His arms closed against me, enveloping me in the smell of his familiar cologne, and the embrace I’d always thought would hold me for the rest of my life. “Can we be friends?”

“I don’t know. Not now, it’s too much.”

He pulled my face back gently, looking into my eyes like it was the last time he’d see me. “I’m going to miss you so damn much.”

“I know the feeling.” I gave a half smile and dropped my eyes, ready to step away when I looked over his shoulder.

Josh stood in the middle of the walkway like he had paused midstride. His look of surprise quickly fell as he shook his head at me. His jaw clenched, his eyes narrowed, and he turned on his heel, disappearing back into crowd.

“Josh,” I whispered, pulling away from Riley at a dead run. I slammed into the crowd, unable to get past the hungry spectators milling about, like I was fighting against the tide. I know what that embrace had looked like, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. I had to make him see, to understand.

I only wanted him.

Like my emergency brake had been thrown, I jarred to a dead stop while people pushed past all around me. Oh shit. I wanted Josh. Not just as a distraction, but as mine. I’d fought so long and hard against it because I knew what kind of guy he was, the kind that slept with every girl in the near vicinity. But that wasn’t who he was with me.

He’d been so good to me. Over and over again I’d been a raging, slightly psychotic whack-job, and he’d stuck by me. Except for now, when he was walking away.

The loudspeaker barked the announcement of the next period, and I knew I’d have to catch him after the game. I backtracked to our section and headed down the stairs. The boys were already on the ice, ready to rock it.

Riley stood so I could slide past him into my seat. “He’s not good for you,” he whispered after we both sat.

“You don’t know anything about him, and you don’t get a say. Besides, you weren’t good for me, either.” I could remain peaceful with Riley as long as he didn’t attack Josh. My line was drawn there.

“Please be careful. The guy still has a reputation up in Boulder, and he left three years ago.”

“Reputations aren’t exactly all they’re cracked up to be. Yours was pretty stellar, remember?”

He sighed, and I knew the conversation was over.

At the second period, the score tied up.

The boys played hard that last period, but when it came down to the wire, they were beaten three to two. There would be no league championships for them this year.

By the time we got to the locker room to pick up Gus, Josh was gone.

Guess he got tired of waiting.

Chapter Seventeen

The World Arena felt a lot different a few hours later as Sam and I showed our tickets to the night doormen and had our purses checked for contraband. Gone were the hockey moms and dads, the fussy little brothers and sisters, and the general camaraderie that filled pee-wee hockey. Oh no, this was college hockey.

Raucous laughter and noise filled the promenade in a mix of CU Springs blue and gold, and Air Force Academy blue and white. Nothing like a little hometown action to bring out the crowds. “I could totally score a hot cadet!” Sam announced as she raked her eyes up an unsuspecting Air Force Academy cadet ahead of us in the popcorn line.

“Keep it in your pants, Sam. Not sure about you, but I have no desire to live the life our moms do.” Or did, rather. “There’s zero chance in hell I’d chase after a military guy.”

She cocked her head to the side as if deliberating. “Maybe you’re right.” She turned around with our popcorn as she caught the eye of another cadet, shamelessly flirting. “Then again, I wouldn’t mind a piece of that.”

He tipped his hat at her with a wide grin, and I pulled her toward our entry. “Don’t. All that comes out of that are knocks on your front door. Not worth it.”

She stopped me at the entrance to our section and grasped both my shoulders. “Ember, it doesn’t always end like it did for your dad. And don’t tell me your mom wouldn’t say it wasn’t worth it. You can’t think like that.”

But I did. I turned my head away, thankful it wasn’t a choice I had to make. “Let’s just find our seats.”

We made it down the stairs just in time for the puck drop, then slid past a few annoyed spectators before we found our seats, which were awesome, and totally unaffordable. “Sam, where did you get these tickets?” We were on the blue line, right on the ice.

“Jagger. He said he had a few, and I was more than happy to take them from him.”

“He seems like a pretty good guy.”

A wicked smile came across her face. “I don’t know. I mean, he’s not as dangerous to a girl’s heart as Josh, but something tells me Jagger is a bad little boy in his own right.”

“Josh isn’t dangerous!” I tossed a piece of my popcorn at her.

She gave me a look, accusing me of insanity. “Josh Walker is most certainly dangerous to every single female around him—except for you, that is.”

If she only had a freaking clue. “He is a huge danger to me. Just not in the way you think.” My eyes locked onto his frame skating forward with the puck into AFA territory. “What if I decided he’s worth the risk?” I asked softly.

“Seriously?” Her smile could have lit the arena. “I think that’s the best idea you’ve had in, like . . . ever!”