Page 8 of Thrown Off Balance

I watch in horror as he grabs Cody’s shoulder and spins him around to face him. Cody was laughing and smiling with his teammates, but his smile quickly fades. Before the player can make a move, one of Cody’s teammates lands a solid punch and the opponent tumbles to the ice.

The other Wolverine players rush the ice and I expect a fight to break out, but they drag their teammate off the ice without touching any of the Pythons.

“I swear I'm going to murder that jerk,” Sophia growls as she appears at my side.

“Calm down, baby. Cody and Jax know what they’re doing.” Sophia’s husband wraps his arm around her shoulders and tugs her into his side.

“Whatever. I'll just slit his tires the next time I see him,” she grumbles under her breath, making her husband chuckle. “Anyway… Do you want to go see the boys?” She goes from being livid to practically bouncing on her toes with excitement.

“Oh, um…” I try to think of something to say, but I'm coming up with nothing. I didn’t expect Sophia to seek me out after the game. I planned on sneaking past her and leaving without speaking to her again.

“You can seriously get us to the locker room?” Jude cuts in. The excitement is unmistakable in his voice.

“In the locker room? No.” Sophia scrunches up her nose. “You wouldn’t want to go in there. It smells like sweaty skates and Axe body spray. Don’t get me wrong, I'm not dissing Axe body spray, but mixing that with nasty boy sweat, it’s gross. So, no, we’re not going in the locker room, but we can wait outside of it for Jax and Cody to exit.”

“Oh, we don’t have to. I’m sure they’ll be tired after playing. We don’t want to bother them.” I try my hardest to get out of this, but Jude isn't having it.

“C’mon, Sloan. We might never get this opportunity again. Please. I want to meet them! This is like a dream come true.” Jude is practically begging. There’s no way for me to go home without raising more questions that I don’t want to deal with and Sophia knows it.

“Fine, but we can't stay long. We’re supposed to go out for dinner.”

“Don’t worry, I'm sure you’ll make it to dinner.” The smile spreading across her face is cocky and full of amusement.

We follow Sophia and… her husband? I don’t even know his name. I really need to ask. It feels weird to continuously think of him as Sophia’s husband and not have a real name for him. Sophia leads us through a maze of hallways until we stop outside of a door marked Locker Room.

“And now, we wait.” Sophia’s husband leans against the wall and tugs Sophia into his arms.

“I'm sorry, what’s your name?”

“Oh, I'm Pecker.” He grins.

“Excuse me, what’d you say?” Jude steps closer and frowns. “I thought you said your name is Pecker.”

“It is.” He chuckles. “Brad Pecker. Everyone calls me Peck or Pecker.”

I open my mouth to respond, but before I can get a word out, the door to the locker room opens and a few of the players file out. They’re mostly guys who don’t play on the first line.

My heart beats a little faster with each person who exits the locker room. I suck in a deep breath and blow it out slowly. I never thought I’d see Cody again. Now, waiting for him to come out, I feel like I'm going to throw up.

Sophia watches me carefully the entire time. I'm not sure what she’s looking for, but I know everyone in her family sees too much. She’s probably noticing how I'm off tonight. How my entire world has been flipped on its axis. How I keep wiping my palms on my jeans and nibbling on my bottom lip. Even though I know she’s watching me, I can't stop. I'm fidgeting like a little kid who knows they’re in trouble.

The locker room opens and I swear all the air from my lungs is sucked out immediately. I don’t breathe. I don’t move a single muscle. Honestly, I think my heart has stopped beating because Cody Robinson is walking my way.

I take in the way his hair is a little longer on top. The strands are still wet from his shower and the ends are curling. His cheeks are still rosy from the cold air on the ice, but it does nothing to take away from his angular jaw and five o’clock shadow. I want to reach out and run my fingers over his stubble. His bright blue eyes lock on mine and I swallow hard.

Seeing him without his gear on, I take in his broad shoulders that taper into a trim waist. He’s wearing a black henley with the buttons undone. Dark jeans hug his thighs, showing off just how much muscle he has from skating nonstop.

“Sloan,” Cody breathes. He stops right in front of me and stares down. He isn't sure if he should hug me or keep his distance.

“Hey, Cody,” I say softly. I decide to put us both out of our misery and step in for a hug.

He doesn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around me and tugs me tightly against his body. His woodsy scent overwhelms my senses and has me squeezing my eyes shut to memorize the feel of being in his arms.

We hug for far longer than is probably acceptable. Jude clearing his throat is the only reason we step apart. Cody tucks his hands into the pockets of his jeans and drops his gaze to the ground.

Before I can say anything, Jax pushes through the door with excitement. In usual Jax fashion, he’s the center of attention and has everyone feeling right at home with him.

“If it isn't Sloan Weathers!” He shouts, sweeping me into a hug. “How have you been, sweetheart?” He lifts me off of the ground and spins me in a circle before setting me on my feet again.