Page 37 of Must Love Dogs… and Hockey

I grimace. “Not that I know much about relationships.” I hold one hand up. “But come on, man, it’s her body. She can do what she wants. Birth control pills can mess women up.”

He scowls. “Are you kidding me?”

“Not kidding, no. I mean, yeah, she could have talked to you about it. Maybe that’s what she was trying to do when she mentioned it?”

“She said it like it was a done deal. It pissed me off.”

“I see that.”

Cookie makes a face at me, like he doesn’t know what to say. I’m floundering myself here, but this is how I feel about it. “You should talk to her more,” I say. “But if you think she needed to get your permission to go off the pill, be prepared for her to flip the fuck out on you.”

“I gotta agree with that,” Cookie says.

“You two love each other, right?” I ask.

Still frowning, Russ nods.

“So talk. Maybe there are other birth control methods she could try. Or maybe she’s already ruled them out for some reason.”

“You could get a vasectomy,” Cookie puts in helpfully.

“Jesus Christ!” Russ bolts to sit straight. “I’m not getting the snip!”

“All juice, no seeds,” Cookie says. “No problem.”

I choke on a laugh.

“Why not?” Cookie continues. “It’s usually reversible. If condoms are that big a problem for you, it’s one solution.”

Russ’s mouth drops open.

“Can’t argue with that,” I say mildly, taking a big swig of my beer. “How much do you want to keep having sex with her?”

Russ slouches back into the couch. He lifts the beer bottle to his mouth and drains it. “Shit.”

Great. Now Russ is pissed at me. I don’t want bad feelings between me and another teammate, but I’m not going to take his side on this. Why do guys ask for advice if they don’t even want to listen to it? I sigh inwardly. “Need another beer?”

“Nah. I’m good.” He stands. “I’m gonna head up to my place.” He carries his empty over to the counter separating my kitchen from the living and dining area. “See you guys tomorrow.”

“Be prepared for another bag skate,” I say dryly, following him to the door. “We good, man?”

He rolls his eyes, his mouth in a frustrated line. “Yeah, yeah. We’re good. G’night.”

I hope he’s being honest.

When I return to the living room, I meet Cookie’s eyes. “A vasectomy?”

Cookie cracks up. “Hey, why not?”

I grin too as I sit. “And there’s another reason I don’t do relationships.”

—

I don’t expect to see Lilly until Wednesday, but Tuesday afternoon I’m in the park with Otis when he starts straining at his leash. I look up and recognize Lilly and Lola approaching us on the path. Otis recognizes them before I do. I can’t help but smile at his excitement at seeing Lilly, and my steps quicken as Otis tugs me toward her.

“Otis!” She stops and drops into a crouch to greet him. As he licks her chin, she smiles up at me. “Hi.” She pets him with mittened hands.

Otis transfers his attention to Lola now, who thankfully accepts it. They’re so eager to sniff each other, they end up getting our leashes tangled up. Laughing, Lilly and I dance awkwardly around each other to untangle them.

---