Chapter 54

Winnie

“Hello, Winnie! Nice to see you!” Rebel

holds up her glass for me with a big cheer. She has switched places with Logan to sit on my left side when I walk up to the table.

Alice, however, isn’t sitting down. She

stands up from her seat and gets this

sparkly look on her face before coming to hug me. “Winnie!”

“Hi!” I hug her back. “How are you?”

“I’m good. How are you?”

Before I can answer, Nathan speaks. “Here she comes, my biggest rival in love: Winnie. I swear there is a romance going on here…” he sighs but hides a smile.

“Happy to see you too, big guy,” I tell him and pat his shoulder. “Have you gotten

thinner?”

He snorts. “Shut up! I’m working out harder than ever!”

I grin. “It shows—I’m just teasing!”

People around the table snicker, including Logan. I feel welcomed sitting by the large

table the Plaza Hotel has assembled for us.

“Oh, and since you wondered, I’m feeling pretty okay,” I inform Alice and beam at her. “Mark won’t be joining us, though. He needed to take care of something urgent.”

“We saw,” Alice sits down beside me, grimacing. “But you’re fine, right? We kind of assumed it was a friendly date anyway.”

“Oh, it was,” my eyes flicker to Jake, whose cold expression turns less icy after hearing

me confirm I’m not into Mark.

Interesting…

“I

It hits me then that Jake was probably mad because I told him, “I don’t date nice guys, and then I went here with Mark. He must

have been so confused, thinking I was a

hypocrite.

here, so can we move on with the celebrations?” Kelly, who I’ve never met before, says in a rather bitchy

drinks.”

other woman’s attitude, before she finds words. “Uh, of

questioningly. I shrug at her-I don’t know why Kelly dislikes me. Unless Jake told her about

negative energy and jealousy and focus on my friends.

have

***

hours later, we aren’t at the hotel anymore, but getting drunk at a bar. The hockey guys I don’t know well aren’t with us. It’s Nathan, Alice, Logan, Rebel, Kelly, Jake, and me—the single girl

cuddling with anyone.

her mind. She is

a babysitter, so she is

Nathan. He has called a cab

dangling down from his

for Rebel and Logan, they are doing shots. by the bar. And Kelly? She is drunk, clinging to Jake’s forearm and talking shit

seems to have this idea

called a cab for her. That,

perfect for me.

said Jake and Kelly weren’t exclusive or serious, and I will

I order shots with Rebel

laugh, and have fun, and once Jake is

smirks at me.

she pushes the small of my back. While drinking, I told her of my plans, and

he

swallow thickly. “Okay,

course for the corner of the bar. Jake is talking to some girl, and my heart pounds faster and faster. Can I do this? Yes. Yes, I can! Even though it’s scary…

feels like my blood is boiling when he is in the same room or paying me attention. I’m already dizzy, and when he looks up and

My stomach does this unwelcome

forward.

I feel so awkward standing in front of him. The girl scowls at me and opens

mouth.

who are you?”

beats me to it

There you are!”

a hug and lifted up from the ground while the girl stares at

legs around him like

help but laugh. “What did you do that

to you, so I made sure to

thudding in my chest speeds up. I’m speechless.

and he makes a smug face as I stare at him. Eyebrows lifted, and a huge grin. “Your

beating really fast.”

if my brain just now realizes that we are practically hugging. My hands are on Jake’s broad shoulders, eyes locked onto his face. I don’t know what to say

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