Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 83542 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83542 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Time to make amends. Time to show him we can work together and turn around his reputation.
Starting right now.
TWELVE
OSKAR
I was in my car and halfway to a bar, prepared for some afternoon drinking that would lead to a night of poor decisions and drowning myself in a dick or two, when the reality really set in.
I’ve pretended I don’t care about anyone or anything but myself for so long that I’ve actually started to believe I don’t deserve anything real. Even with the threat of trades, the constant shuffling from team to team, I’d still have the only thing I’ve ever loved: hockey.
But now they’re threatening to take it away from me, and I couldn’t resist coming to the one place that makes me truly happy.
The sound of my blades gliding over ice is both relaxing and anxiety inducing. I can’t let them take hockey. They can’t fire me.
At the same time, they can’t tell me who I can and cannot sleep with either. The public thing, fine. I understand that. But having Lane follow me around to make sure I keep my dick in my pants is ridiculous. I thought it would be a lot more fun than it is.
Aleks is doing laps, getting in a workout, but I’m taking my time.
Feeling the ice beneath me, the cool air on my face. It’s like I’m already saying goodbye because I can’t trust myself to stay on the straight and narrow. Which is a dumb saying anyway.
Aleks laps me and jumps in front of me, facing backward. “I thought you said you wanted to skate, not do … whatever it is you’re doing.”
“I’m so happy I called you out here for this.”
He does a hard stop. “Why did you call me out here?”
Honestly, it was so I wasn’t tempted to do exactly what Lane expects me to. Maybe I should have picked a different teammate. One who isn’t going through a messy divorce and would jump at the chance to go out if I asked him to.
“Lane thinks my place on the team is in jeopardy. So after a chewing out from my agent, I yelled and stormed out of my own house because Lane is always there. Because I can’t be left without supervision, it seems.”
“So … you called me because you can’t, in fact, be left without supervision?”
“Maybe.”
Aleks starts skating backward, so I follow him, pushing forward. “What kind of jeopardy are we talking here? Trade?”
“Termination,” I mutter under my breath.
He stops again. “Fucking, what?”
“Hence …” I wave my hand around the rink.
“Though, why are you moving so slow? You should be killing it. Hitting the ice so hard and fast, you get it pregnant.”
I cock my head. “Does that even make sense?”
“Sure, why not? Come on, I’ll race you.” He takes off, but I yell after him.
“What are we, five?”
“You act like it sometimes,” he yells back. “And that’s exactly why you’re in this mess.”
Asshole. I take off after him, chasing him around the rink as fast as I can and possibly cutting corners to catch up to him.
Maybe. Definitely not cheating.
But the guy is smaller than me, sleeker. He’s light on his feet, and he’s goddamn fast.
The game of chasing him lasts until we’re both sweaty, breathing heavy, and my legs are aching.
Aleks clings onto the side railing, coming to a stop, and I slam right into him. “I give,” he breathes, trying to gulp in gasps of air. “You got me. You win.”
“That’s the problem with you forwards. You don’t have the stamina of us D-men.” I pin him against the boards.
He turns his head to look over his shoulder at me. “Ooh, an extra five minutes of ice time. Such stamina you have.”
“Five minutes.” I scoff. “I’m on the ice at least ten more than you during any given game.”
“You wish.”
“Admit it. I’m better than you.”
“Again, you wish.”
I shove him, and he pushes back against me. He tries to turn to get the upper hand, but I won’t let him, and then I’m too busy laughing to see him make his move.
His lips seal over mine.
I’ve had my fair share of straight guys taking a walk on the gay side with me, and it’s gone to shit every time, so while my urge is to push him away, I hesitate because I don’t want this to blow up in our faces. I don’t want him to feel like I’m rejecting him because he’s … him. That has the potential to cause problems on the team. I just want him to know that I can’t go there with him.
I promised myself I would never hook up with a “straight” guy again. I might not have a lot of rules when it comes to my sex life, but that one’s a hard line.
It’s a quick two or three seconds before I pull back, and he must see it written on my face because he lets out a curse.