I haven’t been this nervous walking into the Whalers locker room since my first day as a rookie. Unfortunately, after taking Lana to the precinct, I’m running late, and I can already hear the loud voices of my teammates echoing down the corridor.
Pushing into the locker room, I’m aware that the voices quiet down, and it’s deathly silent by the time I throw my duffel into my cubby. Keeping my back to the room, I reach behind me and pull my sweater off and begin to unbuckle my pants. But before I can get much further, I notice Bugs standing next to me, already in his practice uniform.
“You okay, dude? We heard what happened. That’s some fucked up shit.”
I flick my eyes over to my captain and manage a tight smile. “Yep, all good thanks. Just took Lana to give her statement, and it looks like they’re gonna throw the book at her ex and deport him.”
“Good, good,” Bugs replies, slapping me on the back. “I spoke to Matt as well.”
“Ah shit,” I groan, putting my hands on my hips and turning to face Bugs. “He’s pissed, isn’t he?”
“Not gonna lie—he ain’t happy,” he replies, making a face. “He’s already out on the ice hitting slap shots into the net.”
“Fuck. Bet he wishes I was in the net without my cup on.” I laugh nervously.
“Look, you two need to sort this shit out. Like now,” Bugs says firmly. “We’re all gonna stay in the locker room for ten minutes, so you can go out there and do whatever it is you have to do to fix it. I’m assuming you and Lana are an item, so be prepared to take a beat down.” I shoot him a helpless look. “Just saying.”
He holds up his hands and backs away so I can quickly change into my gear, double checking all my pads are securely in place because I know how it feels to take one of Matt’s slappers to the chest.
As I clomp past my teammates, several of them mutter “good luck,” and I feel like a condemned man heading for the gallows. But I know deep in my soul that Lana is my girl, and I’d take a lifetime of Matt firing shots at me as long as we can be together.
Lying in bed last night, I went over the moment I confessed my love for Lana to her brother again and again. It felt so right to say the words. There was no gut-wrenching fear like I thought there’d be, just a satisfying warm feeling that I never want to lose. I desperately wanted to say them to her today as we kissed in my car, but I want everything to be right before that moment and when that moment comes, she’ll be in no doubt about my feelings for her.
That is if I survive the next ten minutes.
As the smell of the ice hits my nose, I hear the deep grunts as Matt fires pucks into the empty net at the far end of the rink. I skate a few circuits around the other end of the ice before gliding along the boards to the far goal.
“Hey man,” I say just as Matt pulls back and launches a puck with pinpoint precision into the top shelf. His dark blue eyes flick up to me, and he grunts in response, lining up the next puck. “No fun shooting into an empty net. Are you okay if I join you?”
“Fine by me,” Matt grumbles, flicking the puck up onto the end of his stick, bouncing it menacingly, never taking his eyes off me as I take up my spot on the blue paint. My heart’s hammering as if this was a Stanley Cup winning shootout, but I realize that this is actually more important. I respect Matt as a player, a teammate, and Lana’s brother, and his approval means a lot. However, Lana and I want to be together, so what I won’t be doing is asking for his permission.
“Ready?” Matt yells, dropping the puck to the ice and firing it at me. Luckily, he doesn’t set it up quite right, so it sails harmlessly to my left.
What follows is a succession of screaming wristers and slap shots that hit me like machine gun fire. It’s almost like he’s not trying to score; he’s just trying to hit me. When the next shot dings off my grill and knocks my head back, I decide he’s had his shot, and I’m done with the shit.
“Time out!” I yell, skating away from my doorstep, pulling my helmet off and dropping my gloves and stick to the ice. “I hope you’ve worked out your frustration, man, because now it’s time to talk.”
Matt also takes off his helmet and drops his gloves, his hair sweaty with exertion. I notice that the bench is slowly filling up with our teammates, and I hope this doesn’t turn into a physical altercation.
“C’mon, then. Talk!” Matt barks, leaning on his stick, his mouth set in a hard line.
Shit, now the moment is here, I’m tongue tied. But then I close my eyes and picture sweet Lana: her smile, the dimple on her cheek and the ones at the top of her butt, her love for her friends and family, her bravery and resilience.
Fuck, I’m completely in love with her.
“You’re what?” Matt asks and my eyes fly open. Shit, I guess I said that out loud.
“I’m in love with Lana. And I’m pretty sure she feels the same about me,” I repeat. “We’ve tried to keep a lid on this thing, but hiding it and sneaking around is hurting us and everyone we love. So that’s it. We’re done. We’re gonna be together.”
Matt hasn’t taken his eyes off me, and they remain stormy and dark. As he hasn’t said anything, I continue.
“I respect you, man. You’re my teammate and my brother, but I won’t ask your permission to date your sister. She’s her own woman, and if she wants me to be her man, then that’s what she gets. I want to give her the world, but I’d rather do that with your blessing.”
There, I’ve said my piece. The rink is eerily still, and it seems like no one is even breathing. I flick my eyes over to the bench and see our teammates leaning over the boards, waiting for the fireworks to begin. It has to be said that hockey players love a good throw down, and this one could be a doozie.
As I return my gaze to Matt, he begins to skate toward me, his face fixed and stern. If he wants to punch me, I’ll give him one free shot before I fight back. I don’t want us to resort to violence, but if that’s how he wants to play this, then so be it.
Matt comes to a stop in front of me, and I brace myself for the punch I’m expecting. However, instead of connecting with my face, Matt’s hand shoots out, waiting for mine to join it in a handshake. My mouth drops open, and I’m stunned for a second. This is not what I was expecting. But I quickly regain my composure and fit my big hand in his, shaking it firmly.
“All I want is for Lana to be happy,” he says, his voice thick with emotion. “Last night I got an insight into what really happened in Paris, and it makes me sick that she had to deal with all that on her own. But she did deal with it. And I’m so fucking proud of the woman she’s become. She doesn’t need a protector; she needs a partner, an equal. And if you’re her choice, then I fully respect that.” He nods at me, still not smiling, but then he’s always been a grumpy bastard.
As we skate back toward the bench together, our teammates whistle and catcall, blowing kisses at us. Jesus, I love these guys, but I flip them off just the same.
“Okay, okay, that’s enough of that shit,” Coach Casey yells, stepping out onto the ice. “Let’s get ready to take the second game of this series.”
The whole team yells “YES COACH!” and begin to flood the ice, several of them slapping me on the back as they pass.
God, I love these fucking guys.
But the next person I’m declaring my love to is a pocket-sized firecracker with blue eyes that I hope to look into for the rest of my days.
Lana
As I approach Alex’s front door, the butterflies that have been swirling in my stomach since he texted me take flight. And when he opens the door, his hair damp from the shower, wearing grey sweats and his favorite cotton T-shirt, they soar into the stratosphere. He fixes me with that sexy smile and reaches up to hold the top of the doorframe, causing his tee to rise up and show an enticing strip of his abs. His biceps bulge, and it takes every ounce of restraint not to climb him like a tree.
“Hey baby,” he growls, cocking his eyebrow and flexing his muscles again.
I release a breathless sigh and look up into his eyes. “Hey, big man.”
Alex reaches out and cups my face in his hands and presses a sweet kiss to my lips, ever careful of my injury.
“I’ve ordered the takeout and have that show ready on Netflix. So, all you have to do is take your shoes off, relax, and let me give you a foot rub,” Alex says, stepping aside so I can enter his apartment.
“That sounds perfect,” I reply as I let Alex take off my jacket while I toe off my sneakers. I follow him into his condo, and he hands me a glass of wine and shoos me over to the couch while he collects bowls of popcorn and pretzels.
“So, I assume as you still have all your limbs and you’re breathing, things went okay with Matt at training?” I ask, sipping the fruity red wine.
“Let’s just say we came to a gentleman’s agreement,” he replies, taking a gulp of his beer and putting it down on the coffee table.
He seems a little nervous and on edge, so I reach over and stroke to soft hair on his forearm.
“But everything’s okay, right? I don’t want there to be friction on the team because of me.”
“It’s all good, baby. Your brother is a good man, and once I told him how much I’m in love with you, there was nothing he could really say to that,” he says softly, a sweet smile stretching his lips.
As his words sink in, I feel my heart swell so much I think it might burst clean out of my chest. “You love me?” I ask, tears filling my eyes.
Alex gently pulls me into his lap and presses his nose into my hair, kissing my forehead, my nose and finally my lips. “I love you so much, I didn’t even think it was possible.”
“I love you too, Alex.” I fling my arms around his neck and plant kisses all over his sweet face, loving the tickle of his beard and the deep rumble of his laughter.
“Well, now that’s sorted out, shall we watch some Netflix?” Alex laughs, giving my butt a light tap.
“Well, actually, I was hoping we could start with the Chill part of Netflix and Chill, if you’re okay with that?” I ask, giving him my most alluring smile.
It seems to have the desired effect because Alex’s ice chip eyes blaze with passion, and he scoops me up into his arms, carrying me into his bedroom. After he gently undresses me at an infuriatingly slow pace, he worships every inch of my body with his lips and tongue. He gently brushes them over the bruises I sustained, and I hear his soft sniffles as if the very sight of them hurt his heart.
When he’s given me one toe curling orgasm with his mouth, he quickly rips off his clothes, rolls on a condom, and sinks into me. We both gasp and sigh as he makes love to me, really makes love to me for what feels like the first time. We writhe and rock together with no urgency because we know we have the rest of our lives to do this, his lips locked with mine, stealing my breath with every thrust.
As we fall apart, I clutch at his round ass, holding him inside me while we spasm and ride the waves of ecstasy. It’s a perfect moment, and it feels like the first of many that we’ll share. Together.