I know I’m good at hockey—I wouldn’t have ended up on the Aces if I weren’t—but hearing that Dunaway believes in me this much makes me realize there’s a lot more riding on me and my performance than just my reputation. He’s putting his on the line too by giving me one hell of a big break with the Aces like this, so I don’t want to let him down or disappoint him by being reckless and overdoing it.

That makes me feel even more guilty about keeping whatever is going on between me and Hannah a secret from him, but I don’t really have a choice. They’d probably both stop talking to me—or worse—if I came clean with him. And both Hannah and hockey have become essential to me in different ways.

He’s right, the yoga practice is good for me, and not just for making me better on the ice. It’s good for my mental health too, which is just as important. And there’s no one else I’d rather be learning from than Hannah.

But I don’t know how I’m going to be able to keep seeing her for lessons without something eventually getting out about us. Because the attraction I feel to her is only getting stronger the more time we spend together, and it’s making me lose it a little bit. I mean, we made out in a very public parking lot last week where her not-quite-boyfriend or anyone else she knows easily could’ve seen us and told Dunaway. I wouldn’t put it past that Aaron guy to do exactly that if he ever got the chance.

So we’re going to have to be careful going forward. Extremely careful. And I’m going to have to do my best not to do anything that would get either one of us in trouble. It sounds like Hannah already has so much on her plate between her teaching and law school, and I don’t want to do anything that might ruin either one of those things for her. Or that might put my spot on the Aces in question.

But resisting her is like trying to fight gravity—theoretically possible but practically impossible.

I shake my head and hit the showers, hoping it’ll help quiet my thoughts… but it only offers a temporary reprieve.

Because as soon as I park my bike outside the yoga studio half an hour later, every nerve ending in my body comes alive, anticipating seeing Hannah.

Keep it together, Murray. This doesn’t have to be complicated.