Page 78 of Unrivaled

Max shook himself into the present. “Hmmm.” He glanced at Tanya and Logan over Carly’s shoulder and got a slight head shake. “After breakfast. Why don’t you and Milo help me set the table?”

By early afternoon they’d cleaned up the wrapping paper massacre and decamped to the beach, which was too cold for swimming but ideal for lounging. Milo and Carly took turns burying each other up to their waists, impervious to the slightly chilly—for Florida—weather, as any New Brunswicker would be.

Grady went back to the house to catch up with Jess, which left Max free to take Gru for a stroll down the beach and organize his thoughts.

You crack me open.

The words echoed in his head. He felt them in his chest.

He’d never expected Grady to let him in. He was pretty sureGradynever expected to let Max in. But something had given. Something had changed. And now….

A lot could happen. They were still professional hockey players, and Grady was looking for a trade. But they’d still see each other a few times a year, and they would still have summers off. They could train together.

Without intending to, he ended up back at the house. Gru beelined to his water bowl for a long drink, and Max hung his leash by the door and went looking for Grady. He found him in their bedroom, sitting on the bed and doing something on his phone.

“Hey.”

Grady put the phone down and smiled. “Hey.”

Max closed the door behind him and sat on the end of the bed. “How’s Jess?”

“Giddy,” he said wryly. “Guess they worked everything out.”

Grinning, Max crawled up the mattress to lie next to Grady. “Awesome. Merry Christmas to her.”

“Please don’t make a joke about Christmas coming more than once a year.”

“Of course not,” Max said. “That would be derivative.”

Grady turned onto his side and bit his lip, and Max took a deep breath. Time to lay the cards on the table.

“We should talk—”

“Do you think we can—”

Their eyes met. Max felt his cheeks go warm even as Grady flushed too.

Then the back door slid open and someone said, “Gru,no!” and Max groaned and pulled a pillow over his head.

Grady rescued him from suffocating himself. “Maybe when we have a little more privacy?” he suggested. “We play in Newark this week. Meet you after the game?”

“Yeah.” Max could feel his face smiling a little too widely, but he couldn’t do anything about it. “Sounds good.”

“Are you in town for New Year’s? Jess is bringing her girlfriends.”

“I’ll have to double-check we’re not flying out a day early, but I think I can make it.”

“Cool,” Grady said. He was such a dork. “It’s a date.”

Max’s heart did a stupid little flip, like it thought it was a figure skater instead of a hockey player.

“Max! Come get your dog!”

Groaning, he pulled the pillow back over his head. “Next year I’m going to Cancun without them.”

For a moment Grady said nothing. Then he lifted the corner of the pillow. “Does that mean I can have your share of the lobster?”

GRADY EXPECTEDto leave Miami more than ready to go home. After three full days of not only Max but Max’s family, who were all variations on the theme of Max, Grady thought he’d be—well, Maxed out.

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