Page 41 of The Perfect Snipe

I don’t know what I would do without her. She’s the one person I can say whatever the hell I want to and doesn’t even blink an eye. She’s also the only one I ever allow to help me, the only one I let see me vulnerable and not fight back against it.

Or maybe I do and she doesn’t take my shit.

Nora gets up and comes over to my side of the table, then pulls me into a tight hug, and I let myself sink into it, drawing strength from her unwavering support.

“Let’s pay the bill and go lingerie shopping. I could use a few new things. And maybe you could too. You know, just in case.”

I laugh and shake my head but let her drag me along. “You're incorrigible, you know that?”

“That's why you love me,” she sing-songs, grinning from ear to ear.

Whatever happens next in my life, at least I know I've got Nora in my corner. And right now, that's enough to keep me going.

Chapter 17

Leo

I step onto the ice as the Ravens' arena roars to life, a sea of black and purple jerseys filling the stands. The air crackles with tension, thick enough to choke on. While there are rivalries, this team is on another level. Their digs are personal, their play dangerous. They even love goading certain teammates of mine off the ice.

Wyatt skates up beside me, his jaw clenched tight. “Hate playing these assholes.”

I grunt, then pin him with a look. “Just don’t lose your head no matter what these assholes say. Virgin, I swear. I don’t want to see your name in the newspapers again.”

When we played the Ravens earlier in the season, their winger got under my friend’s skin, hit a sore spot and Wyatt ended up in a bar fight that made the news. It’s kind of how I ended up being forced to babysit him, aka the beginning of our friendship.

He waves me off as he skates toward center ice for the face-off. I hop over the boards, watching and praying under my breathhe just keeps a level head. For some reason, the opposing team knows which of my friend’s trigger buttons to push.

The ref drops the puck, and Wyatt wins the draw, sending it back to Lund. We push up the ice, but the Ravens are on us like a pack of hyenas, relentless and playing dirty.

Roan gets checked into the boards, the puck nowhere near him, and I just know it’s going to be that type of game. Except Wyatt might not be the only one I need to keep an eye on because Lund passes the puck, then levels the winger who just hit Roan.

Refs blow the whistle for that one and we’re down a player as Lund heads for the penalty box. Fucking dammit. Hockey 101: stripes are always looking for the retaliation.

Wyatt joins me on the bench, shaking his head. “Stupid hit.”

I blink a few times, almost wanting to laugh. Where the fuck did this mature version of my friend come from? “Tell me about it. We need to win this one. Close the point gap.”

Out on the ice, we’re doing everything we can to keep the Ravens from scoring. Roan even slides to block a shot. And I owe Smitty a fucking steak dinner for all the blocks he’s making.

Regardless, with only ten seconds left on the penalty kill, the Ravens score. Taking a deep breath, I hop onto the ice. We lose the face-off, so I chase down their center. Smitty blocks another shot and I take control of the rebound, sending it up the ice to Mykyta.

He dekes around the defensemen and takes a shot that clangs off the bar. Petrov jostles with a Raven for control, and I tap my stick on the ice to let him know where I am.

The puck lands right on my tape but there’s no opening, so I skate to my left and pass to Petrov. He passes back to me, and I’m about to take a shot when Mykyta wraps around the net with no one by him.

I send the puck a bit hard, but he’s still able to control it enough to put it into the net. “Yes!”

“Nice pass, Cap.”

“Way to make yourself open.” I pat his helmet and we skate over to the bench, the next line coming onto the ice. The crowd's booing, but it's music to my ears. Fuck 'em all.

We score again and at the end of the period we are up by one. In the locker room, I scarf down a banana with some honey on it, trying to get my nerves under control as Coach talks to us.

But his voice fades and my mind drifts off, focusing on the fiery brunette currently living with me. The one taking care of my kids, the one I fucked like a savage beast until I came so hard I saw those twinkly spots.

And fuck do I want to do it again. And again.

Except the entire situation is nothing more than a ticking time bomb. This is just sex, but it’s happening under my roof where my kids might find out and with a person they have a relationship with.

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