12. Office Hours
Chapter Twelve
Office Hours
MILES
Today’s injury report wasn’t too bad, which was exactly what I wanted to see for the first game of the season.
There were a couple possible sprains and a few hard hits that would likely need some stretching and ice-bath time to rehab, but thankfully nothing that needed immediate attention.
Guess that was a perk of working on a team where there were a good number of shifters out on the ice.
Our healing abilities meant I’d likely see fewer guys than usual inside the training room after our games.
Good. I loved my job but I disliked that it was necessary.
Seeing people in pain was the biggest drawback to my career, outweighed only by the fact that I was responsible for making them feel better and getting them back out on the ice.
More often than not, that was the outcome from visits to my office, but sometimes injuries were so bad that they were outside the scope of my practice and could permanently bench some guys.
Those were the days I truly wished I’d gone down a different career path. When the only answer was “I’m so sorry, but you won’t be able to play anymore.” Seeing the devastation in their eyes haunted me. It was like being the grim reaper of someone’s dreams.
I closed my iPad and pushed away from my desk, the chair nearly hitting the wall behind me in the tiny space.
I’d already started to make it feel a little more homey with a couple Pop Figures on my desk that I’d collected over the years and a few books stacked on the corner that I’d been reading and loving lately.
Thankfully there was a window that looked out to the woods that hugged the back of the stadium.
It made this feel much less like a utility closet and more like a cozy office.
It was already dark outside. No one from today’s game needed to be seen by me tonight so I considered going for a run through the woods.
It had become one of my favorite things to do since moving here.
I loved the freedom of being in my wolf form, darting through the trees and feeling the chilly air flowing through my fur and the grounding soil kicking up underneath my paws.
Running at night also lessened the chances of bumping into a startled hiker or camper.
I’d already spooked a couple people a few days ago when the wind had been blowing their scent in the opposite direction as me and I nearly crashed into them on the trail.
I gathered my things, shut down my computer, and made up my mind. Time for a run.
That’s when I sensed him. It was like a warm pulsing in my chest. A flare of sunshine in the darkening night. It was brief and caught me off guard.
“Hey, Miles,” Dylan said as he walked into the training room. He’d changed into a white T-shirt from a Madonna concert, the sleeves cut up so that his biceps and some of his chest were on display. “Bad time?”
“No, not at all,” I said. “Did you need to do some stretches? Ice bath, maybe?”
“I’m feeling good. I just… Well, George let me know you might want to see me and honestly I just wanted to chat.”
“Oh.”
Odd. I hadn’t said anything to George about seeing Dyl after the game…
“That game was complete shit. Coach already tore me a new one for how I played—rightfully so. I hate how it’s the first game you saw me play.”
I waved it away. “The first of many. And it happens.”
“Not to me.”
I arched a brow and shot him a smirk. “You may be a hot shifter, but you aren’t a god.”
Did I just call him hot? Judging by his mischievous smile and glint in his eyes, I guess I had.
“So then why did you keep saying, ‘Oh god,’ when we were in the bathroom?”
Guess he wanted to play. I could handle that. “Because I was scared you’d use too much teeth. I was praying.”
His eyes went wide before they narrowed again. “Funny. I thought I was the one on my knees.”
Heat flushed through me.
“And, for the record, I never use teeth.”
I chuckled at that, my nonchalant facade cracking a bit. “Trust me, I know.”
He winked at me before his attention shifted to something over my shoulder. He walked around me and leaned into my office. “You like playing FreeWatch?” He pointed at the three collectible figurines I had on my desk.
I answered with a nod, crossing my arms. I watched as he stepped inside my office.
My body still felt warm from our playful flirtation, which put me even more on guard.
We were at our place of work. It added an entirely different level of danger to what we were doing.
It wasn’t like we were locked inside someone’s bathroom, our hard bodies pressed together as we tried so desperately to ride the waves of bliss.
Anyone—a teammate, a coach, the GM—could walk in at any moment and catch us making eyes at each other.
I swallowed and tried to stuff down my yearning to be back on top of Dylan.
He made that extra difficult with the way his biceps twitched as he reached for the figurines. He picked one up, still in the box, and looked at it with an approving nod. “This one’s my favorite character. I usually play healer, and I like the way she also owns at DPS.”
“I didn’t know you played.”
“I do. Helps me get out of my head when I’m stressed or anxious.”
“She’s one of my mains,” I said, stepping into the small space. He didn’t wear any cologne, but he had showered after the game. The soft scent of lavender and eucalyptus shampoo filled my nose. His hair was still damp. I resisted the very powerful urge to run my hands through it.
“I like switching between her and Life-threader,” I said.
“Oh, he’s a good one.” Dyl placed the box back on my desk.
He turned to face me. We were only inches apart.
Fuck. I wanted to knock all the shit off my desk and bend him over right there and then, have him spread open for me so I could give him the pleasure he so desperately deserved and that I craved.
And if he wanted to bend me over the desk, I was good with that too.
Dyl seemed to think about something before he said, “If you’re not doing anything, maybe you should come over tonight. Just to play a few rounds. Maybe have a couple beers.”
I hesitated for a moment. Twirled the gold bracelet on my wrist. The cool metal against my skin served as a grounding force.
It kept me from floating straight up into the clouds and leaving my moral compass abandoned on the ground.
I should say no. I shouldn’t give in to the carnal needs that were trying to hijack my logical thoughts.
Dyl batted his long lashes. “It’ll help me get over the shit game from tonight.”
Now how in the world was I supposed to say no to that? I’d just go over for a couple rounds and consider it two friends hanging out. Nothing more, nothing less. If things started to escalate, I’d politely untangle myself from the situation and say I had to go. Simple as that.
“Sure,” I said. I was pleased with the immediate effect that had on Dylan’s expression. He lit up, his smile widening and his eyes crinkling at the corners.
“Awesome. Come on, you can give me some pointers on how to play with Life-threader.”
“Let me lock up,” I said. Dylan headed out of the training room as I grabbed my keys and closed the door to my office.
I knew I wasn’t making a mistake by saying yes, but I also knew that I wasn’t making the wisest decision either.
Only time would tell if this would bite me on the ass or kiss me on it instead. I clearly hoped for the latter.
I met Dylan outside the training room. The wide hallways of the Bobcat Arena were mostly empty now.
The game had finished and everyone had either raced home to rest or went to hang out with friends and party.
There was a janitor mopping up and a pair of security guards strolling through, nodding their goodnights to us as we passed.
I briefly wondered if they suspected anything was happening between us but I tried to ice that worry out of my head.
We were toward the exit when a friendly shout stopped us. “Miles!”
I turned, immediately recognizing that voice.
“Macie?” Sure enough, Emmy’s little sister was running over to greet me.
She wrapped her arms around me and gave me a hug tight enough to crack a couple ribs.
I returned the friendly hug, surprised as hell to see her.
It’d been something like three years since the last time we hung out.
She’d grown since then. She was taller—reaching my shoulders now—with braided hair that fell down over her shoulder and was tied with a bright red ribbon.
She had the same nose as Emmy and the same smile, too.
I broke from the hug and said hi to her brother next.
“Macie’s going to be staying with me for a little bit,” Emmy said.
“She came to see the game tonight and so I wanted to give her a backstage tour.” He was older than her by about six years and was always incredibly protective of her.
He also tried to include her in his life as best he could, even with the age difference.
A lot of his friends had become her friends just by virtue of being around so often.
It warmed me to see their bond. Being an only child and raised by a single father meant my life was ruled by a subtle—and sometimes not-so-subtle—sense of loneliness.
I envied the blood bond that people shared with their siblings.
“You guys did great tonight,” she said cheerfully.
Dyl scoffed at that. “I’ll take it, but I also know you are as good of a liar as your brother. And that doesn’t make you a very good one.”
She laughed and shook her head. She looked between Dylan and I. “Where are you two off to tonight?”
Ah fuck. I wasn’t expecting to be asked that question. Thankfully, Emmy knew the situation and likely suspected something, so he stepped in. “Probably going to bed. They’ve both had a long day.”
“Oh, right, duh,” Macie said with another bubbly laugh. Neither Dyl nor I expanded on that.
“All right,” Emmy said with a gentle hand on his sister. “I want to head to bed too. Let’s get going, Mace.”
“It was great seeing you again, Miles.”
“I’m sure we’ll all hang out soon.”
“I hope so,” she said and gave me another hug. She hugged Dylan too before following her brother down the hall.
“Ready to go to bed, then?” Dylan asked, his white-streaked brow arching suggestively.
I rolled my eyes and started down the hall with a laugh. “Let’s go.”