Page 23 of Dirty Pucker

“Yeah, this place is their unofficial hangout after home games and practices. I come here with them too sometimes. I thought it would be fun. Maya, Theo’s wife, usually comes too, but she’s hanging out with her sisters-in-law tonight.”

“I appreciate the invitation, but I don’t think the guys want me here.”

“Come on. You can be here, Del. You’re part of the team too.”

When I tell her I don’t think it’s a good idea, she frowns. “Why wouldn’t it be? You played really well tonight. And you fought that Devils player who went after Theo. You’ve earned your spot at the table, at least tonight.”

“It’s not that simple. It was one fight. One game. That doesn’t erase the years of bad blood between your cousin and me.”

She tilts her head to the side and flashes that sweet smile. The one that makes me weak in the knees.

“You know what would help that? Buying a round of drinks,” she says.

Fuck, she’s adorable. And persistent.

She grabs my hand and pulls me to the bar, where I order another pitcher of the beer that Ingrid said the guys are drinking along with an order of fries. The bartender drops off a pitcher and tells me the fries will be ready in a few minutes. We walk over to the table and I hold up the beer.

“Beer is on me the rest of the night,” I say.

Xander, Blomdahl, and Theo all stare at me. Clearly, I’ve ruined the vibe.

A second later, Xander nods. “Sure. Thanks,” he says. The other two tell me thanks.

I sit down, slide the pitcher over to them, and let them refill their glasses before I fill my glass. For a few seconds, we all sit in silence.

I’ve been the new guy on a team a handful of times in my career. It’s normal to feel nervous and awkward at first as you get to know your new teammates. But it’s been a while since I’ve been the new guy. I played for Nashville for three years, and even though I wasn’t best friends with any of the guys on that team, I knew them well and got along with most of them. But this isthe first time I’ve joined a team where all my teammates can’t fucking stand me.

Tension knots my shoulders as the silence stretches between us. We all sip our beers. God, this is awkward.

“Good game tonight,” Xander says after taking a sip.

“It was,” I say before gulping my beer. I glance at Theo. “Your knee okay?”

He looks surprised that I asked him. “Yeah, it is.”

“You owe him a hug now, you know,” Blomdahl says to Theo.

Theo laughs. “Oh yeah, I guess I do.”

I frown. “Um, what?”

“A hug.” Theo grins at me. “It’s kind of an unwritten team rule. Every time your teammate defends you during a game, you owe him a ten-second-long hug.”

What the fuck?

I’ve played for a handful of teams in my career so far. I’ve seen guys do all sorts of strange shit, but hugging him for that long? That’s weird as hell.

“Uh…” I look at all the guys.

“He’s joking,” Xander says.

“Oh.”

Theo squints at me. “Damn, dude. Is that a smile?”

I roll my eyes.

“That’s the first time I’ve seen such a wholesome smile out of you,” Blomdahl jokes.

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