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I flicked my gaze to Lindy, then back to him. “She doesn’t know I play hockey.”
He laughed once, probably surprising himself. “What do you mean she doesn’t know? How is that possible?”
I shrugged. “She doesn’t watch sports? Not everyone recognizes me.” I thought of Otis at the pizza place, who did, not even an hour ago.
“Aren’t you going to tell her? I mean, that’s not just your job, it’s your life.”
“Sure. Eventually. I like being just Dex with her.”
“Well, Just Dex, if she looks you up or someone tells her about you–which you know is going to happen–she’ll find everything about the bar fight from the tabloid’s perspective.”
That was completely true, which was why I wanted as much time as possible with her before she found out who I really was before having to slog through media lies. Maybe then she’d doubt what she found.
“The guy deserved it. The media can suck my dick,” I said.
“Sounds like you’ve already got someone else you want doing that.”
“Careful,” I warned again. I got myself off thinking about Lindy’s mouth around me. But that didn’t mean I wanted Mav to talk about her that way. “That shit show aside, you don’t see me online with women.”
“Haven’t in years.” He rubbed the back of his neck as he validated what I just said. “It’s rare to see you on social media with a woman, but in any I’ve seen it’s easy to tell you’re not into her.”
After a game, the team went out to dinner as a group. Sometimes, we continued on to a bar or two. It was impossible to avoid clingy puck bunnies and being photographed and ending up online. A photo didn’t tell the truth though, just like with the bar fight.
“I wasn’t aware you even knew how to use social media,” I countered.
“If I said Bridget shows me, that’ll make me sound really fucking old. So I’ll say Bradley does and gives me the highlights of anything important.”
Dex was CEO of James Corp and had too much to do to tackle apps. The fact that he was reorg-ing his schedule to stay here in Hunter Valley with Bridget said plenty about the seriousness of their relationship. Silas was picking up the slack at corporate.
“Well, he’s really good at his job because I’m not into any of those women,” I insisted. “You think I want to be like Dad? Fuck ‘em and leave ‘em?”
His face went hard, and he took a small step closer, leaned in. “That’s what you think? That if you want to get your dick wet that means you’re like him?”
I shook my head, although I did. A little. A lot.
“He’d drop me off at the rink, find a willing mom and fuck her while I had practice. Caught him once coming out of a supply closet zipping up his pants followed by one of the snack bar attendants, then learned the signs. The messed-up hair, a smudge of lipstick on his neck, the way Mrs. Troncher gave us a finger wave after the state PeeWee championships in sixth grade.”
His jaw clenched so tightly the muscle ticked. He ran a hand over his hair. “Fuck, I didn’t know that.”
I’d been twelve when he fucked a teammate’s mother. Mav had been twenty-two and already out of college. He hadn’t lived at home in four years at that point. I had a lot of stories he didn’t know about.
“So you associate hockey with him being a manwhore asshole and since you play, you’re one too?”
I shook my head. “No, Jesus, you sound like a therapist. He’s everything I don’t want to be. He’s my role model for how not to live. I steer clear of flings not because I’m afraid I’ll be a manwhore, but because I don’t want meaningless.”
Nothing had held value to the man. Not his marriage vows. Not his kids. Not even his company. He used the money he made to fund his never ending, shallow fun.
“I do think I associate him with assholes and will defend women who have to deal with them.” Like the woman at that Denver bar.
“You’re nothing like him. Nothing.” His voice was low, but deadly. “Neither am I, even though Bridget’s so fucking young and Dad liked them that way. It’s not the same.” He pointed to himself, then me. “We’re not the same.”
I only nodded because the last thing either of us wanted to talk about anymore was that asshole.
“Lindy will be lucky to have you, brother. She’s smart. She’ll see the real you no matter what she reads.”
Scout barked in what I assumed was agreement. I glanced down at him.
I offered him a smile at his encouragement, although I had no idea how he knew what we were talking about.
