Stick By Me: A Nerd Jock Hockey MM Romance (Desert Ice Hockey Book 1)

Chapter 5

On Friday, I’d let Remy drive to the hockey game at Mullett arena on the ASU campus and we stepped down the stairs to our seats, a few rows up from the bench. The place wasn’t all that big, so it was nice and cozy for a stadium. We each had beers and burgers in our hands.

Players glided around the ice, passing pucks to each other and shouting.

My pulse kicked up. I’d looked Archer up on the ASU team roster during the week and knew pretty much everything about him now. Why? I couldn’t help myself. I wasn’t sure where this was headed, but I couldn’t deny my attraction to him. Even if Milo had him first. My chest pricked. God damn Milo knew what he was like in bed.

We took our seats and set our beers in the holders as most of the players left the ice and skated to the bench, while six from each team lined up along the blue lines, all facing the South net.

An announcer on the loudspeakers said, “All rise for the national anthem, sung today by senior, Krista Waters.”

The crowd broke out in cheers, then went quiet.

As I stood up, I searched the jerseys at the bench for Carlson on the back and caught his eye as he twisted to look up into the crowd. He wasn’t in the starting line-up. How much ice time would he get?

Remy tagged my shoulder and leaned in, then whispered. “Which one is Milo’s old hookup?”

Fuck, they were all going to be calling him that. “Carlson. Number six.”

He nodded.

After the anthem was over, we sat down and I opened the foil on my burger, then took a bite.

The teams readied themselves for the puck drop that would start the game at the center circle, everyone bending over with their sticks on the ice.

As a whistle blew, the ref dropped the puck and the centers scrapped for it, sticks smacking all over the place. The puck flew out toward ASU’s goalie, Ace, from what I could tell, since his jersey had the number one on it and he was the starter.

“Fuck, look at those guys.” With a wide smile on his face, Remy pointed at the ice. “How the hell do you learn to skate like that?”

“A shit ton of practice.” I sipped my beer, then set it into the holder on the chair back in front of us. Yeah, I’d Googled a few things. I wanted to be able to talk hockey with Archer after the game. Did I want to impress him? Maybe.

Players all raced for the puck down by the ASU goal and Ace crouched down, the big pads on his shins covering most of his chest.

A Wildcat shot the puck.

The crowd roared.

Ace dove one knee to the ice, blocking it, then a Devil ran away with it, tossing it back and forth down the ice to a teammate.

“Holy shit, that was close.” My heart pounded in my chest. How did Archer feel being on the bench right now? I slid my gaze to the back of his helmet.

He sat up straight, holding his stick as if readying to hit the ice.

Remy bit into his burger, his head turning back and forth as he followed the movement of the puck.

The players shuffled the puck deep into Wildcat territory and a man skated toward the bench door. As he got there, Archer jumped one leg, then the other over the wall and hit the ice with powerful strokes of his skates, rushing toward the Wildcat net.

“Holy shit, Remy, that’s Archer.” I pointed at him, adrenaline pulsing through my body. Now was my chance to see him play. I clapped and shouted, “Go Carlson! Get that puck!”

Remy faced me, arching a brow. “You’re really into this, Leo.” He smirked at me. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so excited about a game.”

Glancing at Remy, I bit my lip. “Well, I uh, I know these guys.” Shit, could Remy see what was really going on?

“Okay, sure.” He bit into his burger and focused on the game. “Oh shit, look!” He pointed to the ice. “There’s your guy, he’s got the puck.”

Archer slapped the puck away from a Wildcat, then swung in a circle, glanced at the goal, then a teammate, and slid the puck to the other Devil. The Devil shot, the puck flying up into the corner of the net, the goalie falling on his knees and shins, gloved hand lifting. As the red light went off over the net and the horn blew, the crowd went wild, whooping and cheering.

“Your boy got an assist.” Remy held up his hand to me.

I slapped Remy’s hand, my cheeks hurting from the broad smile on my face. “He did. That was fucking awesome.” Archer was having a good night. I couldn’t wait to see him after the game.

After the gameended with ASU winning three to two over the U of A, I waved at Archer as he skated off the ice.

Archer beamed up at me and ticked his head.

“Damn, that was a fun game.” I slipped my phone out of my jeans’ pocket. How were we supposed to meet up? Should we wait around for them? Shit, did Archer still want to meet up?

An older text notification from Archer popped up on my screen. I hadn’t noticed it with all the commotion during the game.

Remy leaned in, his gaze dropping to my phone. “So, are you headed home, or what?”

Holding my phone closer, I opened the text message. Archer must have messaged me during intermission.

Archer

We’re headed over to Monkey Pants Bar and Grill after the game. Want to meet up? It might not be for an hour or so though after the game.

I tapped my phone. I could wait.

Leo

I’ll see you there.

“Uh, yeah, heading over to Monkey Pants. Did you want to come out, or is my brother wanting you home?” I slid my phone into my pocket. I could always get an Uber home if he dropped me off. I was not going home with Archer, I was not.

“I’m sure he wants me home, but I can go out for a beer. I only had one the whole game.” He licked his lips, then wound his arm around my shoulders. “Besides, it’s been a long time since you and me hung out.”

“It has.” This would be interesting, but Remy had already met Archer at a Knot Me show, brief as it was. “Let’s go.” I ambled toward the stairs and headed up.

A half hour later,we sat on one of the old leather couches facing each other at the bar and grill, in front of a gas fireplace tucked into a red wall. The owners had done their best to make it feel like someone’s living room, but it was a bit dated now.

I sipped a new beer and as movement caught my eye, I glanced at the front door. Six guys walked in, all built and all laughing with one another. I spied Archer and Jonah among them. “They’re here.” I straightened up on my end of the couch.

Remy turned his head of brown, wavy hair. “Yeah?”

After slapping one of his buddies on the shoulder, Archer strolled toward us. “Hey, Leo.” He waved at me, then focused on Remy. “I met you at a Knot Me show a few months ago, right? Remy?”

“Yep, that’s me.” Remy slid over to the other end of the couch, then patted the cushion next to him. “Have a seat.”

I peered at Remy. Why did he do that? Did he sense something? “Uh, yeah, Archer, have a seat.”

“Thanks.” He dropped in between us. “I’m sure the others will be over after they order food.”

“Oh? You didn’t want to order food?” My gaze raked over him from head to toe, his black button-down shirt pulling tight across his shoulders, the tattoos peeking out from under the cuff at one wrist and his jeans, filled out in all the right places. Shit, he was hotter than I remembered. My cock woke.

“I’ll order food. Just didn’t want to make you wait anymore.” He gave me a shy smile, his cheeks flushing.

“Here, let me flag down our waitress.” Remy lifted his hand and a woman with long, blonde hair stepped to our couch.

“Can I get you something?” She leaned over Remy, the tops of her breasts peeking out of her low-cut blouse.

I eyed Archer. Was he noticing this? He was bi, right?

Archer kept his gaze on her face. “Yes, please. Can I get the salmon and rice dinner and a beer?”

“Sure.” She looked at me. “Anyone else?”

“No, we’re good.” I gave her a grin and she left. Focusing on Archer, I said, “You’ve been here a few times, I take it?”

“Yeah, we come here after games a lot. We like the food and it’s a fun place to unwind.” Biting his lower lip, he played with a fold in the bottom of his shirt.

Remy drew a deep inhale. “So, have you talked with Milo at all?” He snuck a peek at me.

“Not really. How’s he doing?” Archer tensed his mouth.

Shit, why was Remy bringing that up? “Anyways, you played well tonight.” I placed my hand on his muscled thigh.

His gaze snapped to my hand, then up to my face and fell to my lips. “Yeah, I uh, got two assists tonight.”

Nodding, I glanced at Remy. Damn it, what was I doing with my hand on Archer’s thigh? I slid my hand off and rubbed my neck. This was little awkward.

Remy’s phone buzzed on the dark wooden coffee table between the couches. “Shit, Axel.” He picked up his phone, then tapped the screen. “He’s asking when I’m coming home.” He twisted his lips.

“Go, I can get an Uber home.” I waved Remy off. It would be easier if Remy left. Then I wouldn’t be second guessing everything I did or said to Archer.

“You sure?” He studied me.

“I can drive you home, too. I’m only having one beer. We have another game tomorrow, so I can’t be out partying too much.” Archer lifted the edge of his mouth. “But tomorrow night, that’s a whole other story.”

“Okay, then I’ll finish up this beer and go.” Remy downed his beer.

“When Axel calls, Remy goes running.” I chuckled. I’d had fun with Remy tonight, so I couldn’t complain.

“Well, you know how demanding your brother can be.” He held out his hand to Archer. “Nice to see you again, man. And you played great tonight.”

Archer shook his hand. “Yeah, I might see you tomorrow at the casino?”

“Sure.” Remy hooked his brow. “I take it Ryder and Milo are your friends now?”

“Yeah.” Archer shrugged a shoulder. “Ryder’s a nice guy and I’m happy for Milo.” He glanced at me. “Me and Ryder hung out together at the gig that time and got to know each other a little bit.”

I absently rested my arm on the couch back behind Archer, my heart warming. He seemed mature for his age and didn’t do drama. What a nice break from the women I’d been dating.

A grin flickered over Remy’s lips, and he nodded. “Cool, then I guess I’ll be seeing you tomorrow night.” He leaned down and kissed my cheek. “See you at home, Leo. Sounds like you’re in good hands.” He winked at me, then waved at Archer and sauntered off.

What the fuck was that about? I watched him congratulate the other players, all eating at the long bar across the room, then go.

Archer edged into my side and sipped his beer. “Remy seems like a good friend.”

“He is.” His body warmed my side, and I inched a little closer to him. Being close didn’t mean anything, right? I’d sat like this with Remy a million times. “We’ve known each other since we were babies. Our moms met in a stay-at-home mom’s club, and we used to have play groups.” I chuckled, thinking back on the days I was barely old enough to remember. Axel was still a baby with Mom while Remy and I tore up the playground, all the moms chatting at picnic tables in the shade. “What was it like for you, growing up?” I drank some beer, then set it in my lap.

He twisted his beer glass, wedged between his thighs. “For the most part it was great. I put on my first skates at four years old and never looked back.” He snuck a peek at me. “A neighbor kid played hockey and he made a little rink in his back yard with the hose.” He huffed a chuckle. “You can do that you know, in Minnesota in the winter.” He took a few gulps of beer.

As the waitress dropped off his food, I nodded. What a different way to grow up. “I’ve tried putting on skates a few times at the rink in Gilbert when we’d have playgroup outings there, but I wasn’t any good at it. Almost gave myself a concussion.” I freed a soft snort. Probably would break my hip or something if I tried it now.

He slid forward in his seat and leaned over the table, then picked up his fork to cut into his salmon. “Well, there are leagues out here with the Arizona Coyotes and all the Midwesterners that have moved here.” Turning his head, he gave me a sly grin, then shoveled food into his mouth. “Damn, I’m starved.”

I chuckled and thought back over Remy’s leaving comments. “Hey, so what happened between you and Milo anyways? I know you said you hooked up, but…” I pursed my lips. I seemed to have remembered there being a little more to it.

He stopped eating, holding his filled fork above his plate, then inhaled deeply. “We hooked up a few times and I really liked him. I asked him if we could start dating.” He set the fork down. “The night I met everyone at the Knot Me show was supposed to be our first, well sort of, date.” He ate his food.

My chest heated. He’d liked Milo. It was a little more than hooking up. Did he still have some feelings for him? I sat forward and rested my elbows on my knees, holding my beer with both hands. “So uh, do you still have a thing for Milo? I mean, at all?”

“What?” He twisted his head, snapping his gaze to mine, his brows knitting. “No, I ah, I’ve moved on.” He ate more of his salmon.

“Good,” I mumbled, then drank my beer. Shit, it wasn’t like I owned the guy. Not even like we had anything. But I still didn’t want to think about him liking Milo. Especially when we’d all be together tomorrow night. Fuck, what was wrong with me, thinking like this? I gulped down the rest of my beer and as the waitress walked by, I ordered another, then shifted back and threw my arm over the couch behind Archer.

“So, tell me some more about why you’re not out to anybody or what you have to figure out.” He scooped the last bite of his food into his mouth, then slid the empty plate forward.

Damn, dude could eat. A lot. The meals I could make for him… Shut up, Leo. “You met Axel. He’s, he’s?—”

“The most infamous gay man at ASU?” He chortled and sank back into the couch cushions, the side of his body touching mine, tucking his wide shoulder into my armpit. He looked up at me and gave me a coy smile. “Weird. You’re tall enough that I fit right in beside you.” With his eyes darkening, he focused on my lips and parted his own, his breath catching.

As my dick plumped, I leaned in, sneaking my tongue out to wet my mouth, then jerked back. What the fuck was I doing? Kissing him out in the open in the bar? “Uh, s-sorry.”

“You’re attracted to me, aren’t you, Leo.” He kept his gaze locked on mine, then bit the side of his lower lip.

“I…I am.” No need to lie. My pulse hammered in my chest.

“Then why does Axel make you want to hide?” His gaze darted over my face.

I clenched my jaw, thinking. How do I put this into words without sounding stupid? “With Axel as a brother, there’s only room for one queer son.”

He snapped his brows down. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“Axel is…well, he’s always been the gay one. He was never not out. It’s always been understood in my family that Axel is the gay son.” Was I making any sense? I studied Archer. “How can I come out to them when I’m only partially gay? I can date women. I enjoy dating women…um, for the most part.” I scratched my forehead. More importantly…“My parents deserve to have one heterosexual son, one who’ll give them grandkids someday, right?”

“Dude, you’re homophobic to yourself. Jesus.” Scoffing a laugh, he shook his head. “And I thought I was messed up.” He sipped his beer, then planted his hand on my thigh. “I like you, Leo.” His gaze found mine again. “I want you to know that. But I’m not looking for more hookups.”

As I dropped my mouth open, I stared at him. Shit, he was right. Wait, he likes me and he’s not looking for hookups? My pulse pattered into my throat. I couldn’t, could I?

His phone buzzed in his pocket. “Shit.” He slid it out and held it to his face. “Figures.” He held up his index finger to me. “Hello, Dad.” He leaned forward and hung his head, covering one ear. “Yeah, we won tonight.”

I watched him, the way his shoulders stiffened and the gruff tone of his voice. It was like his whole mood had changed. But they’d won tonight, so shouldn’t this be a happy conversation?

“I got two assists. Yes, assists on the goal.” He huffed. “I’m defense, sure I can score, but my job is to get the puck to the forwards, so they can score.” He puffed a breath out of his nose and fisted his hand over his thigh. “Yeah, I did my job and we won.” He listened for a moment. “Thanks, talk to you later.” He ended the call and gritted his teeth.

“You okay?” I placed my hand between his shoulder blades and rubbed the tense muscles.

He relaxed under my touch, slumping into my side, resting his forehead against my shoulder. “No, no, I’m not okay. My dad doesn’t want me to be a hockey player.”

I rubbed harder, kneading my finger into a knot in his back. “But you’re so good at it, you’ve played your whole life…your mom?—”

“Is gone.” With a quick inhale, he reared up and grabbed my hand, then held it between us in both of his. “Thank you, Leo.” The edges of his lips twitched. “We can be friends, right?”

My chest twinged. Is that what I wanted? “Sure, we can be friends.” Shit, I wanted more than that from him. But I couldn’t give him what he wanted. It wasn’t fair. “I’m sorry about your dad. You’ll still play and maybe go on to the NHL, right?”

“We’ll see. I’m not on a great trajectory for that. My game hasn’t been consistent.” He sighed and released my hand, dipping his head. “If nothing else, I’m hoping to be a trainer or do PT for a team.”

I wrapped my arm around his neck and pressed my forehead to his. “You’re good enough. You’ll see.” Maybe I could replace some of what he lost when his mom died. I didn’t know.

With a soft laugh, he said, “Yeah, that’s what the squad says, too. But thanks.”

“Well, well, well…” Jonah strolled to us with four other muscled guys behind him, all dressed up in nicer shirts with collars and jeans. “Getting to know each other better?” With a wide smirk, he slid in next to Archer, pushing him closer into my side.

“Guess so.” Archer snuck a glance at me, then held out his hand to the other young men, now standing around us, eyeing me. “Leo, meet the rest of the squad.”

A man with longer, brown wavy hair and stunning, light-blue eyes waved at me. “Hey, name’s Mason. I’m a center on the team. Maybe you saw me score tonight?” He arched a brow.

“Dude, I scored, too.” A guy with blond hair, tanned and looking like a guy you’d see on a surfboard in California, bumped his elbow into Mason’s.

Mason pointed his thumb at surfer-guy’s chest. “This is Myles. He’s our other winger besides Jonah. He scored because your boy Archer helped him out tonight.” He stepped forward with his fist out. “Good job tonight, man.”

As a smile teased Archer’s lips, he fist bumped Mason. “Thanks.”

“Leo, it’s a pleasure. I’m Tyler, another defenseman like Archer.” Tyler held out his hand, his brown-eyed gaze intense and his dirty-blond hair framing his face.

“Nice to meet you, Tyler.” Leaning forward, I shook his hand.

“And this here’s Ace, our goalie, who makes sure we win even when we’re having a hard time scoring. He’s built like a mountain and has reflexes like a cat.” Mason stepped around Tyler to pat Ace on the arm. “He doesn’t talk much, do you, Ace?”

“I talk.” Ace smirked at Mason, his taller and wider frame stretching out his grey shirt. Holding out his big hand, he gave me a charming grin and said, “I hear you’re Axel’s brother.” His brown eyes twinkled at me under his curly black bangs.

“I am.” I shook his hand and released it. “Do you go to the Knot Me shows?”

Ace’s cheeks pinked and he dipped his head for a beat. “Yeah, but I um…” He bit his lip. “We hooked up a few times, Axel and me.”

“Ace, you dog. When was that?” Mason gave him an open-mouthed smirk.

“None ya.” Ace threw a quick glare at Mason. “As in, none ya business.”

Shaking his head, Tyler chuckled and rubbed his eyes.

“I think half of ASU’s queer men hooked up with my brother.” I scoffed. Fucking Axel. Yeah, there was no room for two of us to be out and proud.

“You may be right. We’ve all at least heard of him.” Mason lifted the edge of his mouth, then lowered it. “Hey, I hear he has a boyfriend now?”

“Yes, Remy, the guy I came to the game with tonight.” I picked my beer off the coffee table and sipped it. Would Archer have pointed us out to them? “Remy’s my best friend. Axel’s had his eye on him since we were little.”

Ace nodded. “Figures. I had a feeling there was someone he was really into.”

“Anyways, we’re going to leave you two lovebirds alone.” Mason wagged his brows at me.

“Oh, uh…” I glanced at Archer, sneaking a peek at me and worrying his lower lip. Probably better not to correct Mason. I’d let Archer do it in private. “Yeah, okay.”

They all walked off except for Jonah, who still sat next to Archer. “So, how’s it going? Did your dad call?”

“Yes, he called.” Archer pressed his lips together. “Same old shit.”

“Well, at least tonight he called.” Jonah popped up from the couch, then patted Archer’s shoulder and leaned in, kissing his cheek. “And at least we won tonight.”

“Yeah.” Archer squeezed his hand, then released it. “See you later.”

Nodding, Jonah jogged to catch up with the other guys at the bar.

I chewed the inside of my cheek. Maybe his relationship fell apart with his dad after his mom died. That happened in families. When the glue is gone, they fall apart. “So, what’s up with your dad?”

“We just don’t get along. Never really have.” He sucked in a breath. “Let’s not talk about him.” He gave me a thin-lipped grin. “Puts me in a bad mood and we won tonight. I should be happy.”

“Yeah, okay.” I placed my hand on his thigh and squeezed.