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Ryder holds up his empty bottle. “Let’s get you a drink and me a refill.”
I appreciate the change of subject.
Murphy snatches my balled-up sweater from my hand, tossing it onto a barstool. “I’ll take another beer too. What would you like?”
“Beer’s great.”
Ryder opens the fridge and comes away holding three beers. Plucking the bottle opener from the counter, he pops off the caps and hands them off.
I take a sip of the cold beer, enjoying the taste. It’s a rare occasion that I drink alcoholic beverages. Even when we go out to celebrate after a game, more often than not, I have ice water.
“Our boy here’s about to be off the market officially,” Murphy says.
I glance at Ryder. “Really?”
He shakes his head at Murphy. “I’ve been off the market since the first time I set eyes on Calista.”
“That’s true. The playboy is no longer,” Murphy says.
Ryder scowls. “Don’t make it weird, dude. I had to grow up sooner or later.”
“I know, but I didn’t think it would happen this soon.”
“Are you proposing to Calista?” I ask.
“Yes, on Christmas day. I haven’t worked out all the logistics yet, but I have the ring.”
I raise my bottle toward him. “Congratulations. That’s great.”
“Thanks, man.”
Darius and Kaiden walk into the kitchen. “Are you holding a secret meeting?” Darius asks.
“Nah. I told them I’m proposing to Calista on Christmas day.”
Kaiden’s questioning eyes leap to Darius to gauge his reaction.
Darius smiles. “It’s okay. I already know. He asked my dad and me for our permission.”
Murphy scoffs. “What a suck-up.”
Ryder shrugs. “Hey, our situation is unusual. He’s her brother and my teammate.”
“I think it’s great that you asked both of them,” I say. “It shows respect.”
“I appreciated it,” Darius says. “Especially because it was unexpected.”
“I told you what Calista and I have is special. You just didn’t believe me,” Ryder says.
Darius’s dark eyebrows rise at his remark. “Can you blame me? You have a group of fans called the Goode Girls, and you’ve probably hooked up with half of them.”
“That’s not true. It’s more like three-quarters,” Murphy corrects, snickering.
“No way.” Ryder shakes his head in disagreement. “I wasn’t that bad.”
“You had a few regular puck bunnies,” Kaiden adds.
Ryder says, “I never claimed to be an angel,” before disappearing inside the pantry. He returns, clutching a bottle. “Murphy, will you grab the shot glasses?”
