Page 146 of Icing on the Cake

“The Ice Queen,” Gavin says, leaning back in his chair. “Her blog posts about my son and the rest of the team. And you as well.”

Holy shit.Of course, Gavin knows about the Ice Queen. He probably has a Google alert set up for his son’s name.

I lick my suddenly dry lips. “I—yes. I’ve seen them. Gerard and I have talked about it a bit.”

Gavin nods, unsurprised. “Gunnarson men have always been the subject of a lot of…appreciation. Even back when I was playing for the Barracudas.”

I cock my head, intrigued despite my nerves. “What do you mean?”

“Back when I was a student at BSU, there was another person like this Ice Queen who wrote a gossip column for the school newspaper. Blogging didn’t exist back then. The focus of the column was mainly on the hockey team and, in time, me and Coach Donovan.”

My eyebrows shoot up. Coach Donovan—Alex’s dad and the gruff, no-nonsense hard-ass who runs the team with an iron fist—was the subject of gossip? I can’t picture it.

“They called themselves the Skater Boy,” Gavin continues. “Every week, they’d publish a new column filled with thirsty observations about my ass or Jack’s—Coach Donovan’s—bulge. It was…a lot.”

“That must have been weird.”

“It was, at first. But we got used to it. Has Gerard?”

“Yeah, I think so. He really gets a kick out of it. And the rest of the team hasn’t stopped ribbing him.”

Gavin chuckles, shaking his head. “Some things never change. Asses, hands, penises, all of it was fair game. Skater Boy once said that Jack had ‘dick-tugging fingers,’ if I remember correctly.”

“Dick-tugging fingers?” I sputter, both shocked and amused by this revelation.

“Oh yeah,” Gavin says, grinning. “Jack’s hands werelegendary. Still are, to be honest.”

I stare at Gavin, a million questions swirling through my head. I can’t tell if I’m reading too much into it or if he’s implying what I think he is.

“Can I ask…” I say hesitantly. “How did you and Coach Donovan handle the things Skater Boy wrote about you?”

“Jack and I embraced it because much of what Skater Boy wrote was true. Not the more salacious speculations, but the core of it.”

“The core of it?”

“Jack and I were together,” Gavin says matter-of-factly. “Romantically. So, Skater Boy speculating about our relationship, while invasive, wasn’t exactly off-base.”

My jaw drops open. I feel as if someone just hit me over the head with a two-by-four. Coach Donovan and Gavin Gunnarson were a couple? “Oh my God. I had no idea. Gerard never mentioned it to me.”

Gavin chuckles. “I’m not surprised. It’s hardly a topic you drop casually in conversation. ‘Hey Elliot, fun fact—my dad used to bone Coach Donovan back in the day. Wild, right?’ Awkward.”

I snort. He has a point. Still, how long did they date? And what happened? How did Gavin end up married to Anna if he was with Coach Donovan in college?

As if reading my mind, Gavin explains. “Jack and I were together for most of college. It started our sophomore year and lasted until right before graduation. We were happy together.”

He gets a dreamy, faraway glint in his eyes as he reminisces. I can almost see the memories playing out behind his baby blues. Young Gavin and Coach Donovan, sneaking kisses in the locker room, holding hands under the table at team dinners, falling asleep tangled together.

“So what happened? How did you end up with Anna if you and Coach Donovan were happy together?”

Gavin smiles, but it carries a hint of sadness. “Life happened. Right before graduation, I met Anna. It was at this horrible dive bar off campus that the team always frequented. She was there with some friends, and we just…clicked. Instantly.” He shakes his head, chuckling at the memory. “I know it sounds cliché, but I knew immediately she was the one. I could see our whole future stretching out before me—marriage, kids, growing old side by side. My whole world shifted.”

“And Coach Donovan? How did he take it when you broke things off?”

“That’s the crazy part. The same night I met Anna, Jack met his wife, Perry. It was as if the universe was telling us our time together had an expiration date. We were always meant to be close, but we weren’t meant to be together forever.” Gavin shrugs. “Jack and I discussed it at length and agreed to end things—to just be friends. Best friends. And we’ve been that ever since. We were each other’s best man; now we’re godfathers to each other’s children. Our bond goes so much deeper than just being teammates on an ice rink.”

Wow. Gavin and Coach Donovan’s love story could be the plot to the nextNew York Timesbestseller. Best friends to college boyfriends before meeting their soulmates and transitioning to lifelong platonic soul friends. It’s beautiful, messy, complicated, and incredibly human.

A question niggles at the back of my mind, though, and before I can stop myself, I blurt out, “What do Anna and Perry think about your past with Coach Donovan? I mean, three years is a long time to be with someone. It wasn’t a casual fling.”

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