Page 105 of Of Pucking Course

“Someone else at the party filmed the whole thing. Del found out about it and asked him to send the video to him.”

Dakota shakes her head. “I don’t remember this happening. Del never mentioned it to me or our mom.”

“You know your brother. He’s a quiet fixer. He solves problems and tries not to make it a big deal.”

She nods like she understands completely. “Yeah. That’s what he’s like with our mom. When our dad was harassing our mom last year, he went out of his way to ensure she was safe and tracked him down. He didn’t even tell me about it. Our mom did.”

I nod, remembering that.

“From the time I was dropped from the team to the time I was let back on, it was less than two weeks,” I say. “Del moved so fast with all of it.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Coach Salinger got fired, Colin left the school, and the team got a new coach. We all moved on.”

“Did he get another coaching job? Did Colin keep playing hockey?”

“I heard that Coach Salinger got a job at a smaller college. I think Colin played for them too, but last I heard, he never made it past the college level.”

“Wow,” Dakota says in a quiet voice. “What happened to your friend, Nick? Was he okay?”

“Yeah. The guys on the team held a fundraiser to buy him a new wheelchair. Now he owns a software company in Sacramento. Whenever I’m playing there, he’ll come to a game. We try to go out to lunch or dinner too, if we have the time and our schedules line up.”

She lets herself smile. “I’m so happy to hear that.” She gazes off to the side, shaking her head, before looking at me. “It makes sense now, why you’ve always been so loyal to my brother.”

“I wouldn’t have the hockey career I have now if he hadn’t put everything on the line for me.”

Dakota hesitates for a second. “You can’t know that for sure, though. Even if Del hadn’t helped you, you could have gone to a different college and played hockey there.”

“I really don’t think so. Colin’s dad was vindictive as hell. And well-connected. He would have blacklisted me to the point that no other college team would have taken me.”

“Oh. I didn’t think about that.”

I gaze down at our joined hands and softly run my thumb along her knuckles. “I owe everything to your brother. And the only thing he ever wanted from me was to stay away from you.”

I hold her gaze, my chest aching. From the guilt of going behind my best friend’s back. From how strong my feelings are for Dakota.

“But I can’t stay away from you, Dakota.” My voice is low and rough as emotion crashes through me. “I tried. For so long, I tried so fucking hard not to want you.”

She lets go of my hand and cups her hands over my cheeks. “I’ve wanted you for so long too, Sam.”

She exhales, and her hot breath lands on my lips. My mouth waters, my skin is hot, and my entire body is buzzing.

I want this woman. Damn the consequences. She’s worth every single one.

Dakota leans up and kisses me. Our tongues tangle and tease. I grip her hips and pull her against me, groaning at the warmth of her body. We’re panting and moaning into each other’s mouths.

She pulls away, but her hands are still on my body. Her chest heaves as she catches her breath.

“I want to be with you, Sam. And I’m okay with not telling my brother about us. I’m okay with keeping our relationship a secret.”

“You are?”

She nods.

“I don’t want you to feel like I’m hiding you.”

She shakes her head. “I don’t feel that way. At all.” She’s quiet for a moment. “Ever since I started dating, everyone’s always had an opinion about it. My mom, my brother, my friends. It’s always driven me crazy. In a way, this works because we can just focus on each other, without everyone else interfering.”

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