Page 8 of Icing the Play

JJ pushed my hand away and grabbed Myles’s hand in his own. “Dude, your college teammates will always be by your side. Even when they’re thousands of miles away, you know they’re still there for you. You all have an unbreakable bond, and especially because they’refamily.”

Myles’s gaze locked on JJ’s and widened. “You know? You’re right.” The ghost of a grin crept over his lips. “It’s going to be a good year, eh?”

I wanted to befamily. But I couldn’t tell Myles yet what I’d discovered about myself. I wasn’t ready. “And you know I’m here for you, too.”

As his eyes grew glassy, Myles said, “Thanks, guys. I’ll try to get you some prime seats for Friday home game?” He hooked a brow.

“Hell yes. I’ll even wear your jersey.” JJ barked out a laugh. “Can you imagine what people would say?”

I gaped. What, JJ already thought they were boyfriends? “Come on, man.” I snickered, shook my head, and drank my beer.

With a shrug, Myles said, “Sure, why not?” He beamed at JJ. “I have a smaller one that would fit you.”

“Ooh, ouch.” JJ tsked. “But yeah, I’m not as broad in the shoulders as you are. Just taller.” With a swift grin, he squeezed Myles’s hand.

This was weird. Were they serious right now or fucking with me? Leaning back in my seat, I eyed them. “So, why did you two stop talking over the summer?” I covered my mouth with my hand. Why had I blurted that out? Was I testing them?

JJ and Myles’s gazes locked.

Furrowing his brows, Myles slowly turned his gaze on me. “I don’t know, just got busy?”

“Were you busy going to gay bars in Chicago and hooking up?” With a light laugh, JJ bumped his shoulder into Myles’s.

“I did some of that.” He peeked at JJ from over the lip of his beer glass as he took a sip.

“How often do you hook up at the gay bar?” And was that safe? Heat swirled in my chest. An image of JJ and Myles, naked and dancing, flashed through my brain. I shook it off. This whole situation was messing with my head.

Myles gulped his beer down and set the empty glass on the table, a smirk growing on his generous lips. “A lady never tells.” His gaze slid to mine and held it for a beat, then he poured himself more beer.

JJ snorted. “A lady. That’s a good one. You’re a hockey player.”

“I was Wonder Woman last year for Halloween.” Myles brushed his blond bangs off his brow with a flourish. “And boy, did I attract a lot of attention.” With a giggle, his face flushed all the way to his ears.

“You didn’t.” JJ looked him up and down. “That could be kind of kinky. You still have that outfit?”

Holding my palm up to them, I said, “Okay. Stop.” I fought against a hard ball rolling around in my gut. Why was this bothering me so much? I clenched my teeth.

Both their gazes snapped to me.

Myles cocked his head. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, sorry.” Rubbing my brow, I sipped my beer. I had to get out of this. Meeting Myles’s gaze, I said, “Hey, you remember that time a couple of us ditched class to go sledding after a blizzard?” I tugged my lips into a grin.

Myles leaned in. “You almost hit a tree taking that jump at the bottom of the hill.”

JJ furrowed his brows. “I only went sledding once up in Flag. My mom took me and my brother when we were little. I barely remember it.”

“Sledding was a blast. The best sleds are those red plasticthings. We used to play a game where a bunch of us would hold a rope and go down at once. Whoever let go was the loser.” Myles’s face lit up.

With my grin widening, I said, “Yeah, and we’d build these killer jumps down at the bottom?—”

“But you’d have to bail after the jump because there was a forest and rocks at the bottom, or you might slam into a tree trunk.” Myles giggled. “Cooper always hit those things the hardest and flew the highest.”

“We had competitions.” With my heart lightening, I drank more beer and sunk into my seat. Now, this conversation was much more fun.

“How old were you two when you met?” JJ shifted away from Myles, resting his forearms on the table around his beer glass.

Myles tapped his lips. “I think it was sophomore year when I moved to Chicago from Vancouver, eh? My dad took a job with the NHL that year.”

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