Page 54 of Ice Me Baby

I groan. “We can’t go out just the two of us.”

Mac chuckles. “No date then?”

I twist enough to see Mac. “You know we can’t be seen together like that. We aren’t dating, and I don’t want rumors to start.”

Dean gives me a squeeze before releasing me. “Well, it can be a date to us. No one else needs to know.”

I go to argue, but he holds up a finger and pulls out his phone. He looks down, scrolling, before pressing a button and putting the phone to his ear. I arch a brow in question, and he smirks. “Hey. Do you and Taz want to come hang out with the three of us? Liz needs to get out of the house.”

I can’t hear what’s happening on the other side but Dean chuckles. “Yeah. She doesn’t want people to think we aredating.” My cheeks heat as he laughs at whatever Vicy, I assume, says.

“I know. Mac and I are trying, but you know how stubborn she is. Do you want to meet up at the plaza, and we can grab lunch?” He hums. “Sounds good. See you in thirty.”

He hangs up with a grin before leaning forward to steal a kiss. I yelp in surprise when he jumps up and heads down the hall. “Let’s get ready, Ice Princess. We have places to be.”

Mac leans in behind me to press a kiss to my cheek. His lips caress my ear as he whispers, “We are yours whether you want us or not. We will wait for you to be ours, Chérie.”

He pulls away and follows Dean to get ready, leaving me speechless. I press my finger to my cheek before moving it to my lips. A small smile pulls at my lips. Little do they know, I want to be theirs more than anything else, but the rational side of me remembers I need to protect my job before I fall down that rabbit hole. So I will cherish this time with them for as long as I can.

Reality is always harsher than the dreams we fight to bring to life. These guys are slowly slipping into my dreams for my future. The question is, will I fight for them as hard as I fought to get back out on the ice?

When we meet up with Taz and Vicy, they waste no time wrapping me in hugs. I laugh as they squish me between them in greeting. “Guys, you’re going to smash me.”

Taz smirks as he pulls away. “Like we could do that to you,” he says with a wink.

I swat him with a huff of laughter. “Not what I meant, and you know it.”

Vicy releases me before throwing an arm over my shoulder. “Well, where are we headed?”

Since this is a spur of the moment thing, I shrug. “Didn’t have a plan in mind.”

Taz looks around before nodding. “Are you hungry yet?”

I shake my head. “Not really.”

He nods and grabs my hand to drag me along the sidewalk. “The bookstore it is.”

“Bookstore?” I ask with a smirk.

He nods, looking over his shoulder. “You and Vicy can look at the manga section. Then I figure you can get a few of those romance books I’ve seen you try to hide,” he teases with a wink.

I roll my eyes, but the blush creeping across my cheeks doesn’t hide the embarrassment I feel, knowing he found my guilty pleasure. My attention is jerked to a few girls giggling as they stare at our group. My brows furrow when one of them points at me, then whispers to her friends.

As we pass them, I hear her whisper loudly, “Puck bunny incoming.”

Vicy and Taz both stiffen at her words and jerk to a stop. I give Taz’s hand a squeeze. “It’s fine.”

Vicy moves his arm from around my shoulder, and I look up to find his eyes narrowed on the girls. “Do you have something to share?” he asks coolly.

The girl who made the comment shakes her head with wide eyes. “No, not at all.”

Taz releases my hand and crosses his arms. “I believe she does, brother. If I heard her correctly, she said ‘puck bunny incoming’. Which is a bit forward considering she has no idea who this woman is.”

“Guys, it’s fine,” I say, trying to de-escalate the situation.

Vicy keeps talking, pretending he didn’t hear me. “You’re right, they don’t know who she is. Maybe we should do introductions?”

Taz and Vicy wrap an arm around my shoulders in sync as they say together, “She’s our sister.”

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