Page 21 of Double Pucked

Even worse? I thought I’d lost my best bud for a few days there. That sucked.

So we made a pact—don’t let a woman come between our friendship again. Wedon’tgo to bars and call dibs on pretty girls. Wedocompare names and faces now. I don’t want to get screwed over, and I don’t want him to have the wool pulled over his eyes either.

Mostly, neither one of us wants the drama that comes from falling for someone else’s woman.

Pass.

Besides, I’m dating, romancing, and married to hockey. That’s the only way for me to live, especially since I promised my dad I’d look after Mom, Jackson, Gavin, and Trevor. Romance can take a back seat till I retire. I won’t let my father down. The man was my biggest champion growing up, and I won’t break the promise I made him in his final days.

But since Ryker and I are talking about the pact now, I might as well say it again, so my buddy knows it. I look him in the eyes. “Look, I still feel bad about Abby,” I say genuinely, since that mess was way harder for him than it was for me. Ryker was legit in love with the charlatan. I was just having fun.

Ryker shakes his head, exonerating me again. “We’re good, man. I swear. And the best thing that happened to me was seeing that pic of the two of you.”

I scrub a hand across my jaw and focus on this new complication. “And look, I knew you were hot for Trina. I’ve known since we met her earlier. If you want to go for her and see what happens, I get it. No shotgun calling, since it’s up to her if she even likes your grumpy, ugly ass. But it won’t ruin the pact, because, well we’re talking about it. I’m happy to step back,” I say.

Ryker scoffs. “What do you meanyou know?”

I pull a face, likec’mon, it’s me.“You forgot her name because you couldn’t look away from her eyes.”

Ryker huffs like a dragon. Busted. But quickly, he recovers, pointing at me. “Pot. Kettle.”

“What?” I ask, cocking my head. “I’ve been playing it cool all night.”

“Giving her the nickname Miss Book Babe? Patting her shoulder? Smiling like you’re trying to win a toothpaste contest?”

I laugh. “I’m just entertaining her.”

“Liar,” he mutters, but there’s a smirk on his stony face.

“Fine,” I relent, smiling too. “She’s fantastic and gorgeous. But I feel terrible about her situation. Wehaveto help her. There has to be something we can do. Hypothetical lessons? Vibrator shopping?” I suggest, but those are fails. I think on it for another several seconds till an idea flashes before me. “What if we try to help her find a good dude? Someone who’s not a selfish prick?”

“So you want us to be her matchmakers?” He sounds intensely skeptical.

“Maybe,” I offer, desperate to do something. “Is it the worst idea? I hate to see a woman suffer in bed. We could be like…orgasm matchmakers.”

A throat clears. “Or…I have another idea.”

Trina’s back.

8

AN EVERYTHING BAGEL

Trina

You can do this.

You are a badass, book-devouring babe.

Ask for what you want.

But Chase goes first, snapping his gaze to me, a guilty look in his brown eyes. “Hey there,” he says tentatively, but I think what he really means ishow much did you hear?

The answer?Enough. I heard enough.

I went to the bathroom to get a moment alone, and yes, to check on my dog. One quick text to Aubrey and I learnedNacho’s doing great, now go fuck them both and report back in the morning.

Okaaay.

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