Page 125 of Rise Above

of coffee. “I’ll do my best to not strangle you.”

Licking my lips, I nodded at my best friend. Zeke

was here to play referee. The words wanted to come out of my mouth, but my mind wouldn’t let me just yet. I had to phrase myself carefully. Davis would likely punch me, and frankly, I’d let him. I broke a promise. That was not the type of guy I was; I didn’t break promises, just wasn’t great at listening.

“Aife and I kissed,” I said quickly, “And I’m

planning on asking her to date me… exclusively.”

Davis nodded and popped his neck. “Alright. What

part of leave her the fuck alone did you not understand?”

His face was red, really red. I’d seen my best friend

angry before, but this seemed beyond anger. If I didn’t know better, I would say Davis was disappointed in me. Much like I took time to find my words, Davis was seriously contemplating his. Clearly, he had more to say.

“What part of she has too much on her plate

couldn’t get through your thick, fucking skull?” Davis was getting louder. His fists were clenched next to his coffee cup. “Does she even know about Melody? About the person you turned into?”

Words were bubbling up in my throat, but I choked

them down. Davis had to get this out. He was incredibly protective of her. The two had built a bond over the last three years, and I think in many ways they viewed each other as siblings.

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“Like seriously, James. Seriously, tell me what the

fuck was going through your head.” Davis crossed his arms over his chest.

I pursed my lips, waiting to see if my best friend

had anything else to say. He was a fairly verbose guy. Maybe he had run out of steam, or more likely, he was perfecting the final blow. There was probably a piece of Davis that really wanted to tear me a new one. The enforcer in me was getting a little ticked off with it, but I was trying to understand his perspective.

“You done?” Zeke finally spoke up before I could.

His eyes zeroed in on Davis before flickering over to me. “Dude, everyone can see they’re totally in love with each other.”

I quirked an eyebrow. There was that word again.

Melody had so thoroughly broken my heart, I wasn’t sure I knew what love was anymore. My heart raced thinking about that word. Aife and I were still getting to know each other. That couldn’t be love… not yet.

“Love?” Davis asked. “This shit again?” Rage flashed through my brain. The enforcer was

coming out full force now. “Enough.” My voice was low, eerily calm.

Both my friends’ heads snapped to me. They played

hockey with me. They’d known me for years, so they knew when I was at a boiling point. My whole body was beginning to vibrate. I needed to hit something, or the energy would eat me alive.

“James…” Zeke trailed off. It was a short warning.

Zeke was a goalie; he could take a hit.

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