If Seg had his way, they wouldn't be stopping with round two.
One
Friday, October 14th
ROAN KNEW HE SHOULDN'T HAVE come. And not only because he risked running into the one man he'd been doing his best to forget about completely.
Sure, that was a concern-more so since Cam informed him they'd get a chance to meet the team after the game-but he was more concerned that he'd left his sister at home alone this afternoon and something had felt off.
Seriously off.
In fact, he'd been worried enough that during the third period of the game, he'd snuck out to the concourse and called her, but she hadn't answered, and now he was having to go meet the team with his friends. On a normal day, this would've been a dream come true. Today, not so much.
Good God, a year and a half ago, Roan would've shit monkeys if someone asked him to go meet the Austin Arrows. Unfortunately, a lot of shit had gone down since then. He'd had an unforgettable one-night stand with one of the players and … Well, there was too much other stuff to think about right now. So much that Roan's entire world was flipped upside down and sideways. No way was this night going to end well.
For one, by going to the locker room, he risked coming face-to-face with Seg. A man he'd promised himself he would never think about again. Not the way he found himself thinking about him anyway. There were a million reasons keeping a safe distance from the famous defenseman was imperative. One, the guy was definitely in the closet, and it wasn't a secret that Roan had no interest in being some guy's closet play toy. Remarkable sex or not.
And two, Roan needed to check on his sister. He was worried and there was this strange buzzing in his head. It was like a warning that he needed to get home. Although he hadn't talked to her, Cassie had texted him a couple of hours ago.
She'd been in pure bitch form, of course.
I wish you'd leave me alone. I'm fine. I don't need you checking up on me. In fact, why don't you find someone else to bother tonight because I'm not in the mood to deal with your shit.
Roan had fought the urge to shoot off a message telling her exactly how he felt. That particular text was actually one of the nicer ones he'd received from her. Most of them told him he was an asshole, that all the bad shit that had ever happened to her was his fault. Somehow he always managed to bite his tongue and not give her a piece of his mind. Ever since her drug problem had become his problem, Roan hadn't been dealing with it well.
So, he had given himself a few minutes to calm down, then shot a quick text back, letting Cassie know he'd be home as soon as the game was over. Before he could even get the phone back in his pocket, another text had come through: Fuck you, Roan. I hate you, and I wish you'd leave me the fuck alone.
Yep, pure bitch mode seemed to be her only setting these days.
Following behind Cam and Gannon as they led the way to the locker room, Roan did his best to disappear into the background. He wasn't going to ruin anyone's night by insisting they head out now, but he didn't have to be all gung ho about it either. He slowed his steps, trying to let Teague and Hudson go in front of him. Even though it meant he would not get to personally meet any of the players, Roan did not need to be the guy at the front.
Teague's head pivoted as he looked at Roan, confusion forming a wrinkle in his forehead. "Going somewhere? Looks to me like you're trying to hide from someone."
Not in the mood to deal with anyone's shit, Roan mumbled, "Shut the hell up."
Of course, that went right over Teague's head. "Not all that fun to get your balls busted, huh?"
Roan bit his lower lip to keep from saying anything. Okay, fine. He probably deserved that. He had personally busted Teague's balls-figuratively, of course-on more than one occasion.
"Guys," Phoenix Pierce-the owner of the Austin Arrows-prompted, "I'm sure he doesn't need an introduction, but this is Spencer Kaufman, the Arrows captain."
While Roan lingered behind them, he watched as Cam shook Spencer's hand, his eyes wide, his jaw nearly on the floor. It almost made Roan laugh. Almost.
"And that over there is Kingston Rush, the man in the net."
Roan glanced over to see the Arrows goalie talking to a reporter, but he didn't get to watch for long because they were on the move again, following Phoenix toward another group of guys. He didn't pay much attention as Phoenix rattled off names. Roan already knew who the players were. He'd been a fan for a long damn time.
"And this right here is the man of the night," Phoenix noted with pride in his voice. "Colton Seguine, defense. Seg, these are some friends of mine. They own the marina out on Lake Buchanan."
Shit.
Shit, shit, shit.
Roan let his gaze slide to the concrete floor, hoping to become invisible.