Brooks #2
I break our kiss for a moment, pressing my forehead against her as she gazes into my eyes.
“Question is, how quiet can you be?” I counter.
My hands move slowly down her sides, gripping the back of her thighs.
Lifting her up, I carry her to her side of the suite.
Dropping her on the bed before turning to shut the enclosed door.
◆◆◆
Halloway: Dude? Seriously? I can’t fucking believe you up and left like that.
Halloway: Like do you understand this is the game to lock us into the playoffs?
Halloway: I swear to God, I will punch you in the jaw if we lose this game tonight.
Halloway: How’s Hayley holding up?
My phone pings nonstop on the nightstand like rapid fire as the morning sun shines through the blinds of the hotel room. Hayley’s head rests on my bare chest, stirring slightly as I reach to read the string of texts from Halloway.
“Let me guess, Channing?” she murmurs, eyes still closed as she rolls onto her back and out of my warmth.
I can’t help but smile at her as she stretches her arms above her head. Her back arches off the bed in a beautiful, yet almost seductive way. I reach out to pull her back into me just as my phone pings again with another notification.
Halloway: I bet your ass boned her the moment you landed and arrived at her hotel room. Missing an important game all to get your rocks off.
I laugh aloud as I flash the screen to Hayley letting her read all of Halloway’s messages. “Well, at least he asked how I was.”
Ping.
Halloway: You’re boning her right now, aren’t you?
Ping.
Ping.
Halloway: Brooks. Make sweet love too me. (Insert Hayley voice)
Halloway: Never let me go. (Again, insert Hayley voice) *Kiss Face emoji*
“Better respond to him before he catches a plane and flies down here.” She giggles as she climbs out of bed and walks toward the bathroom.
Her hips sway side to side seductively as she glances back over her shoulder. My hands itch to reach out and touch her. With a quick wink she throws my way, she quietly shuts the door. The sound of running water echoes from behind the closed door as I unlock my phone and pull up Halloway’s contact.
“About damn time you call me, fucker. How dare you leave us in the middle of the night without a note, email, or text,” he says, putting on the dramatics. “I mean, we’re neighbors. And you couldn’t even bother to tell me you had to go.”
I can’t help but laugh at how over the top he sounds right now. Like a scorned women who’s been waiting up all night for her cheating husband to come stumbling in.
“Dramatic, much?”
He lets out a loud snort. “Well, I had to give you some hell,” he says, trying not to laugh. “You did just up and leave in the middle of the night.”
“I just didn’t feel right letting Hayley do this alone,” I say, brushing a hand through my hair.
It takes me a total of 0.5 seconds to realize that I’m in the wrong place.
The moment she told me she had to meet with lawyers to put a custody plan in place, I knew I had to go.
Meaning Halloway and all the other guys were an afterthought.
I don’t mean it in a I don’t give a fuck about hockey anymore kind of way.
But I feel like Hayley is rubbing off on me.
Showing me that there’s more to life than just hockey.
After Tiffany fucked with my mind, I thought I never wanted to be with another woman again.
Yet alone to be a father… well, father figure.
Kids just were never in the cards for me after that.
I was comfortable with just being the fun uncle.
A funcle if you will. But everything changes the moment I got close to Hayley and Camden.
“It’s cool, man. Denizen totally took your cuddle spot on the bus, but I’ll make sure to keep my hands to myself,” he says through a laugh I can’t help but return.
“So, what’s up, man? Why are you blowing up my phone? Shouldn’t you be getting in your pregame nap?” I question, knowing something must be up.
As if on cue, he lets out a loud sigh. “Brooks.”
“Halloway, just spit it out already.”
“Look, man, I like Hayley and all, but I’m just worried with how invested in all this you are.
This game is your life and out of nowhere, you decide to hop on a flight to be with her.
” He sounds cautious as he says it. Like he knows that I could go off at any moment.
And he’s right. My anger boils as I think about what he’s insinuating.
The game is my life, but there’s certainly room in it for more. Half our team has wives and kids. So how does this make me any different from them? Hayley’s baggage? Who doesn’t have baggage.
I release a low growl in warning to let him know he’s on shaky water. “Woah now… I was just stating the obvious. Someone has to look out for you too, man.”
“Thanks for that, but I’m a big boy. I can handle myself.”
“Hey, whatever you gotta tell yourself to sleep at night, Brooks. But man, just think about this shit. I don’t want to see your career end up like it did back in Chicago.”
Chicago.
What a bad reminder.
However, he’s right. But I don’t comment.
After a long bout of silence getting lost in my thoughts, he adds, “I just don’t want you to paint this picture in your head, of Hayley, you, and Cam as a happy family.
When in reality, Cam is Boyce’s. Boyce will be in his life forever.
And what happens when she craves to have her family together all the time?
Will you just leave?” He releases a breath. “I’m just trying to understand.”
I scoff at the hint of condescension in his voice. “Is there a problem with wanting more than just hockey?” I challenge. Just when I thought the team was on my side about Hayley being a member of the family. I guess we’re back to square one now.
Great.
“No,” he counters. “But is it worth risking your hockey career altogether?”
“Fuck, man.” I grind my teeth together while gripping the phone a little tighter to keep from lashing out.
“Asking the tough questions is all a part of the job,” he teases.
“I appreciate that, man, but it’s not necessary.”
“Whatever you say.” He sighs. “Well, on that note, I should probably get off and actually take that nap you scolded me about earlier.”
I shake my head. “Now you wanna take my advice?”
“Yeah,” he says through a chuckle. “It won’t be the same not cuddling with you, but I think I’ll survive. Maybe I can get Denizen to snuggle for a few.”
“You’re a sick fuck, you know that, right?”
“Hey, no one said I was a saint. I’ll call you after the game tonight. You can grill us on our performance.”
“Just make it into the fucking playoffs, you hear me? We’re taking the Cup this year.”
“Aye-aye, captain,” he says as I imagine his fake salute before disconnecting the call.
I drop the phone on the bed beside me, my head hanging between my shoulders as I reflect on what Halloway said. It’s like he was trying to warn me. Warn me that I’m going to make the same mistakes like in Chicago.
God, I should have known better than to open up to him about Tiffany and the Chicago incident. I almost lost my entire career back then. But I refuse to think that I will end up in the same predicament. As I said before, Hayley is different from Tiffany.
She’d never lie to me.
Right?