She rolled her eyes. “I’m not some grumpy old bear, Matt.”
“And yet Dax and I have caught you falling asleep on the floor with a chicken drumstick in your hand. Twice!” Dax’s best friend replied, shaking his head and clicking his tongue disapprovingly.
It was three times, but she was glad he wasn’t counting.
“Take your hands off her, Matt!” Dax said unhappily, tugging on his arm.
Anna snorted. Dax’s protective instinct was five sizes too big, not to mention completely unfounded. She had enough arrogant hockey players in her life; she didn’t need to date or jump into bed with another one. They didn’t make good boyfriends. At least, that much seemed clear from her relationship with Dax and Jack. She had about the same interest in Matt as she did in a zoo animal: It was fun to look at him, but it didn’t bother her that she wasn’t allowed to touch him. She liked him. He was funny, but so were monkeys, and she didn’t want to jump them, either.
“That’s your sister?” another voice asked, and a man stepped up next to her with a skeptical expression. “You don’t look alike at all. She’s much prettier than you.”
She laughed and looked at the newcomer. He was Leon Alvarez, a defender. She attended many L.A. Hawks home games and knew the faces of the players. “Thank you very much. That’s the first time I’ve heard that.” According to the Internet, Dax was only so good at hockey because he dazzled the opposing players with his beauty.
The defender winked at her. “That’s hard to believe. With the…”
“What did I say about flirting with my sister, Alvarez?” Dax interrupted him brusquely.
“That you’ll knock out a tooth for every smarmy compliment?”
“Exactly.”
“Well, that’s why I gave her a non-smarmy one! I…”
“You told himwhat?” Anna interrupted Leon in disbelief. “You can’t be serious, Dax!” True, she had no interest in dating a hockey player, but she wanted to feel like shecouldif she wanted to!
“I was merely giving him a friendly warning,” Dax replied innocently. “I don’t want anyone hitting on you.”
“And what if Iwantto be hit on?” she asked sharply. “What if I only tagged along tonight because I thought, hey, I want to have some casual, dirty fun. Because, by God, it would help my stress level!”
“Oh, I volunteer,” Leon replied immediately, stepping forward with his hand raised.
Dax merely snorted and narrowed his eyes as if he wasn’t sure Anna was serious. “You don’t want to be hit on,” he stated. “You’re way too young to be…”
“I’m twenty-six, Dax!”
Her brother frowned. “That can’t be. Twenty-two, tops.”
“Oh my God!” She ran her hands through her hair in frustration. “You’re not my chaperone or my father — I can have all the sex I want!”
And now that she thought about it, a hot night with a stupid hockey player wouldn’t be such a bad idea. She hadn’t had sex in ages. What if it wasn’t like riding a bike, after all – what if she had forgotten what went where? Wasn’t it her duty as a doctor-in-training to brush up on her anatomy every few months? Besides, she was tired of Dax patronizing her. Yes, he and Jack had been a big part of her upbringing because their parents couldn’t be relied on, but she didn’t need them anymore.
So, she deliberately turned her back on him and smiled broadly at Leon. “How good are you in bed, Leon?”
“I’m a ten out of ten,” he answered seriously. “I’ve studied diagrams and everything. All my ex-girlfriends were incredibly happy with my performance.”
“Promising.” She nodded. “By the way, I’m going to be a doctor, so I know a lot about the human body. So, if you have any lingering questions, you can always ask.”
“Cool. I always like to learn new things,” Leon said appreciatively.
Matt laughed loudly. “Where’s the popcorn when you need it?”
“Stop it!” Dax snapped, annoyed, and pulled her back by the shoulders. “You’ve made your point. Thank you very much for the horrible images in my head. I just want to say that you should find someone nice who will look after you and make you happy for the rest of your life. Not a hockey player, for God’s sake! They’re all idiots who fuck around.”
“Youare a hockey player.”
“And the best proof of that,” he said meaningfully.
She snorted. “God, I need a drink.” She turned abruptly and hurried toward the bar.
