“Remind me later to scold you for the fact that you’ve been seeing and keeping all of these sexy players to yourself. Does ‘sharing is caring’mean anything to you?”
“I’ll introduce you to them all, I promise, but don’t get your hopes up. None of them that I’ve noticed seem like the commitment type.”
“I’m fine with just a little fun,” she shrugs, taking a sip of her beer.
“I thought I was too,” I say quietly, watching Knox win the face off and pass it to Jett. It’s like the hounds of hell are on his heels as he skates with an aggressive speed that already has another player being slammed into the boards.
I really hope his teammates know what they’re doing because Knox is out for blood tonight, and I have a feeling I’m the cause of it.
TWENTY-FOUR
KNOX
“What the fuckis Savi doing wearing your number?” I seethe under my breath as we take our first lineup change of the night and hit the bench.
“It’s the plan I was telling you about.” Hayes shoots some water into his mouth before spitting it on the floor.
“You mean the one where I end up fucking killing you?” Taking the towel handed to me, I run it over my face before tossing it away.
“We had to pull out the big guns.”
“We?”
“The guys and I paid her a visit and persuaded her to come tonight,” he shrugs like it’s not a big deal, when I feel like control is slipping out of my fingers with every second that ticks by. “You’re going to lose her, Knox, if you don’t get that stubborn ass of yours to admit you like her. Her wearing another man’s jersey…going on dates with other men? That’s your future if youdon’t step the fuck up, and the sooner you do it, the sooner we get you back in the game with us.”
The line changes, and I don’t get another minute to think as I’m thrown back in the game. Knowing she’s in the stands tonight puts a fire under me that I’ve been missing the past few days as I throw all the emotions I’m feeling into this period.
The hits feel harder.
My blades dig a little deeper into the ice.
The slap of my stick against the puck feels stronger, sending a crack in the air that rings a little louder.
Every time I skate by her and see another guy’s number on her body, I skate harder and faster as jealousy sinks its claws into me, pushing me to acknowledge what I already knew deep down.
She’s mine and has been since the day I met her. There is no other choice for me than to cut myself wide open and bleed for her. Show her all the parts of me I’m too afraid to show, and pray like hell I always have her by my side until my last breath.
The first-period buzzer rings out, and the no-score game flashes on the scoreboard. I don’t wait for the players like I usually do, as I skate off the ice first. Pulling the first equipment manager I see as I walk down the hall, I tell him exactly what I need him to do.
He’s new and young, so it doesn’t take much convincing that he needs to listen if he wants to keep his job.
When he jogs away with his task, I walk into the locker room, tossing my gear on the floor and whipping my jersey over my head along with my pads.
The team starts piling in as I grab a towel, and run it over my face and hair before swiping it across my chest. Reaching for an electrolyte drink to rehydrate what I lost from my body by pushing it so hard in the last period, I down it in one gulp before tossing the empty bottle aside.
My lineup walks over, and I narrow my eyes at them.
“I’ll deal with you guys later. I don’t have a lot of time and need to take care of something more important,” I say, brushing past them and walking out the door.
I head to the small utility closet, which is the best I could do for privacy on such short notice, and open the door, shutting it behind me.
Savi’s waiting for me, and I make a small mental note to give the kid a hefty bonus for getting the job done.
“Have you gone mad? It’s in the middle of the game…yourgame,” she says, frantically.
“Take the jersey off now,” I say, calmly, but giving her no doubt with my look that I’m serious.
“What?” Her eyes get wide as I step closer to her.
