CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Graham went in search of his captain, his alternate, and his goalie.
Jesse was easy to spot, dancing to the band—even though it wasn’t really danceable music, as far as Graham was concerned—while Rafe and Mickey were deep in conversation at a table. Connor was at the bar, talking to the bartender.
Graham waved at Jesse, interrupted Rafe and Mickey long enough to say he was heading out because he still felt exhausted after the late flight in from New York, and told Connor the same.
He got a blown kiss from Jesse that made him laugh, a worried look from Mickey, and a slap on the back from Connor, then he was out on the street in front of the pub.
The signal was always terrible right there, so Graham walked a few yards away and ordered a ride share.
The October air was cool and crisp tonight, and Graham shivered, suddenly wishing he had on more than a suit jacket. His ride was still a distance away, so he dicked around on his phone while he waited, letting Thad know the ETA.
The door of the pub opened a few minutes later, spilling light and sound into the relatively quiet side street. Graham glanced over, expecting to see Thad, but it was the gaggle of rookies.
They glanced over at Graham, sobering. “We’re not going to another bar or anything where we can get in trouble, I swear,” Erik blurted out. “Just planning to do some gaming at the hotel. We’ll be on our best behavior.”
“Sounds like a great plan,” Graham said mildly.
The rookies left a few minutes later, their own rideshare pulling up quickly because apparently, they’d been smart enough to do it before they left the pub.
When the door opened a few minutes later, it wasn’t Thad either.
A short, pretty woman with dark hair and a curvy body stepped through the door. She grumbled about something under her breath, frowning at her phone, and Graham called out, “Signal’s better over here.”
She shot him a vaguely wary look but walked a little closer, her expression lightening when she looked at the screen again. “So it is. Ugh, wait times are terrible for rides though.”
“Yeah, I’ve been here a while,” he agreed.
She glanced around. “Hmm. Maybe I should walk home.”
Graham thought it would probably be smarter not to at this hour of the night, but he kept his mouth shut. His sister, Corine, would smack him if she found out he was giving women unsolicited advice about their safety.
But she grimaced and did something on her phone. “Ugh. Probably better not.”
They made small talk as they waited, and Thad still hadn’t arrived by the time the ride share did.
“You want to take this?” he offered.
She shot him another wary look, and he felt a little horrified when he realized how much women had to worry about to get home safe. What the fuck was wrong with dudes?
“No ulterior motive,” he assured her. “I was going to share a ride with my boy—um, a buddy and he isn’t out here yet, obviously. If you want, I can talk to the driver about canceling my ride and ask if he’ll do a new one for you. No pressure though.”
“Oh.” The remaining worry on her face disappeared. “Sure. If you don’t mind.”
“I don’t mind.”
The driver grumbled but went along with it, and it wasn’t long before she was speeding away in the car.
Graham debated if he should wait to do anything until he saw Thad or order a new ride altogether. Thankfully, Thad stepped outside as Graham hovered his thumb over the app, internally warring with himself.
He ordered the ride as Thad stepped closer.
“Sorry it took so long. I figured you probably left without me,” Thad said.
“Probably should have,” Graham agreed. “But I put a woman in it instead.”
“Nice of you.” Thad glanced over. “Was it the hot brunette?”
“Yeah,” Graham said, a flicker of jealousy going through him.
Thad gave him a crooked smirk. “Perfect. I think Gavin’s convinced I was going home with her. Which is inaccurate but convenient.”
“Yeah?” Graham asked, relaxing a little.
“Yeah, he gave me a little lecture on not giving up on the guy I have a thing for.” Thad’s smug look deepened.
“You told him there’s a guy you have a thing for?” Graham asked, surprised.
“Uhh, only vaguely.” Thad adjusted his ball cap. “I made sure I didn’t give us away.”
“No, I’m sure you were careful,” Graham said. “I was just surprised.”
“I honestly wish I could tell him about us,” Thad said more quietly. “Maybe he’d be able to help me figure out how to be a decent boyfriend to you.”
He looked so worried it made Graham’s heart ache.
“Hey, you’re doing fine as far as I’m concerned.” Graham reached out, then remembered he couldn’t hold Thad’s hand in public. He stuffed both hands into his trouser pockets instead.
“Even if I bail on you in the middle of the night?”
“I figured you had your reasons,” Graham said quietly. “We probably shouldn’t talk about them here though.”
“You’re probably right.” Thad shifted back a little.
A cool breeze caught Graham across the back of his neck, and he shivered, hunching his shoulders. A moment later, he felt the brush of skin-warmed leather as Thad draped his jacket around Graham’s shoulders.
When Graham shot Thad a surprised glance, he gruffly said, “You looked cold.”
“I was. Thank you.”
Graham probably shouldn’t accept the jacket, but the feeling of being enveloped in that warmth, with the scent of Thad’s cologne settling around him like a hug, felt too nice to shrug off. To refuse.
He’d done something similar with the women he dated but he’d never been on this side of it. It was nice. Comforting. He could see why they’d liked it.
Graham tugged the jacket a little tighter around himself and smiled at Thad.
Around them, the usual sounds of city traffic on the cross street and occasional car going by faded into the distance and, for a moment, they stood there on the sidewalk, looking at each other under the glow of the streetlight.
It was almost … romantic.
A moment later, reality intruded when Graham’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out to see the ride was nearly here.
He told Thad that as he reluctantly handed him the coat back. Thad had shrugged it back on as the vehicle rounded the corner a moment later.
They got in and made small talk with the driver for a few minutes.
He was an older guy, with a Boston accent even thicker than Connor’s. The vehicle was a smallish crossover and, even though they sat on opposite sides of the back seat, their knees bumped occasionally.
Graham kept trying to shift away, but it was impossible in the relatively narrow space.
“So, you’re with the Harriers, right?” the driver asked, meeting Graham’s gaze in the rearview mirror.
“Uhh, yes,” Graham said. “I play for the team and Thad here is with the social media department.”
Graham gave up on the idea of shifting away, and Thad did too, allowing the sides of their thighs to press together instead. Graham could feel the heat of Thad’s leg against his own, especially through the thin fabric of his trousers.
“Very cool,” the guy said. “I was never good enough to go pro but that would be fuckin’ awesome to do support stuff.”
“Yeah, I feel lucky they hired me.” Thad shifted, brushing the side of his hand against Graham’s on the seat between them.
Graham shivered at the contact.
“So, what are you guys up to tonight? Must be somethin’ fun.”
“Well, we hung out at O’Neill’s for a while with the team,” Graham said.
The guy met his gaze in the mirror. “Yeah, I’ve heard it’s the team’s postgame hangout spot. I’ve picked guys up there before for rides, but I wasn’t sure if it was true or rumors.”
“It’s true,” Graham admitted with a smile. “Liam O’Neill runs a nice, low-key place.”
Despite Liam’s age, Graham had seen the guy physically throw out people who started bugging players for autographs. It didn’t happen often, but Liam’s policy had always been that fans could chat or play pool with players if they were polite, but any weird, intrusive behavior was off-limits.
Graham appreciated it. Especially when he heard stuff from guys on other teams of what it was like in other cities. The scrutiny Jesse had been under in Toronto when he played for the Fisher Cats sounded like a nightmare to Graham.
In the darkness of the back seat, Thad carefully took Graham’s hand, threading their fingers together and squeezing.
Graham smiled, still looking straight forward at the driver’s reflection in the mirror.
“So that’s it?” the man asked, sounding disappointed, like he’d imagined hockey players lived much wilder lives. “You guys are headed home then?”
Graham glanced over at Thad, not quite sure how to play this.
“Well,” Thad said with a shrug. “It’s always nice to have a few buddies over. Drinks, movies or gaming, that sort of thing.”
Huh. That was a skillful way to imply several of their friends would be joining them at Graham’s condo without saying that’s what they were planning to do. Smart.
“Sometimes we watch the west coast games,” Graham offered. “Scope out the competition.”
“Nice, nice. Must be great to hang out with the team too, Thad. That’s a wicked perk.”
“Yeah, they’re great guys.” Thad squeezed Graham’s hand again. “Never make a bet with them though. I learned the hard way. Those are way deeper pockets than I’ve got.”
The driver laughed and fell silent for a moment.
“Who did you make a bet with?” Graham asked quietly.
Thad grinned. “Crawford.”
“Well, that was your first mistake,” he joked.
The driver asked, “So, what do you think this season’s gonna be like, Graham?”
“Uhh, I’m feeling pretty optimistic, to be honest. Gavin’s acquired some really good pieces.”
“Yeah, I was impressed by the Bass trade.”
“Tom is great,” Graham agreed. “He’s really helped bolster our second line.”
“The depth is nice.”
The slow drag of Thad’s thumb against the sensitive spot along the side of Graham’s palm made his mouth go dry and he had to clear his throat as he continued. “With Webby in net and two really solid D-pairs, it’s finally feeling like things are coming together for us.”
“Do you think Racine will make any more trades?”
Graham had plenty of calluses from the repetitive wear of stickhandling and shooting but everywhere that hadn’t hardened felt so soft. So vulnerable.
Was that what made the feel of Thad’s short, blunt thumbnail tracing along the lines and grooves of his fingers and palms so erotic?
And what had the guy asked again? Oh right, more trades.
“Uhh, maybe.” Graham shifted in his seat. “I think it’ll depend on what’s available and what other teams are asking for.”
“I was surprised he didn’t do much this summer.”
“It was a pretty thin UFA market this year,” Graham countered, suddenly aware of the low pulse of heat in his groin.
He snuck a glance at Thad who lounged against the window opposite him with a smirk. Jesus fuck, he needed that man now.
The rest of the ride to Graham’s condo was a blur.
Graham made small talk about the team and thanked the driver all while resisting every impulse he had to tell the guy to shut the fuck up so he could climb into Thad’s lap and get his tongue in Thad’s mouth.
When they were finally alone in the elevator and on the way up to Graham’s floor, he nearly lunged for Thad.
“Wait,” Thad said through gritted teeth. “Cameras.”
Graham cursed and held on to the railing behind him, closing his eyes and tipping his head back.
If he didn’t touch Thad soon, he was going to lose his fucking mind.