Page 106 of Defensive Zone

“It’s fine. My kids use that stuff on each other. Never stains,” Randall said. “Great game tonight.”

“Thanks,” Max said, giving the guy a fist bump.

An hour later, Max grabbed a stool at C&B and bit into his cheeseburger with a groan. “So damn good,” he said.

Sara grinned. “Always the best for my guys.”

“Delicious,” he said.

“Don’t flirt with my girl, Baz,” Sully grumbled, leaning over the bar to kiss his girlfriend. “Nice jersey.”

Sara giggled. “My Bastian one was in the laundry, so I grabbed this old thing.”

“Such a comedian,” Sully said.

“I’m sorry. You’re great, too,” she deadpanned.

Max chuckled. The banter between Sara and Sully had always been top-notch. Almost as great as Gabi and him. He wished she were here tonight, but she’d gone home with Ava and the kids, reminding him that she was here to help Ava, and their celebration would have to wait until he got home. It had almost made him bail on going out, but she’d told him that he should celebrate with this team like he’d done during previous postseasons.

The Strikers always went to C&B after a home playoff game for a drink and something to eat. It was another one of their traditions. Bonding off the ice was almost as important as bonding on the ice. They needed to be able to read each other in any situation. That’s what made them a strong team.

They had a fuck ton of fun doing it, too.

“What is this?” Sara asked, pulling a piece of confetti from the corner of Sully’s suit lapel.

“Fucking hell, it went everywhere,” Sully said.

Sara eyed Max and he shrugged.

“They dropped their guard around me,” he said, stroking his beard. “They must learn to not underestimate Prank Sinatra.”

Sara burst out laughing. “Oh my god, you’re ridiculous. So just confetti tonight?”

“In the jersey bin, and with blue powder that exploded in the air,” Max said, grinning.

“I thought Bugsy was going to blow his top for a second,” Nessie said from the stool on the other side of Max.

“It’s all in good fun. The powder doesn’t stain, but I got the team blue just in case. I’m thoughtful like that,” Max boasted.

His teammates shook their heads and rolled their eyes. They did that a lot.

An hour later, he walked into the house. It was close to one in the morning, and no one was around. Only the light over the kitchen stove was on in case anyone wandered in for a midnight snack. He set his gear bag in the laundry room.

You’re welcome, Gabi.

Gabi.

Going to her room was probably not a good idea since the kids and Ava were right next to and across from her. He was tempted to text her to see if she was awake. The guys had kept him at C&B longer than he’d planned, but they were his teammates and celebrating the win was tradition; he’d gotten out of there as soon as it made sense.

He draped his suit jacket over one of the chairs in front of the island and grabbed a glass of water before heading upstairs to bed.

Alone.

“Took you long enough,” Gabi said when he walked into his dark room.

“Fuck,” he said, startled. Water sloshed over the edge of the glass and down his dress shirt.

“Shh. People are sleeping,” she admonished as she flipped on the lamp on his nightstand. “Oh no. You’re all wet. You should take that shirt off.”

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