Page 10 of Temptation On Ice

“I’m really sorry for what I’m about to do. It can’t be helped since no one else seems to want to assist with this,” he says, rolling his eyes as his cheeks grow red again.

With a resigned sigh, he bends, sliding down my body as a shiver follows everywhere he touches, where he fumbles for the end of the leash and begins untangling. Leaning into me, shoulder tucked into my stomach, head against my hip, his arms wrap around me in a warm bear hug of sorts. He’s a bit close to my dick and I will myself to stay still and not have any kind of reaction to the nearness of him, just from friction and biology. He passes the leash around my back to his other hand, making a few adjustments, and passes it around again until we’re finally free of our entrapment and I can step away from his searing heat.

We both laugh uncomfortably, and I run my hands through my hair before dropping to my knees. I look at Enzo, who’s completely unfazed by everything that transpired between his dad and the dog trainer whom he trapped in a compromising position with his antics. “Hey buddy, had enough fun with the puppy?”

“No, I want to play some more,” he whines, turning his shoulders away and giving me his back. No such thing as an easy out. Of course, my kid wouldn't want to leave the dog and help me save whatever’s left of my dignity with a quick exit.

“Hey, Monty, you gonna use those moves on the ice next? I bet we can keep some defensemen occupied and score a few goals if you wrap ‘em up with your stick and bear hug ‘em,” Nico says as he and Rook walk over.

Oh, here we go. Just what I wanted to avoid. I stand and face the teasing that’s coming.

“Where’s my hug, Cap? Or do you save those for the guys who bring puppies around?” Westy asks with a laugh as he kneels next to Enzo and gives the puppy belly rubs.

“Enough of that, Dumont,” I warn, careful of my tone and language around my son and the kids nearby.

“You boys don't know what you’re missing,” Ryder says, wrapping his arms around his husband and putting his chin on Knox’s shoulder.

The radiant smile Knox gives Ryder lets us all know they’re still very much in their honeymoon phase and are going to be sickeningly sweet for the foreseeable future.

“Baby, can we get a puppy?” Ryder asks Knox with a pleading tone.

“A puppy? Come on, Reckless, think about it. How are we going to take care of a dog when we’re both traveling with our teams most of the year? It’s not like your goldfish that just needs an automatic feeder. A dog is way more work and needs more attention, and that wouldn’t be fair to it,” Knox says, shaking his head at Ryder’s request, but keeping his tone light. Apparently, this isn't the first time Ryder’s asked for something completely out of the question that Knox talked him down from.

“Glad to see y’all are logical about pet ownership,” Tucker says.

I turn back to him as he appraises us. I move so that the circle opens to include him in the conversation. “Why do you say that?”

He shrugs and looks at the puppy between us. “Well, you’re obviously well-paid athletes who aren’t told no often.” He raises an eyebrow playfully. This gets a raucous laugh from the group as heads nod. “You can get whatever you want, and have staff to take care of a pet even if you’re out of town, so the whole not being around to walk it or feed it argument only goes so far. But getting a dog is more than just bringing a pet home. They become part of your family and need to bond with you. It’s not fair to them if you’re gone most of their lives. If that’s the case, you might as well not even get a dog, in my opinion.”

“I thought you were just bringing the team dog, not the wisdom of pet ownership,” I joke.

I look at Tucker curiously. There’s more to him than he lets on, and I’d love to know his background. Has he always been a dog trainer? Where did the initial rigidness I noticed come from? He carries himself with a unique bearing and holds a posture that is telling of some kind of training, maybe military service, possibly. It would make sense that he works with veterans now if that’s the case.

“Y’all can do whatever you want, just sharing my two cents,” he says, waving off my comment as he looks down at Rook and Westy, who are lying on the floor with the puppy now as McKenna snaps photos.

It’s not just the kids who turn into happy piles of mush around little animals, it seems. Those guys are two peas in a pod, and share a love of dogs as well. I catch Tucker’s eye when he looks up.

“No, you’re right. We should think about it like that. This joker down here has a dog, but his twin brother lives with him and stays with the dog when we travel, so there’s someone to take care of it,” I say, motioning at Rook, who sits up, clutching the puppy to his chest.

“Indiana Bones lives like a queen. She’s not missing anything, and she’s very happy. I make sure she’s extra loved on when I’m home,” Rook says, a little defensively, if you ask me. He puts the puppy down and stands with a pout.

“It’s true. He’s super good to that dog. He treats her better than some people I know,” Westy says, looking across the room at Campbell with a grin. It’s no secret that Rook would push Campbell into traffic, but his dog can do no wrong in his eyes.

Tucker holds up his hands and smiles. “I don't doubt that.” He turns back to me. “Your kid really seems to like the dog. If he wants more puppy time, you’re always welcome to bring him out to the Combat Companions facility. We have seven more puppies and ten dogs, with a pond and agility course, and ten fenced-in acres of woods around my property. He could run himself ragged with the dogs in any number of ways anytime.”

My smile grows as I look from his open face down to my son, who is still enamored with the little dog that has crawled back onto his lap and looks to be falling asleep under his gentle pets.

“That’s so nice of you to offer, man, thank you. I know he’d love that. We’ll have to come check it out sometime. Now, I’ve got to figure out how to pull him away from the little guy.”

“I think I can help,” he says with a smile before squatting down. “Hey, buddy, you did such a good job getting this little baby all worn out so he can take a nap. Thank you so much for your help! It will be way easier to carry him out to the car now that you’ve got him to sleep. Do you want to give him a kiss before we go?”

Enzo nods excitedly before he places a soft kiss on the puppy’s head. He’s been so good, incredibly gentle for a four-year-old, and despite wrapping me up in the leash, he’s behaved himself.

“Daddy, he’s so small and cute. I wish we could have a dog just like him,” Enzo says, standing and grabbing my outstretched hand.

I smile down at him. “I know, kiddo. But you have Mutt for now, and the puppy will be back for more hockey events, so you’ll see him again.” I purposely leave out Tucker’s invitation to his facility. If Enzo knew there were a bunch of dogs and puppies out in the woods somewhere and he had an open invitation to see them whenever he wanted, I’d never hear the end of it.

“I’ll give you Tucker’s number so you can reach out whenever you want to come by,” Cami says. I pull my phone out when she walks up to me, despite Tucker giving her a quick look of rebuke. She ignores him. “Our last name is Covington.” She spells it out for me as I create the contact.