Face Offs & Cheap Shots (CU Hockey Book 2)
Face Offs & Cheap Shots: Chapter 18

As suspected, Cohen’s waiting for me when I get back.

While talking to my sister who’s in her skimpy pajamas.

“Baby, inside. Now.”

She smiles at my teammate. “Bye.”

I growl.

She moves faster.

Cohen’s gaze follows my sister’s ass, so I step in front of him, and he shakes it off. “What was up with Jacobs?”

“His usual contempt for me. It was nothing. He’s sleeping it off now.”

Cohen looks like he doesn’t believe me, but I don’t give him a chance to question it.

I go into my room and close the door behind me.

“What was wrong with your friend?” Baby asks from where she lies in my bed.

“Nothin’. I basically stole his captain spot from him, so he’s pissed. Though, he’s always mad at me, so it doesn’t make much difference.” I flop back onto my pillow and blanket on the floor.

“What an asshole.”

“He’s not, actually. He’s …” Smart, mature, self-made. Take your pick. “He hates the Beckett name and what we stand for.”

“Oh, so you have that in common.”

“It makes sense for him to resent me. I haven’t exactly helped my case over the last three years. Throwing money around like it means nothing when he’s here on a scholarship.”

“Money, or lack of it, doesn’t give him a right to be an asshole though.”

“No, I think that just adds to it. I push all of his buttons on purpose. He hates that I’m never serious and don’t think things through.”

“You’re … defending him. Are you, like, friends?”

I stare at the ceiling, tempted to tell her about Jacobs and me, but the thing is, we’re only hooking up. I don’t even know if I can say that we’re friends.

We’re two guys who are hanging out and having sex. Does that make us friends?

We make each other come. Exclusively.

And have fun.

“How long are you staying for?” I ask because I could think about her question all damn night and still not replace an answer.

“I don’t know. I don’t want to be in New York by myself for the rest of summer, and all my friends at Harvard have gone home for the break.”

“You can stay here as long as you don’t get caught. We’re not supposed to have guests in the dorms.”

“Thanks. I’ll probably only need a few days to work something out. I had to get away from Daddy.”

Welcome to my entire existence.

“The saddest part is he probably doesn’t even care that I left.”

I’d like to say that’s not true, but I have no idea.

Dad’s a very traditional type of person. Where men are superior and women are playthings or possessions and should be seen but not heard. Our mom is an ex-Playboy Playmate. Something I wish I didn’t know about my mother and happy as fuck that none of the guys at Colchester have found out. High school was a pain in the ass.

Those “yo momma” jokes, I’ve heard them all.

It’s so much easier being in a different state where they’re too busy to visit. Because if Dad is proud of one thing, it’s his picture-perfect family. The trophy wife he loves to show off and boast about her being in Playboy once upon a time, the son who will follow in his footsteps, and his own little princess.

I don’t think he gives an actual shit about any of us, only the image. Except maybe Mom. They do appear to be in love.

“I’m sorry Dad can’t see how amazing you are,” I whisper.

She doesn’t reply. She’s probably asleep again.

It’s not the first time I’ve wondered what Baby and Dad’s relationship would be like if I wasn’t around. Would he take her seriously if she was the only heir to his fortune?

More importantly, would I be able to survive without Dad funding my lifestyle?

Jacobs’s judging face fills my mind.

Right.

First-world problems.

I try to get to sleep, but all I can think is how much more comfortable I’d be if I were in Jacobs’s bed with him.

Tomorrow night.

And if my sister is staying a while, maybe the night after that too. And the one after that.

I spend the next week sneaking out of my room after Baby’s asleep, taking the stairs between levels, and knocking on Jacobs’s door. We make each other come with our mouths, our hands, and once he made me come by grinding on top of me, his cock dragging along mine. Then, when morning comes, I sneak back into my room and pretend I stayed there the whole night.

A few times while Jacobs has been choking on my dick and fingering my ass, I’ve been tempted to ask him to fuck me, but it seems we were all talk while he was drunk. And maybe I was a little overconfident on that front, but I’ve been thinking about it.

A lot.

Whenever I’ve contemplated telling him, I get scared off by the fact a dick is bigger than a finger.

He hasn’t brought it up either.

One day … maybe when he admits he actually likes me. I did say I’d make him work for it, after all.

By day, we’re still seen as rivals even though we’re working as a team on the ice as much as in bed at night. Camp is seriously still the most fulfilling thing I’ve done in my life.

I’m always chasing that high, the adrenaline only stupidity and attention-seeking behavior can bring, but coaching these kids is a different kind of fun.

It leaves a lasting impression on my soul instead of a quick adrenaline high followed by a depressing crash.

After another fulfilling but exhausting day, I get back to my dorm to replace my sister sitting across my bed, so I flop down beside her.

“Sorry we’re not spending much time together. This camp thing has a crazy packed schedule.”

“Mm, you look exhausted,” she says.

“Thanks. You’re beautiful too.”

She smiles. “You know, you’d probably get more sleep if you stopped sneaking out at night.”

My face falls. “Say what?” My voice is comically high-pitched.

“I got up to pee in the middle of the night and noticed you were gone.”

I swallow hard. “Oh, last night? Yeah, I, uh …” Come up with a good lie, damn it! “Snacks! I was … getting snacks.”

Why does the one person I can never lie to have to be so damn observant?

“Yeah, no, that was three nights ago. Then, two nights ago, I randomly woke up and rolled over and you were gone. And then last night, I set an alarm to wake up to check … So … Who is she?”

I let out a loud breath. “No one. It’s a bed to sleep in instead of the floor.”

Baby narrows her eyes.

“What?”

“When I’ve asked you about your girlfriends—and I use that term loosely—you’ve had no problem describing them and giving me their name because you know I’ll never meet them.” She cocks her head. “Which means, there’s either a chance of running into this new gi—person … or … I’ve already met them.”

I don’t miss the way she switched pronouns.

Shit.

I run a hand through my hair. “If you could, like, not be so perceptive, that’d be great. Thanks.”

She throws her arms around me. “Aww, Teddy. I’m proud of you for rejecting the social convention of heteronormative bullshit.”

“Yes. Because that’s the entire reason for sleeping with a teammate.”

Her eyes widen. “It’s totally that asshole guy, isn’t it?”

“He’s not an asshole,” I grumble.

“Oh, that’s so cute.”

“Have I mentioned lately that I hate you?”

“No you don’t.”

“Right now I do!”

“Why have you been having dinner with me every night? You should go out with your boyfriend.”

I hold up my hand. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Not my boyfriend. Definitely not my boyfriend. We don’t do dates.” Not intentional ones anyway. That breakfast date happened by chance, and it wasn’t even a date.

“Aww, that must be so romantic for him.”

I scoff. “Trust me. He doesn’t want romance. Not from me.”

“I don’t know about that. Thinking back to the night he turned up here, upset over what I’m now guessing was a jealous rage over me, that guy might want some romance.”

“Maybe, but I stand by my statement that he won’t want it from me. He still practically hates me.”

“Then what do you even see in him?”

His dick. Don’t tell your little sister that. And it’s not like that’s even true anyway.

I shrug. “He’s hot when he scowls at me.”

“Ooh, you have it bad.”

“No, I don’t.” I jump up and pull something out of my closet to wear. “And I’m going to prove it.”

“Where are you going?”

I sigh. “To ask my fuck buddy on a proper date.”

She bounces up and down and claps. “Yay.”

“I’m only doing it to prove you wrong, because you are.”

“I’m so not wrong.”

And suddenly everything inside me hopes that’s true.