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Chapter 1
Carter
For the first time since high school, I am nervous for a date. And not just any date. I’m meeting Sydney Carroway, the famous romance author, who looks like a pinup model. She’s kind of a big deal around here. But so am I.
So, why am I nervous?
This chick has me off my game for some reason, and I haven’t even met her yet. Sydney was born into excessive wealth, a luxury I did not have until I made it pro, and now she’s running her own empire. Intimidation is a feeling so foreign anymore that I have no idea why I allow it to consume me. But I do.
Once the self-doubt starts to creep in, the bile rises up the back of my throat. Sydney is going to be one spitfire of a woman. I know that from what I have heard about her from Kennedy Lockwood, her best friend, and Tyler Kane’s live-in girlfriend.
I pull through the wrought iron gates of Tyler’s estate and up the long driveway. He never keeps the gate locked, which is not smart when you are as famous and rich as Tyler. Not that I don’t have the same issues, but Tyler is the highest paid player in the NHL and the most sought after. As our team captain and starting center for the Flyers, everyone wants a piece of him.
I’m the goalie, the one who fucked things up for us again this year. Because Tyler is my best friend, he won’t allow me to blame myself, says the team sucks as a whole. But I take responsibility for every shot taken on goal and scored. When a team loses repeatedly, the media blames it on ineffective goaltending. I agree with them.
I also blame another shitty season for being anxious about this date. It doesn’t help that Tyler warned me about Sydney several times before coming over tonight. This is the first time Tyler is meeting her as well. He wants this to go smooth since Kennedy and Sydney are like sisters. So, I cannot fuck this up.
I pull around the circular driveway and park in front of Tyler’s mansion. This place should have its own zip code. My house is big but nothing compared to the monstrosity of Kane Manor. My other teammate, Alex Parker, has his Porsche parked ahead of me, lined up with Tyler’s BMW. By process of elimination, I assume Sydney is not here yet, which gives me some time to get inside and talk to everyone before she makes her grand entrance.
She seems like the type to show up late just to make everyone stop what they are doing to drool over her. High maintenance chicks are not really my thing. But, when you have a body and face like hers, exceptions can be made.
Sucking in a deep breath, I open the door, sliding out from my Hummer. I’m a big guy, always have been, and at six foot six and two hundred forty pounds, I need the room to move around. It amazes me how Alex and Tyler can drive such tiny cars when they’re only a few inches shorter than me.
When I reach the front door, it’s already open, same as always. Tyler really needs to work on his home security before he gets robbed or molested by a stalker fan. He had a stalker years ago. You think he would have learned from that incident. Idiot.
“Hello,” I yell, once I step inside the marbled hallway.
The house has vaulted ceilings that cause my voice to echo, massive crystal chandeliers hanging in the foyer, and a long staircase that leads to the second floor bedrooms. I walk straight ahead, toward the living room, where I can hear the last game of the Stanley Cup Finals blasting through the surround sound speakers. It’s tradition for Tyler and me to watch the playoffs together.
Alex is a new addition this year, along with his girlfriend and agent, Charlotte Coachman. She goes by the nickname Coach and represents both Alex and Tyler. She even agreed to help me out with my next contract, which is coming up soon. If I don’t get my shit together, it will be my last year with the Flyers.
When I step into the living room, Coach and Alex are cuddling on one of the oversized sectional couches. Tyler is next to him with his arm hooked around Kennedy’s back, holding her against his side and chatting with Alex about the game on TV. Both couples have been inseparable since they met. Sometimes, they make me want to puke, but it’s also nice to see both Alex and Tyler happy after all the pain and drama they went through over the years.
Like me, Tyler has a dark past he keeps to himself. Not even Parker knows either of our secrets. We bonded over our mutual issues and hatred for being on a losing team. Then, when the offers started rolling in from other teams in the league, neither Tyler nor I wanted to leave. Tyler has his reasons, and I have mine.
For the most part, we come as a packaged deal. I imagine Alex will also go with us when the day finally comes for us to make a decision. I doubt that will happen anytime soon, considering Tyler’s insistence on making the Flyers a winning team.
He’s been on the phone with Mike Turner, our general manager, almost every day to ask
about trades. They don’t have anything in the works or the salary cap to work with after signing Alex this year. So, we have no choice but to stick it out and hope we can get our shit together by the start of next season.
Standing in the archway of the living room, I raise my thick arms above my head to stretch, wearing sweat pants that hang from my hips and a cut off tank that shows off my tats. I chose this in an attempt to act causal and pretend I am not excited about our date. Now that Kennedy is giving me the stink eye, I realize this outfit was a bonehead move. Sydney will probably hate me.
At least I trimmed my dark beard, now looking more like an average person and less like a lumberjack. I have a season ritual where I refuse to shave. The length of my beard was getting out of hand by the last game and started to get on my nerves.
I shaved and showered to meet Sydney. But that was about all I did other than some manscaping. I thought that would be enough since the setup was mutual. Now, I’m not so sure.
“Where are you coming from?” Tyler asks, getting up from the couch with Kennedy following behind him.
“My house. Why?” I strut into the living room and slap my hand down hard on Tyler’s back in greeting, causing him to jerk forward. I often forget my own strength.
He shrugs. “I thought maybe you were training before you came over. That’s all.”
I glance down at my shirt. “Nah, I ran out of clothes to wear, and I didn’t feel like doing laundry.” That is a lie.
“You know Kennedy invited Sydney for you, right?” Tyler speaks low enough so only I can hear.
I act calm, unaffected. “Yeah, what's the problem?”
“Nothing. I just thought you wanted to meet Sydney, and you are dressed like this.” Tyler points at my chest.
He must be annoyed for Kennedy, assuming she will give him a rash of shit later, but she keeps her mouth shut.
They have the game on in the background, the commentator’s voices blaring over the speakers. I could care less who wins this year, considering we didn’t even make it to the first round of the playoffs. But I am hoping our competition get their asses kicked.
The doorbell rings, and I follow Tyler and Kennedy out of the room and down the hallway. I hover over Tyler, like a big oaf, and with a fuck me grin on my face because Sydney is smoking hot. Even hotter in person than online.
Her pictures do not even do her justice. She gets the same reaction as me from Tyler. Sydney is the kind of woman you stop to notice. If Tyler weren't with Kennedy, we would be fighting for her right now, trying to out do the other.
“Tyler,” Sydney says, holding out her hand as if she expects him to kiss the ring. She has a real air of entitlement around her, which is evident in the way she speaks and moves.
Sydney flashes her pearly whites at Tyler. “So, you’re the stud who’s stolen my Kennedy away from me.”
Tyler shakes her hand, his gesture so formal that even Sydney seems a bit taken back. “Sorry about that.”
She shrugs and walks into the house, ignoring me with her head held high, and her tits pushed out. I lick my lips and stalk behind her, staring at her perfect ass. I have to admit I do not love how she just blew past me as if I were a piece of furniture in her way that she had to maneuver around. But I sure as hell am intrigued.
“I would say sorry for taking you away from Kennedy,” Tyler says to Sydney once we enter the living room, “but I have a hard time letting her out of my sight.”
She peeks up at him from beneath her long lashes and flips her dark curls over her shoulder. “How can I compete with your monster cock? But I do think we should work out a schedule. You know, you get her one day, and I get her the next.”
