Page 35 of Goalie Interference

I grab Connor’s hand and attempt to pull him away. “I need your help.”

“The fuck you do,” Gavin says, tightening his grip around Connor.

Connor turns his head and gives Gavin a quick kiss. When he pulls away, he briefly stares at Gavin with big, intense eyes, like he’s trying to silently tell him something. Probably that he can wait a few minutes. He has all night to dick Connor down in that hotel room after all. Thank the hockey gods Tavs and I aren’t sharing a wall with them tonight.

“Fine.” Gavin lets him go. He looks right at me. “But I’m coming with.”

We exit their room and walk across the hall to mine. I reach into my pocket. Fuck. No keys. I pound my fist against the door.

After a few moments, Tavish swings the door open with a huff. He looks at all three of us and his eyes stop on Gavin. “I see pants are optional around here now.”

Gavin glares at him as he pushes past him into the room. Yet he also somehow manages to gently guide Connor forward with his hand.

“Okay,” Connor says calmly once the door closes. “What’s going on?”

“He’s freaking out because he can’t find his shirt,” Tavish says, flopping back down onto his bed.

I rub the back of my neck and look down at the floor. Okay. Now that he’s told them, I realize maybe I was overreacting.

“This is about a shirt?” Gavin says. “What the fuck for? We just got here.”

That’s true. We did just get here. Like the-plane-landed-less-than-an-hour-ago got here. We only recently checked into our rooms.

But we also have the night off. Which is why I planned dinner with Nikolai tonight. The Mules game is over, they’re getting cleaned up and their team bus will be taking them to their hotel soon. That’s where I’m meeting Nikolai. There’s a great sushi place located a few blocks away. I’m in a hurry and Nikolai hates being late.

“I have dinner plans,” I say.

“With who?” Gavin asks, raising an eyebrow.

“He claims it’s not a date,” Tavish says, his tone dry.

Connor places his hand on my shoulder and I look at him. His eyes are friendly, but also laced with some concern. “Ignore them,” he says. “You asked for my help. Not theirs. What can I do for you?”

“I can’t find my shirt.”

His nose scrunches, making him look like he’s thinking. “Is it a lucky shirt?”

“No.” I shake my head. “It’s just a nice shirt. It looks good with my gray pants.”

His eyes narrow. “And you’re sure this isn’t a date?”

“No.” I laugh and shake my head again. “Definitely not. I’m meeting Nikolai.”

Gavin and Tavish give twin exclamations of surprise.

Connor whips his head around and glares at them both as he shushes them. He then turns back to look at me. “Ivanov? Of the Mules?”

“The one and only.” I grin.

“Okay.” Connor takes a deep breath and runs his hand through his hair. There’s a smile on his face that he’s poorly controlling as he pushes me towards my bed and has me sit on the edge. He looks at the piles of clothes strewn across my side of the room, then gestures at them. “May I?”

“Please,” I say, rubbing my sweaty hands on my sweatpants.

He takes a few minutes to shuffle through the piles while Gavin and Tavish silently look on from the other side of the room. Eventually, he places my dark blue jeans on my lap along with my gray cashmere sweater. He then places my black dress shoes on the floor beside the bed. Lastly, he takes his sky blue watch on a black leather strap off his wrist and hands it to me.

“Here,” he says gently. “Wear this. It’s my favorite.”

I admire the watch and enjoy the way the metal feels cool like ice against my fingers. Looking up at him, I ask, “Are you sure?” I know this watch is worth at least twenty grand.