Page 59 of First Puck

And a pulse of hurt shot through me as Lance nudged him with his shoulder.

Because I was right, absolutely one hundred percent fucking right.

It shouldn’t be Lance standing there, pressing himself up next to Alex.

Lance didn’t know a single thing about Alex, not in the ways that mattered the most. That’s why I was his best friend. I was the one he was following his dream with, I’d been there through every moment of his life that mattered. I was every first he could ever have.

I was the one he came to college for instead of leaving for the big leagues.

And you didn’t do shit like that unless it fucking meant something.

I wanted Alex to have friends, yeah. I didn’t want him to feel like, I like,ownedhim or something.

But him dating someone was a totally different level. Because what kind of firsts would Lance get to see?

“Alright, boys, time to get into positions,” Coach shouted.

Alex didn’t even look at me as Lance chucked his arm over his shoulder. There wasn’t a single spec of hesitation as Alex slipped his arm around Lance’s lower back to hug him.

And jealousy rang through me like a fucking gong.

Lance squeezed him as they wobbled past me with a hand on the barrier and gripped each other for support.

“You okay?” Alex asked Lance quietly.

Another huge burst of jealousy flew through me as I looked at how close they were. He’d barely been dating Lance for a few weeks, but they were acting like they shared some deep fucking bond. Even though I’d been grinding my cock against him only days ago.

“Later?” Lance asked, just as he tugged him into his side.

“Yeah,” Alex murmured, dipping his lips to his ear. “The guys are probably going to the bar later. Or do you want to talk?”

Alex turned his head so they both locked eyes, holding gazes before Alex relaxed in his arms the way he always did for me.

“That would be good,” Lance replied with a gentle smile that felt more real than I’d ever seen him.

I just stood there, watching the way the two of them shuffled to the gate.

I should have shot forward, pulled Lance away from Alex, and demanded my hug. But I also wanted Alex to remember me. It was one of our most important rituals, and he just stepped out onto the ice with Lance and skated off without me.

“Move, idiot,” Tommy growled from beside me, pushing at me, knocking me against the barrier to get in front. I couldn’t tell if he was scowling at me or them, but it didn’t make a difference.He shook out his arms, chucking his stick into his other hand before he stepped onto the ice and glided away.

I clung to the barrier as the other guys filed out.

They left me standing there like a fucking moron. I tracked Lance and Alex as they did a loop around the outside of the rink while other guys got into position.

I couldn’t even see their stupid faces because of their masks, but the way they stuck close to each other and how they had been smiling and laughing and flirting was gross.

Or it made me feel gross.

Or whatever.

I was the last one to the gate and Coach gave me a frown.

I forced myself out of the daze. Whether Alex and Lance were together or not, I wasn’t here to get wound up because I possibly, maybe, just realized I sort of wanted Alex away from Lance for other reasons.

If he was with Lance, he was further away from me. So I might really lose him.

Last time I almost lost Alex, it made me even more determined to get to the big leagues so I could be with him. I wasn’t letting an asshole like Lance take him from me.

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