Page 14

FOURTEEN

RHYS

W e are drunk as fuck. Winning against the Olympians is a huge deal. They are our biggest rivals, aside from the Monsters. The guys keep giving me drinks and clapping me on the back, congratulating me for the win. I should be having a good time with my teammates but all I can think about is Teddy’s face when I scored that last goal on him. I shouldn’t feel bad. He wouldn’t feel bad if he’d blocked the goal, so why the fuck am I like this?

The guys are pairing up with puck bunnies and I’m one of the few left.

Wolfe, one of our captains, comes over holding out his fist. “Great fucking game.”

“Thank you.” My words slur a little.

“You not gonna talk to any of the puck bunnies?” Wolfe brings his drink to his lips looking me over.

“Most of them are…” I trail off, not needing him to suspect I’m not into women or worse, I’m thinking about Teddy.

“Paired off. You’re right.” Wolfe glances around. “There are a few stragglers. I’m shocked you’re not more popular tonight.”

I shrug, not wanting to admit I’ve been too absent minded thinking about Teddy all night. “It just hasn’t happened.”

“There are a couple in the kitchen. They were doing body shots.” Wolfe grabs my arm and drags me there. “Told you,” he whisper-yells when we come upon a group of teammates and bunnies doing body shots off a girl laid across the counter.

Is this whisper-yell habit a goalie thing?

Ridgeway bends over, licking the salt off her stomach then without using his hands he picks up the shot glass from between her breasts and tips his head back to swallow it. Not missing a beat he takes the lime out of her mouth. He steps back with a grin. “Fuck.”

“Who’s next?” the girl laying on the counter asks. “Do you want to do one, Wolfe?”

Archangel, our other captain, cuts through the crowd. “What’s going on?”

“I was helping, Godfrey. Calm your dick,” Wolfe snaps.

Archangel glares at him, and I’m not sure what I’m missing between them, but they’ve been strained all season. I’m going to have to ask someone else on the team to see if they know what’s going on.

“Who’s next then?”

Wolfe shoves me forward.

“No,” I say, trying to make up an excuse but coming up blank.

“What’s wrong, Wolfe?” the bunny whines.

He puts on a smile. “Nothing at all, sunshine. Angel here is just trying to make me watch my alcohol.” He winks at her.

She giggles, thankfully fully distracted by the captains.

I slip out of the room, way too fuzzy to deal with any of this.

I can’t stop myself any longer. I pull out my phone to text Teddy.

Ejaculate: I can’t stop thinking about you.

Message not delivered.

What the fuck?

I walk outside, checking my signal.

Ejaculate: you didn’t fall into a manhole, did you?

Message not delivered.

Did he fucking block me?

Maybe his phone is off.

He can’t be mad at me for scoring on him, can he? I scrub a hand over my face thinking about calling a fucking car there. But then what? Not like I can get in his dorm. I don’t dare call Tobi at this hour to let me in. I know he won’t be happy if he finds out Teddy and I hooked up.

“Come back inside,” Savage calls from behind me.

“I think I need to go sleep this off.” I say suddenly pissed.

“Don’t be like that! We won.” Savage tries to lean against the doorframe but misses and stumbles. We both laugh when he pops back up. “Maybe I should stop doing shots.”

“Good idea.” I decide to leave before I’m dragged back in.

I walk back to my dorm, staring at my phone. The messages still aren’t delivered.

Fuck.

I walk up the stairs in my building, finding a fucking sock on the door when I get to my room. You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.

I cannot catch a break.

Rhys: Are you still awake?

Tobi: What fucking time is it?

Rhys: I’ll take that as a no.

Tobi: What’s up?

Rhys: Nothing, just go back to sleep.

Tobi: I’m fucking up now. What’s wrong?

Rhys: Nothing. It’s fine. We can talk in the morning.

Tobi: Don’t make me fucking call you.

Texting him was stupid. I can’t tell him about Teddy. He’ll want to know why we’ve been texting. I shouldn’t have texted him.

Tobi: Rhys!

Rhys: I drank a lot and my fucking roommate put a sock on the door.

Tobi: What does a sock on the door mean?

Tobi: Is that slang or did he actually put a sock on the door?

Rhys: You really don’t know what it means?

Tobi: No?

He and Teddy are clearly related.

Rhys: It means he’s in there hooking up with someone.

Tobi: Ew. That blows. How long do you think he’ll be?

Rhys: No fucking idea. It’s already two. That’s why I texted you.

Tobi: Come sleep here.

Rhys: Will your roommates mind?

Tobi: No, they are chill, and since we got a common room they’ll be fine with you sleeping on the sofa.

Since Tobi started school last year at eighteen, like most college kids, he was a year ahead of Teddy and I and got a much better dorm selection.

Rhys: Okay. Don’t fall asleep on me. You’ll have to let me into your building.

Tobi: I won’t I promise.

Twenty minutes later when I get to their dorm guess who’s not answering his fucking phone.

“Tobi, I’m going to fucking kill you,” I yell at the door, knowing no one can hear me.

“What are you doing here?” Teddy says from behind me, jump scaring me.

I spin around, nearly falling over as the world sways. “Seeing my best friend. What are you doing here?” I say like a dolt.

“I live here.”

“Why are you out?” I ask, like it’s any of my business.

“I was with the guys.” There is a sadness to him that hits me right in the fucking chest.

“Did you block me?” I know I shouldn’t ask, but my drunk brain is way behind my mouth.

He breaks our eye contact, looking at his feet. “I need to focus on hockey.”

“Whatever.” I turn my back on him, pulling out my phone. Tobi you son of a bitch you better answer your fucking phone. But he doesn’t and it goes to voicemail.

“Are you just going to stand out here?”

“I’m going to walk back to my dorm and probably fall into a manhole on the way.” I regret saying it as soon as the words leave my lips.

He gasps. “You can’t walk a hundred blocks at this hour! The gremlins are out.”

I want to shake him, but I ball my hands into fists instead. “Just let me in the building so I can go find your brother.”

“Where are you going to sleep?” Teddy holds up his card but hesitates.

“Maybe I’ll sleep in his bed. What does it matter to you? You have me blocked.” I grab the card out of his hand and use it to unlock the door before tossing it back at him.

I don’t stop until I get to Tobi’s door. I call him again before I pound on it. He doesn’t wake up. Of course. So I knock. Maybe one of his roommates will take pity on me.

“Rhys,” Teddy whisper yells from the end of the hallway.

“Go away,” I say through my teeth.

“If you need a place to sleep.”

“No!” I say. We’ll just end up fucking and if this is the way he wants it, it’s better he blocked me.

I knock again.

“Rhys, you’re going to wake up the whole floor.”

“Tobi should be awake.” My chest heaves with frustration. I don’t know what to fucking do.

“You’re drunk. Just come sleep in my room. I’ll sleep on the floor.”

“No fucking way. Not after you blocked me!” I press my forehead into the cool wood of the door.

“Rhys.” Teddy grabs me and I snap.

“If we go to your fucking room I will have my cock down your throat before you have the door closed. Is that what you want?”

He swallows hard not saying anything but the bulge in his pants tells me enough.

I grab my cock. “I should make you suck my dick as penance for blocking me.”

Teddy’s eyes widen. “Maybe you should.”

I don’t have a response for that. It takes me a minute, but I come up with one. “Maybe you don’t deserve it?”

“I’m sorry. Come to my room…please.” Lust flashes across his features and I almost give in.

“If I come with you, I’m not letting you get off.”

He nods, like he’d take that. I wouldn’t really. I like making him come too much to stick to it. “Okay. Just come with me.”

I take a step towards him, but the sound of the door unlocking makes me stop.

“Sorry,” Tobi says upon seeing me.

“It’s fine,” I say, trying to get past him before he notices his brother.

“Goodnight,” Teddy says.

“Why is Teddy out there?” Tobi asks, stepping into the hall, suddenly angry.

“I let him in,” Teddy says stepping up to Tobi. “Unlike you who left him out there to the gremlins!”

“Oh…” Tobi glances between us. “Then why did you follow him to my room?”

“Because you fell asleep, and he was going to walk home if you didn’t answer the door. So, I told him he could sleep in my room?—”

Tobi cuts him off harshly. “No.”

“I already told him no,” I mutter, feeling a little bad for using the situation against Teddy.

Tobi rolls his eyes and closes the door. “What was that?”

“I think he was just trying to be nice. He said something about the gremlins being out.” I shrug, acting like we always do with Teddy’s notions.

“He is really scared of them since seeing that movie.” Tobi rubs his eyes. “I brought you down a pillow and blanket.”

He gets me situated in their little common room, on their too short couch and goes back to his room. I curl up, looking at my undelivered messages with Teddy.

I wake up to a message, but it’s not the one I want.

Owen: Why don’t you and Teddy come to dinner at my house after your break. It would be a good way to smooth things over with Oliver.

Like I need one more thing to deal with. Now I have to tell my brothers I broke up with my fake fucking boyfriend. Fucking great.