Page 102 of Two for Charging

“I love you,” Luca whispered.

Chris came weakly over his fist with a loud moan.

Luca shuddered behind him. Chris relished the marks Luca’s hands left in his skin, and he cherished the shaky breaths Luca took afterward, still leaning against him.

Chris reached behind himself with a clumsy hand to grab one of Luca’s. “I love you too.”

Chapter Sixteen

Hayes: What does it mean to be an alternate captain? Unlimited power over the aux cable in the locker room.

Jax: Lies. We have a rotation now.

Hayes: Which you came up with when no one could agree on a playlist.

Jax: I guess that’s true. I never went to summer camp, but I imagine it’s like being a camp counselor.

Hayes: Accurate. You’re the person people are supposed to trust, and you’re in charge of planning events and activities, but you still get to have fun times by the campfire with everyone else.

Jax: Of course, everyone does it differently, and every team has different structures.

Hayes: And leadership is a team effort.

Jax: Yeah.

Top comments:

seelionssaylions: this is the most awkward video I have ever watched on this site including the time Tom Crowler tried to model merch

sealionsfan8216: @seelionssaylions—I thought Crowler did a good job with the baseball cap!

clions2010: who’s taking over Easton’s A now he finally retired?

(Video posted in The Rookery, the direct-to-consumer streaming service of the San Francisco Sea Lions and all associated teams, on 11/12/2025)

Waking up in bed with Chris was everything Luca thought it would be. Chris looked perfect, his curls tousled and his big brown eyes sleepy in the morning as he joked around, wheedling Luca into watching cartoons under the sheets until they had to go downstairs for breakfast or risk missing it.

Hockey players could not miss a meal, not even for love.

Love.

Luca couldn’t help but smile at Chris over his heaping soup dish of granola and Greek yogurt.

“What’s got you in such a good mood?” Mooney asked, nabbing a free seat at their table.

Chris, who had been smiling back widely, schooled his features into something less ecstatic.

“I slept well,” Luca offered.

“Nice for people who skipped out on their curfew.” Mooney whispered the words low enough that Chris couldn’t hear, but his gaze revealed his anger.

Luca winced. He hadn’t slept in their shared room last night. Of course Mooney noticed.

“Did I do something?” Chris asked when Mooney turned the glare on him as well.

“Uh, yeah. You had incredibly loud sex for an hour last night. I was on the other side of the wall, bro.”

Chris and Luca exchanged panicked glances. They had not discussed telling anyone about their relationship and, if so, how. This did not seem like an auspicious way to start.