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“No, we wouldn’t.”

“Yes, we would.” I raise one eyebrow at him. “Think about it. We would be each other’s competition.”

“We already are each other’s competition and look how well we get along.”

“We are and we are not.” I shrug. “On opposite sides of ice, we do not actually play each other. It is rest of team we have to face. But on the same team, you and I would compete. There is only one net, and we both would want it every night. So, you see? No more friendship if play on same team.”

“You might be on to something,” he says and eats a piece of another roll, again thinking as he chews. “But you should have seen Gavin and Tavish’s face when they heard I was having dinner with you. They were pissed.” He laughs to himself. “It was hilarious.”

“Pissed?” I ask, wondering why.

“Yeah, like mad,” he says.

“I know what pissed means.” I tip my head. “What I meant was, why were they pissed?”

“Oh! Right.” He eats another bite, then sips more water.

I was right. Getting some food into him has helped his nervousness. Thankfully his knees are still pressed against mine under the table though as I am enjoying the firm touch. It has been far too long since I have enjoyed such a simple pleasure with someone else.

He swallows, then begins to explain. I take the opportunity to eat while I listen and watch his face light up as he tells the story. He’s so expressive and lively when he talks, I hate the idea of ever looking away.

“Tavish was already annoyed with me because I tore apart our room looking for my shirt.”

“The one you have on now?”

He looks down at himself like he’s checking. “No. I had a different one picked out, but I couldn’t find it. So I asked Connor for help, which is why Gavin was annoyed with me, because I pulled Connor away from him.”

My eyes go wider. From the sound of it, he went through a lot of trouble getting ready for this dinner. More trouble than a straight man would generally bother with when meeting a friend. Interesting. I eat another bite and let him continue.

“So when Connor asked me who I was having dinner with and I said you, well, you should have seen the looks on their faces.” He looks up, as if he’s recalling the memory back to himself. “Actually, now that I think about it, they looked more shocked than pissed. But, I mean, what is so shocking about the two of us having dinner?”

Quite a lot, I think, as I take a giant gulp of my water.

Ander

This has been the best night I’ve had since, well, the last time I saw Nikolai. He suggested I find a new tradition, but I don’t quite know how I’m going to be able to fit dinners and walks with him into our schedules. It’s a miracle we made this work tonight. But maybe there are other times we will cross paths on the road this season.

“Where’s your team going to be over Thanksgiving?” I ask him as we walk back to his hotel. It isn’t much, but the league doesn’t schedule any NHL games on the holiday. Everyone gets a day off, but sometimes that day off falls during a road trip, like what’s happening to the Blizzards. We’ll be in New York at the time.

“New Jersey.”

“No way! We’re gonna be across the river. Does your team have plans?” Thanksgiving is better when your team isn’t on the road. Usually, one of the team’s veteran players hosts it and has everyone and their kids, wives, and girlfriends over for a full day of football and food. It’s the best.

But on the road, sometimes the best you can hope for is that the team has the hotel they’re staying at arrange a meal.

“Not sure.” He shrugs and slips his hands into his pockets. He must be cold. The ocean air does feel a bit crisp tonight. “Probably dinner at hotel.”

“Do you want to meet up instead?”

He looks at me and smiles. “Me and you?”

“Yeah, me and you!” I bump him with my shoulder. I love that we’re the same height. He can handle my size when I jostle him around.

“What about your brother?”

“I’ve had a million holidays with him. He doesn’t need to come. Besides…” I roll my eyes. “He has Ryan now. The two of them would probably prefer to make a meal out of each other in their hotel room.”

“Okay. That is true.”