Page 57 of Square to the Puck

“Hey, Saint, do you mind?”

Broken out of my surreptitious eyeballing of Corwin and Troy, I look up to see Monroe pointing at the empty aisle seat next to me.

“Go for it.” I tell him, shooting another glance over at Corwin before looking away out the window.

When we finally get to the hotel later that day, several of the guys immediately start making plans to go out. New York is always a favorite for away trips, and an argument breaks out over where they’re going to go; several of them have favorite haunts. Listening to them, my rookie season feels very far in the past. Shaking my head and trying not to grin, I look around for Corwin’s chestnut head. I find him in conversation with the assistant coach, and catch his eye to indicate I’m heading up to my room. He has all the room assignments, and will hopefully come find me once he’s done.

“You guys staying in?” Lawson’s voice is pitched low, words barely intelligible over the din of a lobby filled with hockey players.

“Yeah, we are. Have you seen Troy?” I ask, realizing that I haven’t found him in the crowd.

Lawson grins. “Was on the way upstairs to call Sam the second he got his keycard. I swear, that kid could lose a leg and he’d still miss Sam more.”

“Let’s hope Troy’s limbs all stay intact. We’re going to need him tomorrow.” I note, and Lawson snorts. “I’m going to head up as well, wait for Corwin to finish up.”

“I’ll send him your way if I catch him.”

“You going out with the young folks?”

Lawson blows out a breath, scratching at the scruff shadowing his jaw. “Nah, not tonight. I think I’m going to hit the hotel gym, actually. I need to stretch.” He punctuates this by rubbing a hand over his left shoulder. I raise an eyebrow at him quizzically. During a recent game Lawson had gotten pinned against the post during a goalie interference, but he’d played the rest of the game and there hadn’t been any mention of possible injury.

“Are you alright?” I ask, and he shrugs, casually.

“Nothing a little stretching won’t fix, just sore. Have a good night, man.” He smiles, patting me on the shoulder before walking toward the elevator. I opt for the stairs, making a mental note to ask Corwin about any previous shoulder injuries Lawson might have had, wondering if he aggravated something preexisting.

Once I get to my room, I toss my bags on the floor and contemplate showering. Before I can make a decision, a light knock sounds on my door and I pull it open to reveal Corwin. I step to the side quickly, giving him room to wheel his suitcase past me. I’m surprised he came here before dropping his things off in his own room, and I peek down the hallway to make sure it’s empty. The last thing we need is someone noting Corwin bringing his stuff into my room instead of his own.

Closing the door and turning around, I find him seated on the end of the bed, watching me.

“Unless someone was standing behind their door, watching the peephole, nobody saw me.” Corwin tells me. “But even if they did see, there are a dozen reasons we might hang out in your room. I’m always in Troy or Lawson’s rooms on away games.”

“Speaking of Troy…” I sit next to him, putting my hand on his thigh. His leg is cold through the fabric of his suit pants, and I rub my palm to his knee and back again.

“He wanted to talk about yesterday.” Corwin says, confirming my suspicions. “He felt bad for making me feel bad about him feeling bad about me not telling him I was gay.”

“Makes perfect sense.”

Corwin chuckles. “Yeah, say that one five times fast.”

“You guys are quite the pair.” I joke, nudging his shoulder with mine.

“I know. I shouldn’t treat him like he’s a kid, or like he needs protecting; he’s a grown man. It’s a hard habit to break, though. He still feels like my responsibility.”

“I think it’s nice. And I bet he appreciates it. I know you’re nearly the same age, but I get the impression you’re a bit of a father figure for him.”

“Well, I hope I didn’t lose any of that trust with all of this.” He waves a hand through the air before dropping it to sit on top of mine. Turning to look at me, he smiles tenderly. “He wanted me to know how much he likes you. He said he’s glad you’re not as big of a dick as you seem to be.”

I choke on a laugh. “He didn’t say that.”

“Those were theexactwords he used.” Corwin smiles. “I agreed with him, obviously.”

“Obviously.”

“Troy was thinking we could do something together. All of us. Him and Sam, you and I.”

Leaning against him, I smile. “Mm. Like a double date?”

“If you wanted to.” He pulls his fingers up, running them over the back of my own. “He said…he said we could go out of town, eat somewhere that offers a little more privacy. I think he has a place in mind.”