Page 6 of Double Pucked

I cringe. “Do not be repugnant. Just be nice.”

He snickers. “Refulgent means luminous. As in sunshiney. Like you said.”

Like it’s happening in slow-mo, I raise my middle finger. “And this means fuck off, word nerd.”

“Aww, was it hard for you to learn something? Or did it drive you crazy?”

I scoff. “You know what drives me crazy? When you act like you’re an irascible bastard,” I say, flinging one of his fancy words back at him.

Ryker cracks a rare grin. “See? My word nerding rubs off on you. Such a surprise for a Golden Retriever.”

“Did you mean team captain? Since that’s what it says on my jersey.”

He growls again. But I’m not fooled by his grumpy routine. Only one thing I’ve done has ever really pissed off Ryker. A year ago, when he thought I stole his girl. Dude didn’t speak to me for a week. But I didn’t know Abby was his and I will never do it again. We made a pact after all. “By the way, what’s the etymology of avocado?” I ask.

That perks him up. “It comes from an Aztec word for testicles.”

I cringe. “This is why I don’t need to learn your weird words.”

* * *

Ten hours later I’m rinkside, in my uniform, and ready to destroy the Avengers. The game starts in twenty minutes. But first, my goalie taps my knee with his stick.

“Listen,” Erik begins from his spot on the bench next to me. “Lisette needs to know if you want to be at the singles table next weekend? She says it’ll be fun.”

Fun and singles tables don’t usually go hand in hand. But that’s my cousin Lisette for you. I invited her to a barbecue at my house a couple years ago, and she hit it off with my teammate. “Was the table by the dumpster in the alley unavailable?”

He rolls his eyes. “She wants to introduce you to some of her friends.”

Yup. Knew that was coming. My cousin’s been trying to return the favor and set me up with someone ever since Erik proposed. “Let me think about it while we play. You do the same,” I deadpan.

“Fuck off. This is how I get in the zone,” he says.

I smile. “I know, man. I know. Hence, I indulge you.”

Erik never talks hockey before a game so we shoot the shit some more till Gianna heads through the stands, coming from one direction, Ryker from the other. Even though he’s on the other team, he’s joining me over here for the pic, per his agent’s orders since the guy is making him do this event with me tonight. I pop up, moving away from Erik and the other guys.

“Our VIP guest has arrived,” Gianna says to Ryker and me with a bright smile. “Well, one of them. Her name is Trina and I’ll grab her in just a minute. Quick debrief—she’s meeting her friend Aubrey here shortly, but we’ll do a photo with Trina before the game since she won the tickets. I spoke with the Avengers publicist and Oliver wants you,” she says, looking at Ryker, “to lean into the wholefriendly rivalrything. Got it?”

Ryker gives a curt nod, but says nothing.

Gianna continues, “Then after the game, you’ll both take Trina and her friend to the bar they chose for your favorite thing.”

Sex. That’s my favorite thing. I don’t say that out loud but I fucking think it. “Ping-Pong,” I say brightly.

“Pool,” Ryker says.

“I meant bar games.” Gianna laughs. “Can you two ever agree on anything?”

We look at each other, stony-faced. “Hockey is the best sport,” I say.

“But that’s about it,” Ryker adds, even though the truth is we agree on a ton of things. That you’ve got to take care of your mom, look out for your little sibs, and play hard for every period, to name a few.

I’ve known Ryker since we were six and growing up in the same neighborhood in Denver. Our moms were and still are best friends.

But ribbing him is a daily hobby, and I’m devoted to it. Even more so when we face off against each other on the ice. While Gianna retreats to grab our VIP guest, we debate bar games. “Ping-Pong is the best. It’s fun, fast, and you can slam the hell out of a tiny white ball,” I say, making my case.

“Pool requires strategy,” Ryker puts in.

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