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Brandon shot him the finger, and Eli laughed. "So touchy in your old age."
"Over the hill at thirty-fucking-one," Brandon muttered.
"Don't listen to these assholes," Fally said. "We've both got a ton of hockey years ahead of us.”
"I hope so," Ryder replied. "We're on the wrong side of thirty when it comes to hockey, though."
"Jesus," Fally grumbled. "Enough with the old age shit." He paused and cocked his head. "What the fuck is that noise? The buzzing?"
"Wow. He still has his hearing. Look at that," Shaw said. He ducked as Fally pretended to lunge at him.
"Sorry. It's my phone. I'll mute it," Sam apologized, pulling it from his pocket.
"Jesus, it's been buzzing non-stop for the past fifteen minutes. Is there some kind of emergency, London?" Fally asked.
"No, it's Shay." Sam clicked the mute button. "You guys know how she gets when she's pissed about something."
The room fell silent for a few moments as the men exchanged glances.
"Yeah, we know." Ryder nodded. "Londs, what's going on with you guys?"
Sam shrugged, then slid his baseball cap around to the back, tucking his blond hair behind his ears. "I don't know."
"Why don't you know?" Fally asked bluntly. "I'm not trying to get in your business, Sam, but honestly? You don't seem happy. Life is too short to not be happy, bud."
"I know, but she's just..." Sam sighed. "She drove me insane when I tried to break up with her a month ago. I'd reached my limit, and then she didn't stop with her antics. She'd call me and come over crying and apologizing in the middle of the night. Ranting and raging when I didn't let her in."
"Jesus, is she fucking stalking you or some shit?" Eli asked, peering over his water bottle at Sam. "That's disturbing, not to mention abusive, behavior. Are you still into her, London? I know you've been together for a while."
"No," Sam answered, his voice clipped. "I don't feel anything anymore. I've heard about some shitty stuff she's been doing lately. It makes me sick."
"What stuff?" Brandon asked. "What are you talking about?"
"Saying awful things to the fans at games. To girls wearing my jersey. Or making comments on social media to fans or random people. She's just..."
"Tell it like it is, Londs. She's a crazy bitch," Eli finished.
"I guess," Sam mumbled, shifting in his seat.
"Look, I've seen her in action when you guys fight," Eli told him. "I know her temper, and I know what she's like. She can get mean. Very mean."
"I know." Sam lifted his shoulder. "But I don't want her going nuts on me until the playoffs are officially over. I'm planning on breaking up with her for good then. But I'm just frustrated."
"I get it," Ryder said sympathetically. "She's smoking hot, and she was your first girlfriend when you made it to this league. You think there's a certain status to walking around with a girl like that on your arm. But I promise you, it's not worth it. You're what, twenty-three? Twenty-four?"
"Twenty-three. And yeah, it's not worth it. Not anymore," Sam said darkly. "I'd give anything to meet someone who is nice, pretty, and who likes me for me. Besides, I think Shay is using me to get to someone else now that things are starting to go south with us."
Eli stared at his friend. "What the fuck. Who, London?"
"Cohan. I've heard people talking, and I've seen some shit that makes me think it's true.”
"John Cohan?" Ryder asked, raising an eyebrow. "John isn't messing around with Shay."
"No, I'm sure he isn't." Sam set down his fork. "John is a serious guy. I can't see him doing that to a teammate. Fuck, at this point I'd say he could have her, but I wouldn't wish her on anyone."
"He keeps his private life really private," Brandon said. "He's never offered up info about it, and I've never asked. Figured it was off-limits. At parties, he usually takes off when a conversation turns personal."
"Are you sure you can handle Shay until the playoffs are over?" Shaw asked. "Can you put up with that shit for a little while longer, brother? It sounds miserable."
