Page 29 of Ice Block

“Sure,” I reply, slamming the plates violently onto the bench press bar.

“Do you have something against this equipment? Or you having some issues with your living arrangement this week?” he snarks, elbowing me as he wiggles his eyebrows.

Sitting down on the bench, I let out a loud sigh. “It’s…complicated.”

“What’s complicated?” Bougie quips, walking over to nose his way into the conversation, as usual.

“None of your goddamn business.”

“Oh, come on Vladi—talk to me! We’re BFFs now, right?”

My jaw clenches so hard I am worried I will crack a tooth, but it grounds me enough to keep me from attacking the fucker. The amount of peppiness in his voice today,everyday, is beyond annoying.I don’t do peppy.If this damn kid wouldn’t have sat next to me on a flight when I started a winning streak, no thanks to a bait-and-switch by Larsy, I wouldn’t even be giving him the time of day outside of our required team activities. But despite his constant state of happiness, the damn kid grew on me like the bourbon at the gala. At first, I was pissed it wasn’t my precious vodka. But now? I’ve come to enjoy it in small doses. Very. Small. Doses.

Bougie leans dangerously close to my face, cocking his head to the side as he waits for me to respond.Shit. I wasn’t paying attention to the last thing he said.“What the hell is a BFF?”

“Uhhh, hello? Best Friends Forever! Come on, you know that! We’re a team, Vladi. We’re all BFFs!”

“No the fuck we’re not.”

With those words, Bougie starts singing some ridiculous song about everyone being in this together, along with full dance choreography, I notice some of the other guys joining in with. I drop my face into my hands, my jaw clenching.Someone get me out of this hellhole.

“Oh my God, Bougie, enough with the High School Musical dances!” Zack Reeves shouts, coming over to rescue me. “We get it. You’re young. We don’t need to see your moves to know you’re only twenty-two.”

“Don’t be such a boomer, Z! If you prefer, I have another song I can sing about being twenty-two,” Bougie says with a wink.

Zack looks my way, his face grim. “When did we become the parents of this team?”

I snort out a laugh. “I don’t know, but I don’t like it.”

“Ignore them,” EJ chimes in. “I want to hear aboutyousharing a room with Maggie James. What’s up with that?”

“Nothing is up with that,” I snarl back at him.

He gives me an inquisitive look, his eyes lighting up, and I know this isn’t going to end well. “Nothing, huh? So…she’s available? I was thinking about seeing if she wanted to be my date to the recept-”

“No,” I snap, lying under the bar gripping it with all my strength in an attempt to keep my rage from boiling over as I prepare to lift.

A wide smile spreads across his face as he winks,fucking winks, at me. “That’s what I thought, big guy.”

“Are you going to spot me or not?” I growl.

“Oh, calm down, Vladi,” Zach says as I pump out my reps on the bench. “He’s just giving you shit. We’re all just…curious.”

I place the bar back on the rack and sit up, grabbing my towel to wipe my face. “There is nothing to know. We are sharing a room. She has a fortress of pillows built up between us in the bed. We’ll be friendly when we need to. That’s it.”

“Ouch,” EJ winces. “A wall of pillows? Damn, that’s harsh. She afraid of the Russian giant between your legs or what?”

“Can we not talk about the size of my cock, please?” I grumble, knowing my workout is a lost cause.

“I’m just saying, man! We’ve all seen what you’re packing down there. I’m not making fun; I’m impressed! And a little jealous…”

Zack lets out a loud sigh and places a hand on my shoulder. “What EJ is trying to ask is why you have a beautiful woman like Maggie James in your bed with a giant wall of pillows between you. Most women would be dying to hop in bed with a guy like you.”

I shake my head, looking to the floor. My chest tightens, achingat how I want her. Every damn part of her.If only that were possible. “She’s not most women.”

“Oh, really?” Zack tilts his head. “Tell me then, how is she different?”

“She’s fucking annoying for starters. And crass. And gives me shit all day long. And calls me an asshole. She told me to eat shit and die on the flight over here, for God’s sake! And she struts around the room in her shorts and tank top like she owns the damn resort.”

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