Page 8 of Against The Boards

“That sounds like T.”

I smirked at her and took another sip of my beer.

She pointed at my black hair. “Are you okay? With everything?”

I pursed my lips in thought.

When Lisa cheated on me, the first person I called was Tristan. The second call had been to Dinah, but only at her insistence. We weren’t that close, but close enough that I knew I could unload on her. She was a good listener.

I shook my head and took a huge gulp of my beer. “Not really.”

She had a sad look on her face. “I sorta get what you’re going through. It was hard to let go of Jason, and Noah…”

“Is too nice?” I offered.

“Yeah. I’m not sure I deserve a second chance with him. I really messed up.”

“You crushed his heart into a thousand pieces!”

She sighed. “I was scared.”

I understood what she meant, but I still worried about Noah and whether she would break his heart again.

“You and Noah are good now, right?” I asked.

She nodded with a big smile. “Yeah! He made me promise that the next time I get scared, I talk to him like a grown-up. He’s too good to me.”

“Who knew Noah would be the adult in the relationship?”

She made a face at me, and I nudged her with my shoulder, so she knew I was just joking.

Noah was an anomaly for a hockey player. Most were complete douchebags, but not Noah. He was the epitome of niceness. If I had been interested in any of my brother’s teammates, it would have been Noah Kennedy. Too bad he was like a brother to me.

“So wait…where are you staying?” she asked.

I groaned. “Next door until I can find a place.”

Dinah’s eyes widened. “Really? With Benny?”

I gritted my teeth. “Unfortunately.”

“Okay, why do you hate him?”

“He asked if my tits were fake!”

“He apologized!”

“He’s so annoying. He thinks he’s God’s gift to women. Why does he have to be so hot?”

Dinah bit her lip and tried not to laugh. “So you hate him because… you think he’s hot?”

“Shut up!”

She laughed that throaty laugh of hers, but then someone tapped her on the shoulder and distracted her. I wandered off into the dining room. I finished my beer and then switched to water while I gazed out at the city skyline.

Moving to a new city with zero plans was impulsive. What did it say about me that I was moving to a different country? If my brother didn’t live here, I might have reconsidered. But working for an NHL team was a step-up for my career. I would have been a fool not to take the job.

I felt a presence sidle up beside me. It didn’t surprise me when I flicked my eyes to the side and saw Benny standing next to me. Oh, here we go. I didn’t feel like fighting with him right then.