Page 121 of Arctic Titans of Northwood U: Volume 1

Our gazes locked and sparks flew as if our blades clashed. “If you ever make another homophobic comment to me or about me — or anyone for that matter — I will personally fuck you up. I’ll ruin this charade. I’ll come after you and everything you love.”

Beckett raised his hands in mocked surrender. “My boxers are trembling, Joffrey.”

“Beckett, I’m not fucking kidding,” I snapped. I set the plate on the counter and tossed the cooling sandwich on top of the rest. In two short steps, my face was in his and I was fighting the urge to hold him by his T-shirt and shake him straight. “I won’t hear one comment from you. You don’t look at me when I’m out. You don’t see me. You don’t have a clue who I’m with. Understood?”

Beckett pressed his open hand against my bare chest. The heat of his body surprised me as he pushed me a few inches back. “First of all, I never cared. I’m not a fucking bigot. Second, I thought about this a lot. And you know what? Surprise, surprise. I just don’t like you, Jones. It’s got nothing to do with which genitals you prefer and everything to do with the fact that you’re a self-assured, righteous prick. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll end it on this high note. Goodnight.” The pressure on my chest increased by a fraction and then Beckett moved his hand back and marched upstairs to his room.

I stood at the counter for a while longer, forcing the dry-as-hell sandwiches down my throat. Once done, I rinsed the plate and headed back to my room. For better or worse, we were stuck in this mess. It was the only way to move forward and not back.

As I lay in my bed, I rubbed the spot where Beckett had pressed against my chest. Though it was only a distant memory, I somehow convinced myself I could still feel the lingering heat.

Chapter Eight

BECKETT

The morning found me on slightly firmer ground. My position was still hanging by a thread — I wasn’t kidding myself — but the reluctant alliance with the devil had the potential to save both our skins.

I didn’t have the time to announce it to the team. Early morning lectures called me away. Then, intentionally, I put in extra work at the gym. In the end, I didn’t see any of the guys until the afternoon drills.

I arrived at a nearly full locker room to a few surprised glances.

“Where is he?” I asked, the note of annoyance barely concealed. Caden was going to be late again. I couldn’t believe him.

Jordan shrugged. Sawyer avoided eye contact. Avery spoke up, blunt as ever. “I thought you were off the team.” My heart skipped a beat as I considered how we had ended things last night. I’d been harsh, but I wouldn’t say I had been unjust.

The locker room door flew open and Caden strolled in. He was as confident as ever, walking like he was born for this. He marched in like there had never been any friction in the team at all. He greeted us all with a single lift of his chin.

“There he is,” I said sweetly, but not so sweetly that it would come across as sarcastic. Whatever Caden thought, I was actually good at this whole thing. I crossed the locker room to slap a hand over Caden’s shoulder. “I tell you,” I said to no one in particular. “This guy, he knows how to be fashionably late.”

Caden narrowed his eyes at me when I moved my arm along his shoulder and held him in a brotherly hug. “Yep,” he said. “It’s all about fashion.” He turned his smile completely to me, and, through his clenched teeth, he said: “Move that arm away before I break it.”

“Not a chance. Play nice,” I replied underneath the clamor in the locker room. I added a little extra friendship on top when I pulled Caden closer and rubbed my knuckles against the top of his head. “There you go, buddy,” I said. “Now, let’s get ready and kick some ass.”

As we stripped and put our gear on, Jordan approached me. “You get extra points for effort,” he murmured.

“You’re just saying that because your ‘best friend’ spot is being usurped,” I mock accused.

“Ah, I’ve known you for a while,” Jordan said, tightening his shoulder pads in place. “I think I’m gonna be safe for some time.”

“If you’re suggesting that my relationship with Caden is anything but that of brotherly love and war-time camaraderie, then you are terribly mistaken, my second best friend. The quality of his grilled cheese sandwiches alone displaces your ass.” I tried not to crack, but a chuckle escaped me anyway.

Jordan nodded. “I’m just saying, I’m glad you’re both giving peace a chance.”

This would be as close to an admission of having been wrong as I would go. “Yeah, well, maybe I needed a brief existential crisis and the loss of all prospects to change my mind.” I shrugged, strapped on my knee pads, and poked Jordan in the ribcage. “If only I could return the favor.”

We simultaneously looked at his stepbrother, putting on his helmet and minding his business on the opposite side of the locker room. “Nah, dude. The relations are frozen. And they’re best kept that way.”

I exhaled. “Who knows what horrors the melting of that ice would unleash.”

Jordan gave me a grim look as if to say that he knew exactly what horrors. I didn’t want to find out for myself.

Today’s drills were not half as bad as they had been on Saturday. Coach Murray muttered about history repeating itself, complained about going grayer with each season, and dismissed us without a single threat, shout, or audible consideration of retirement. I, for one, took that as a victory.

As for how Caden and I performed on the ice, that was a whole different matter. He was a cautious player. It was in contrast to my risk-taking style. And if he tried something risky, it was so far off my creative spectrum that he just ended up confusing me. It was no wonder that our friendly handshake after the drills lasted only two seconds. Caden stalked off one way and I went the other. As far as the first attempt went, this one was a lukewarm success.

The thin and insecure bond remained that way for the entire week. The excuse of attending lectures — which I suddenly began doing a lot more consistently — was off the table on Saturday. I was in the basement with the demon twins, Sebastian and Tyler, and a few other guys. Caden walked in with Sawyer, listening intently to something Sawyer was saying.

“…doesn’t work that way, to be honest.” Sawyer shrugged. “Noah’s the smartest guy ever. I can’t argue with him. He cites his sources.” He spread his arms in surrender and Caden laughed. His gaze moved from Sawyer to me and his laughter stopped abruptly.