Page 43 of Hooking the Captain
11
COOP
My pain blurredany sense of time, but when I was finally all cried out, it was dark outside. I picked up my phone and saw that it was just after ten. I knew I had to let Hayden know about dinner, and if I didn’t tell him what Ford had confessed, I would be a hypocrite.
Dinner is a go. See you tomorrow
I went to my room, stripped out of my clothes, and got into a hot shower where I stood for at least twenty minutes as I tried to wash away the day. I had been on such a high at practice, and then I was a tear-stained mess and not sure what to do.
After drying off, I slid naked under the covers of my bed and looked over to where Ford slept when he stayed over a few nights a week. Scooting closer, I grabbed the pillow and lay my head on it. It smelled like him, and once again the tears fell until I eventually fell asleep.
The next morning,I went through my routine, but I was operating on autopilot. I got up, ate breakfast, drank my protein shake, and drove to practice. I tried not to think about Ford, but it was impossible. Would we have gotten together if he had told me right away that he had a history with Hayden?
I remembered when I’d asked him if he knew Hayden from Hawkins because of the charity softball game, which would have been the perfect opportunity for Ford to tell me. He had told me he’d known Hayden was a professor, but hadn’t been in his class. Not a single word about Tyler being his ex who was now dating my friend. That had been minutes before he’d given me a BJ in his car, and I couldn’t recall anything else from that day that would make me think Ford had been hiding something from me.
But he was.
I walked into the locker room silently, only giving head nods to my teammates who addressed me. No one said anything about my sour mood until Kingston.
“Morning, Coop,” he greeted.
Like the others, I replied with a nod of my head.
He stopped and looked back at me. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah,” I mumbled.
He hesitated for a few beats, eying me with concern. “All right, but if you ever need to talk, I’m here, man.”
I had to hand it to the guy. He was new to our team, but that didn’t stop him from trying to lend an ear.
I managed a half-smile. “Thanks, Kingston. I’ve just got some stuff on my mind. I’ll be fine.”
He nodded, understanding in his eyes. It wasn’t as though I was about to spill my guts to him—or any of my teammates, for that matter. It fucking sucked because the only person I could talk to was Hayden, but he was unknowingly a part of the entire mess. The dread of knowing what would come when I went to his place for dinner was churning in my stomach, but I continued gearing up for practice. As captain, I felt the weight of the team’s expectations on my shoulders, and I needed to set aside my personal troubles and play fucking hockey.
Hockey had always been my sanctuary, a place where I could lose myself in the game and forget about the complications of life, and I hoped that once I skated onto the ice, it would be no different.
“Let’s go,” I called out as I stood on my skates.
Kingston led the way, and we all hit the ice with purpose. The cold air hit my face as I directed the team through warm-up drills. The sound of skates cutting across the ice served as a soothing backdrop to the turmoil in my mind, and I pushed myself harder, determined to let the physical exertion drown out the nagging thoughts of Ford and the tangled web my life had become.
Kingston caught my eye, and I gave him a nod. “You ready to block some shots?”
He grinned, adjusting his mask. “Always, Coop. You just focus on scoring.”
As practice intensified, I found comfort in the routine of the game. The quick passes, and the precision of our plays demanded my full attention. For those moments on the ice, I could set aside my personal life and just be the captain leading his team.
The last part of practice was run as a scrimmage and the final twenty minutes blurred into a series of fast-paced plays and strategic maneuvers. Kingston showcased his skills, blocking shots with ease.
As practice ended, I felt a sense of accomplishment. The ice had been my refuge once again, a place where everything outside of the game faded away, at least for a little while. I exchanged high-fives and nods with my teammates, and then we headed back into the locker room.
With practice over, I knew my next order of business was talking to Hayden.
A few hours later,I parked my truck in front of Hayden’s Craftsman-style home and cut the engine.
Taking a deep breath, I climbed out of my truck and walked up the walkway to his front door. My heart felt as though it was going to beat out of my chest with every step. Lifting my clammy hand, I rang the doorbell, and then dragged my hand down my jeans to wipe off the sweat.
A few moments later, the door swung open and a smiling Hayden stood in the entry.
