Page 113 of Pucking Around

My cock twitches in my shorts as I breathe hard through my nose, clutching the phone.

Another photo pings in from one of the other guys. A different angle. She’s wearing some kind of sheer shirt that flutters open around her thighs. She’s smiling, mid-sentence, talking to some other woman with red hair.

The guys all start chirping, wanting to know the name of her friend. Compton cusses Novikov out and tells him to stop taking pictures. Compton is right. She’s not some puck bunny asking to be used for his entertainment. She’s a doctor. The team’s doctor. My doctor. My—

Fuck.

Why am I standing?

Why have I moved towards the door?

Why are my keys in my hand?

Because you’re going to the beach.

51

Tess takes a sip from her big tumbler of iced tea. She’s rocking a red, high-waisted bikini to go with her crazy mane of sunset red curls. “Okay, girl, you gotta walk me through it again.”

We’re standing in the surf, far away from the boys, who are busy setting up beach base camp. Jake sent a message through the group chat and now my casual idea to go for a walk with Tess has turned into an all-out Sunday morning beach party. Half the team is already here, and the other half is likely on the way.

I glance back over my shoulder. Jake and Caleb are fighting with Novy, kicking sand at him, and throwing soccer balls at his head. He runs off jeering, beer dripping down his hand. Behind them, Langley helps Sully and Shelby set up a big beach awning. Sully’s three kids are already in the surf with buckets and shovels, digging in the sand while Poseidon bounces around them.

I sigh, looking back out at the water. “His fears aren’t unfounded. I’ve seen the way teams can treat players. Physical care takes priority, but the emotional care is often forgotten in the equation. We have to be able to treat the whole person, and that’s what I’m trying to do.”

“So…you wanna take this guy up to Cincinnati for super-secret scans? And Dr. H is willing to help you?”

I roll my eyes behind my sunglasses. “There’s no reason to sound so incredulous. You don’t know Dr. Halla like I do. He’s a good person, Tess. He understands better than anyone how the players get caught between a rock and a hard place. We’re both just trying to cushion the blow for him.”

She nods. “Yeah, makes sense. And your goalie is willing?”

I bite my bottom lip. “Umm…”

“Oh god, girl.” She laughs. “You set it all up with Dr. H without clearing it with the goalie first?”

“I wanted it to be as easy as possible to say yes,” I reply defensively. “If it’s all set up and all he has to do is get on a plane, he’ll do it, right?”

“I mean, I would, but I’m not a pro athlete. We’ve got no idea what he’s thinking or how he deals with this kind of stress.” She steps forward, looping her arm in with mine. “But enough about work, I wanna talk about your juicy steamy love life.” She tugs me forward and we walk in the wet sand, the surf lapping at our ankles.

“Oh god, where to begin?” I mutter.

“How about you start with the little handy session I stumbled upon in the kitchen this morning?”

“Tess!” I cry, smacking her arm as she cackles. “I thought you were asleep upstairs!”

It didn’t go too far past PG-13…I don’t think. Caleb was at the counter making his gross coffee and he looked so edible, his hair all tousled. I couldn’t help but wrap my arms around him and tease him a little, my hand slipping inside his sweats. Jake came in and joined us, pressing in behind me. No clothes came off. We didn’t even kiss. But it was still a slow-burning, three-way orgasm. I worked both of them at once while Jake worked me, Caleb’s hands pressed flat against the counter. We all just eased our way to climax, breathing as one. It was amazing. Just thinking about it has me wanting to drag them behind the Hawaiian ice stand and do it again.

“Girl, you are insomuch trouble,” Tess says with a laugh. “This is already serious. Especially for you,” she adds, giving me one of her all-knowing Tess stares.

“We’re just having fun,” I say. “Exploring what this might look like. With the season in session, it’s easiest to just live together,” I deflect with a shrug.

“What thislookslike is you waltzing down the aisle of every hockey girl’s greatest fantasy,” she replies. “Those boys worship you, Rachel. You’ve got them hooked on your top-shelf kitty cat, and now they’re gonna follow you wherever you go.”

“Tess…”

“Hey, you’ll get no judgement here,” she adds. “If you’re happy, Tess is happy.”

“But can we really be happy?” I say, letting my truths out now that I’m alone with my best friend. “How do I maintain this if I want it to stay private? They won’t be happy being my dirty little secrets forever. It’s not fair to them.”