Never Say Never: An Enemies-to-Lovers Secret Identity New Adult Sports Romance (Western Wildcats Hockey Book 4)
Chapter 32

With a stretch, I roll onto my side, only to replace the bed empty and the sheets cool to my touch.

That’s disappointing.

After last night, all I want to do is sink inside Britt’s warmth.

I know that we need to talk.

But still…

I was hoping to make love to her one more time before we sit down for a conversation, and she tells me that our relationship is over. It’s like I’m trying to gorge myself, but no matter how much I have it’ll never be enough.

I’ll always be left wanting more.

Even though I’m reluctant to face what today will bring, I roll from the bed and force my feet into movement. Maybe she’s in the kitchen, whipping up some grub.

A bon voyage breakfast of sorts.

As disturbing as that image is, it’s one that makes me snort. What I’ve learned about Britt in the short time we’ve been together is that she knows absolutely nothing about cooking, and she has zero interest in learning.

And you know what?

That’s fine with me.

Guess it’ll be one of my selling points as to why she should keep my ass around.

I stumble to a halt.

Holy shit. Is that what my life has come to?

I have to convince someone that I’m worth staying married to?

I shake my head before dragging a hand through my mussed hair.

It’s like I entered a parallel universe when I wasn’t looking. One where nothing makes a damn bit of sense.

Except when Britt and I are together.

Then, it makes perfect sense.

I yank open a drawer and snag a pair of boxers before hauling them up my hips and over my thighs.

When she first made room in her dresser, I’d thought that was a positive sign of things to come.

Now?

Not so much.

I glance around for the sweatshirt from last night but can’t replace it.

Hmmm.

Weird.

To be fair, clothing was thrown all over the damn place. It could be anywhere.

I gravitate to the closet and pull out a different one and then a pair of gray sweatpants before walking into the short hallway and peeking in the living area, only to replace it empty.

Well, damn.

She’s not here either.

My brows pinch together.

Where the hell did she go?

I beeline to the window in the living room that overlooks the parking lot to check for her sleek little Audi. She usually parks in the same spot and it’s still there.

So…she didn’t just take off on me.

That should be comforting, but it’s not.

Just as I’m about to swing around for my phone, my attention gets snagged by a couple loitering on the sidewalk.

My eyes narrow.

I’d recognize Britt’s caramel-colored hair anywhere.

And some slick-looking dude has his arms wrapped around her.

Are they hugging?

I smash my face against the glass, attempting to get a better look.

Who the hell is that guy?

And why does he have his hands on what belongs to me?

I scour his face. I’m pretty sure I don’t recognize the dude from campus, but there’s something oddly familiar about him.

That’s all it takes for a giant stone to settle in the pit of my belly until it feels like I’m going to be sick.

Especially when he pulls her closer like they’re long lost⁠—

I swing away from the window before shoving my feet into slides and racing from the apartment like my ass is on fire. It takes less than sixty seconds to slam through the door and into the chilled morning air.

“Hey!” The word erupts from my mouth before I can stop it. Maybe if we were in a better place, I could control myself, but that’s not possible at the moment. All I want to do is tear this guy limb from limb.

It’s only after my voice rings out that Britt fights her way free of his hold before whipping around to stare at me with wide eyes. Any color staining her cheeks gets leached away.

“Colby.”

The panic woven through her tone doesn’t sit well with me. Is this what she’s been hiding the entire time?

Another relationship?

It takes effort to rip my gaze away from Britt and glance at the guy. As soon as our gazes collide, he swallows up the distance between them and slips an arm around her waist as if laying claim.

My hands clench as they hang loosely at my sides. I’ve always been more of a lover than a fighter, but this douchebag is making me want to throw fists.

A smirk lifts the corners of his lips as his disinterested gaze slides down the length of me before flicking upward for a second time.

“Really, B? A steroid-infused meathead? What does he play? Wait…let me guess.” There’s a pause. “Football?”

I straighten to my full height. “Hockey.” Barely am I able to push the response past my clenched teeth.

I refocus my attention on Britt. She has yet to say anything other than my name since I’ve arrived on the scene. It’s taking every ounce of self-control to keep my cool. Maybe I need to take this down a notch.

It’s always possible this guy is a relative.

Maybe her brother?

A cousin?

I release the pent-up air from my lungs and try to stay calm when all I want to do is yank her to me.

And beat the piss out of this guy.

I crack the muscles in my neck. Maybe a quick intro will be enough to clear up this mess. “We haven’t met. I’m Colby McNichols. Who the fuck⁠—”

“Oh my god!” a girl shrieks at the top of her lungs. “It’s Axel and Bebe! Am I dreaming? Are they really here? Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!”

It’s like a light switch flicks on, and the guy standing entirely too close to Britt flashes an overly white smile at the girls who have ground to a halt and are staring at him with their mouths hanging open.

Well…they’re not just staring at him. They’re staring at Britt as well.

Axel and Bebe?

Who the hell are Axel and Bebe?

A memory tickles the far recesses of my brain.

Why do those names sound so familiar?

I’m pretty sure I don’t know anyone named Axel or Bebe.

I drag a hand through my hair as more people gravitate to the sidewalk and the group swells in size before doubling and then quadrupling.

“I can’t believe it’s actually them!” another girl cries.

Weirder than that, she’s actually sobbing.

Wetness streams down her face.

What the actual fuck is going on around here?

Have people lost their ever-loving minds?

“OMG, I love your hair, Bebe!”

Bebe?

Why are they calling Britt that name?

Why are all these people acting like they know her?

And him?

Like they’re celebrities.

My narrowed gaze slices back to Britt. She’s gone deathly still. Almost as if she’s frozen to the sidewalk. Panic flashes across her face as she glances around the growing crowd as if unable to believe what’s happening.

That makes two of us.

The girl next to me whips out her cell to video the spectacle. “Can you believe this? Bebe’s been here this entire time!”

Bebe?

No. They’ve got the wrong girl.

It’s a case of mistaken identity.

That’s not Bebe.

I blink and then squint.

No fucking way.

There’s no way she’s the chick everyone has been speculating about.

It’s not possible.

For fuck’s sake, we’re married.

That’s something I would definitely know.

“Are you two now engaged?” a voice shouts from the crowd.

Axel flashes a well-practiced smile. This guy couldn’t be more fake. He’s like a shiny piece of plastic.

“You’ll have to tune in and replace out.”

That’s when I’m hit with the realization that knocks the air from my lungs, making it impossible to breathe.

Bebe is…Britt.

Or maybe it’s the other way around.

I have no idea.

I’m at a total loss.

Laughter gurgles up in my throat.

A piercing scream is what sends me crashing back to earth with a painful thud. The girl next to me is losing her shit.

“She’s here! No, I’m serious! Look at the photo I just sent you.”

The din of conversation continues to rise as a load of cars pull into the parking lot and screech to a halt.

All the little clues that didn’t add up earlier now fall neatly into place, making me wonder why I didn’t piece it together sooner.

The guitar.

Her reluctance to talk about her family.

How stingy she was with details of her past.

The familiarity of her voice.

Her unwillingness to take photos at the restaurant with my parents.

Not to mention, lack of social media.

I’m such a fucking idiot.

I’ve spent the past four years protecting both myself and my heart so that I wouldn’t get played again, and that’s exactly what happened. Waves of anger crash over me until my vision is obscured by a thick red haze. It’s silently that I fume until her gaze collides with mine.

Only then do I raise my voice, making sure that everyone standing within a hundred-foot radius can hear what I’m about to say. “This might be a good time to tell your boyfriend that you already have a husband.”

Her mouth tumbles open as her eyes grow wider.

More people whip out their phones to snap pics.

“Colby.” My name comes out sounding as if it’s being choked from her body.

For the first time since I’ve found them together, the fucker next to her doesn’t look so damn smug.

Mission accomplished.

Her tongue darts out to moisten her lips. Instead of waiting for a response, I swing around and stalk inside the building, away from the growing circus.

Even though I still want to punch that guy in the face for daring to lay his hands on what’s mine, I restrain myself.

Only now do I realize that Britt doesn’t belong to me.

She never did.