Page 5 of Our Hearts to Break

“Hey, Rousseau,” Parker says, “think your dad would come to the pep rally before the Boston College game?”

“Um, let me check.”

I gulp down a mouthful of food and reach into my pocket. Scanning my phone’s calendar, I click on my dad’s schedule and shake my head.

“Nope. The Rangers are playing the Caps at home that night.”

“Damn,” he groans. “I was hoping he’d sign some stuff, get more people amped up for the big game.”

“We have River,” Nate interjects. “He’s better than Ryan. We don’t need his tired ass.”

Everyone stops eating and speaking, confused gazes fixed on Nate. They stare at him like he’s an alien or some other life form. Most hockey fans worship my father, my teammates included.

“Dude, you’re nuts,” Carter fires back at him, shaking his head. “We love you, bro,” he says to me. “But your dad…” He shrugs. “He’s the GOAT.”

A round of grunts echo around the table.

“The fucking man,” Parker says in agreement. “But we still love you, Rousseau.”

“Your dad is why I wanted to play hockey,” Monroe chimes. “Dude’s a beast on the ice.”

“River will crush his dad’s records,” Nate confidently says, smiling at me. “Just you fuckers wait and see.”

I love how he comes to my defense. No one has my back more than Nate.

“It’s all good, guys,” I tell my teammates. “I get it. As a kid, I wanted to be my dad, too. He taught me everything I know.”

They talk about puck bunnies, frat parties, and video games for the rest of dinner. I zone out, my thoughts drifting back to the author of that stupid book and the hell she will cause if the lawyers don’t kill this book deal.

After I eat most of my pizza, I lean back in the chair and rub my full stomach. “I’m gonna be sick.”

Nate finishes his last slice and glances at me, head tipped toward the stairs. Without words, I know what he wants. We rarely need to speak to understand each other.

I slide my box in front of Carter. “You can have my leftovers.”

His eyes light up like a kid on Christmas morning. “Really? Sweet. Thanks, Rousseau.”

Once upstairs, Nate closes his bedroom door and pins me to the wood. His hand slips beneath my shirt as our lips touch.

“The pizza was good, but I’d much rather eat you.” He tugs his shirt over his head and points at the bed. “While they’re busy fucking off, we can play.”

I do as he says and toss my shirt on the floor. Sitting on the mattress, I spread my thighs and look up at him.

His eyes roll over my chiseled chest, drop to my hard cock, and then back to my face. Ready to pounce, he steps forward and shoves his pants over his hips, the tip of his cock peeking out.

“What the fuck?”

Nate focuses on the mirrored wall behind the bed, mouth hanging open. “Someone was… Who was in here?”

ChapterThree

NATE

Anger blooms in my chest,coiling around my heart like vines. The blood pumps faster through my veins. Every inch of my skin flares with heat.

Until a few seconds ago, I was distracted by River, ready to lick and bite his bare chest. He sits on my bed, legs spread, shirt tossed on the floor. Even his naked torso isn’t enough to calm my rage.

In the mirrored wall, I see my laptop open on my desk, revealing the digital wallpaper of River and me in our bathing suits, sitting on the beach. Before I left the house, I had turned off the computer and shoved it into my desk drawer.

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