What better way to distract myself from thinking about Drax than by having fun?
TWO
Adler
“Ace! Ace! Ace!” My teammates cheer, pulling me up onto their shoulders to parade me down the beach. “Ace!”
Hearing people chant my last name will never get old. I raise the beer in my hand, sloshing some over the sides, relishing the crowd’s heckles before I’m lowered to the ground like a king stepping off his throne.
“We’re gonna go all the way!” Corbin—my best friend on the team—wraps his arm around my neck and ruffles my hair. “This is our year. I can feel it, man.”
Olly, another of my teammates, slaps me on the back. “You’ll make them bawl like babies at our next game, if you play like you did today.”
This sets off another round of, “Ace, Ace, Ace!”
Their cheering vibrates through my entire body like a thumping heartbeat. Fuck, today is a good day. Adrenaline from our win is still coursing through me as I bounce on the balls of my feet. I’m on top of the fucking world. Nothing beats the high of obliterating the competition.
“Great game, Ace!” Cindy, leader of the SVU Foxes ice skating cheer squad, saunters over. Stopping in front of me, she trails her long nail down the front of my chest. She’s still wearingfox ears clipped to her blonde hair, and I’ve seen dental floss that’s thicker than the strings of her tiny bikini. Half the team is practically drooling. “Maybe we’ll celebrate together…” She leans in, assaulting me with her layers of overpoweringly sweet scent blocker, almost making me sneeze. “Like we did last time.”
Hooking up with her once when I got wasted was a big mistake, and worse? She now expects it to happen every time I see her.
“You’re in, dawg!” Olly winks, obviously checking out Cindy’s perky ass as she dramatically swings her hips while she walks away. “Imagine helping her through a heat.”
I can’t think of anything worse. During our night together, I had the misfortune of discovering that Cindy’s scent blockers masked a sour milk odor mid-way through screwing her. But I’m not an asshole, so I keep my opinions to myself and smile politely, looking for an escape.
“You’re welcome to her,” I tell him. “Good luck.”
I scan the beach. It sucks that Luca couldn’t come. He’s working with the team physical therapist as part of his training, so he knows practically everyone here. But he decided to take off on one of his solo camping expeditions tonight. What’s more interesting about the outdoors that could possibly beat this? I’m standing in the middle of what would be most college guys’ idea of paradise with beer and chicks on tap.
I take a photo of the party and send it to our pack group chat.
ME
Look what you’re missing, @Luca.
He sends back a photo of his muddy hiking boots and him holding a sad-looking marshmallow over a fire.
LUCA
I’m good here. See you in the morning!
Orin responds almost immediately too.
ORIN
Got a night shift. Keep it down.
ME
All right, grandpa…
Typical Orin. He’s the oldest member of our pack. We met in high school when he was a senior, and Luca and I were freshmen. He became our informal mentor on the ice. Without him, I wouldn’t be the player I am today. He joined the military straight after his high school graduation, so we didn’t see him again until he returned to our hometown four years later. By that time, Luca and I had learned our designations—both alphas—so we formed a pack.
The three of us have been playing hockey since little league. Throughout high school, Luca and I have always had our hearts set on playing for the SVU Foxes. When we both got in, Orin got a job as SVU’s head of security, which suits him perfectly. He’s cautious, calculating, and will do anything to keep people safe. Sometimes, his protectiveness can be a major pain in the ass—especially when he breaks up some of my wild antics—but he helps keep me grounded. He jokes that I’d be a runaway train without him, and he’s probably right.
Corbin joins me to talk through a play-by-play of his moves during the game. He likes to see if there’s anywhere he can improve by unpicking every move. I’m the opposite; I live for the moment. When it’s gone, it’s gone.
“And then when you pulled that hat trick!” Corbin punches the air as I fill our red cups with beer from the keg. “You should have seen their coach’s face. I saw tears, man! Literal tears.”
