All Chapters of Claimed By The Hockey Captain: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Lori“Uhhmm... I do not want to lie to you,” I whispered.“So?” Lucas prompted. His dark eyes darkened even more as he waited for me to finish my sentence. He did not break eye contact.“So, yeah. You are right,” I sighed, looking down at the table. “Jessica is my best friend. She is the girl who practically threw herself at you last week at the gym. She told me all about it.”He nodded slowly. He looked like he finally understood where all of this fear was coming from.“So, let me get this straight,” he said. He spoke very slowly. It felt like he was trying to make me see a fact I was completely missing. “You are trying to protect your friend’s feelings. But you are hurting your own feelings in the process?”“More or less,” I muttered.“Lori... are you really telling me that right now? Are you choosing your friend’s happiness over your own?”The guilt felt too heavy. I dropped my fork onto

LoriI thought about Lucas all night long. I could not stop thinking about him while I got off the bed and prepared for my morning lectures. Even in class, my mind was gone. The lecturer talked and talked but I did not hear a single word. All I could think about was Lucas’s touch. His lips were like real magic on my skin. They put a bright fire inside me. And it was a very hot fire. At some point, I had to shake him off my mind. My whole day was not going to waste just because I was thinking about Lucas. The final exams were coming soon and I needed to concentrate to study hard inorder to pass.So, I went straight to the library right after my last class ended. Some of my classmates tried to stop me and talk about campus gossip. But I ignored them completely. I found a quiet desk in the far back of the library. After settling down, I read through the lecture materials, and was only satisfied with my studying after I have done the assignment the lecturer had given us and submitted

Lori“Which Lucas are you talking about?” Jessica slurred. She placed her heavy, drunken head right on my shoulder.I burst out into a loud, high pitched laugh. I rolled my head back but did not say anything else. Jessica nudged my side hard. Her drunk self was still waiting for a real reply.“Lucas... Lucas...” I muttered in a silly voice.“Hmmm... I love that we both love our Lucases,” Jessica said. She stood up fast, dragging me up along with her. “Two best friends falling for two guys with the exact same name. What a crazy world.”Ann made a loud cheering sound from across the room. We all laughed at it together. I silently thanked my lucky stars. I was so glad Jessica did not think it was Lucas Miller. She did not know he was the man I was talking about. I might be a horrible person for sleeping with him. I might be awful for falling in love with the man she loved first. But I was not ready to lose my best

Lori Jessica’s loud ringtone cut off my words. The sudden sound made my heart almost jumped straight out of my throatJessica held up her hand to stop me. Then she mouthed that it was her mom calling.I stood completely frozen on the spot. The heavy guilt kept me grounded to the kitchen floor. I watched Jessica chat freely with her mother. At some point during the call, I heard her mention my name. My stomach twisted into a tight knot.Then, Jessica rushed over to me. She placed the phone on loudspeaker right between us.“Hi dear, Lori,” Ms. Baker's warm voice came through the phone speaker.“Good morning, Ms. Baker,” I greeted her quickly. I forced myself to use a cheerful tone. But on the inside, I was truly dying. I felt like a fake person.“We will be very happy to have you join us at the fashion studio,” her mom said. “Can you start working on Monday right after your classes end?”

LoriThere is no peace for the wicked. That popular saying literally felt like it was written specifically for me.My mind had not been at rest since yesterday. I had called Lucas so many times and had left him countless desperate voice notes. But he had not called me back. He had not replied to a single message. I tried calming my racing thoughts. I kept telling myself that he was just busy undergoing the major spine surgery.However, my hope was tested on our way to Jessica’s family house. While we were driving, Jessica announced excitedly to Ann and me that the surgery had been a total success.That announcement happened hours ago. There was still absolutely nothing from Lucas. The Bakers gave us a very warm welcome when we finally arrived at their massive mansion. All through the lavish dinner, I stayed quiet. I barely spoke a word. I just kept checking under the table for Lucas’s calls.Why was he not call