Trey is sitting at his stall reading the chain with the expression of a man reconsidering every career decision that led him here. “Short answers,” he says, without looking up.
“I gave short answers.”
“Max.”
“Most of them were short.”
He closes his eyes. Opens them. “She’s standing right there when you said that.”
“I’m aware.”
“The whole room is aware.” He finally looks at me. The captain expression is fully deployed. “Are we going to have a problem.”
I pull my jersey over my head. “Nope.”
His gaze bores into me, it’s a silent, knowing stare. “Okay,” he says. He doesn’t believe me for a second. Neither do I.
Trey keeps staring at me another second too long before finally shaking his head and looking back down at his phone like he’s spiritually fatigued.
That’s when Fuze clears his throat dramatically. “And here we observe the North American penalty idiot attempting courtship through public humiliation.”
Anthony adds, “Toni blinked at him twice. That’s basically foreplay.”
A laugh ripples through the room.
I yank my pads off harder than necessary. “You guys done?”
“Absolutely not,” Lucas says immediately.
Trey drags a hand down his face like a man who should have gone into accounting. “Nobody antagonize him before puck drop.”
“Counterpoint,” Fuze says, spinning slowly in his chair. “It’s become one of my favorite hobbies.”
Anthony points toward me. “Buddy, you looked at her during that press conference like she personallyinvented oxygen.”
“I did not.” The worst part is I remember exactly which look he means. I did look at her like that. Like she'd personally restarted my circulatory system.
“You absolutely did,” Knox says.
“You tucked your chin down,” Anthony says.
I stare at him. “What?”
“You do that when you like somebody.”
“I do not.”
“You literally looked shy,” Fuze says.
The room goes silent.
“Jesus,” Knox mutters. “That’s worse.”
“Honestly,” Fuze adds thoughtfully, “I’ve seen less tension between goalies and their ex-wives.”
“I hate every one of you,” I mutter.
“That’s not denial,” Anthony notes. I throw a towel at his head. He catches it without looking.
