Page 6

CHAPTER 6

Tristan

T ears roll down Alex’s cheeks as he sits on the weight bench, his entire body shaking from laughter. I glare at him, wondering why the fuck I tell him anything. “Are you done?”

He laughs harder, slapping his knee. I glare at him from the weight bench across from him, irritated as hell.

“I’m sorry, it’s just…” Wiping the tears from his face, he squares his shoulders, trying to compose himself. “The first time you get any action in what—over a year, and your new roommate walks in and witnesses you getting your dick sucked and fucked.” His shoulders shake, but he manages not to howl with laughter like when I first told him. “Damn, that’s awesome.”

“You and I have very different definitions of awesome.” Although my voice drips with sarcasm, Alex completely ignores it.

“Did she run out of the house screaming or ask to join in?”

“Alex.” Picking up the dumbbells from the floor, I debate hurling one at him. “She didn’t ask to join.”

“Did she scream and run upstairs?” He raises a brow, leaning forward, intensely assessing me.

Blowing out a breath, I dare to lift my eyes to his, knowing what’s coming. “She stood there and watched.”

Alex gapes at me like a fish before he says, “Get the fuck outta here. Stop pulling my dick and tell me what she did?”

“I’m not kidding. She stood there, watching, until her bag slipped to the floor.”

“Did she film it?” Wide sapphire eyes stare into mine, shimmering with curiosity and an envious look.

“No, asshole, she didn’t film it.” I roll my eyes. “Why do I tell you anything?”

“Because I’m your best friend. Actually, I’m pretty much your only friend.” He winks as I scowl at him.

“Can we focus on the point? It was awkward as hell, and I made the worst impression in history on this girl.”

“No, we can’t. Maybe you can, but I’m still imagining this chick watching you get a blow job before a puck slut jumped on your dick.”

“Jesus Christ.” I blow out an exasperated breath, running my hand through my hair. “This girl is my roommate.”

He smirks. “You lucky sonofabitch. Did you ask her if she wanted to suck and?—”

“No. Hell, no.” I rub my forehead, a tension headache brewing. Heaving in a deep breath, I slowly exhale. “The point is, I made a terrible first impression on Josh’s stepsister. She thinks I’m a puck boy.”

Alex snorts, laughter spilling from him again. “She doesn’t know you at all, does she?” He reaches down and grabs the weights from the floor. “Did you tell her you were a born-again virgin?”

“For fucks sake. Don’t you ever stop?”

He levels me with a look. “Are you seriously asking me that? How long have we known each other? ”

“Too fucking long,” I joke. “Get serious. What am I gonna do?”

The smile dies off Alex’s face, his expression contemplative. With a straight face, he shrugs. “Ask her to sit on your face and then see if she’ll blow?—”

“Hell no.” My dick grows hard as the visual floats through my head before I shove it away. “You know Josh said she’s off limits.”

“Ahh, so Josh is the only thing standing in the way of you asking her to ride your face. Is she hot? Maybe?—”

I glower at him, and he shuts up, barely repressing his laughter.

“Don’t fucking finish that statement! Yes, she’s hot, but if you go anywhere near her, I’ll rip your goddamn balls off.”

“Ohhhh, you really like her. She must be gorgeous.”

“Alex,” I warn, the threat clear in my eyes. “Stop while?—”

He holds up his hand. “You’re proving my point more and more. You like this woman, and that’s why you’re so worried about the first impression you made.”

A knot forms inside my chest. “No, I don’t.” Even to my own ears, my tone is unconvincing.

“Uh-huh. That’s why you’ve spent the past hour barely working out, worried about the impression you made on your new ‘roommate,’ who happens to be hot and forbidden. What a combination. Why can’t I get that lucky?”

“Alex, I’m not interested in Jordyn.”

“Yeah, right.” He raises a brow. “Lemme see your phone.”

“Why?”

“Don’t you trust me?”

“With my life, yes. My phone, no.”

Alex chuckles before he lunges. I’m caught off guard, my mind still reeling from his words, and before I know it, he’s pinned me down and has my cell phone. Twisting my hand behind my back, the screen is pressed against my thumb before he releases me and steps back.

“Ahh… lookie here.” He holds up my phone, and my search history is displayed on the screen before he moves away. “Jordyn Reese. Pretty name.”

I jump to my feet. “Gimme my fucking phone back.”

Alex darts away, his movements quick and fine-tuned since he’s a goalie. “You stalked her Instagram and TikTok.” His laughter fills the weight room, and I’m glad as hell no one else is here but us.

I chase after him, jumping over a weight bench. “Give me my goddamn phone back.”

“Nope. This is a goldmine.” His reactions are nimble and quick, like the contestants on “American Ninja Warrior.” He dodges my attempts to grab my phone again, his eyes lifting to mine. “Tell me the truth, and I’ll give it back.”

“Fine.” I gauge the distance from me to him. “I checked out her social media before she moved in. It makes sense. She’s living?—”

“Uh-huh.” He strolls over and hands me my phone. “You like her. Just admit it.”

I refuse. “Josh said she’s a nerd. I wanted to see if she looked like one.” My defense is weak, and I know it. The gleam in Alex’s blue eyes as he cocks his head, his brow raising, has me bracing for his next question.

“You bought something for her, didn’t you? A welcome home gift.”

“They aren’t welcome home gifts. She just moved?—”

“ They ? You bought her multiple things?”

I blow out a frustrated sigh, my fingers curling so hard around my phone I’m surprised that it doesn’t shatter. “Her bedroom was used for storage. After I cleaned it up, it looked barren and cold. Josh told me she’d been down on her luck, so I figured I’d do something nice.”

The urge to punch Alex grows stronger as his smirk widens. He crosses his arms over his chest, leveling me with a look. “What did you buy her?”

I swallow hard, knowing how bad this is gonna look. “Not much.” Good. My voice doesn’t waver, and my tone is neutral. “New curtains and a comforter set for the bed?—”

“You bought her a new bed. There wasn’t one in that room, Tristan.”

I ignore him. “A desk and chair.”

“Holy shit. You bought her more furniture?”

I should punch this motherfucker square in the balls . “So what? It made the room nicer. She’s going to be living with two rowdy hockey players?—”

“Rowdy? Are you gonna move Bryce, Landin, and me in and throw you and Josh out? Cause the two of you are far from rowdy.”

“No, asshole.” I blow out a long breath. Why do I tell this fucker anything? “A book nerd probably thinks we’re rowdy.”

“She didn’t look like a nerd on social media. Course, you know that since you were stalking her on it. Besides, nerds can have a wild side. Remember the professor that Bryce fucked last semester. She was a freak.” His eyes light up, and an evil smile curls his lips. “Maybe Jordyn is?—”

“Don’t finish that fucking sentence, or I’ll knock your teeth down your throat.”

“Man, you’re swearing and making a lot of threats. More than you have in the past six months. She really got under your skin.”

“She didn’t get under anything. I?—”

“Not yet.” His smile is arrogant. “But the rate you’re going, it’s only a matter of time.”

I blow out an exasperated sigh. “She’s my roommate, Alex. ”

He shrugs. “Jordyn could be your girlfriend if you play your cards right.”

“Did you hit your head on the ice yesterday? I already told you, Josh forbid?—”

“Which just makes it ten times hotter. Imagine sneaking around with her. That dumbass is on the couch, playing NHL 23, and you clamp your hand over her mouth and bend her over the table?—”

“Shut the fuck up. Right the hell now.” Although, that image is fucking hot.

“Wow. You’re testy. You really have it bad for her.” He heads toward the weight bench, motioning me with his hand. “I need to meet this girl.”

“The fuck you do. And I don’t have it bad for her.”

“Uh-huh.” He grabs some weights and remains quiet.

The tension drains from my body as I pick up a pair of fifty-pound dumbbells, getting ready to curl them. Maybe he’s finally dropping this.

As soon as I curl the weight toward my shoulders, he says, “Book nerd, huh? Did she bring any books?”

My brows furrow. “Yeah. Why?”

“You bought her a bookcase, didn’t you, motherfucker?”

I’m so surprised that I nearly dropped a dumbbell on my foot. “What are you, psychic?”

Alex’s loud laughter is going to haunt me forever.

Rolling my eyes, I pump out some curls with renewed vigor, hoping it will drown him and my errant thoughts out of my head.