Page 63 of Learn Your Lesson

I’d also never felt so determined.

I’d blocked every shot like my life depended on it.

I also might have taken my sweet fucking time doing warmups, since I knew she was watching. Since I knew she enjoyed the view.

And clearly, I hadn’t been as suave as I thought when I’d met her and Ava in the friends and family lounge. I thought no one noticed when I watched her laughing from across the room. I thought no one saw how my eyes drank her in, inch by inch, no matter how I reminded myself she was off limits.

“No fucking way,” Vince breathed, but he smiled, clapping me on the shoulder. “Oh, the sweet irony of it.You work all that time to find a nanny who’s great at what she does and doesn’t have some sort of ulterior motive to get to you through your daughter. And when you find her, it’syouwho’s the scoundrel.”

I wanted to flick him in the nose, tell them all they were wrong, and skate off in an angry huff. But that would have been admission just the same as my silence. And as it was, I didn’t have the energy to fight them or lie.

I was using every bit of energy Ididhave to keep my hands to myself when I was in my own fucking house.

“Still an easy fix,” Jaxson said. “Tell her. My bet is she’s just as hot for her boss as he is for teacher.”

“Not possible,” I ground out.

“Why?” Aleks probed. “If you need to get your balls rubbed to be the goalie we need you to be, then don’t be fucking proud about it.”

“It’s not pride, you shit for brains,” I barked at him. “It’s common sense. She works for me. She’s my daughter’s caretaker. She’s the firstgoodnanny I’ve found in the years I’ve searched. I’m not fucking all that up just to get my dick wet.” I yanked my gloves back on, clamping my mouth shut before I kept listing reasons.

Like the fact that I was still supremely fucked up from Jenny.

“And it’s not impacting my game. I performed last night, did I not? We won. I’m having one fucking off day at practice.”

“Why do you think you’d fuck it up? Chloe seems nice. You like her.” Jaxson quieted a bit, like he was afraid to say his next words. “It… it’s been five years since…”

“Don’t,” I warned again, and this time, I meant it. If he said another word past that, if hedaredto say her name right now, I’d have his ass laid out on the ice.

Jaxson threw his hands up, and Vince looked down at the ice like he didn’t dare tack on his own thoughts.

It didn’t matter how long it had been.

Jenny taught me a lot of lessons, but the one that stuck with me the most was that I couldn’t survive losing another person I loved. I couldn’t even bare to lose anotherfriend.

And the easiest way to prevent that from happening was not to make any new friends to begin with —especiallyof the female variety.

“You’re right,” I said after a moment. “I need to get laid. I’ll take care of it.”

“He says, as if it’s the worst chore in the world,” Vince deadpanned.

“Suit yourself,” Aleks cut in. “But I think you’re making a bigger deal of it than you need to. It’s not like you have to marry the girl. Sex doesn’t have to be complicated, especially if she’s on board with the rules.”

“Rules?” Jaxson made a face like that word was a jinx. “Those don’t work out well in my experience.”

“They do if you set the boundaries and expectations up front,” Aleks countered. “She hasn’t tried anything with you, right?” He asked me pointedly. “Who’s to say she wants anything at all from you? She’s young. She’s busy. She probably thinks you’re hot but has no interest past that. My bet is she wants to keep getting paid just as much as you don’t want to have to find a new nanny.” He shrugged. “But maybe she wouldn’t be opposed to also getting off from time to time.”

“Since when are you invested in anyone’s well-being on this team?” Vince questioned Aleks, suddenly suspicious.

“I’m not,” he said easily. “I just don’t want to lose because Pickles here can’t perform. I’ve seen better hands on a digital clock.”

Jaxson bit back a laugh at the chirp, and I tongued my cheek, nodding and forcing a breath so I wouldn’t take out my winger right there on the ice.

“You’ve made your point,” I said to all of them. “Now fuck off.”

I skated away to get a new stick, and Coach McCabe lifted one brow at me in question. I nodded. He nodded. I grabbed a new stick, and we got back to it.

Thank fuck at leastheunderstood when I didn’t want to talk.