“You can join us,” Lamar offers with a smile. “We’ll watch movies all night and cuddle. It’s a big king bed.”
“Who’s us?” Link asks.
“Leroy Wysik. Jersey.”
Link frowns as he looks around. “Let us discuss later.”
“Drick’s that bad that you’re considering sharing a bed with two other dudes instead of one?” Ethan asks.
Link scowls. “Yes.” He doesn’t expand, but I’m definitely curious now.
“Huh,” Ethan mutters. “If it’s that bad, Max might offer up the other side of his bed.”
“Oh,” Link muses, tilting his head. “Good thought. I speak to Max. If no, we talk, Gibbs.”
“Sure,” Lamar says.
We’re finally released for lunch and while eating in gear isn’t my favorite thing, I’m glad that this is the midday marker for the next set of events. The reason we’re actually here. The skills competitions.
I’m as excited as I am nervous. The only thing I’m really hoping to get out of this is seeing how I perform. If I make it on the boards, then cool. Otherwise, this is totally for fun.
Just as we’re finishing up eating, Lo sits next to me. I give him a wary look but he doesn’t say anything at all. Just watches me with his knowing smirk. Knowing that he somehow managed to get the better of mein front of peopleand I let my guard down.
This man is dangerous to be around. I need to be extra guarded in his company in public. Idon’twant any questions.
I’m only Caulder Haines, pro hockey player for the Buffalo Skidmoss. Not Caulder Haines, gay pro hockey player. I refuse to be that. My sexuality shouldn’t matter and I’m going to prove that it doesn’t. If no one knows, I sure as hell can’t be treated differently.
I’m just a hockey player and I willnotlet Lo jeopardize that.
My eyes flicker to him and my cheeks flush. Fuck’s sake.
CHAPTER 10
LO
I’ve never toedthe line of nearly revealing my secret quite so much. I mean, if it came out, it wouldn’t be the end of the world. This is apreferenceI share with Caulder. Though I’m not married to it quite like he is.
I’ve never before thought it would be fine if people knew. Although it would be. I know that. But I would still rather keep it to myself. It’s no one’s business. It sure as fuck isn’t the world’s business who’s in my bed. Who I’m fucking or who I love. No one needs to know anything about that side of my life—not even something as insignificant as the gender I’m attracted to.
Yet one night with Caulder and suddenly I’m thinking it’s not a big deal?
It was one night. We didn’t even fuck! But man do I love the way his cheeks heat. I love the bashful way he smiles and looks away. I really love how he constantly looks my way too. To be fair, he may just be doing so because he can feel me watching him.
However, I need to show him I respect him a little more than I’ve pulled off this morning. He’s made it very clear he doesn’t want anyone to know his sexuality, and I’m not going to be theone that outs him. It’s not my place and I like Caulder Haines. I sure as fuck don’t want to hurt him like that.
It’s not long after we eat before we’re brought to our feet and ushered toward the chute. We’re introduced one by one to the packed arena and pile into the boxes. Once again, the Pacific and Atlantic are paired together for this. Right now, the teams don’t truly matter because this is all an individual skills challenge. I bet if I wanted to join the other side, no one would stop me.
There’s a lot of waiting around as the announcers do their thing. Talking about the participating athletes and the events. How we’ll be scored. On and on. I do my best to listen their words and not stare at Caulder either. Instead, I look around the ice. It’s set up for the first challenge—fastest skater. Not one I’m in, but one that Caulder is. I’m excited to watch it.
Finally, they’re set to go. I shift on the bench to watch as Max Latham stands at the starting line. He’s bent at the knees and watching the ref with the whistle. Ready.
It blows and he takes off, digging his skate into the ice and shooting forward. The trick is to keep momentum going around the corners. I can see his knees shake a little on the second corner, but he doesn’t stumble. He really digs in and gains speed when he hits the next straight shot. Into the second set of corners, he glides, keeping as much speed as he can. Then he’s upright and finishing strong.
Max stands once he hits the line again and watches the clock. He glides around to slow down for a minute before heading for the bench. 13.991 seconds. That’s the time to beat.
No one does until Jirí gets 13.591 seconds, bringing Max down to second. Leroy Wysik stumbles and falls, careening into the boards. He gets up, shaking his head as he finishes. There’s not a lot of effort put into the end, since he’s lost too much time during the fall.
Finally, it’s Caulder’s turn and I’m holding my breath as I watch him. The whistle blows and my eyes are glued on his form as he moves around the rink. I don’t know if it’s just me, but it feels different from the onset. He’s quick, smooth, and never stops gaining speed.
