Page 121 of Cold as Ice

“Must be serious,” Ivan said. “If he’s not wanting to spout off about it. Considering I had to hear every single dirty detail of his past hookups.”

“Hear? I was practically in the same room as him and this kid, once,” Ramsey said, though he didn’t sound particularly upset by this fact.

“I’mrighthere,” Elliott complained.

“Oh, so youarealive.”

“Mal’s tutoring me,” Elliott said. Because that was the safest interpretation of what was happening.

“If it happens in bed, it doesn’t count,” Ramsey said with a dirty chuckle.

Technically, Elliott didn’t need the tutoring in bed. That was Mal—orhadbeen Mal. He was doing pretty damn good on his own these days.

Elliott shrugged.

“You’re really not going to tell us?” Ivan feigned disappointment.

“What is there to tell?”

“There’ssomethingto tell,” Ramsey said. “You two barely look at each other these days and when you do?” He fanned himself.

“Yeah, it’s hot, even for me,” Ivan said.

“You’re a perennial disappointment, Mr. Zero on the Kinsey Scale,” Ramsey said fondly, patting Ivan on the shoulder.

Ivan smiled, looking like he wasn’t disappointed in the least.

God, Elliott loved his friends. He’d miss both of them when they graduated. And Mal . . .well,missing himfelt like an understatement when he considered what it might be like if he kept going to school and didn’t end up playing hockey.

Or if he ended up playing for a different organization.

“Yeah,” Elliott said, “if I tell you, ithasto stay under wraps. There’s things—well, I can’t go into the details. But it has to stay between us, okay?”

“Is Mal going to punish you later for saying something?” Ivan wondered.

“If he does, can I watch?” Ramsey added, his light blue eyes gleaming with mischief.

“No, and no,” Elliott said. He paused. Once he told them, he couldn’t take it back—but he was sure he wouldn’t want to. “Yeah, we’re . . .well,yes,we are fucking. But Ivan’s right. It’s more than that.”

“I knew it,” Ramsey crowed. “That whole bullshit yesterday about having better taste than that! That was a prime overcompensation for the truth. I wasn’t sure until Mal blustered in, all fervent denial that he wasn’t even interested.”

“When heclearlywas,” Ivan said.

“It’s good?” Ramsey wanted to know. Because of course he wanted to know.

Elliott nodded. “Worth waiting for,” he said. “Hewas worth waiting for.”

“Aw, Ivan, our baby bro is in love,” Ramsey cooed, wrapping an arm around Elliott’s shoulders and squeezing him way too hard.

“I’m not your baby bro,” Elliott muttered, though he was secretly pleased by both their reaction and the nickname. “I already have three older sisters. I don’t need brothers too.”

“Yeah, you do,” Ivan said, grinning. “Nobody gives you shit like a big brother.”

“Clearly, you’ve never met my sisters.”

“Onlybecause you keep putting me off,” Ramsey teased.

“And that isnothappening,” Elliott announced. “Ever. Ever, ever, ever.”

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