Line Mates & Study Dates (CU Hockey, #4)

by Eden Finley

West folds his arms across his wide chest and avoids looking at me as he says to Ezra, “Now you’ve gotten what you wanted, you can go back to Boston.” Then he turns in my direction. “You need to take Hazel, Bennett, and Emmett to hockey practice.” He spins on his heel and leaves the room. That’s it? That’s all I get for screwing his ex-teammate? I don’t know whether to be pissed off or scared.

Note to parents everywhere: don’t judge your kid based on what you like.

“I’m gay, by the way. I always make sure I get that out there early on, because I don’t have time for assholes.” Asher looks stunned for a moment. I’m lucky in that I’ve never felt like my sexuality has made me a target, and with all the queer guys who’ve passed through the CU team, I’m pretty sure it won’t now either. “Sounds to me like you’d have plenty of time for assholes. Literally.” I laugh hard. I was not expecting that response.

“Everyone else, get back to work. We have first line spots to fill.” Okay, now that hurts. A tip for anyone wanting to piss me off: you can say shit about my parents dying, you can say shit about me being a dumb jock with shitty grades, you can even dissect my sexuality and call me any slur under the sun because screw your opinions of who I sleep with. What you can’t do is take hockey away from me.

“Are you checking me out?” I jump at being caught, but he’s smiling again. “Just objectifying you.” “And that’s better because …” “It’s not personal. You have a nice butt.” It might be my imagination, but I swear he flexes. “This is hockey. Literally everyone here has a nice butt.” “And I’ll objectify them too.” I won’t, because I have better self-preservation skills than that.

Asher Dalton just gained a new best friend. Whether he wants it or not.

Kole’s head pops up from a table near the door as I enter, and … whoa. Kole’s wearing glasses. Black, square ones that frame his eyes, and all my blood flows south. If you’d asked me two seconds ago if I had a nerd kink, the answer would have been hell no, because someone like Foster’s boyfriend, Zach, would have come to mind. But this … tall, chiseled features, and glasses? I’ve found my new weakness.

My ruined future isn’t even a blip on why I’m so pissed. They were happy. My siblings were happy. West and I might’ve been a handful, but with us gone and out of their house, they were living the dream of the perfect family. The house might be old, but they made it a home. I don’t understand why they had to die.

“Tell you what. I’ll room with you at away games, and we can work on it together.” My gaze flies to his. “What?” “You need help. I have to be at away games because I’m your bag bitch—” “Don’t use that term. It’s offensive.” He rolls his eyes.

there’s something about the badass big-dick energy Asher’s radiating that makes me want to break my look-and-don’t-touch rule.” I laugh at her. “He’s hot but going through a lot. Trust me when I say it’s better to steer clear.” “I don’t want to date the guy.” She pouts. “I just want him to spank me, Kole.” I glance over at where Asher’s watching the guys on the ice with the kind of intensity that would melt me in the bedroom. “Oh, babe. Don’t we all?”

Damn it. I’m catching the hockey.

“This better work. Because if they kill each other, your dad will kill me, and then my boyfriend will dig me up and kill me again for leaving him.”

Dad takes that moment to appear, and his gaze immediately flies to the door rattling right behind me. “Why do I get the feeling I don’t want to know?” “I’m helping the only way I could think how, but you might need plausible deniability on this one. You should probably keep walking.” “Okay.” He slowly backs up and disappears. I love that he doesn’t even question me. Dad might be disappointed in me when it comes to hockey, but he trusts me.

“Why are you like that?” I look up at the roof and mutter, “I’m going to kick Kole’s ass.” I throw myself in the seat next to Simms. “Do you want the excuse of always having to live up to my NHL star brother or the poor orphan card? I can play either.” “I want the truth.” Eww.

“My name, by the way, is Kieran.” I screw up my face. “You don’t look like a Kieran.” “You don’t look like an asshole, but then you open your mouth. So …” “Touché.”

“What about emotionally unavailable guys who treat people like shit? Because I’m that too. Don’t pigeonhole me, dude.”

“Sorry, that doesn’t really do it for me either.” “Shame. I’m really good at sex.” “Sure you are. Like you’re super good at communicating.” “I speak words good.”

And they’re all in suits. Hot men in suits are my weakness. Wait, hot men in general are my weakness.

“What if I promise not to fall in love with you? Then will you let me suck your dick?”

“What are you doing here today?” I croak. His smile widens. “Dad wanted you all to have a protein shake, so I put my domestic goddess hat on and made you all some.” He holds it out to me. “You made this?” “Mmhmm.” “Thanks.” I take a sip and can’t help screwing up my face. “What the fuck? That tastes like—” “I put extra kale in it. Just for you.” Kole leaves with an extra spring in his step.

Not shockingly, this isn’t the first time I’ve had to hide after sex. It is the first time I’ve feared the actual consequences of being found.

If Coach catches me in his son’s room, I’m worse than dead. I’ll be off the team. Priorities.

“When did you first …” Mother of fuck, we are so not ready for this conversation, right? Also, do I lie here or tell the truth? “I’m a virgin.” Lying it is! He looks down at the clothes in my hands and cocks an eyebrow at me.

“How is he?” I ask, like I haven’t heard everything. “Unfortunately, he’s still an asshole, so I think he’ll be fine,” Beck says. Asher flips Beck the bird as the trainer leaves.

“I’ll keep him in line.” Beck assesses me for a second, and for one wild moment, I think I’ve given away too much, but it’s not like there’s much to give away.

Beck continues. “Back in the hotel room, there should be no bright lights, so he can’t be on his phone. No watching TV. And … no physical activity.” Physical activity? My gaze flies to Asher, and he smirks like yeah, not a smartass now. “So when you say physical …” “He needs to rest. No game tomorrow, no practice …” Beck eyes me. “And no sex.” “What?” “What?” he asks innocently. “I know what happens at these away games. I was a player too, remember?” Okay, has he guessed, or is he just being a douche?

“Good. Then that’s settled. You need at least eighty percent on this quiz before you get sex.” He starts scribbling down some questions. I’m starting to forget what I see in him, but there’s no doubt Kole Hogan has some weird hold over me because I’ll do anything to have his mouth on me again. Even use my brain to think all the things with the smart stuff. So much brainage. Braining?

Apparently, it’s happening. Kole’s got a date. And I’m totally cool with it. One hundred percent. Even if we had plans to fuck or whatever. It’s sex. Only sex. It never means anything. Never. Then why do I want to tell Kole he can’t go out with anyone else?

“You can go out with whoever you want.” As long as their name starts with A and ends in sher.

“Kind of goes with the whole being identical thing, right?” “I can tell them apart. Emmett is the quiet one.” There’s a quiet one?

When we pull up to the hotel, it takes all my strength not to run to the room. That wouldn’t be obvious or anything. Totally casual. Completely. “Where’s the fire?” Simms calls out behind me. I guess I’m not pulling off this casual thing, after all.

“I know you’re taunting me to get me to move faster, but if I do that right now, I really will worry about how I compare when I’ll be a two-pump chump.” Kole reaches for me, cupping my face. “Aww, if that happens, you can blow me instead. I’m generous like that.”

“It sounds like you’re suffering from a very complicated and rare disorder.” I turn my head. “What?” His lips turn up at the edges. “Grief.” “For a moment there, I thought you might actually have an answer for me.”

“Even if I still can’t tell the difference between the twins?” “Even then. Though if you want, I can shave an E and a B in the back of their heads.” “We’ll save that as a last resort.”

I’m so soft after seeing Asher and West hug that, yes, I’m in danger of tearing up too. They finally part, and Asher sniffs before swiping at his eyes. “Okay, I’m done with this shit.” “It suits you, little brother.” “Fuck off, West.” Aww, even the insult is missing his usual aggression.

Asher takes my hand and tugs me toward the kitchen door. My gaze immediately darts to Coach Dal—West as he crosses his arms and leans back against the counter. “Why is Kole here?” he asks, voice heavy with suspicion. Asher’s hand tightens around mine for a moment. “Studying.” Then he pulls me away down the hall. “Your brother totally knows,” I whisper.

She pats the bed beside her, and I shake my head. “No way in hell am I sitting on those sheets after what I saw.” “Fine. But I wouldn’t sit on the couch downstairs either. Or that bookshelf.” “Bookshelf? How in the—you know what, I don’t want to know. Desk chair?” “Questionable, but not recently.” “Floor it is.”

“How about now?” Kole’s sexy mouth opens and then closes just as fast. “Ha, you can’t come up with an excuse. Buckle up, big guy. A date with Asher Dalton is like a date with—” “A pushy, insistent jerk whose head is so big it’s surprising he doesn’t fall over when he walks?” “I was going to go with something cliché like destiny, but yours might be closer to the truth.”

“You’re so fucking gorgeous,” he murmurs against my skin. “And you’re mine. All mine.”

“Kole …” He cards his fingers through my hair and tugs me up to look at him. A weighted silence passes between us before he whispers one word. “Mine …” I nod. “I’m yours.”

Hey, I may act like a dick, but I’m a decent human being deep down. They cancel each other out, right?

“I’ll try to be home more, then. Kole can come here to study. We could make it a reality show. Extreme studying. The challenge is memorizing shit while things fly at your head and the sound of an imploding house surrounds you. If Kole’s going to run away, he should do it now.” “I’m not going anywhere.” Kole’s croaky voice startles both of us. He slowly climbs out of bed, and I wonder how much he heard. West’s eyes dart between us. “We’re going to have to talk about this.”

“West!” one of the twins calls from upstairs. West sighs. “Which one was that?” I snort. “I can tell the difference between their faces, not their voices.”

“Please. It’s obvious you two are doing it.” I frantically slash at my throat. “Zip it.” Rhys rolls his eyes. “I’m just saying, Kole comes over and helps clean up the house. His dog knows you. I know hockey players are dumb, but are hockey coaches too? I’m guessing Kole had something to do with you showing up home half-naked that day.” “What day?” Kole asks. “The day he was fleeing a hookup.” “Rhys,” I groan. “Please for the love of everything, shus—” “So you’re the one who broke the porch gutters.” The deep, authoritative voice almost makes me shit myself. Coach Hogan is back. Oh goodie.

“I just don’t get it. You’re a smart kid. What the hell could a hothead—a talented hothead—like Asher Dalton have to interest you?” I’m thinking his dick isn’t the correct answer here.

“Give me strength,” Dad says, running a hand down his face. “I’m still not sure I even like the idea of you two together.” “Do you like the idea of me being happy?” He sighs, knowing I’ve got him. “Pulling out the big guns, huh?” “Whatever it takes.”

West snickers because I assume he knows I wanted to call Fuckstain a dick. “Is that why he was at your house the other week?” Kole asks. “What? Why the hell would Eckstein be at my house?” “I swear I saw him pull up there when I was leaving the morning after our date

“I think it’s funny that Dad couldn’t tell us apart,” Ben adds. “Just like West.” West shifts. “Dad couldn’t tell you apart either?” “Nope. And then when he could, we’d pretend we were the other one to confuse him.” Asher’s lips purse like he’s trying not to laugh. “You don’t do that to me, do you?” West asks. The twins just grin at each other,

“Aww, are you nervous?” “No. I don’t do nerves. Shut up.” I pat him on the head, and he gives me a blank cut the crap look. “Of course you don’t, sweetie. You’re a big bad hockey player.”

“Really not going to say anything, huh?” he finally asks. Rossi looks over. “What, are we supposed to act surprised?” “You knew?” The four of them exchange looks, and Simms cocks his head. “Wait, did you guys think you were subtle?” “Well, yeah.”