Page 14 of Pucker Up
In the last game, the passes had been missing, or nonexistent. Gideon was supposed to pass me the puck, but instead, he took a slap shot from the blue line right before the buzzer. I had exploded into position, only to watch the goalie snatch the puck out of the air like it was a feather floating by on a light breeze.
Jamie nodded. “I think that Coach is going to have you guys work on some passing accuracy this afternoon.”
Harrison Banks was on the second line and, like me, was new to the team. “He’s working us too hard,” Harrison muttered under his breath.
I agreed, but I wasn’t going to shit-talk the coach in the weight room. “I’m sure he knows what he’s doing.” I shrugged.
Gideon dropped the dumbbells and they thudded on the floor. “Maybe if you two would shut up and work out, we’d be able to score some goals.”
Ethan bent over to pick up the dumbbells and shoved them into my brother’s hands. “Maybe if management didn’t have us parading around in our underwear, we’d be able to focus on the game. Leave your shitty attitude at the door, Giddy.”
My brother’s face was stone-cold. He rarely showed emotion, and today was no exception. He took the dumbbells from Ethan Turner and continued working out. Ethan was right. The camaraderie on the team was the worst I’d ever experienced, and Gideon wasn’t the only guy in the room with a bad attitude.
“Is he always like that?” Harrison whispered under his breath.
“No.” I grinned into the mirror, knowing that Gideon was listening. “Only since he was seven.”
Gideon shook his head and put his noise-cancelling headphones back on his ears.
Harrison and I worked out together for the rest of the session. “Are you doing an ice bath today?” he asked as we stretched our hamstrings next to the full-length mirror.
“I’ll do whatever Bobby recommends.” Bob was one of our trainers who liked ice baths for injuries and recovery, but most days just told us to get into the sauna. I hoped for a hot day. “I feel like I could sweat out a few toxins, and that dunk in Lake Ontario on the weekend has gotta count for at least three sessions.”
Harrison raised his eyebrows. “Were you out partying last night or something?”
“I wish.” I had whacked off in the shower and watched game tapes until I fell asleep on the sofa. “I would love to let loose, but I think that I need a reason to celebrate first.”
“A win.” Harrison’s voice was grim.
“Yeah. This is the biggest losing streak I’ve ever experienced.”
“I think it’s the biggest losing streak any of us has ever experienced. Ever since the trade…” Harrison’s voice trailed off. It wasn’t a secret that the guys on the team thought that the Bailey brothers had brought a curse onto the Tigers. “Shit. Sorry. No offense,” he muttered. “I didn’t mean anything by that.”
I pulled my sweatshirt over my head and chugged some water. “None taken. It’s the truth.” The Tigers had traded two of their best players for me and Gideon. It was the first time we’d played together since the Juniors, and the two of us on the ice were like two pigs in a farting contest.
As we exited the weight room, Bobby pointed to the sauna.
Harrison, Ethan, and I all stripped naked, wrapped towels around our waists, and stepped into the cedar-lined hot box. We all clambered to the top bench. I immediately broke a sweat and it felt damn good.
Ethan stretched his arms above his head and leaned against the wall. “Are you still banging that brunette bunny?” he asked.
“Who, me?” Harrison pointed to his chest.
Ethan barked out a laugh. “Yeah, you. Unless Mister Celibacy has a brunette he’s keeping a secret.”
I rolled my eyes. “I am focused on getting this team out of last place.” For someone who prided himself on not being superstitious, I was fully sold on the idea that having sex ruined my game. Maybe it was a good thing that Goldie had totally rejected me. I would’ve had blue balls from hell if I spent any more time with her. Sweat beaded on my forehead and eventhough it was one hundred and twenty degrees in the sauna, thoughts of Goldie made it feel more like two hundred.
“Yeah.” Harrison poured some water over the rocks and they sizzled and steamed. “She’s actually pretty cool.”
I looked at Ethan and he shot me a questioning look. Harry had a reputation, a bunny killer. He ran through the adoring crowd of wavy-haired, lip-glossed girls like it was a full-time job.
“Banksy’s in looooove,” Ethan cooed.
Harry still had the metal ladle in his hand and tossed a scoop of cold water at Ethan. It totally missed and hit me directly in the face. “Joke’s on you, Harry. That felt good.”
Harrison grabbed the bucket and was about to toss its contents at me when the sauna door opened and Gideon walked in. The air sucked out of the room like it had been turned into a hyperbaric chamber.
“Grow up,” Gideon grumbled. He took the bucket from Harrison and set it on the bottom bench. He climbed to take a seat in the corner on the top bench, as far away from us as he could get.
