Page 2 of Puck Your Neighbor

Pressing my back to the door, I slide down it until my ass hits the hardwood. I bring my knees close to my chest and touch my throat. What if they're like them? What if they'll be my demise, I survived one attack, but a second one would be my end. I don't think I could crawl out of the depression those alphas put me in a second time. Hot tears roll down my cheeks. Alphas terrify me.

Chapter 2

The ice crunches under my skates, the sound sharp and familiar. Jenson zips a pass across the rink, the puck skimming low over the ice. I catch it on my stick, feeling the satisfying thwack of the blade against the puck. The cold air bites at my cheeks, but I barely notice.

Leo skates backward in front of me, grinning like he's got all the time in the world.

"Seriously, dude? You're going to do that the whole time?" I shake my head, but I can't help grinning back.

He shrugs. "Been doing it since Peewee. Helps me read the play better."

I raise an eyebrow. "Show off." My breath puffs out in a white cloud.

Leo's smirk doesn't falter. "Like you're not trying to do the same."

I flick the puck back to him. He settles it, easy as breathing, and cuts a smooth arc. We're a well-oiled machine, the three of us. They call us the Gold Trio – the only Alphas on the team who are also a pack. The other Alphas all have their own packs, but it's just us three. Always has been.

Jenson's already moving in, picking up speed as he slices past Leo. He glances back at us. "Think the Vipers'll try that cheap crap again?"

"Does it matter?" I skate wide, matching his pace. "They can try. We'll smoke 'em."

Finn groans from the crease, leaning heavily on his stick as we loop around the net. He winces. "Easy for you to say. You're not the one eating slapshots."

Jenson circles in close, grinning. "Aw, come on, Finn. You're an Alpha. You've got reflexes for this."

Finn straightens up just enough to glare. "Keep talking, Jenson. I'll aim for your head next drill."

Coach's whistle cuts through the rink, sharp and loud. "Alpha line! Let's go! Marcus, Asher, Rhys—you're up on defense!"

I tap my stick against the ice as Leo and Jenson fall in line beside me. Across the rink, Marcus, Asher, and Rhys drop into position, sticks down, shoulders squared. They're good—big, solid Alphas who'll make us work for every shot. Liam and Blake, our other Alpha line mates, hang back by Finn, shifting on their skates, waiting for the play to unfold. Blake catches my eye and grins, tapping his stick against the boards in a steady rhythm.

Jenson taps his stick against mine. "Let's see if Finn can survive fifteen goals."

Leo's already skating backward again. "Make it twenty."

Finn groans loud enough for the whole rink to hear. "I hate all of you."

The puck drops, and we're moving. Jenson's stick snaps against it, tipping it back to me before Marcus can close in. I push off hard, cutting to the outside while Leo curls around behind me.

Marcus shouts, already moving to block my lane. "Watch left!"

Leo feeds the puck back my way just before Rhys angles in, but I flip it to Jenson instead. He's waiting in the slot, stick primed. Asher dives to block, but Jenson shifts and rips a shot high.

Finn gets his glove on it, barely, and the puck ricochets off his blocker with a loud thwack.

Jenson's already looping back, stick low. "Nice try!"

Asher grabs the rebound and tries to clear it, but Leo intercepts near the blue line, skating backward—again—and dumps it straight onto my stick.

Leo coasts toward the crease, grinning. "Finn looks tired."

Finn mutters, crouched low, pads square to the net. "Finn's ready to fight."

Jenson fakes another shot, dragging Finn right, and I slip in left. One quick redirect, and the puck smacks off the back of the net.

Finn groans, sagging into his pads. "You're kidding me."

Blake calls from the corner, laughing as he skates by. "Keep it up, Finn! Only fourteen more to go!"

---