Sticks and Stones

Ten: Ice Skating and Other Torturous Things

Need to start pacing this story out a bit so going to start posting one chapter a week going forward instead of two! Dying to just post it all but need to stretch it out a bit, haha.

Hope you all enjoy!

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The second Tatum woke up, she regretted it.

Not that she had much choice in the matter, but the pounding in her head was less than ideal.

Luckily, Kinsley had put a breakfast sandwich and coffee next to her bed. Her roommate had already gone to work by the time Tatum had woken up for her shift. Tatum really could not handle her friend asking questions right now.

Her mind instantly went to the conversation that Brady and Kinsley had while she pretended to be asleep. Honestly, it felt like Brady was warning her to back off. Especially since he knew she was awake. But Tatum couldn't help her curiosity as much as he couldn't help but be a prick. It was helpless. Neither of them could stop that part of themselves.

Miraculously, she actually felt all right. She was pleasantly surprised that she wasn't head first over the toilet with her hair back. Maybe it was the sandwich or maybe the coffee, but whatever it was, she was eternally grateful. The idea of ice skating made her slightly sick to her stomach but that didn't have anything to do with the alcohol.

Tatum got to the hockey rink early to get a better feel for the setting. She has been there for games and a few practices, but she had never been there for a private session. Glancing around, she felt a bit unsure of how this session would work or if they would actually be able to get anything done with the plan. This wasn't exactly the place to use resistance bands or lift weights.

"Getting cold feet, Hartley?" Tatum turned to see Brady trudging over in casual clothing and hockey skates in hand. What really caught her eye though... was the smaller set of skates in his other hand. She raised an eyebrow at him as he made his way over to her.

"Those better be your backups," Tatum commented, pointing to the extra set in his hands. "And horrible pun, by the way."

"Nope, you're skating with me today," Brady told her, holding the skates out to her and promptly ignoring her second point.

She stared at them, unimpressed. "I know you don't like me, Parker. But didn't realize you wanted me dead."

"You didn't?" Brady asked with a smirk. Tatum shot him a glare, tilting her head. "Put on the skates."

"Is this how you treat all the girls?" she questioned wistfully.

He shrugged noncommittally. "Only the ones that make me want to rip my hair out."

"That would do your hair a favor," Tatum shot back instantly, nodding at his messy head of curls.

Brady paused, shaking the shoes in his hands once. "Just put the skates on and I'll do your plan for today."

Tatum gritted her teeth before reaching out and roughly taking the skates. She sat down on a nearby bench, throwing her hair over her shoulder. Her eyes darted over to Brady who was watching her carefully. She turned her focus back to the skates, shimmying her sneakers off and placing them under the bench. Tatum moved her feet into the skates and stared blankly for a moment at the laces.

She had only gone ice skating a couple of times in her life, and she couldn't remember how to properly put these on. She tried lacing them up as she normally would for a pair of boots. Tatum knew there was probably a more efficient way of doing this, but she refused to ask Brady. She could feel his eyes burning a hole in her back, watching as she tried her best to make these damn skates work.