Page 45 of Rise Above

Davis’s eyes never left the ice as we watched the

game. He would occasionally slam his hands into the

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boards, usually to yell at TJ. It was a little embarrassing when he did that, but so many others seemed to as well. To be fair to Davis, I couldn’t take my eyes off the game either. TJ was incredible. He was already an insanely attractive man and seeing him on the ice made my entire body warm. His jaw seemed sharper and the way his hands gripped the sticks created fantasies in my head of those hands gripping me. I shook my head, trying to focus on friendship, not sexual fantasies.

“Come on!” Davis yelled, pulling me out of my

dirty thoughts. “Bullshit! Come on, ref. Call the fucking hooks!”

TJ, who was now sitting on the bench, turned to

look at us. He motioned for Davis to knock it off before turning back to face the game. I guess I wasn’t the only one embarrassed by my friend. Davis could get wound up way too quickly.

“Davis, relax.” I laid a hand on his arm. “It’s just a

game.”

“An important one.”

Sighing, I decided to drop the conversation. As

much as Davis loved his career, it was clear he hadn’t processed his hockey-ending injury. I could tell he really wanted to be on the ice too. From what I knew, Davis was talented. Not like I could judge because I definitely hadn’t processed what had led to my pursuing a PhD. I wouldn’t push him either. We all had to face our traumas in our own time.

Things on the ice started to heat up as TJ hopped

back on it. He played aggressively, skating up the rink with

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the puck. He managed to pull off some crazy juke move before slap-shotting in a goal. The Chaos Coliseum went absolutely wild. People started screaming his name and chanting his number. I’m sure even the nosebleeds could see the smile on his beautiful face. That smile was radiating; it could light up the entire world. I bit my lip to stop my own grin; TJ had an infectious smile.

“That’s my boy!” Davis jumped out of his seat.

“Let’s go, TJ!”

Laughing, I cheered for my friend as well. It was

weird that we were friends now, but I couldn’t lie; I loved it too. TJ was this strange combination of totally open and also completely closed off. Today had been magical, really. I’d really never been able to open up that quickly to a person before. TJ was so easy to talk to, and it felt like we had known each other for years. I wanted to know more, and I hoped he did too. My eyes focused back on the ice as Davis waved a hand in front of my face.

“Where are you at, Aife?” Davis tapped my head.

“You disappeared on me.”

“Sorry.” I blushed.

“Focus on the game, hon. You can ogle my friend

later.”

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