“This is exactly the type of shit I was talking about, bro.”
“What?”
“All this shit about kissing and hard-ons. They become a distraction. They keep you from achieving the things you want in life. When I have that beautiful wife—and especially when we have our three sons—I don’t want to remember that I ever had a woody over a guy.”
“Sounds like you, all right.”
“And I’ll tell you something else: I don’t want you talking to me. Period.”
Erik paused, like he wanted to fire another wisecrack at me in the worst way, but I stopped him before he could.
“I know what you’re going to say,” I said, “so save your breath. We’ll be on the same hockey team, but that’s as far as it goes. Business only. We’ll say no more to each other than we have to.”
“But—”
“I’m not joking, bro. You wanted to know how I can be the master of my own destiny. Well, this is how you do it: by taking control, by putting your foot down, and by weeding out anything and everything that could stand in your way.”
I spotted an open door in a nearby building, slipped into it, and lost myself in a sea of people. That was the only way I could lose Erik. Sure, physically escaping our conversation before it’d officially ended was rude. Given what I’d put up with from him, manners were totally on the back burner.
All I wanted was to escape from him and never have to think about his warm lips, firm touch, or throbbing hard-on ever again.
If that didn’t work, I could always take a cold shower.
15
ERIK
Don’t believe anything Kayden tells you. He puts on this ridiculous act, boasting about how he’s the master of the universe, in the driver’s seat of life, and can control every situation he comes across. Puh-lease. I hadn’t made that comment about his Mister Goodbar fight to be funny, you know. I’d said it because he could control next to nothing.
If he thought he could will his urges away, he had another thing coming. I saw the way he’d looked at me. After that last conversation, my own willpower had hung by a thread, but I wouldn’t let it bother me. Instead of ignoring those feelings, I wanted to understand them.
Kayden would never comprehend that if he lived to be a hundred. Period.
After practice, I waited, sitting alone in a corner, head hung low, and my fingers laced together. I meant to confront Kayden again but didn’t know exactly what to say. Normally I planned out my tough conversations, rehearsing them in my head before they happened.
I watched Kayden at his locker, admiring his strong back and broad shoulders as he combed his hair. He placed his comb,deodorant, and styling gel on the top shelf before closing the door. Then he turned, and his eyes landed on me. I know they did. He could pretend I didn’t exist all he wanted, but I knew better.
I’d starred in his hot, sweaty dreams just as much as he had in mine.
“Hold it!”
Kayden froze. He’d been stubborn as hell, but he still responded to my commands, at least if I poured authority into my voice. I rose and shuffled over to him.
“I thought I told you not to talk to me.” He kept his back to me.
“I know you did, but since when do I take orders from you?”
He turned and cocked an eyebrow like he couldn’t believe I would dare speak to him that way. Now I stared into those stunning green eyes. Before, I’d felt scared, as if teetering on the edge of a cliff about to fall into an abyss. Now the consequences didn’t matter.
No fear.
But Kayden was still afraid. Scared shitless, actually. I knew that even if he denied it.
“I’m telling you not to fuck with me, De Ruiter. I’ve been nice up until now.”
Kayden puffed his chest out, exerting an authority all his own. That didn’t scare me, though. The more he acted all tough, the more I wanted to overcome his strength. He tried to look away from me, but I reached out, touching my fingers to his chin, and guided him back.
He peered into my eyes, trying to reclaim control, like that would be worth the risk. After all, he couldn’t allow me to overpower him. I felt light and tingly, wild with anticipation but unafraid.
