Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 63124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
“Alright, let’s do that again but better!” Coach Jacobson shouted, waving at us to restart.
I released a heavy breath and rolled my shoulders, preparing for another long practice. I couldn’t count how many drills I did until practice was finally called to an end, prompting all of us to huddle in the locker room.
“I see a lot of hustle out there. But I want to see more!” Coach Jacobson told us as he stood in the middle of the locker room, pacing around to stare down every single one of us. “We’ve got a tough season ahead of us, which means I need 110 percent from all of you.”
I nodded silently, my muscles burning from a rigorous practice. The sensation was a bit addicting, though. I should’ve been exhausted, but I felt pretty recharged and ready to take on the rest of the day. My eyes shifted back over to Colm, who stood on the other side of the room from me.
Colm tilted his head slightly as we locked eyes, unspoken words being shared between us. That usual smile of his soon crossed his face, and it didn’t take a genius to be able to tell that Colm was the ray of sunshine of the team.
Meanwhile, Anthony, our right winger and oldest member of the team at twenty-one, had the most serious demeanor. With a stony expression on his face as he listened to Coach, he stood next to Mikael, the left winger and a second-generation Hungarian immigrant. He didn’t know how to get off the ice, and I couldn’t count how many times he had been kicked out of the rink during late hours.
While they were the most serious out of the bunch, Stephen, our center, and Hugo were certainly the party animals. Women followed them all over, wearing their jersey numbers or trying to talk to them after practices. The guys drank all of that in, but I didn’t see either of them dating anyone any time soon. Their true loves were the game.
“See you at the next practice,” Coach Jacobson said at the end of his speech, handing the floor over to Hugo, who took his place in the middle.
“Well, you heard him. We need to keep up the momentum,” Hugo told us. “That means not tripping over each other’s sticks, Stephen.”
The others chuckled as Stephen scoffed. He then shot Anthony a pointed look.
“That’s easier to do when someone isn’t missing the puck,” he commented.
Anthony cocked his eyebrow at Stephen.
“I didn’t miss anything. You’re just a clumsy skater,” he said with a smirk.
As the group went back and forth, harmlessly jabbing at each other, Colm made his way over to me, bumping his shoulder against mine as we stood next to each other.
“I’m starving. Want to get something to eat?” he asked me.
“You’re always hungry,” I said as I looked over at him, my eyes sweeping over his wavy, blonde hair and blue eyes. There wasn’t a damn blemish on his face like he was perfect.
Colm shrugged.
“I’ve got a big appetite,” he replied, shooting me a teasing wink.
My heart rate jolted in response, coaxing a grin onto my face. People would state that I was fairly serious as well because I was more reserved than most. I didn’t like sharing my business or spilling my thoughts and feelings, but Colm was the one person to make me abandon all my usual rules.
Something about that smile.
“What about these two lovebirds? Hitting the record for slowest backward skaters,” Stephen spoke up as he gestured to us, snapping us out of our own little world we were in.
“Oh, please,” Colm laughed. “I could skate circles around you. Backwards.”
“Really? You want to test that?” Stephen smirked as he gestured to the door that led out to the rink.
I hooked an arm around Colm’s neck, dragging him along with me to our lockers that were next to each other.
“No dick measuring today. I’m hungry,” I stated, giving Stephen a pointed look. Some of these guys were too competitive for their own good, but they were good guys.
They were the only people I was comfortable being out as bisexual around. No one else outside of the team knew, and I planned on keeping it that way for a little while longer. For years, I dated women and was attracted to women, but when I met Colm, that opened up a whole other side to myself that I either ignored or didn’t even realize existed.
He made my heart race. My palms sweat. Hell, he even made me nervous at times, and I didn’t get nervous. What made it even more nerve wracking was that Colm immediately figured out what effect I had on him. He was openly out about his bisexuality, so he had nothing to hide.
His forwardness helped me come to terms with the fact that I was attracted to guys as well. Especially him. I wanted him as mine, and I just felt lucky that he even looked at me twice. It didn’t take long for us to fall into a casual relationship with each other, and even if it was new, it was still the best one I had been in.