The team is quiet as we move through the locker room. No doubt we’re all thinking along the same lines as I am. Irritated. Frustrated. Maybe a tad upset.
Etna and I have our after game routine down to a science, so we’re finished at nearly identical moments. I think the first few times we truly did it unintentionally, but now we’re constantly sneaking peeks at each other to know whether we need to slow down or speed up getting ready to leave.
He meets me at the door, and we walk out with our bags over our shoulders. “That was shit,” Etna grumbles.
I shrug. “Horny’s fifty-fifty on shootouts. He knows it’s a weakness, and he’s working on it.” It’s probably the one thing that Horny gets down on himself about. Shootouts. I’ve heard him try to convince Coach to put in the second goalie when it comes to shootouts before.
The thing is, being a goaltender means you need to be good at all aspects of that position. Including shootouts. He’s been getting extra practices for a while now to try to work on it. Which is why he gets extra frustrated with himself when he still lets a goal in during a shootout.
“Hungry?” Etna asks as we push open the door and step into the Arizona evening heat.
I nod. “Silly question to ask a hockey player.”
He smirks. “Subs?”
“Yeah. Hey, did you check out the email I sent you? Or maybe I texted a link.”
Etna pulls out his phone. “About what?”
“The house for sale on the lake. I sent you the listing.”
“Ah. Yes. I looked at it.”
“You’re not feeling it,” I guess.
He sighs. He must have found the link because he’s scrolling through the pictures. “No, but I’m not sure why. The size is there, though not as big as my house. I’m not sure if I care that it’s not as big as mine. We don’t exactlyneedfour bedrooms. It’s updated-ish.”
“There aren’t many options around here. Not unless we want to expand our search and have a longer commute.”
Sighing again, Etna puts his phone in his pocket. “I have a feeling we’re going to be looking for a while. Maybe we need to take one of our houses off the market until we find what we’re looking for.”
“They’re set to go live Monday, and there’s already been a ton of interest. I hate to lose that momentum.”
“You’d rather be homeless?” he asks, amused.
I huff. “No. Let’s take yours off.”
“No, let’s take yours off. We play at your house most.”
“We can play at either house,” I say as I open the passenger side door, meeting his eyes over the top of the car. My cheeks heat at the dark look in his eyes. Fuck.
Climbing in, I slam my door shut immediately. As soon as his is closed, I reach for the collar of his shirt and drag him to me so I can plant my lips on his. He smiles against my mouth.
“Stop that,” I mutter, not taking my mouth from his. “You’re supposed to be romanced right now. No smiling.”
Etna backs up, laughing.
“I need to work on my romance game,” I huff. Then jump out of my skin when there’s a knock on my window. Horny waves when I look at him.
Etna starts the car so I can roll down the window. “Fuck, Horny.” My heart races. Did he see us kiss?
“Sorry. Wanted to catch you before you left. Games tonight?”
I glance at Etna. He shrugs. “Sure. My house tonight.”
Horny tilts his head. “Okay.”
“We’re picking up subs on the way home. Want one?”
