Page 131 of Oathbreaker

Or maybe I’m already there.

West

A mariachi band is playing at full volume in my head, and the pounding is so loud I’m tempted to put my hands over my ears.

Fuck.

Last night might have been a bridge too far in Project I’m-getting-over-Briar-one-puck-bunny-at-a-time. Well, one specific puck bunny and way too many shots of tequila. That was a colossal mistake but one I’ve been making regularly the last few weeks.

All while watching the woman I fell in love with fall back in love with her ex.

I let her go without a fuss because, really—he had her first. He left her, and their baby, but that’s a long sob story and I’m all out of fucks to give when it comes to him. The thing is, Briar went through enough while Colt was gone. She didn’t need me to make her feel bad about going back to the love of her life. Who also happens to be her daughter’s father.

Even if he left her for five fucking years.

But there’s a lot of history between them, so I was never going to win that competition.

The old adage that nice guys always finish last? Yeah, I should consider getting that tattooed on my forehead.

After last night’s shenanigans, I’m running late, so I practically skid into the dressing room to get out of my street clothes and into my gear.

“Someone looks rode hard and put away wet,” my friend and teammate, Magnus, chirps.

I flip him the bird as I yank on my equipment.

Why does hockey require so many damn pieces? If I was an accountant, I’d already be sitting at my desk.

Despite the pounding in my skull and the bile threatening to come back up, I almost laugh at the thought of being an accountant. Numbers are definitely not my jam.

I sink onto the bench in the locker room and stuff my feet into my skates. Beside me, Banks is taping his stick.

“How’s it going?” he asks.

“Good.” We’re close, but there’s been a bit of distance between us since this thing with Briar. He introduced us, after all.

“You, uh, hear about the wedding?”

“Yup.”

Briar married her ex the day before yesterday and of course, I forgot we were still friends on social media. Those pictures popped up and fueled my tequila-laden night of revelry.

“Dude, come on. It’s me.”

“Your loyalty is to Briar,” I say quietly, focusing on lacing my skates. “I don’t expect you to pick sides.”

“It’s not about sides,” he says. “You’re my friend too. You’ve been part of my life the whole time Colt was gone. I’m not going to walk away from all my other friends just because he’s back.”

“Doesn’t matter anyway.” I glance around since I don’t want word to get out just yet, but I don’t mind telling Banks. “I let my agent know that I’m interested in the new team in Atlanta. I’m down to be picked up in the expansion draft.”

Banks just stares at me. “Is that really what you want? We’re a family here.”

I lift one shoulder in a shrug. “You have a family, Banks. I have teammates. Some friends. This isn’t home to me. Management is good to us but it’s common knowledge that you have a no-trade clause, so you’re not going anywhere. That means Briar and Colt are going to be here. At the games. In the family lounge. Most team events…and I’m only human, man. I let her go without making a big deal because I know what she went through, but she hurt me. Watching her with him at every game—I can’t do it.”

A look of regret crosses his face, but then he nods. “I understand. I’m sorry it went down this way.”

“This isn’t on you. You had no way of knowing he would come back from the dead.” I shake my head. “None of us did, least of all her.”

We’re both quiet for a beat.