Page 45 of Date With Skates

“Are you going to finish that?” Étienne asks, eying my plate. I only ate half of what was there.

I slide it over to him. He takes it happily and scoops the food onto his plate.

“You’re the best.”

“Oh, I know I am,” I whisper in his ear as I get to my feet. “I’ll see you later. And that’s not an option.”

I don’t miss the smirk on his face as I walk off with the rest of my team.

Chapter Twenty

Étienne

This game is a nail biter. They’ve been tied since the beginning of the second period, and now we’re closing in on the end of the third. Whoever wins this game will go on to play for the gold, so it’s important. Team USA has to win if they want to move on.

Roman is on fire tonight. He’s playing better than I’ve seen him play yet, especially when Connor is on the ice with him.

With three minutes left in the game, we get a power play.

“We need this right now,” I say, sitting on the edge of my seat.

We could take it into overtime. Reset and go hard from the get-go. But it’s better to end it now, be done with it, and not give the other team more time to score.

The crowd is on their feet as the minutes wind down. No one scores during the power play. Bummer, but it’s fine. We still have some time to score.

USA takes it to the other side of the ice right at the face-off. There’s less than a minute, and we’re all holding our breath. It’s so quiet in the arena, all you hear is the ice skates scraping on the ice, and the puck getting hit. You can almost make out what the guys are saying to each other, shouting instructions at teammates.

The puck flies towards the opponent's net, but the goalie blocks it. The puck gets passed to Roman, who passes it to Kearns. He slaps it toward the net, but it’s blocked. The goalie doesn’t grab it, and it slides right back to Roman—so he slaps it in!

The crowd goes wild, and so do the teammates. All celebrating with Roman up against the glass. I can’t help but smile as I see how excited they are. I glance at Connor, who’s on the bench, banging his stick against the boards in celebration. The players on the ice skate by, bumping fists with the players on the bench, and then they’re back to finish out the game.

I’ve seen a lot happen in less time than what’s left now, so anything could happen. But hopefully we can play some good defense and keep the puck away from the net.

And they do. We win the game, and the energy in the arena is electric.

I won’t lie, I’ve worried about the team a game or two. I’ve been critical of some of their plays and not sure they were playing to their full potential. I wasn’t sure they were going to make it. Nico believed in them the entire time, and I thought it was just because he’s obsessed with Roman and doesn’t know a thing about hockey. He can’t tell if they’re playing badly. But regardless, he was right. I should have listened. I should have had more faith in Team USA…

It feels weird hoping they win, but it only feels right. Canada is my home, and of course I’ll always support them and root for them to win. But Connor is on Team USA, and if nothing else, he’s a friend that deserves my support too.

I use all my might to push Connor onto my bed. He stumbles back, tripping on his own feet and falling onto the bed. Had he not lost his balance, he wouldn’t have gone anywhere. He’s a freaking brick house.

“That totally worked out in my favor,” I say as I crawl over him, settling on his hips. “You were so hot today on the ice.”

I lean down to kiss him, grinding against his already hard cock. His hands roam my body, squeezing my ass and sliding up my back and then to my ass again. He touches it every chance he gets. I crawl down his body, lifting his shirt to kiss his abs.

“Fucking after playing is always so good,” he groans.

I pause, looking up at him with a raised brow.

“Don’t lump me into a generalization,” I say as I tug down his sweatpants to get back to what I was doing.

He grasps my chin, making me look into his eyes. They’re intense. Serious.

“Fucking you after a game is fucking amazing.”

I smile wide. “That’s better.”

Fucking me after a game is better than all the others.