know this, I can’t stop. I love you like a brother, and maybe one day we’ll get to the point where I’m the lucky bastard that gets to legally call you that, but that’s not what I wanted to tell you today. What I want to tell you is that I’m in love with your sister, and I fully intend on treating her like she’s the best goddamn thing that’s ever happened to me, because she is. I love Madison, and I’ll happily let you break my nose for it, but just know, bones can heal. My heart won’t if I can’t be with Madison.”

There. I got it out, and I had to admit that I suddenly felt lighter. I hadn’t even told Madison just how much she meant to me, but telling someone made me realize how hard I’d fallen for her. She was everything.Always would be. Cade hadn’t said anything yet, but he had moved a little in his bed, so I figured he was just taking it all in since there was a lot to process.

After a few minutes of silence, I said, “Cade? What do you think?”

Still no answer. So I stood up and walked over to the bed, grabbed his shoulder, and shook him.

“Fuck.”

He was sleeping, snoring loudly as I rolled him onto his back. Well, shit. Had he heard any of my speech? I assumed not because telling him that would be like a bucket of cold water poured over him. Unless the beginning was too long and I’d bored him into slumber. I dropped my head on a sigh because I’d worked myself up for a confession that meant nothing.

“Dash!” I heard my name being called from the common room.

“Dash? Are you here? I swear I’m going to beat your ass if you don’t get out here soon.”

Was that Scotty?

I quietly walked out of the room, only to find Scotty searching for me under the sofa cushions with a scowl. “What’s wrong?”

“You’re a fucking idiot, that’s what’s wrong.” He stomped over to me, getting all up in my face.

“What are you talking about? You’re the one that left Cade drunk on his own.”

“Oh, don’t you dare blame this mess on me.”

“What mess?”