Page 80 of The Husband Game

Felix Hale stood too, bumping against the coffee table and making the handful of beer bottles clink lightly.

“Hey, Haler, I didn’t know you were back in town already,” Dustin said with a grin as he stepped forward to pull Felix in for a hug. “Good to you see you, man.”

Felix smiled and squeezed back. “You too.”

“When did you arrive, anyway?” Dustin asked as the hug ended. He gripped Felix’s upper arm to keep him from pulling away. “I thought you were staying in Vancouver with Whitney and her family for at least another week.”

Felix gave a half-hearted shrug and looked away. “I got in a few days ago. Things kind of imploded with Whit so ...”

“Oh, ouch. Sorry to hear that.” Wincing, Dustin squeezed his arm.

Felix and Whitney had been dating for a couple of years now. They’d met when Felix played for Vancouver but her job hadn’t allowed her to move to Toronto and they’d been doing the long-distance thing since.

Felix had gone out to spend the summer with her and take a vacation with her and her family in the hopes of changing her mind about moving to Toronto.

Felix grimaced. “It sucks but it wasn’t a surprise. She got a promotion and … yeah. That’s kinda that, I guess. We can’t keep doing the distance anymore. We’re holding each other back.” But he sounded so defeated Dustin’s heart clenched.

“Well, let me know if you want to talk. You’re always welcome here, you know.”

“I know. Thanks.” Felix’s smile was weak but he slapped Dustin on the back. “But, hey, congratulations to you. I’m happy for you and Charlie.”

“Thanks.” Dustin snuck a glance at Charlie who was deep in conversation with Matty, Nico, and Colton.

Either they were actually in the middle of a heated discussion about something or were trying to give him a moment to talk to Felix. He wasn’t entirely sure.

“Promise you’ll call if you need to talk though, okay?” Dustin asked, glancing back at Felix.

“Yeah, yeah of course.” Felix gave him a tight smile before he turned away. “Are we ready to go, guys?”

Colton nodded. “Please. I don’t need to watch my captain stick his tongue down his husband’s throat again, thanks.”

All of them meandered toward the front door, Matty chirping Colton about the number of times they’d caught him and Birdie making out at team events.

They all said their goodbyes, Charlie getting friendly hugs from everyone on the team, even Felix. It meant a lot that Charlie had not only made an effort to get to know the guys but was being so readily accepted as one of the group.

“Hey, you’ll be at my birthday party, right?” Matty asked Charlie.

“Definitely. I’m looking forward to it.” Charlie smiled prettily up at him and a wholly unreasonable bolt of jealousy went through Dustin.

He glanced away in time to see Felix shove a shoe on and lose his balance, stumbling a little before bracing a hand against the wall to steady himself.

“You okay, man?” Dustin asked, concerned he was in no shape to drive.

Felix didn’t usually overindulge but there were an awful lot of bottles on the coffee table. Even for this crew in the off-season.

Felix nodded. “Just pre-gamed a little hard at Matty’s earlier but he drove us here. I’ll sober up there for a few hours before I go home or crash on his couch.”

“Good.”

“I’ll take care of him,” Matty promised, slapping Felix’s back and guiding him to the door. “I promise.”

“Will you make pancakes in the morning?” Felix asked hopefully.

Matty laughed. “Don’t I always?”

Dustin grinned. It wasn’t unusual for guys to crash here or at Matty’s house, but they definitely preferred Matty’s, since he made such great breakfasts.

“Night, guys,” Dustin called as he held the front door open for them. He caught a glimpse of Matty’s Jeep parked around the slight curve of the U-shaped driveaway. He hadn’t noticed it when he pulled into the garage on the far side of the house earlier.

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