Page 38 of The Grinder

Shrugging, Riley took another swig of beer before answering. “I’ve been giving it some thought.”

“You’re not even thirty. What the hell, man? Is something wrong?”

He shook his head. “Nothing’s wrong. Just been thinking maybe it’s time to think about what’s next. You know, figure out what I’m gonna do with the rest of my life.”

Justin shook his head like he hadn’t heard him right. “Why? I mean seriously, why? You’re only twenty-fucking-eight years old. It’s not like you’re forty and you can’t bend your knees and your shoulder’s hanging on by a ligament.”

All true. “Maybe I want to get out before that happens.”

Justin continued to shake his head in shock. “Dude, what happened tonight?”

He’d had the best damn sex of his life, that’s what’d happened. And he’d met a girl he might want to live with for the rest of his life.

Even his own brain went, “Hey, now. That’s kind of a huge leap.”

But Riley was used to making snap decisions and changing things on the fly. And he knew himself. He wasn’t some teenager just out of the draft with mad skills and no polish.

“Nothing happened.” Or maybe something really big had happened. But he wasn’t sharing that with Justin. “It’s just something that’s been on my mind.”

Justin gave a full-body shake, like a dog shaking off water. “Yeah, well, get it off your damn mind or you’re gonna jinx yourself. And the team. Just don’t go there.”

He couldn’t help it. He was already there. “Don’t you ever think about what you’re going to do after?”

“Why should I?” Justin shrugged. “I’m gonna play ’til I can’t then I’ll figure it out.”

It was the mantra of a lot of players. Hell, Riley had lived by it for years.

“Rye.” The tone in Justin’s voice pulled Riley’s gaze back to him. “Are you seriously thinking about giving up?”

Now there was an interesting way to put things.

Riley shifted on the couch to look Justin in the eyes. “Is it really giving up if you’re going to find something else to do with your life?”

Justin’s gaze was too damn sharp for almost two in the morning. “Is that what you want? To do something else?”

No. But he knew he wanted more. And he knew who he wanted more with.

“What I want is to get enough sleep before skate tomorrow afternoon.”

“You mean this afternoon.”

Shit, yeah. “Exactly. I’m going to bed. Night.”

He got up and headed for his room.

“Hey, Rye.”

Riley stopped and looked over his shoulder at Justin.

“This is your year, man.”

He just shook his head and continued to his room.

* * * * *

“Someone had a good time last night.”

Aly gave her sister the side-eye as she made her way to the coffeemaker Sunday morning. She’d slept until nine, which was as long as her body would naturally sleep before her eyes popped open.

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