Page 72 of Cheap Shot
My gloves and stick hit ice before he can blink, and I sock him right in the jaw. Jensen’s head snaps back, sweat flying off his face, as he somehow manages to stay on his feet.
“What the fuck!” Cooper screams, grabbing my shoulder and pulling me away from Jensen. “Calm the fuck down, Cole.”
I manage to shake him off and charge forward a second time, clocking Jensen with another hook to the face. Before I can land another blow, Cooper manages to get between us, shoving me hard in the chest, forcing me toward the bench.
“Break it up. I already had to save one brother’s ass over a girl. I didn’t think I’d have to do it again so soon.” Beau groans as I skate around him and tackle Jensen to the ice.
My knees rest on either side of his waist, letting my fist fly. Blood sprays across my jersey and ice as the muscles in my arms burn, but I don’t stop. I warned him about what would happen if he kept running his mouth, and now he has to pay.
Jensen’s face is beyond fucked-up and covered in blood. I can see his right eye swelling shut, blood pouring down his jersey and dripping onto the ice. His lip is busted open in multiple places, but it's still not enough.
“Break it up!” Beau shouts, grabbing me by the back of my jersey and pulling me off Jensen.
“Hendrix. My office. Now.”
“Yes, Coach,” all three of us respond before Coach swears loudly. “Cooper, take your hotheaded brother to my office. Beau and Benson, help the dumbass off the ice and get him to the training room. Michele can patch him up.”
Just the mention of Jensen being anywhere near Michele has me lunging forward. “Stay the fuck away from her, Jensen!” I scream, lunging for him a second time. Beau barely manages to hold me back.
“Shut the fuck up before you make matters worse for yourself.”
“I don’t give a fuck. He needs to learn to stop running his fucking mouth,” I growl into Beau’s face, wrestling from his grasp.
Beau raises his hands in surrender, a bright smile spreading across his face. “Hey, he was disrespecting your girl. I get it. You did what had to be done.”
“She isn't my?—”
“Sure, she isn’t.” Beau lets out a barking laugh before shoving me toward the entrance to the locker room. “Hit the showers and cool off. Cooper and I will do damage control with Coach.”
The gravity of what I’ve done hits me like a freight train. Coach hasn’t tried to hide his disdain for me even being allowed to step on the ice with his precious team. At first, I believed it was just anger because I was from a rival team and was forced on him by management, but he’s been watching me like a hawk. It’s like he’s just been looking for an excuse to kick me off the team, and I just gave him one on a silver platter.Fuck.
“You think he’ll kick me off the team?”
Beau shakes his head before turning around to inspect the damage, wincing as he sees Jensen laid out on the ice “On a scale of one to completely fucked?”
“Pretty much.” I shrug my shoulders, wanting him to give it to me straight.
“I’d say you just so happen to be only mostly fucked. There’s a big difference between completely fucked and mostly fucked. Mostly fucked means you won’t be kicked off the team.”
“Whatever you say, Miracle Max.” I chuckle as everything aches. My hands, arms, and shoulders. The adrenaline is slowly leaving my system.
“You remembered!”
“Of course. Alise made us watch that movie almost every day during the summer before I joined the Wolverines. I couldn’t forget that movie if I tried.”
“Don’t stress too much, little brother.” Beau slaps me on the back, right on top of my bad shoulder, causing me to hiss in pain. “Sorry, but seriously. Cooper and I will smooth things over, but you’re definitely gonna get your ass chewed out for sure.”
“Let’s go, dumbass.” Cooper skates past me, not even sparing me a glance as he disappears into the locker room entrance.
“Have fun with that.” Beau motions after Cooper with his chin before turning and heading toward the other players crowded around Jensen’s lying out on the ice.
I follow Cooper down the tunnel to the locker room, not even bothering to grab my blade covers from the bench. He pushes through the door and immediately yanks his helmet off his head and throws it across the room.
I take a seat on the closest bench, my forearms resting on my knees as he paces back and forth. I could say something to calm him down, to apologize for what I’ve done, but that would be a complete lie. I don’t regret knocking Jensen the fuck out. I’d do it again if given the chance. However, what I do regret is causing a ruckus in the middle of practice.
“What the fuck is wrong with you, Cole?”
“I need you to be a little more specific. The list is getting longer every day.” I scoff, pushing to my feet and pulling my jersey over my head and tossing it into the bin. “Let’s get the lecture over with so I can go get my ass-chewing from the coach and go home. My shoulder is killing me.”
