“Mia pretended to be my girl so I could get away from that mouthy contest chick before my head exploded. I don’t know where Mia went after she left me.”
It was all true. Yet all a lie. And after all Tate had done for Rafe, all Tate’s father had done for Rafe, he felt an inch big right now.
“You’re so full of shit.” Kilbourne sauntered into the locker room and joined the rest of the team going about their business with one ear and one eye on Tate and Rafe’s fight.
Beckett pointed at Kilbourne. “You’ve caused enough trouble.”
“You and Mia were so hot, you couldn’t keep your hands off each other,” Kilbourne said to Rafe. “Why else would you have handed that smokin’ hot chick off to me?”
“Because she talked about minutia until my ears were bleeding, you idiot,” Rafe yelled so loud it echoed off the walls. The pressure shot pain through his head, and Rafe swore and pressed the back of his hand to his eye. It came away bloody. “For fuck’s sake.”
Kilbourne’s superior smirk faded. His gaze went distant. “She did talk a lot. Even while I was banging her, she never shut up.”
Rafe lifted his hand toward Kilbourne and told Tate, “See.”
Then Kilbourne lifted a shoulder and continued to his locker. “Whatever. You bailed on one hot fuck. Bet I’m playing way better than you tonight.”
Rafe lunged for Kilbourne but never made contact—Beckett grabbed him by the shirt.
“It’s over,” Beckett said. “Get your head back in the game.” He released his shirt and gave Rafe a shove toward the gym. “Get in a light workout.”
Beckett continued to his locker, and Rafe shot a scowl at Kilbourne, but his anger faded when he looked at Tate again. His hands rested on his hips, his shoulders sagged, and his expression had gone from furious to sullen.
“I’m sorry,” Tate said, his tone frustrated. “I’ve been worried about Mia, then you came late this morning, and Kilbourne’s story started making sense— Never mind. I’m just… I’m sorry, man.”
Instead of relief, anger sparked. Tate was confirming what Rafe already knew—his best friend would never see Rafe as good enough for Mia. And seeing her without Tate’s blessing would drive a wedge between all of them. Which also meant damaging Rafe’s relationship with Joe and screwing up the balance on the team.
“Forget about it.” Rafe grabbed a towel from a pile on the bench and turned for the gym.
Tate sidestepped and held a hand up, his expression wholly apologetic. “It’s just… Mia’s going through a rough transition right now. I’m worried she’s, I don’t know, not exactly using her best judgment at the moment.”
“And your first thought was that she was sleeping with me? Good to know you consider your best friend a poor judgment call. I’m good enough for you but not your sister, is that what you’re saying?”
“You know how hard relationships have been on Mia. She needs stability. Someone who will stick. You fuck someone different every other night. So, no, that’s not the kind of guy I’d want for my sister, and if you thought about it for a second, you’d know it’s not the kind of guy you’d want for her either. I don’t even know why we’re talking about this since nothing happened.”
“Get to work, ladies,” Beckett yelled across the locker room.
Tate looked back at Rafe and lifted his hand in a fist for a bump. “We’re good?”
A hot rock bottomed out in the pit of Rafe’s stomach, but he met Tate’s knuckles with his own. And as Tate passed toward the physical therapist’s office, Rafe continued into the gym with all thoughts of hooking up with Mia again fading to black.
Mia’s hands curled into fists against her thighs as she watched Rafe scrap with a Flyer to unlock a puck from between his skate blades and the boards. Finally, Rafe worked the puck loose and followed it in a circle back toward the goal, but with three Flyers on his ass, he passed to Tate.
Mia cut a look at the clock. There was only a little over two minutes left in the game and the Rough Riders were up two to one. They were going to win, Mia had no doubt. What she really wanted was for Rafe to get a hat trick tonight. Wanted it so bad, she could taste it. He’d been the only player to score all game, and one more goal would earn him a hat trick in the Cup playoffs—a memory he would cherish forever.
As the Rough Riders continued to hash out a shot on the ice, Mia’s mind flashed to the night before. To that moment of anticipation when Rafe’s cock had pressed against her entrance. To the passion in his eyes, his barely controlled lust, and his deliberate pause to make sure she was looking into his eyes when he took her for the first time.