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Wow. It was a shock to hear Nico speak this openly, to reveal so much about his life, and Bennett relished this rare peek at the soft underbelly of Nico Marzano. “That’s nice.”
“This incident,” he continued. “What happened with your teammate has revealed other sides of her. Vulnerable, yes. But also strong. She is more Marzano than I had perhaps realized.”
“Does she . . . Is she . . . ?” He blew out a breath. “Is she okay? You know, after.”
“She will be, once I right this wrong for the family.”
“For her, you mean. Right this wrong for her.”
Nico slid a scowl over at Bennett. “She is part of the family. There is no difference.”
“No, I understand that. I just hope you’re listening to what she wants, what she needs. Asking for her opinion and not just doing what you want. Because you tend to be, you know, bossy.”
“Dai, Verreault,” Nico drawled slowly, painfully, like this was the stupidest thing he’d ever heard.
“Be nice, or I’ll let go and we’ll see how long you stay upright.”
Nico’s hand tightened on Bennett’s. “You better not fucking dare.”
Bennett would never, but Nico didn’t need to know that. “Listen, only child raised by a single mother here. One thing she impressed upon me was the need to listen, especially to women.”
“Sofia is in therapy already.”
“That’s good, but I’m not talking about that. I mean you, the head of her very male-dominated family. I have to imagine it’s steeped in misogyny.”
“And this?” Nico lifted a hand to indicate the hockey rink. “This is a sport where women are always respected and listened to?”
“Fair point.” Maybe Bennett should stop trying to give advice. What was it about stones and glass houses? They approached the bench and Bennett thought Nico might be ready for a break. “Do you want to keep going or have you had enough?”
“Basta—enough,” Nico said. “My legs are heavy.”
Bennett dragged them to a stop, then opened the door to the bench. Nico went in first and dropped onto the metal, but quickly slid to make room. Bennett followed and sat down. “I want to tease you about your stamina,” he said, “but I’m afraid you’ll take it out on me later.”
Nico huffed in the way he did when he found something amusing but didn’t want to admit it. “Wise of you.”
They sat for a minute in companionable silence. It was nice. Bennett hadn’t spent this much time with a man outside of his bedroom, at least not a man he was having sex with. It should’ve been weird, but Nico was easy to be around, intelligent, and surprisingly funny.
There were things they probably should discuss—like how Nico had broken into the cars and houses of several players—but Bennett couldn’t bring himself to raise the issue. It was easier to pretend he and Nico didn’t have this problem looming over them, that they were just two normal men enjoying a normal night together.
“I can see why you love this,” Nico said as he glanced around at the facility. “Even if it is fucking cold.”
Bennett wondered what it was like to see it all for the first time—the clean ice, the rows of seats. The high ceilings with banners of former teams and players. This rink wasn’t as big as the arena where they played games, but it was still impressive. “Hockey has been my entire life. It’s given me everything.”
“But . . . ” Nico prompted.
“But, what?”
“It’s taken much away from you, too.”
There was no question what Nico meant. Bennett placed his hands flat on the bench and let their arms brush together. Even that small contact sent sparks racing up his shoulder and into his chest. “You, too,” he whispered. “So, would you change it?”
“My preferences are easier to hide.”
“That’s some of it, but not everything. I had a choice to play or not. You never had a choice.”
Nico rubbed his forehead. “There is an old Italian proverb, Chi di speranza vive, disperato muore. He who lives with hope, dies desperate.”
“That’s depressing.”
