"Shit," I muttered.
"What?" Reina looked over, coffee mug halfway to her lips.
"I have a game tonight."
Jaxon grinned from where he was plating eggs. "So do I."
"Against each other," Reina said, her expression shifting to worried.
Right. Because we were still captains of rival teams. Still competitors. Still enemies on the ice, even if we were bonded off it.
How the hell was that going to work?
We sat down to eat, but the easy domestic atmosphere had shifted. Tension crept in at the edges.
"How do we do this?" I asked, looking between them. "We're bonded, but we still have to play against each other."
"Same way we always have," Jaxon said, shoving eggs into his mouth. "We go out there and we compete."
"It's not that simple."
"Why not?"
"Because I can feel you now." The words came out sharper than I intended. "Through the bond. I can feel both of you. How am I supposed to focus when I'm constantly aware of where you are, what you're feeling?"
"You learn to block it out," Jaxon said. "Compartmentalize."
"Easy for you to say."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You don't give a shit what people think. You never have." I gestured to my throat, to the visible claiming bite. "I can't hide this. Everyone's going to know I'm bonded. They're going to ask questions."
"So let them ask."
"And what do I tell them? That I'm bonded to an Omega and also somehow connected to my biggest rival through her?"
Jaxon's eyes flashed. "You ashamed of us, Vale?"
"That's not what I said."
"Sure sounds like it."
"Stop." Reina's voice cut through our rising argument. "Both of you. Stop."
We both looked at her.
She set down her coffee mug with deliberate calm. "You're going to play against each other tonight. You're still captains. Still rivals. The bond doesn't change that."
"Reina..." I started.
"I'm supposed to photograph the game," she continued. "Which means I'll be there. Watching both of you beat the shit out of each other on the ice."
Jaxon smirked. "Gonna enjoy the show, Pretty Girl?"
"What I'm NOT going to enjoy is you two killing each other because you can't figure out how to separate hockey from this." She gestured between the three of us. "From us."
She was right. I hated that she was right, but she was.
