“Do you like that?” he asks quietly. “When I call you a good boy?”
I give a sleepy nod, unable to keep my eyes open. They feel so heavy.
His chest vibrates as he hums, and then he kisses my forehead. “Good night, El.”
“G’night, Hunter,” I murmur.
I’m drifting in and out of consciousness when I hear him whisper, “Never change, Elliot. Don’t let anyone ever dull your shine.”
Chapter Twelve
Elliot
“Great work, boys. Go hit the showers. Lunch will be ready for you in the lounge, then we’ll head to the airport,” Coach Harris tells us once we wrap up practice.
This morning’s skate and videotape session was optional, and it didn’t come as a surprise that not many of the guys showed up. Blaine stayed at home. Most likely busy having all the sex with Alex before we leave on our seven-day roadie. Jackson was missing, but he rarely attends these optional skates because he’s old and doesn’t need these light sessions, and Zach was also notably missing.
The only reason why I’m here is because Hunter’s on shift, and I didn’t want to sit at home alone, otherwise I’d be climbing all over him like a clingy sloth. I’m not looking forward to leaving him for so long. I know it’ll go by quickly because we’re only playing Vancouver, Seattle, Edmonton, then Calgary, but still. It’s a long time to be away from someone when I want to spend every minute of every day with them.
Okay, that sounds a little obsessive. But Iamkinda obsessed with Hunter.
Huh. Maybe I am more like Blaine than I thought, because it’s only been a week since we first kissed, and yet here I am, counting down the hours until I can see him again. And he’s exactly the same with Alex.
As I leave the ice, I get the urge to be mischievous. I skate up behind Peyton, and as he nears the door to the bench, I jab him between the legs with the toe of my stick. With a loud cry, he falls down onto the ice like a sack of potatoes, and I burst out laughing.
“Fuck,” he grunts, slowly pushing himself up and shoving a hand between his legs. I know he’s wearing a cup, so it’s not like I’ve caused him any damage. “Fuck’s sake, Olsen. What did I do to hurt you? Did I piss you off or something?”
“Nope.” I pop thePand grin. “It was funny, though.”
“No, it fucking wasn’t.” He grimaces, hobbling past the bench.
Snickering to myself, I follow him down the tunnel toward the locker room. “I’m sure your balls are fine.”
“They better be, or you’ll be paying for this.” He throws a glare over his shoulder and I press my lips together, then let out another bark of laughter. He’s trying to be menacing, but Peyton hasn’t got a mean bone in his body. I give him a loving pat on the head with my blocker and disappear into the locker room. I like pranking Peyton. It’s fun. I told him it’s all part of being captain until he pointed out that I didn’t pull these stunts on Ethan.
“Let’s be real. Ethan’s kinda like a grizzly bear. I wasn’t gonna risk it with him,” I’d told him. But Ethan was like my work dad. I wasn’t going to pull pranks on my work dad.
After I’m showered and dressed, I head down the corridor to the lounge. There are two long high-top tables, with fourcouches surrounding a large coffee table. Several TVs are located throughout the room, showing various sports news channels.
I fill my plate with a chicken breast, some kind of creamy pasta, and leafy salad, and drop down into one of the couches. Kicking my feet up onto the coffee table, I dig into my food and disassociate while staring at one of the walls with a TV.
“Someone’s here to wish you all good luck.”
I snap out of my mindless void stare-off and glance over my shoulder at the sound of Colleen’s voice. The moment I spot our team dog, Boomer, I practically vault off the couch. He’s a golden retriever, and we got him as a reward for winning the dreaded escape room challenge a few years ago. He’s almost four now and has become like the team’s therapy dog over the years. Seeing him is one of my favorite parts of the day because I get to have Boomer cuddles.
“My buddy!” I greet him in that voice people always use with dogs. I drop to the floor, and he comes rushing over, his entire body wiggling in excitement. He falls onto my lap, resting his body against my chest as he smothers me in kisses. I wrap my arms around him and bury my face in his fluffy neck.
“You are the best dog,” I murmur. “And Ernie. You and Ernie are the best boys. I wish I could have you both together. We could go for walks in the park and make pupcakes and have the most epic snuggle sesh.”
Colleen snorts. “I can only imagine the chaos the three of you would cause.”
I raise my head to look up at her, tipping my chin triumphantly. “The best kind of chaos.”
She lifts her eyes skyward, a small smile playing on her red-painted lips. “Are you going to let the others see him?” She motions to Boomer. Some of the younger guys have been stroking him while he sits on my lap.
“Nope.” I dismiss her question with a shake of my head. “He’s mine. I’m the favorite. If they want to see him, they’ll have to ask my permission.” I take Boomer’s squishy face between my hands, and he looks at me with such a loving expression. “Isn’t that right, buddy? I’m your bestie. You don’t care about anyone else when I’m here.”
He answers by licking my face, and I grin again. “See? I’m the only one that matters.”
