Page 6 of Strong and Wild

“Hear you’re coming out with us tonight?”

“Yeah, why not. I don’t have much of an excuse, since I live above the bar.”

His lips turn up into a mischievous half smile. “Have you met your neighbor yet?”

“Yes...”

“That’s my wife’s best friend, Micky.”

Small world getting smaller.

“Aren’t those rookie apartments?” So what’s she doing there? Please don’t tell me she’s dating another player. I couldn’t deal.

“They are, but she did me a solid last spring, so I hooked her up with an apartment since she was having trouble finding one.”

Ah.Wish he could have found her literally any other place to stay, but whatever. Lonan is a nice guy, it’s not surprising he’s helping out his wife’s friends too.

“Gotcha. She bakes a lot, huh?”

He grins. “Yeah, what makes you say that?”

“She left some cookie things on my doormat.”

“Are they macarons? Freaking love those. Not as good as Birdie’s snickerdoodles, but a close second, for sure. I’d work that angle and see how many cookies you can get.” He waggles his eyebrows.

“Nah, bud. Not interested.”

“Oh, you skate for the other team?”

I laugh at that, considering the number of times I’ve gotten off to Queen of Tarts.

“No, but I want to get settled on the team. I just got here. I don’t have the luxury of screwing around.”

“You’re a lot more mature than I was as a rookie, that’s for sure. Same goes for most of the guys here. We were all dumbstruck by pussy when we joined the league. It’s everywhere. You’ll see. But damn, when you find the right one, it’s heaven,” he says, staring at a picture of his wife on his phone.

* * *

Walking into Top Shelf feels odd since I’ve walked past it so many times. The bar erupts in cheers, and I follow the rest of the team to an area in the back with booths. We’re celebrities to people, it’s so bizarre. And Lonan wasn’t lying, as soon as we walk in, the girls are nipping at our heels. He beelines it for his wife. I recognize her from the picture on his phone earlier, she’s sitting at the bar talking to...sonofabitch.No way.

She works here? It’s like I can’t escape her! Micky’s my neighbor, my teammate’s wife’s best friend, and now she’s the goddamn bartender at the bar everyone hangs out at. It’s not enough that she’s on my phone and laptop.

I’m so fucked.

It’s one thing to avoid a neighbor, but how the hell can I avoid her when she’s everywhere? I can’t. I’ll have to lean into it. She’s a knockout behind the bar, especially since I know what she looks like under that shirt. I knew she would be pretty, but I didn’t anticipate her to be so beautiful that I couldn’t even look at her in the hallway today. God, those lips. Would her lipstick coat my entire cock? Would those green eyes sparkle like they do now if I were buried in her throat?

“Kucera, right?” A small palm rests on my shoulder.

“Yeah.” I look down to a cute blonde gazing at me like I’m a winning lottery ticket.

“Oh my God, I’ve been wondering when you were going to show up!”

“Oh yeah? Why’s that?” I wonder if this is why rookies go nuts for girls, it’s like we’re set up to fail. I admit, I’m a good-looking guy, but it’s irrelevant because I’m here to play hockey, not women. My agent says to lean into it, it will help me get more sponsorships.

“Oh my God, you’re so funny! You don’t even know how hot you are. It’s so cute.”

Jeeezus.Lonan wasn’t lying. I could literally take her upstairs if I wanted to.

Conway leans over to me and whispers, “Bob and weave, motherfucker. Bob and weave. Be polite but hold your ground.”

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