Page 88 of Down & Dirty

“You clearly don’t know shit, ‘cause she’d kick both our asses before that happened.”

When I looked down at Sky, her cheeks were their customary pink, but her eyes held a sparkle that soothed the barb of jealously pricking my ribs. And when she leaned into my side, wrapping herself around me, I dragged in a stuttering breath.

“It’s nice to meet you,” she said, giving Grady a quick wave. “You guys played great.”

Holloway nodded, looking over his shoulder at someone who’d tapped him as they went by. “We did all right. I’m glad you guys were here to see it.” He paused to thank one of the equipment managers who stopped to snag his stick. “You coming tomorrow?” he asked me when he turned back.

“Who the fuck do you think I am?” I was genuinely offended by the question.

He huffed out a knowing laugh, loving the rise he got out of me so easily. “As if anyone could ever forget who the fuck the almighty Cory Ellis is?”

Sky shook beside me and I knew she was laughing.

“So, that’s not a new thing, huh?” She glanced between us with a cheeky grin.

Grady ate it up. He smacked me on the shoulder and shook his head. “Damn. You don’t get enough abuse? You went and picked this girl? You should probably save yourself, and let me show her what a good time really looks like.”

I barely contained my growl when Grady went to move around me again. Barely. But the smile I gave him was more like bared teeth and he stepped back with his hands up.

“Okay, okay, old man. Take it easy.”

Sky burrowed into my chest and I wrapped my other arm around her. It was all jokes and light-hearted, but the way she kept getting closer, was like being chosen over and over again. It sent a wave of relief through me so strong I got knocked off balance and had to shift on my feet.

“Just remember, you’re a hockey ace, not a football star.”

“Shh,” Grady hissed, looking over his shoulder. “We don’t speak of such things, remember.”

His contract was a lot stricter than mine, and he’d get in royal shit if the team knew we were playing tackle football tomorrow afternoon.

“Fine. But be warned. I’ve been playing a lot of Madden. I’m ready.”

“Yeah, yeah. Big talk. We’ll see how quick you are on your feet, Drafty.”

Hearing my old nickname reminded me of all the good times we’d had back in high school. It also reminded me of how long ago that had been, and everything that had happened before it. I gave Sky a squeeze, needing a touch point to this moment to pull me back.

“All right, we’ll see you tomorrow then.”

He started to turn for the locker room. “Wear pads,” he said to me, before looking down at Sky. “And it was nice to meet you. Thanks for coming.”

“Thanks for the seats,” she said back. He nodded, blowing her a quick kiss before dashing out of sight. Thankfully Sky’s only response to that was to shake her head.

As we made our way back up to the street, Sky’s hand clasped in mine, I let out a contented breath.

“You two always trash talk that much?”

“That? That wasn’t even the warm up. Wait till tomorrow. Half the game is the talk, the rest is tossing the ball around with maybe a couple good tackles.”

“What? Why?”

I shrugged. “For all his bullshit, Grady loves hockey way too much to risk his career over something stupid like a pickup game with friends. And we all respect that. He’s worked damn hard for his spot on the team.”

She looked at me thoughtfully. “So, this game tomorrow is really just book club for boys.”

I bit my cheek, trying to stem my laughter so she wouldn’t feel encouraged. “Fuck you,” I said, my voice breaking.

She cocked her head to the side with a smirk. “Truth hurts.”

“If you don’t take that back, I’m not getting you any tacos.”

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