Page 63 of Beneath the Surface

The weird thing was that the hockey team had acted as if it was normal for me to be there with them, still here in their house after their other ‘helpers’ had left and the guys were taking a breather, showering and then chilling in the living areas before tonight’s mayhem. No one had batted an eyelid at my presence, even though there was no real need for me to be there until the party itself.

“Pierce!”

I glanced up from my phone in time to see a bundle of fabric launched through the air at me, courtesy of Johnny, and I automatically reached out to catch it. Shaking it out, I frowneddown at the hockey jersey. It was the same as the Barracudas’ usual jersey, complete with the logo, except the blue had been exchanged for a deep, blood-red color.

When I turned it over, I saw that Pierce was written on the back in block capitals, above a number 00.

My eyes widened. “What? What’s this?”

Grayson spoke up, grinning at me from his slouched position on the sofa. “Your costume for tonight. You’re a part of the team—you’re at our practices, our games, making us look good on the ice with your camera. So, we wanted you to be part of it tonight, too. We’re all wearing these jerseys with Jason Voorhees hockey masks.”

“B-but—”I don’t like hockey.Except…that wasn’t really true anymore, was it? Not since this semester, when I’d started getting to know the Barracudas’ captain.

“Shut up and take it, man. Do you know how many others would kill to be in your position?” Smith shouted from across the room, where he was leaning against the pool table with a cue loosely clasped in his hand.

“Uh, okay. Thanks, guys,” I muttered. I had no idea how to react, because never in my wildest dreams had I even thought that the hockey team noticed my presence, let alone actively wanted me to join them in anything social. Smoothing out the fabric, I glanced over at Grayson again, and he shot me another grin before climbing to his feet.

“Speaking of costumes, let’s do this. People are gonna be here soon, and none of you lazy assholes have even started getting ready.”

“That includes you.” Johnny elbowed him in the side, and he shoved back, the two of them tussling for a minute before springing apart, laughing. I rolled my eyes. Hockey players.

When everyone had drifted to their respective rooms to get ready, I followed Grayson into his bedroom, perching on theedge of his desk as he shut and locked the door behind us. “I saw that eye roll,” he said, advancing on me.

“Yeah? So what?” Moving off the desk and shifting sideways, I stared him down, enjoying the amusement in his eyes despite his stern expression.

“So…I think you were jealous. I think you wished you were the one wrestling with me.”

“Oh, really?” I cocked a brow, enjoying the direction of this conversation far too much. “Do I need to remind you I’m trained in several martial arts disciplines? You wouldn’t stand a chance.”

“Oh, Micah. So deluded—” he began, but I rushed him, using one of my favorite moves to sweep his legs out from under him, sending him staggering backward and crashing onto the bed. He let out a shocked huff of laughter, before flying back upright and grabbing my biceps, wrestling me onto the bed and getting me on my back beneath him.

Straddling my thighs, he grinned down at me triumphantly, and I couldn’t help returning his smile. He looked so pleased with himself. It was fucking cute.

Cute. Grayson.Cute?

My dick jerked, and I gasped. Grayson’s humor died away, his gaze dragging down my body to the growing bulge in my sweats.

“Fuck,” he said, low and raspy, and I shivered. He swung himself off me, landing on the floor with a loud thump, and strode over to his closet, his hand going to the front of his shorts. Was he…his dick wasn’t affected by our proximity too, was it? No. This was Grayson Cross, hockey captain, whose dick was a homing beacon for sorority girls and puck bunnies. Grayson Cross, who I’d unthinkingly kissed just yesterday, who I swore I could still taste on my lips…

“So…I get a mask, too?” My voice came out unnaturally high, and I cleared my throat and tried again. “Masks. You said something about masks?”

“Yeah,” he said, his back to me. “Friday the 13th. It fitted with the whole Halloween hockey vibe, y’know? Not very creative, but fuck knows, none of us are creative.”

“I thought these Halloween parties were all about looking hot, so I guess it doesn’t matter.”

“Yeah, true.” He tugged his shirt over his head, leaving me with a view of all those strong back muscles and that smooth tanned skin. I bit down on my lip, hard. When he pulled on the new hockey jersey, I breathed a sigh of relief. It was easier to talk to him when I wasn’t being confronted by all his fucking hockey god hotness in the literal flesh.

While he still had his back turned, I quickly changed into my own jersey, keeping my black sweats on. I glanced in the mirror, running a hand through my hair, and shrugged. Same old Micah Pierce. Nothing special.

I became aware that everything had gone unnaturally silent, and my gaze flew to Grayson, only to find him staring at me.

“Fucking hell. You in a hockey jersey. I-I’ve never…” He paused, swallowing hard. “I’ve never seen you in one before, I guess.”

“Yeah, you never will again after today,” I said with a shrug, trying to play it cool despite the fact that Grayson had basically just complimented me.I think.

“Gray!” A loud rapping at the door made us both jump. “Pregame shots! Get your ass downstairs!”

“Coming!” he called back. His voice lowered. “C’mon. Let’s go down there. Stick with me, okay? When Ava and Cruz get here, we make sure we stay in pairs at the very least. We need to be vigilant. Even though the threat was addressed to me, we can’trisk anything. This asshole is fucking with us, and I don’t want any of us to be alone tonight.”

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