Page 5 of Scoring Slater
Clutching his tea, Noah waved. "Hi guys."
Kelsey gestured to the sparsely decorated living room behind them. White walls and large windows made the large space seem even bigger. "You have a great place here. I love all the light spilling in. How long have you lived here?"
"A year and a half. I moved in the summer after my first year in the league." Slater strolled into the room and stood by the couch. "And Noah moved in this summer, after he was traded from Los Angeles."
On wooden legs, Noah followed, conscious of the camera on him. "With moving across the country and then training camp starting so soon, looking for a place on top of that was too much. Lucky for me, Knoxie had space for me to crash."
"He's a great roommate." Slater threw his arm around Noah's shoulder again. "I think I'll keep him."
Noah laughed, both pleased and embarrassed. He'd seen the comments on Slater's social media whenever he was tagged, where fans wondered if they were secretly boyfriends, and enthused about how cute they were together. He didn't need to add fuel to that fire. "He's just saying that because I make sure we have actual food in this place."
"That's not the only reason. He also helped pick out this couch." Slater moved away and thumped a hand on one end of the L-shaped sectional. "This is great because we can both stretch out when we're watching TV." Then he smiled at Noah. "Or reading. Noah's a big reader."
Noah shrugged and stepped back so Brianna could get a view of the packed bookcase, organized by subject and author, against the far wall. "Always have been."
"What do you like to read, Noah?"
"Science fiction, mostly. And books about astronomy."
"Speaking of reading," Kelsey prompted, raising her brows, and Noah knew where the conversation was headed. "Why don't you share the Bedlam book club selection for this month in case the fans missed it?"
The team's book club had started a few years earlier, when Celek, the team captain, recommended a novel to one of the guys, who'd then recommended it to another, and then another, and before long, the recommendations had developed into a monthly reading and discussion, with teammates taking turns making book selections.
Grinning, Slater picked up a slim, colorful volume from the coffee table. "It was my turn to pick, so we're reading one of my favorite comic books. I think I threw the guys a bit with that one. We'll see what they think at our discussion tomorrow."
Noah looked into the camera and mimed zipping his lips shut. They had a rule—no talking about a book before the book club meeting. He and Slater had broken that rule a few times, not that anyone else knew. "All I'll say about the book is, I'm ready. But I do want to take a minute to say how great it is to have the book club. It was one of the things I was most excited about when I got traded here."
"But I was the top thing you were most excited about, right?" The way Slater smiled and his gaze tracked over Noah's face would be defined as flirting in any other circumstance. Before Noah could attempt to formulate a response, Slater held the book closer to the camera. "If anyone wants to read it, we'll post our thoughts on social media this weekend, so make sure to follow the Bedlam Book Club tag so you don't miss anything."
Noah grimaced. His account was locked down and private, the complete opposite of his social butterfly friend. Fans had complained more than once about his posts not being public. Even his friends who had access joked that he never posted. He didn't. Not anymore. Hot under his sweater, he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, desperate for relief. "Let's move to the kitchen."
Slater led the way. He glanced at the sink and smiled at Noah. "Thanks for taking care of my mug. I was going to wash it when I got back from the store."
"No problem." He didn't mind doing the little things. Slater's intentions were always good, even if his follow-through wasn't perfect. And Slater did plenty of things to help him, like driving them to practices and games.
"So, Noah, I know you're a tea drinker." Kelsey paused at the counter, in front of the fancy electric tea kettle Slater had bought him for his birthday. "What's your favorite kind?"
"I drink all kinds, but I have Irish Breakfast tea every morning." Tea which Slater made for him. Every day, when he wandered into the kitchen yawning and sleepy, a steaming mug awaited him. That ritual had started the week he moved in. He met Slater's gaze and smiled.
"I know the team provides a lot of your meals, feeding you at practice and before and after games, but do you cook when you're here or do you order things in?"
"Noah's better at cooking than I am." Slater fidgeted with the spoon rest, and the screeching sound of the ceramic against the granite countertop made them all cringe. He set it down. "Vince and his fiancé Joseph have us all over for dinner once or twice a month too. Those are the best days. Joseph is such a good cook."
"Agreed." Noah downed more tea. Vince and Joseph were his best friends in the city aside from Slater, although Leo, Celek, and Rod were special to him too. He’d gone from being the only out player on his last hockey team, to a team with two other out players in Slater and Vince, and supportive allies in the rest of his teammates and their significant others. "He always sends us home with leftovers too. Then again, he's sampled Slater's cooking, so he knows he's saving us from ourselves."
"Hey." Slater threw a dish towel at him. "No one got food poisoning that night, did they? No. And we all learned a valuable lesson on what happens when you mistake chili powder for cinnamon."
"Leo and I still talk about that night." Shaking with laughter, Kelsey patted Slater's arm. "We love you, Knoxie."
"Yeah, well." Cheeks as red as his hair, Slater toed the tiled floor. "Time for some redemption here. I did the grocery shopping this week and didn't forget a thing."
Noah snorted and almost inhaled his mouthful of tea. "The first week I lived here, Slater was out somewhere and texted that he was stopping by the grocery store. Our fridge only had some bottles of water and beer so I was expecting a big order. He came home with a bag of tortilla chips and a jar of salsa. That wasn't exactly the shopping I had in mind."
Laughing, Slater shrugged. "The heart wants what the heart wants. Or in that case, the stomach was doing the deciding. Anyway, after that, Noah created a shared grocery list, and we both have it on our phones, so we can see what we need."
"How's the fridge looking today, guys?"
"Awesome. I should get an award." Slater opened it and revealed shelves fully stocked with fruit, vegetables, various proteins, and the milk Noah liked to add to his tea.
