The Mistake by Elle Kennedy
1
Logan
April
Lusting over your best friend’s girlfriend sucks.
First off, there’s the awkward factor. As in, it’s really fucking awkward. I can’t speak for all men, but I’m pretty sure that no guy wants to leave his bedroom and bump into the girl of his dreams after she’s just spent the whole night in his best friend’s arms.
Then there’s the self-loathing element. This one’s a given, because it’s kind of hard not to hate yourself when you’re fantasizing about the love of your best friend’s life.
At the moment, the awkwardness is definitely winning out. See, I live in a house with very thin walls, which means I can hear every breathy moan that leaves Hannah’s mouth. Every gasp and sigh. Every thump of the headboard smacking the wall as someone else screws the girl I can’t stop thinking about.
Fun times.
I’m on my bed, flat on my back and staring up at the ceiling. I’m not even pretending to scroll through my iPod library anymore. I popped the ear buds in with the intention of drowning out the sounds of Garrett and Hannah in the other room, but I still haven’t pressed play. I guess I’m in the mood to torture myself tonight.
Look, I’m not an idiot. I know she’s in love with Garrett. I see the way she looks at him, and I see how they are together. They’ve been a couple for six months now, and not even I, the worst friend on the planet, can deny they’re perfect for each other.
And hell, Garrett deserves to be happy. He plays it off like he’s a cocky sonofabitch, but truth is, he’s a goddamn saint. The best center I’ve ever skated with and the best person I’ve ever known, and I’m comfortable enough with my hetero status to say that if I did play for the other team? I wouldn’t just fuck Garrett Graham, I’d marry him.
That’s what makes this a trillion times harder. I can’t even hate the dude who’s tapping the chick I want. No revenge fantasies to be had, because I don’t hate Garrett, not in the slightest.
A door creaks open and footsteps echo in the hallway, and I pray to God that Garrett or Hannah doesn’t knock on my door. Or open their mouths, for that matter, because hearing either of their voices right now will only bum me out even more.
Luckily, the loud knock that rattles my doorframe comes from my other roommate, Dean, who waltzes inside without waiting for an invitation. “Party at Omega Phi tonight. You down?”
I dive off my bed faster than you can say pathetic, because a party sounds like a fan-fucking-tastic idea right about now. Getting wasted is a surefire way to stop myself from thinking about Hannah. Actually, no—I want to get wasted and screw someone’s brains out. That way if one of those activities doesn’t help me with my don’t-think-about-Hannah goal, the other can serve as backup.
“Hell yeah,” I answer, already fumbling around for a shirt.
I slip a clean T-shirt over my head and ignore the twinge of pain in my left arm, which is still sore as shit from the bone-jarring body check I took at the championship game last week. But the hit was totally worth it—for the third consecutive year, Briar’s hockey team secured another Frozen Four victory. I guess you can call it the ultimate hat trick, and all the players, myself included, are still reaping the rewards of being three-time national champions.
Dean, one of my fellow defensemen, calls it the Three P’s of Victory: parties, praise and *.
It’s a pretty fair assessment of the situation, because I’ve been on the receiving end of all three since our big win.
“You gonna be the DD?” I ask as I throw a black hoodie over my T-shirt and zip it up.
My buddy snorts. “Did you really just ask me that?”
I roll my eyes. “Right. What ever was I thinking?”
The last time Dean Heyward-Di Laurentis was sober at a party was never. Dude drinks like a fish or gets higher than a kite every time he leaves the house, and if you think that affects his performance on the ice in any way, then think again. He’s one of those rare creatures who can party like past-day Robert Downey Jr. and somehow be as successful and revered as present-day Robert Downey Jr.
“Don’t worry, Tuck’s the DD,” Dean tells me, referring to our other roommate, Tucker. “The *’s still hung-over from last night. Said he needs a break.”
The Mistake
Elle Kennedy's books
- Blood Brothers
- Face the Fire
- Holding the Dream
- The Hollow
- The way Home
- A Father's Name
- All the Right Moves
- After the Fall
- And Then She Fell
- A Mother's Homecoming
- All They Need
- Behind the Courtesan
- Breathe for Me
- Breaking the Rules
- Bluffing the Devil
- Chasing the Sunset
- Feel the Heat (Hot In the Kitchen)
- For the Girls' Sake
- Guarding the Princess
- Happy Mother's Day!
- Meant-To-Be Mother
- In the Market for Love
- In the Rancher's Arms
- Leather and Lace
- Northern Rebel Daring in the Dark
- Seduced The Unexpected Virgin
- Southern Beauty
- St Matthew's Passion
- Straddling the Line
- Taming the Lone Wolff
- Taming the Tycoon
- Tempting the Best Man
- Tempting the Bride
- The American Bride
- The Argentine's Price
- The Art of Control
- The Baby Jackpot
- The Banshee's Desire
- The Banshee's Revenge
- The Beautiful Widow
- The Best Man to Trust
- The Betrayal
- The Call of Bravery
- The Chain of Lies
- The Chocolate Kiss
- The Cost of Her Innocence
- The Demon's Song
- The Devil and the Deep
- The Do Over
- The Dragon and the Pearl
- The Duke and His Duchess
- The Elsingham Portrait
- The Englishman
- The Escort
- The Gunfighter and the Heiress
- The Guy Next Door
- The Heart of Lies
- The Heart's Companion
- The Holiday Home
- The Irish Upstart
- The Ivy House
- The Job Offer
- The Knight of Her Dreams
- The Lone Rancher
- The Love Shack
- The Marquess Who Loved Me
- The Marriage Betrayal
- The Marshal's Hostage
- The Masked Heart
- The Merciless Travis Wilde
- The Millionaire Cowboy's Secret
- The Perfect Bride
- The Pirate's Lady
- The Problem with Seduction
- The Promise of Change
- The Promise of Paradise
- The Rancher and the Event Planner
- The Realest Ever
- The Reluctant Wag
- The Return of the Sheikh
- The Right Bride
- The Sinful Art of Revenge
- The Sometime Bride
- The Soul Collector
- The Summer Place
- The Texan's Contract Marriage
- The Virtuous Ward
- The Wolf Prince
- The Wolfs Maine
- The Wolf's Surrender
- Under the Open Sky
- Unlock the Truth
- Until There Was You
- Worth the Wait
- The Lost Tycoon
- The Raider_A Highland Guard Novel
- The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress
- The Witch is Back
- When the Duke Was Wicked
- India Black and the Gentleman Thief