Page 38 of Play Maker

“You dick,” Jace hissed as he started towards me.

“Oh shit, here we go,” Ethan announced. “Ding, ding, ding! Get ready for round two.”

All the guys chuckled, but there was nothing funny about me and Jace facing off.

“What’s going on?” Dane asked as he entered the room.

“Honey insulted Hot, and Hot got back at him,” Ethan replied matter-of-factly while our teammates continued to laugh.

Dane was the only standout in the room, walking over to stand between me and Jace with a worried look on his face. Or, maybe it was irritation. Our captain wasn’t happy about playing referee and I was skating on thin fucking ice. If I got on Dane’s bad side, there was no way he’d support my efforts.

“It’s fine,” I bit out, staring at Jace’s mouth, his full lips curled up in a pouty smirk. “It’s nothing.”

“Jace?”

“We’re good,” Jace replied quietly and then smiled at his friend. “Just the usual locker room trash talk.”

More like a prelude to another tussle.

“You two need to figure out your shit. Like right fucking now,” Dane demanded and motioned for us to move away from each other. “Come to a peaceful ceasefire. Whatever it takes.”

I did as our captain commanded and stepped back.

“Did you hear me?” Dane asked.

“We’ll work it out,” I promised.

Why did I even bother lying? Everyone knew things weren’t fine and how the hell were Jace and I going to work this out?

I shoved aside my mounting frustration and finished getting dressed, reaching for my t-shirt, hoodie, and parka. The usual locker room chatter quieted. I swear, I didn’t let out another breath until I noticed Jace and Dane leaving.

Then I waited around with Finn until Ethan was done with his twenty-step hair routine. Like every player, Ethan was superstitious and refused to cut his hair at this point in the season. He had a longer mullet than me, but with his sleek black hair, he looked like he’d stepped out of a fashion show rather than a stinky college locker room. I couldn’t care less what I looked like at this point. Glancing at my reflection in the mirror, I conceded that I look like one of those wolfhound dogs, minus the grooming. I was okay with that. The shaggier, the better.

But instead of heading into town, we headed back to Ethan’s, ordered burgers and wings, and downed shots. Not the ideal post-practice combo but we didn’t have a game for another two days so we could afford to let loose.

Three of us turned to ten, and then twenty, and then a weeknight party was underway.

Alcohol lubricated some of my nerves, and my tongue, and after a while, I was having a good time hanging out with my teammates. Finn laughed so hard at one of Ethan’s jokes thathe snorted vodka up—and then out—his nose, which everyone found hilarious, including me. Then, some of the girls from the Kappa Delta sorority stopped by, all of them friendly, pretty, and talkative. They loved Ethan, of course, the party master. I still hadn’t really clicked with anyone and wondered if I was ever going to get laid again.

“The rest of the guys are heading over,” Ethan declared as he sat down on the couch beside me and nudged my arm. “Including Jace.”

“I guess that’s my cue to leave,” I said as I took another shot and slammed the glass on the coffee table.

“Seriously, what’s the real deal with you and Honey?” Ethan asked.

I scoffed at the mention of Jace’s nickname, but the alcohol was playing wicked havoc with my mind. Suddenly, I pictured Jace standing in front of me, naked, like he was in the shower room. But instead of water, a long, slow drip of golden, liquid honey slid down over his body, over that peach of an ass. How sweet would that taste?

“I need more booze for this conversation.”

And for that image in my head.

Ethan rolled his eyes and poured two more shots. “Spill.”

I took the shot, and gave thanks to clear, liquid courage.

“It’s not my place to say,” I announced.

“Is this about Preston?” Ethan added.

---