I hum in acknowledgement. I don’t spend a lot of time online, so I haven’t seen a lot, but I’ve heard.
“You survived the Great Bed Fuckery of 2022,” Horny says, grinning. “Or did you somehow get out of that?”
I snort. “No, I didn’t. Yes, I survived.”
More than survived. I got the man of my dreams out of it. It’s a challenge to keep the smile from my lips. Because I can feel myself struggling, I hide my mouth with another sip of water.
“Who’d you end up sharing with?” Keno asks.
Fuck. Talking about Caulder at all is rough because I can’t keep the stupid grin off my face whenever I think about him.
Taking a steadying breath, I answer, “Caulder Haines. Buffalo.”
“Oh, damn,” Etna says. “That boy is fucking amazing. I was so sure he was going to win the skill sets.”
“He placed second at the end of the first six,” I say. “I’m glad Max won because I think he totally deserved it, but Caulder was just as good.”
“So was Noah. That man is a beast in a tiny body,” Horny adds. “Super quick and he scored a hat trick.”
“Yeah, no shit!” Hilt shakes his head. “That’s hard to do in a full-length game, never mind one only a third as long.”
“He’s a cool guy,” I say. “I hung out with him a few times. Good kid.”
“I think he’s older than you, man,” Keno retorts.
“Not by much and that’s not really how I meant kid, kid.”
Keno laughs. He’s our baby on the team at twenty. Not even old enough to drink.
“Caulder was cool, though?” Hilt asks. “He’s so quiet, I barely see him when we play them.”
There’s that bubbling smile again. Once again, I take a sip, nodding at his question. When I’ve swallowed, I add, “He’s a nice guy. Great to hang out with, which is fortunate since we were forced to share a room.”
“That’s really shitty,” Etna says. “I’m not sure I’d be comfortable sharing a bed with a stranger. I feel like that’s a lawsuit waiting to happen.”
“I’m sure it is,” I agree. “It worked out well enough for those I’ve spoken to. Fortunately, we’re used to sharing space that could otherwise be a little awkward. But there were teenage girls there—a whole lot—for some high school competition. I can only imagine how that went down for them.”
“Biglawsuit,” Horny says.
“We talked about it a few times. I can’t even fathom how they managed to fuck up so thoroughly,” I comment. “Like, how does that happen?”
“I don’t know. I think it happens more often than people talk about,” Keno says. “Remember the headlines just last month? Winnipeg’s new owner went away for the holiday and came back married to a dude. All because of a booking issue where they ended up in the same cabin in a snowstorm.”
“You could have come back married to a dude,” Horny teases, grinning.
I roll my eyes, but there are butterflies dancing in my stomach. “There are worse things,” I muse.
“Yeah, like knocking someone up and then you’re stuck with them and your accident for the rest of your life,” Etna says.
We all pause and look at him.
“What? It’s a legitimate fear.”
I snort, shaking my head.
We play around for a while longer until we decide to call it quits for the day. I don’t shower, preferring my own, so I grab my bag and head for my car. As soon as I’m on the road, I dial Caulder. It’s later enough in the day that I’m sure he’s not doing hockey shit.
“Hey,” he greets and my heart stutters at his voice. I love his voice. I dream about his voice.
