The kitchen knives were nice and sharp. Thea would have to ask Blake to pass on her compliments to whoever had been in charge of getting the cabin ready for guests. She made good progress, quizzing Blake about his favorite Christmas songs and demonstrating her tremendous ability to sing off-key.
Thea was just reveling in having made Blake laugh when her knife slipped off the carrot. It sliced deeply across the side of one finger. The pain was instant. Thea’s eyes filled with tears before she could even get a word out.
“Oh, shit,” she wailed, screwing her face up as if that would help. It didn’t. She cradled her hand against her chest, trying to stem the flow of blood with her t-shirt.
If she hadn’t been so absorbed in how much it hurt , Thea might’ve appreciated how quick Blake was to react. Before she had even seen him move, her hand was already in his and he was pressing a towel hard against the cut. He moved her over to the sink, running lukewarm water and pushing her hand under it.
“It’s not too bad,” he promised her. Thea’s heart was racing from the adrenaline too much to really focus . “Come, sit down,” Blake said once the wound looked clean. “Keep your hand up and press hard against the finger, okay? I’ll be back in a second.”
Thea hardly noticed him being away. Her heart was starting to return to its normal pace. When Blake did get back, it was with a first aid box in hand. He pulled a chair up to sit across from Thea, reaching out to take her hand gently in his. There was a lot of care in how he took the towel away to check on the wound.
“It’s not bleeding anymore,” he hummed. “Which is good, you’ll get away without needing stitches, I think.” With the first aid box set on the side, Blake rummaged through it to find antiseptic liquid.
The tears had stopped, but Thea’s eyes still watered. The antiseptic liquid stung horribly. She sniffled, biting her lip to keep from crying out in pain. “I’m sorry,” she said, her voice wobbling. “It was stupid.” All of Thea’s emotions bubbled closer to the surface. She crossed her free arm over her stomach.
“I can’t seem to stop doing stupid things.” First the kiss, and now this. All because she kept allowing herself to be distracted by Blake.
What Thea wanted was for Blake to wrap his strong arms around her and tell her it was all going to be okay. If only it could be that simple.
“Hey, hey,” Blake said gently, bringing his hand up to Thea’s face while the other still cradled Thea’s hurt hand. His touch was so soft, a thumb brushing over her cheek and wiping the leftover tears away. “Accidents happen,” he told her. It was impossible not to lean into that touch, not when it was so warm and so kind .
When Thea looked up, Blake’s face was so close to hers. Her breath caught. It felt as if all the time in the world had stopped, leaving just the two of them there. All of Blake’s attention was on Thea. She saw the way he leaned in. It was almost in slow motion. This time she knew the kiss was coming.
There was enough time to stop it.
It took an effort, but Thea pulled back. She couldn’t kiss Blake again, no matter how much she wanted to. He wasn’t her boyfriend to kiss. It would be betraying her best friend.
“Will I live?” she asked, forcing a playfulness she didn’t feel into her tone.
She saw the moment Blake realized how close he’d come to kissing her again. It was so tempting to assure him that it was okay . They both knew it wasn’t. They weren’t meant to kiss. Blake was Doe’s soulmate, she was the one he was dating. And yeah, maybe Thea and Blake got on well but that didn’t matter .
“You’ll live,” Blake promised, clearly deciding to just move past the awkwardness. “Which is good because I don’t think I can cook a whole Christmas meal on my own. I’m not sure you’ll be able to chop more things today, though,” he frowned. “I’m going to have to recruit someone else, I think. Any suggestions on who might be the least grumpy to be woken up?”
Thea gave a small shrug. “I only really know Doe,” she pointed out. She got on well enough with Ricky and Connor and the others. She didn’t know them well enough to know how they’d react to being woken up early in the morning.
“She won’t mind,” Thea added. She couldn’t quite decide whether having Doe there would be more awkward or if it would be the best solution. They could both talk to Doe. That was good. It felt a little underhand to use her as their buffer when it was Doe they ought to be behaving better by.
She forced another smile. “She especially won’t mind if I go and show her what I’ve done to myself. Shall I go up?”
“No,” Blake shook his head. “I’ll go. I think you need to rest for a bit longer,” he advised. “I might not see a lot of knife wounds, but I do see plenty of injuries.” It made sense. Thea hadn’t even thought of that. Normally she probably would’ve done, but with the adrenaline still so high in her body, everything seemed... harder.
When she nodded, Blake gave her arm one last squeeze before going off to presumably wake Doe. It would be better with her there, Thea reminded herself. Doe would be nice and chipper. Her bubbly personality would distract Thea from... Blake. Which was good, because Doe was the one dating him.
God, how had Thea even gotten into this mess? This was not how she had expected Christmas to go.
Chapter Eight
The Christmas lunch had turned out pretty amazing. Despite Thea’s accident - and with Doe’s help - they had served excellent food. Thea’s notes on when to cook what had definitely helped there. The rest of the Christmas had whizzed past. There had been more board games and Blake had managed to get a bit more skiing in. This time it hadn’t involved any accidents. It also hadn’t involved any kissing. Blake had to remind himself that that wasn’t a bad thing.
Mostly, Blake tried to put that kiss he’d shared with Thea out of his mind. It wasn’t easy . Soon after Christmas, training was back on. Blake could throw himself into that with all his might. Thankfully, Blake was very good at focusing on hockey. On days they weren’t playing, though, Blake’s head was all over the place.
He knew he wasn’t supposed to like Thea. Not the way he did, anyway. Doe could very well be his soulmate. Her name was inscribed on Blake’s skin. Yet it didn’t... He liked Doe, but more the way he was pretty sure he was meant to like Thea instead. Doe was lovely, sweet and kind. All the things Blake should’ve wanted.
Yet his thoughts constantly trailed off to images of Thea’s smile, the way she bit her lower lip when she thought. Even more than that, he couldn’t stop thinking about how much he liked just talking to her. She made jokes that made Blake laugh, she told him about things that fascinated him.
Thea was everything Blake hadn’t even known he wanted.
And he had no idea what to do about that.
The only reasonable solution was to ask someone. Someone who wasn’t Thea, no matter how tempting it was to just rush to her and proclaim his confused feelings. That wouldn’t do. Instead, Blake figured he’d ask Connor. Maybe Connor would ask Ashley since Blake wasn’t convinced Connor would have the answers.
“I’ve brought some red Gatorade to bribe you with,” Blake announced when Connor let him in. He handed the bottles over, before shrugging. “They were out of blue.”
Today wasn’t a game day. Even the afternoon skate had been optional. Still, Blake had texted first to make sure Connor didn’t mind having him over. He’d lured Connor in with promises of video games and maybe watching a match. All things that Blake was happy to do. He just also wanted... life advice, he supposed.
From Connor.
God, he was fucked.
Connor’s confused expression did little to reassure Blake this wasn’t a terrible idea. Still, Connor was one of the very few people Blake knew who’d met his soulmate. Not only that, but Blake remembered when Connor and Ashley had broken up for a time. He had experience of things not going smoothly.
“Bribe me for what?” Connor asked. Blake supposed that was a fair enough question. Playing video games and watching hockey weren’t thi
ngs Connor needed to be bribed to do.
“I need some advice,” Blake answered, waving a hand before Connor could comment. “It’s cool if you ask Ashley when it turns out you don’t know,” he promised. Blake honestly didn’t mind that Connor might not know the right thing to say. Of course, there was always the chance that he’d surprise Blake. If not, Blake was fine with Ashley being told. Connor would want to tell her anyway .
Sometimes Blake felt a little jealous of Connor’s relationship with Ashley. It seemed quite nice to have that. To have someone he could tell anything to. Ashley had done a lot of good for Connor. Blake felt it was normal to wish he had that, too.
Once they were in the living room, Blake gave a dramatic sigh. The situation deserved it.
“I think I...” Blake started and then frowned. He wasn’t actually sure where he was planning to go with that sentence. I think I’m really fascinated with the wrong woman , didn’t quite cover it. “You know Thea, right?” He asked instead. It was stupid. O f course Connor knew Thea, he’d just spent Christmas with her.
Connor gave him a look, but very generously didn’t point out that he was hardly going to have forgotten who Thea was. “I don’t know her very well ,” Connor said instead. “I mean, if you’re about to ask me what to buy her for her birthday or something, you’d definitely be better off just asking Ashley.” He seemed to give that some thought for a moment because he then frowned.
“Why aren’t you asking Doe?” he asked. “If you need advice about Thea, wouldn’t it make sense to ask her best friend? Especially when that’s also someone you’re dating.”
Yes, well, that was the truth. It was also part of what Blake’s problem was. He could hardly blame Connor for suggesting that maybe he should talk to Doe about Thea. Of course, that would just make things so much more complicated. Blake wasn’t sure when his life had become so difficult to untangle.
“I can’t talk to Doe about it,” he answered finally. “I.. I think I like Thea.” Except there wasn’t an ‘I think’, Blake knew he did. He wasn’t even sure it was fair to only describe it as liking Thea. That was pretty scary. “As in... I like Thea more than someone dating her best friend should .” Blake felt that was pretty to the point. He did then frown, though.
“Why would I ask you what to buy Thea for her birthday? I wouldn’t even trust you to tell me what to buy Ashley for her birthday.”
“Dude, you asked me if I know Thea,” Connor pointed out. “You don't get to criticize what I thought you were getting at.” Blake had to admit, Connor probably had a point there.
There was an almost uncomfortable silence. Blake recognized it as Connor taking time to think through what he'd said. Knowing that didn't make Blake feel any less awkward about sitting there while Connor frowned.
Finally, Connor shook his head in defeat. “I don't get it,” he said. “If you like Thea, why don't you date Thea?” His frown deepened. “It's kind of shitty to date Doe if you know you're interested in someone else.”
“I know it is!” Blake defended. Yeah, he did think it was shitty. Especially because of how fucking lovely Doe was. “I just...” There Blake paused. He had to think about how not to end up sounding defensive. “I like Doe. She’s sweet, super nice. She’s everything I kind of thought I wanted in a girlfriend.” Except now all that Blake thought he wanted in a girlfriend was Doe’s best friend.
He sighed, a hand absently running down to brush over where the sticker under his knee was. The sticker covering Doe’s name. Or a name like Doe’s , Blake reminded himself. “I thought that Doe might be my soulmate,” he admitted. Blake didn’t think so any longer. Soulmarks weren’t cruel . They didn’t match you up with someone only for you to then want to be with someone else . Right?
“Oh.” Blake recognized the face Connor made when he was trying to be sympathetic. Weirdly, that made him feel a little better. He and Connor were good friends. Even if Connor didn’t have all the answers, Blake appreciated that he was trying .
Blake still hoped that Ashley might have more of the answers.
“If you’ve decided Doe’s not your soulmate, and you don’t like dating her, you can just stop ,” Connor suggested. He made it sound so simple . “I know it’s not that easy,” he amended, almost as if he’d read Blake’s mind. “Breaking up with anyone sucks, but you can . That fixes half your problem.”
“Yeah, I know,” Blake nodded. He did know that he had to break up with Doe. Blake just didn’t want to... upset her. It was stupid. She’d be more upset if she knew that Blake had kissed Thea. Still, Doe was genuinely such a nice person that it pained Blake to think he would hurt her. Breaking up with someone always hurt them, right?
Blake gave a dramatic sigh, fingers still tight against his soulmark. “I don’t know if I can even ask Thea out after dating her best friend,” he commented. “Or if she’d say yes because I dated Doe.” Blake certainly couldn’t imagine going out with Ashley . That was probably different. Still, he did say it, “Imagine me and Ashley dating.”
He could see understanding dawning in Connor’s expression. “Shit,” he breathed. “I hadn’t thought of it like that.” The frown returned. Blake could almost see the cogs going round in Connor’s head like he was trying to find a way out of the situation Blake had got himself into.
Another silence fell before Connor gave up with a loud scoff. “Sorry, Blake. I think you might just be screwed at this point.” He reached over, giving Blake’s arm a consoling bump. “It would be one thing if Thea might be your soulmate, but…” He tailed off. Blake hardly needed him to finish his sentence.
It made Blake unexpectedly annoyed. The idea that just because Thea wasn’t his soulmate he somehow had to give up on liking her. “Cool, great talk, thanks,” Blake said, sounding snappy even to himself. It wasn’t fair to take his emotions out on Connor. Blake just felt so frustrated . Connor was right, Blake was screwed.
Connor’s eyes narrowed. There was a moment when Blake thought he might snap back at him. It passed. Connor gave a helpless little shrug of his shoulders. “As you said, I’ll ask Ashley. She’ll have way better advice than I would.” Connor didn’t sound quite certain. Blake had to wonder if perhaps even Ashley wouldn’t be able to get him out of this mess.
“What I can do,” Connor offered, “is help you take your mind off it.”
Blake laughed at that. Connor was a great friend. He might not be able to help Blake with the right advice - if there even was a right kind of advice to give - but he still tried. This was why Connor was one of Blake’s favorite people. No matter what, Connor did his best to be a good friend.
“Yeah, I did promise you some video games after all,” Blake nodded, kind of glad to be done with this conversation. At least for now. While Connor’s advice hadn’t been all-encompassing, it had definitely given Blake something to think about.
In the end, Ashley had been kept behind at work, something to do with an ‘unexpected PR crisis’. Blake had never found out what Howlers considered an ‘unexpected PR crisis’. Either way, Connor had promised to have a chat with Ashley and see if she had some more light to shed on Blake’s situation.
As for Blake himself, he was glad that training was back in full swing. It gave him an excuse not to see Doe. He’d texted her, apologizing for his business. She had, of course, been very nice in her replies, assuring him it was okay and that she, too, was busy with work. It just made Blake feel worse . He wished that Doe wasn’t such a nice person. She was so perfect in many ways but... just not the right ways for Blake.
The confusion he felt was clearly affecting his gameplay. After practice, Nilssy called Blake to one side. He waited for the others to leave the ice, giving Blake a serious look.
“I know I’ve been a bit absent-minded,” Blake said before Nilssy could tell him as much. “I’m sorry. I’ve just been having some...” It seemed a bit stupid to say that he was distracted from doing his job by having girl trouble .
“You and Evie are soulmates, right
? How did you... know?” Blake asked suddenly. He’d clearly surprised Nilssy with his question, if the way the other man’s eyes widened were any indication.
“How did we know we were soulmates?” Nilssy asked. He waited until Blake had nodded, then tipped his head to one side. Blake recognized it as the way he looked at the Coach when he was taking feedback.
Blake knew Nilssy well enough to know his Captain couldn’t be rushed. He’d take his own time deciding what to say, and how to say it. “We didn’t know, at first,” he finally settled on. “Obviously, I knew she might be, but when we first met, I really didn’t think so.”
That surprised Blake. Nilssy had met Evie a couple of years after Blake had joined the Howlers, but back then Blake had been too distracted by oh my God NHL hockey to notice. Blake remembered Nilssy announcing he’d met his soulmate. It had been exciting, especially since he was one of the only guys on the team at the time to have met a woman who matched his soulmark. Blake had never asked anything more. He’d just assumed it was a fairytale kind of thing.
Now that he was older, Blake recognized that not all soulmate stories were fairytales. Still, he’d never actually stopped to think if Nilssy’s was. He and Evie looked so happy together, it wouldn’t have entered Blake’s mind that there could’ve been a time they weren’t .
“Can I ask why? Like what happened? I... I know I’ve never asked before, but you two look so perfect together.” Blake hoped it told Nilssy how Blake had kind of just presumed .
Nilssy smiled, passing his stick to his left hand. “You can ask,” he assured. “We didn’t clash . There was nothing suggesting that Evie might not be my soulmate.” He looked briefly thoughtful. Blake wondered how many times Nilssy had actually told this story.
“There was nothing really suggesting that she was , either. Except for her name, and I wasn’t counting on that by itself.” That made sense to Blake. ‘Evelyn’ wasn’t exactly a rare name. “When I first met her, it seemed as though she never stopped talking,” he said, managing to sound fond . “I thought for sure that her soulmate would be someone more… social. And she knew nothing about hockey, so I couldn’t imagine her supporting me in my career.”
Best Shot (Madison Howlers Book 2) Page 12