Page 30 of Taking Sides

“You hate it.” I gasp. A little of the heat coursing through me extinguishes.

“Uh-uh. It’s great.” He takes another drink, like he’s trying to prove his point. Except this time, he can’t hold off the look of disgust that flashes across his face.

“Oh no,” I whisper dramatically.

“It isn’t bad. Just a little sweet. I’m getting used to it now.” He takes yet another sip.

It pulls a laugh from me. “You really don’t have to keep drinking it.”

But I’m giddy when he does and that he’s talking—albeit he’s hating on one of my favorite things, but at least he isn’t completely silent.

I walk over to the couch and sit down. Conrad hesitates a beat, then follows me. He takes a seat on the opposite end, though my couch isn’t very big, so it still feels intimate. I cannot believe Conrad Shepard is in my house. Victor’s head would explode if he could see me now.

Neither of us speaks. I take another drink of Dr Pepper. I think I was too optimistic about the progress we were making. Maybe I should turn on some music or flip on the TV. As it is, I can hear the hum of the fridge. Which is admittedly noisy, but I’ve never noticed it this much before.

“Goon,” Conrad says.

The shock of him talking throws me off for a second, but then it’s what he said that I can’t make sense of. What were we even talking about before? We were quiet for so long, I’ve lost track.

He takes another drink without grimacing before continuing. “You once asked me what is my favorite hockey movie.”

I can’t believe he remembers that. I barely remember it. As in, I said so many things I’ve tried to block it all.

“And it’s Goon?” I ask, not able to hide my surprise.

He nods, and his smile is big and bashful. Frankly, it makes my insides flutter, and my heart rate speeds up. No person should walk around wielding that kind of power.

“Wow. This changes everything.” I lean away from him, pretending like I’m really put out. “Just one more sign that we could never work.”

“Then Miracle,” he says.

I grin, pulling closer to him now. “I knew it.”

“Come on, everyone loves Miracle. It’s a great movie.”

“Yeah, until you’re forced to watch it on repeat your entire childhood.”

“Brother?” he guesses. I shift a little in my seat and turn the soda can in my hands. I had hoped to avoid talking about Victor tonight.

“Yeah.”

“Did he play hockey too?”

“Yeah, he did.” Did. Does. They’re basically the same thing, right?

Conrad smiles softly at me. “And you?”

“Yep. My dad played in the minor league but got hurt before he could make it to the NHL. He had us in skates as soon as we could walk. I wasn’t very good, but I always loved the game. The running family joke was that I was the best cheerleader on the hockey team.”

His brows tug together. “That’s shitty.”

“No,” I say quickly. “They were only teasing me. And anyway, it was true. I was content to be on the sidelines as long as I got to be near it.”

“So you became a coach.”

I nod.

His stare falls back to my mouth and lingers there.