Page 114 of Interference

He fell for it.

Moved to block my incoming shot.

And left the other side of the net wide open.

One backhand later, the goal light lit up my whole world. The roar of the crowd drowned out everything else as I banged myself into the glass and did a fist pump just before my teammates crushed me in hugs and helmet smacks.

I was almost lightheaded with joy. Though I put in a lot of minutes on the penalty kill, this was only the second shorthanded goal of my career. It also gave us the lead.

My teammates were all smiles and full of “nice one, Aussie!” as I skated by the bench for fist bumps.

Well, except for one.

Simon smiled because there were cameras nearby, and he fist-bumped me like everybody else, but his eyes were frosty.

I rolled mine.

Whatever, dude. Do you want to win this game or not?

I felt too good to care about his attitude, both because I’d scored and given us the lead, and because I just… didn’t care about his bullshit anymore.

Especially since I knew there was someone else watching who would be more than happy to celebrate with me later.

I grinned to myself as we set up to finish the penalty kill.

And I couldn’t wait to get home to Wyatt.

Chapter 32

Wyatt

“Seattle gooooal!” the arena announcer’s voice boomed as the teams faced off again. “His fourth of the season, an unassisted short-handed goal scored by number twelve, Anthony Austin!”

I couldn’t help grinning as the camera landed on him again. He was on the bench now, catching his breath and smiling as his teammates smacked his back. He was sweaty, flushed, and sexy as hell, and the happiness radiating off him was adorable.

Watching Anthony play hockey had been hot from the start. Watching him after I’d had my hands all over that gorgeous body? After I’d stared down at him while he eagerly sucked my dick? Ooh, that took his hockey to a whole new level of hot.

When he checked that one guy into the boards—oh, hell yeah.

And oh, wow, after he scored, the way he smiled was just… ungh. He was so hot.

I may have also gotten a little too much satisfaction out of the obviously fake smile on Simon’s face. I didn’t usually revel in someone else’s misery, but he’d been such a punk to Anthony, I didn’t feel bad about enjoying his aggravation.

Shame he couldn’t hear the commentators gushing over his ex.

“I don’t know what lit a fire under Aussie, but he has been dialed in for the last several games,” one said. “Not just defensively, either. His offense has been just incredible.”

“You’re right about that, Jim,” the other replied. “Aussie is usually a defensive defenseman, but he’s suddenly been turning into a two-hundred-foot player. Now he’s getting a shorthanded goal past Drew Spitzer.”

“They say defensemen take a little longer to mature than forwards,” the first mused. “I think despite the rough start this season, we’re watching Anthony Austin come into his own.”

I didn’t know what a lot of that meant, but it was clearly complimentary. Well-deserved, too. Even I could see the difference in Anthony’s play lately. It had been a little rough for a few days after he and Simon broke up, but then he’d suddenly broken out of that funk. The commentators’ attitudes about him had shifted dramatically, and Anthony himself had looked so much less frustrated on the ice.

Maybe he really was coming into his own as a defenseman. Or maybe, unbeknownst to almost everyone, he just wasn’t suffocating under the weight of trying to reconcile with Simon. I’d been in that situation before—struggling to save a relationship that was, in hindsight, dead and gone—and the relief that came with letting go was mind-blowing.

He was playing better hockey these days? No shit.

The rest of the game was anything but boring. Though the first period had been kind of dull, the second had both teams out for blood, especially after Anthony’s goal. They might as well have put a revolving door on both penalty boxes, and two players ended up ejected after a fight. I didn’t even think the fight was that bad—a few punches and some yelling—but by that point, it seemed like the refs had just had enough.

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