EPILOGUE
After the game, Luke drove Sebastian to his house with only one goal in mind.
They barely made it in the door before Luke had his cock out, a condom on, and Sebastian’s pants down. He’d prepped before the game and Luke groaned at the feel of Sebastian tight and slick around him as he eased inside.
He paused long enough to rip Sebastian’s jersey off and fling it to the far end of the couch—just to be safe—and Sebastian let out a breathless laugh and thanked him.
Smiling, Luke bent him over the couch and began to thrust, gripping Sebastian’s hips and fucking him like a man possessed. Sebastian gave as good as he got and it wasn’t long before he cried out, shaking as he came into Luke’s fist.
Still buried inside him, cock aching, Luke held his hand to Sebastian’s mouth, urging him to lick it clean. Sebastian did, sucking on his fingers until Luke couldn’t stand it anymore.
He pulled out, ripped off the condom, and got Sebastian down on his knees on the rug. Luke’s hands were shaking as he stroked his cock, muttering filthy things to Sebastian as he knelt there, lips parted, eyes heavy-lidded and eager.
“C’mon, give it to me, asshole,” Sebastian urged.
Luke let out a strangled laugh and came a few strokes later, his shots landing on Sebastian’s mouth, cheeks, and chin. Cum dripped down onto Sebastian’s chest as he licked his lips and Luke let out a low, desperate groan at the sight.
“Good thing you took off the jersey, huh?” Sebastian teased, swiping some cum up with his finger and licking it from them.
“Oh, I dunno,” Luke said, still breathing hard. “It might have been fun to mess you up again …”
Sebastian glowered at him and Luke laughed, grabbing Sebastian under the arms and hauling him to his feet. They kissed, cum smearing onto Luke’s dress shirt and vest.
When he pulled back, Sebastian studied the mess. “Well, that wasn’t supposed to be payback,” he said drily. “But I guess that works.”
Luke laughed. “Fuck, I love you.”
Sebastian smiled and pressed closer. “Fuck, I love you too.”
“This is good, you know?” Luke said gruffly.
“Yeah, I think so too.” Sebastian smiled at him, then shivered.
Luke slapped Sebastian’s bare butt, felt the goosebumps on it, and said, “C’mon, Flower Boy. Let’s get cleaned up in the shower.”
He hauled Sebastian up the stairs and into the primary bathroom.
They stripped off and got in the shower together, but when Luke shifted, trying to let Sebastian get his head under the spray, he backed away.
“What?” Luke asked, confused.
Sebastian pointed at his head. “Curly hair. I don’t have any products with me, and it’ll take forever for me to style. I’m not going to your team party with my hair looking a mess.”
Luke frowned. “Can’t you just use mine?”
“Uhh, no.” Sebastian scoffed. He grabbed a bottle of Luke’s shampoo from the shelf and waggled it. “This is two-in-one shampoo and conditioner, dude. Not for curly hair.”
“Works for me.”
“Does it?” Sebastian asked with a laugh.
“Hey,” Luke said, his hand going to his head as he frowned at Sebastian. “What’s wrong with the way my hair looks?”
Sebastian gave him a skeptical look. “I told you before, it always looks kinda greasy and limp.”
“It’s … it’s always been that way,” Luke said defensively. “I have to wash it all the time because of practices and games. It just kinda looks like that no matter what I do.”
“Hey, I still think you’re hot.”
“But I’d be hotter if I used something else?” Luke asked with a lift of his eyebrows.
“We could give it a try, maybe?” Sebastian offered, sliding a hand down Luke’s chest, over his stomach, and toward his cock.
“Yeah, okay,” Luke agreed, because he’d do just about anything when Sebastian touched him that way and looked at him like that.
Even use fancy-ass shampoo and conditioner and shit.
“Look, I’m not trying to change you. I love you just the way you are.” Sebastian smiled. “Just thought I’d make a suggestion.”
So Luke dipped his head and kissed Sebastian, careful not to mess up his hair.
After their shower, they got dressed. Luke put on jeans and a T-shirt because he never liked dressing up anyway. Sebastian changed into the outfit he’d worn to the ceremony. Thankfully, not the Rockets jersey.
The team liked Sebastian, but they might draw the line at that.
Sebastian also went out to Luke’s car and grabbed the poor neglected flower arrangement he’d left in it. He fussed with the flowers for a few minutes before he plunked the vase down in the middle of the kitchen table.
“We can enjoy it tomorrow at breakfast,” he said.
Privately, Luke thought it would be a miracle if either of them were up before noon, since the Harriers had an after-party planned for tonight and Sebastian had already taken the morning off work.
But they could eat breakfast for dinner, he supposed.
Either way, it was good. The flowers didn’t look half-bad in his kitchen. And Sebastian looked even better.
It was a raucous crowd at O’Neill’s that greeted Sebastian and Luke by the time they finally made it to the pub. The place was decorated with Harriers colors and the mood was celebratory.
They’d taken a rideshare there so Sebastian immediately accepted a drink when it was offered to him. Luke did the same.
Luke quickly got pulled into the crowd, his teammates wanting to celebrate with him, and Sebastian was happy to let him go. He and Luke would have plenty of time together before the playoffs started.
After that, he’d belong to the team for the duration.
Sebastian talked to the other SAPs for a while and Catherine introduced him to her husband, Declan, and her older sons, Finn and Pat. Sebastian basically got passed from person to person until he was slightly drunk and very happy.
He reunited with Luke at one point and ended up tucked close to him, his body a warm, hard line beside Sebastian’s as they chatted with a couple of guys on the team, including Jesse, who was clearly feeling no pain tonight.
“Hey!” Jesse said with a sudden surprised laugh, interrupting the conversation. “Sebastian? Did you ever notice that you and Tanner kinda look alike?”
Sebastian squinted at Tanner who stood a few feet away. “I mean, I guess? We’ve both got dark curly hair and dark-ish eyes? Sort of the same body type, I suppose, although he’s in way better shape than I am.”
Tanner lifted up the front of his shirt to show off his abs and stuck his tongue out. “Yeah, I’m way hotter. Sorry, Sebastian.”
Sebastian shrugged. His ego could survive a few chirps from hockey players.
“I dunno,” Jesse said thoughtfully, looking between them. “Seems to me like Crawford has a type in both kinds of D-partners.”
He gave them a showy wink and Sebastian snorted.
In unison, Luke and Tanner made faces, both looking like they were about to retch.
“Eww,” Tanner said with a full-body shudder. “Gross.”
Jesse cackled.
Luke pulled Sebastian closer. “Yeah, I’m gonna stick with the guy who’s an actual adult, thanks.”
“Hey!” Tanner protested. “I’m an adult.”
Everyone around them made noises of disagreement.
“You are a child,” Graham said with a laugh. “Your driver’s license might say you’re twenty-six, but you have the maturity of a toddler.”
Tanner made a sputtering noise and turned on his heel. “You all suck. I’m gonna go drink with people who are nice to me.”
Laughter followed his retreat.
A while later, when Sebastian went in search of some water—because he was out of practice at drinking with hockey players and really didn’t want a hangover tomorrow—he ran into Tanner at the bar.
He was waiting for a drink and doing something on his phone. Texting someone, it looked like. Sebastian wondered who it was. And then he wondered if the woman in front of him at the game had been right.
“Sooo … I have to ask,” Sebastian said, resting his elbows on the bar beside Tanner. “Are you and Rasmussen …”
Tanner quickly shut off his phone and blinked at him. “Are we what?”
“Fucking?”
A dull red flush spread up Tanner’s neck to and bloomed in his cheeks. “Umm …”
“Okayyy … that’s a yes.” Sebastian laughed. “Got it.”
Tanner’s gaze darted around the pub. “Shit, don’t tell Luke. He’ll fucking kill me.”
“Your secret is safe with me,” Sebastian said with a smile and wink.
No one would understand wanting privacy about a relationship more than Luke.
“Thanks.” Tanner looked relieved. “I mean, it’s sort of been a thing since like … Juniors, honestly.”
Sebastian lifted his eyebrows. “Really? The whole time?”
“No,” Tanner said with a laugh. “God no. Just here and there. I gave Leif a blowjob when we were like … sixteen and then we didn’t screw again until the summer skills camp last year in Evanston. And then we kinda hooked up at the North Atlantic Tournament.”
“Ohh,” Sebastian said. “But you hate him, right?”
Tanner made a face. “Ugh, totally. He’s a stuck-up prick who gets on my nerves. But he’s hot, you know?”
“I do know all about that,” Sebastian agreed, though he wouldn’t say he’d ever thought of Luke as a stuck-up prick. Just … an asshole.
“Yeah, but the thing with me and Leif, it’s not like you guys,” Tanner said. “It doesn’t mean anything.”
“Didn’t mean anything for Luke and me either,” Sebastian pointed out with a laugh. “Until it did.”
Tanner shuddered. “Trust me, there’s no way in hell I’m falling in love with that ice princess.”
“Mmm,” Sebastian said. “Well, good luck with that.”
There was a fine line between love and hate and Sebastian and Luke were living proof that it didn’t take much to tip from one side of it to the other.
Luke wasn’t surprised when people kept shoving drinks at him. He slugged them down, glad he’d have a little over a week before their first playoff game.
He didn’t recover from hangovers as quickly as he used to.
But tonight had been one of the most fun games he’d played in years and whatever happened in the postseason, he’d ended the regular season with a bang and that felt good.
It felt damn good.
Later that night, as the evening was beginning to wind down, Luke finally caught Liam alone at the bar. He’d been trying to get a moment to talk to him all evening.
“Hey, Liam,” he called out, leaning his elbows on the scuffed wooden bar top. “Do you have a minute?”
“Sure. What would you like?” Liam stepped closer.
“Oh, not a drink,” Luke said. “I wanted to talk to you about the pub. You see, I’m planning to buy a bar after I retire. I never thought about this place, but a few weeks ago you said that you were thinking of selling it and …”
“You’re interested,” Liam guessed, his white eyebrows drawing together.
It wasn’t a question, but Luke nodded anyway. “Yeah, if you’d trust me with it.”
“Depends.” Liam studied his face. “Are you gonna turn it into some posh nightclub?”
“Fuck no. I want to keep it what it’s always been. Hell, I wouldn’t even change the name. The only thing I might want to update is the menu.”
“Microgreens and truffle oil?” Liam narrowed his eyes.
“Absolutely fucking not. Though I might offer a few vegetables that aren’t fried,” Luke suggested. “You know, for the hockey players trying to stick to their nutrition plan.”
Liam chuckled. “I could probably live with that. You should talk to Catherine though. I think she’s got a nephew about to graduate culinary school, unless you were planning to handle that part yourself.”
Luke snorted, both at the idea of cooking for the pub himself and the size of Catherine and Declan’s families. There was always someone …
“I’ll do that,” Luke agreed.
“When are you thinking about retirement?”
“That’s the thing,” Luke admitted. “It could be at the end of the postseason, could be one more after that. No more than that though.”
Liam hummed. “I could maybe work with that timeline. Tell you what, bring me your proposal and we’ll sit down and talk.”
Luke held out a hand. “It’s a deal.”
“Not yet it’s not,” Liam said with a twinkle in his eye as he took Luke’s hand. “I might be trying to fleece you.”
“You might,” Luke agreed, chuckling as they did in fact shake on it. “I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”
“It would be nice to keep this place in the family,” Liam said, his tone turning thoughtful.
“I thought your nephew—”
“Not that family,” he said with a smile. “The Harriers family. Declan O’Shea was a rookie when I opened this place. There’s a lot of history here. A lot of memories.”
And Luke nodded, suddenly emotional.
That was really what he wanted, wasn’t it? Not just a career after hockey, but a way to keep these moments going. A way to still be a part of the Harriers family. And sure, Luke could have done something in hockey more directly. But this was what felt right to him.
He looked around the pub, taking in the years of history, the Harriers memorabilia and the years of wear that this team—his team—had left here.
He watched Jesse and Kady dancing wildly to an upbeat song on the jukebox while their partners happily watched from the sidelines.
Tanner joined in, making an absolute spectacle of himself, grinning from ear-to-ear as he bumped butts with Jesse.
Thad slung an arm around Graham and pulled him in to kiss his cheek. Krista had her back to Tom’s chest, his arms around her as they swayed to the song.
Rafe sat in a chair, eyes half-closed as Mickey stood behind him, running his hands through his hair.
Even Gavin and Dakota were there, laughing together about something.
There was a reason Luke never wanted to leave Boston, and it had nothing to do with the weather or even the city.
It was the people. His people.
A moment later, as Sebastian walked toward him, smiling and definitely well on his way toward drunk, Luke smiled back. Whatever the postseason brought, whenever he retired, whatever bar he bought, life was looking good.
“C’mere, Flower Boy,” Luke said, holding out a hand. “Kiss me.”
Thank you so much for reading Cheap Shot!