Page 75 of Roughing
“I get it. I do. I never thought I’d find love again. Sometimes it sneaks up on you when you’re least expecting it, and you don’t necessarily get a vote.”
“Everly came back to you. This situation isn’t going to end that way.”
“How do you want it to end? You get an opinion, too, you know.”
“Her issue is that I’m controlling and closed off.”
“Are you?”
“Yeah. I guess, but I’m trying.”
“Don’t give her an easy way out. Make it damn difficult.”
I had no fucking clue how to do that.
Dash read my mind. “Do I have to do everything for you?”
“I guess.”
“Okay, woo her. Win her over. Make her an offer she can’t refuse.”
An offer she can’t refuse? What was he talking about?
“I could give her my gold Visa card. She loves to shop.”
“She wants to be independent. Remember?” He rolled his eyes as if I were a clueless bastard, which I was.
“Yeah, I guess that’s a bad idea.” I was completely in the dark about what to do. I really was a clueless bastard.
The room shook as someone else pounded on my door. Annoyed, I glared at Dash, pretty sure this was his doing. Dash stood and opened the door.
“What the fuck is this?” I growled as guys filed into my hotel room and made themselves at home. Soon the room was packed with my teammates sprawled on every horizontal surface available.
“We’re here to cheer you up.” Drakos offered a toothless grin, having lost a couple teeth two games ago.
“I’m cheerful. Can’t you tell?” I groused, shooting daggers at each one of them. Typical hockey players that they were, my death stare did nothing to dissuade them.
“Briggs and I were discussing how he could win Michella back.”
“Flowers and chocolates,” Jamal Brown said.
Jarrett gave him the elbow. “That’s about the least creative thing he can do.”
“It works. I’ve tried it multiple times.”
“Michella is smarter than that,” Dash said.
“How about an expensive dinner out and a moonlight cruise on the Columbia,” Grady suggested, and the guys booed his idea. This was a tough bunch. I sat back and let them figure out what I should do. Twenty-plus heads were better than one, even if the majority of these guys were single horndogs and not in monogamous relationships.
“That’s been overdone,” Roman snorted.
“Fuck you,” Grady countered and gave Roman a playful punch in the shoulder, after which Roman put him in a headlock.
“Kids,” I said, breaking my silence.
“Come on, boys, we can do better than this. God knows Briggs could use all the help he can get. Look at the guy.” Trent pointed at me. I scowled.
“What’s wrong with how I look?”
