Best Of Both Worlds (Colorado Black Diamonds #4)

Chapter 30

Chapter Thirty

NOAH - TWO MONTHS LATER

“ T his sucks,” I grumble. Looking around the locker room, trash bins sit in front of lockers as guys clean out their stalls.

“Hey. We’ll get there next year,” Graham tells me, grabbing a stick of deodorant and tossing it into his bag. “I know we will.”

We were one game away from making it to the playoffs. It would have been the first time in ten years that the Knights made it. With a few well-timed wins, it was looking good. Until an overtime goal by Vancouver knocked us out of the running.

The loss stings even more when I couldn’t contribute to the team. Not that anyone blames me since I was put on IR, but it still hurts.

It really fucking hurts.

“Hey, don’t jinx us.”

“You’ve already won a few cups,” Graham points out to me, dropping down onto the bench to zip up his bag. With my locker clean, I wandered over here to help him.

Not that he needs it. I just want to be near him.

The press portion of the day is already over. It’s never fun talking to them about how we’re out of it and what we can do to improve for next year. They fired more questions at me about my game and if I’ll be back than anything else.

I can only tell them what I hope to be true—that I’ll be back in top form and ready to go. I’m feeling good—no, great—and am ready to get back to training.

“Yeah, but I haven’t won one with you.”

Now that we have each other, it’s one of the only things I can think of doing. Winning one with Graham. Hoisting that trophy over our heads as we kiss one another.

Yeah, I want it. Bad.

“You’re such a sap.” Graham leans over and presses his lips against mine. I love being with him like this. Not having to worry about who might see us or who might judge Graham for being with me.

The guys in here don’t care. Even though we’ve been together for months, it still feels new. We’ve been out together a few times, but no one seems to pay us any attention.

Graham adapted faster than I thought he would. I’m lucky. Because I love being with him like this. Being with him is easy. The best thing to ever happen to me.

“I can’t help it when it comes to you.” I squeeze his leg.

Marcus comes over to us, slinging his bag across his shoulders. “I’ve got a few hours before I need to be home. Want to grab a drink with a few of the guys?”

Graham and I glance at one another. “Sure.”

“If you two can peel yourselves off each other.”

“Just because you’re not dating anyone, asshole,” Graham chirps.

A hard look comes over Marcus’s face before he stalks out toward the parking lot.

“Wonder what that’s about,” I ask him.

“Beats the hell out of me.”

“If it’s not about the girls, I don’t know what it could be.”

Graham shrugs. “Well, let’s not keep him waiting. I want some drinks and then I want to get home and start our offseason.”

“You and I have a very different idea on how this offseason is going to go.”

Graham stands, holding his hand out to me, his box of shit from his locker tucked under his other arm. I can’t help the smile on my face at how openly affectionate Graham is. I love it. I love not having to hide our relationship. “Oh, I know exactly how I want it to go.”

“You realize buying a house means we actually have to move shit in and not relax?”

Graham groans as the two of us head out, hand in hand. “What if I don’t want to?”

“You bought it.”

“Correction. We’re buying it. I want something that is just ours. Sue me.”

It has a big grin washing over my face. “Ours. I like the sound of that.”

“No more tiny condo.”

Pushing open the door to the arena, the bright Nashville sun greets us. A few of the guys are already pulling out as the two of us head to my truck.

“It was better than that crappy hotel of yours.”

I wince. “You never even saw it, so you can’t complain.”

“Doesn’t matter. We’re both getting an upgrade.”

Opening the door to the truck, we drop our bags in the backseat before climbing in the front.

“Are you sure it’s not too late to hire movers?” I ask.

“We’re not hiring movers. Besides, we don’t even have a place yet. We might not even find anything until next season.”

With our season ending sooner than we liked, we hadn’t planned on starting the house hunt this soon. We know where we want to live, but we just need to find something. We’re not in any kind of hurry.

“I did find a few places.” I hold out my hand for Graham to take while steering us toward the bar with the other.

“Send them to me. We can look tonight.”

I laugh. “Our first night of the offseason and this is how we’re going to spend it?”

“Oh. It’s only part of it. I plan on spending the rest of it with you buried in my ass.”

“I fucking hate you. How am I supposed to make it through drinks with my dick at half-mast?”

“Only half-mast?” Graham reaches over, giving me a pat on my thickening erection. “I must be losing my touch.”

“Seriously. I hate you, Graham.”

“I love you too, Noah.”

I scoff, a smile giving me away. “Yeah, yeah.”

“Alright, what are we cheersing to?” I ask.

The bar isn’t crowded for this early in the afternoon. It’s a dive bar, a few blocks away from the rink, but for some reason, it’s never overrun with fans. Makes it perfect for us when we want to hang out but not be in the public eye.

The old, dark-paneled walls make it darker in here than it is outside. Country music plays on the jukebox in the front of the bar. The owner, a Knights fan, keeps a corner of the bar reserved for us. With a wall blocking the booths back here, it makes it the perfect spot for us.

“Well, not the playoffs,” Marcus says, tongue-in-cheek.

“Offseason?” I ask.

“A new house?” Graham says.

“Where are you guys moving?” Dax asks.

“We’re looking at buying,” I tell them. “We wanted our own place together.”

“Aww. Don’t want the single life of Nashville anymore?” Bode teases.

“Fucker.” Graham flips him off.

“Leave them alone,” Jasper butts in. “Let them have their peace.”

“God, you really are getting old, Jas,” Marcus tells him. “Can we fucking toast now? I don’t have all day and my arm is getting tired.”

“Fine. To the Knights,” I say as we all clink our glasses together.

“To the Knights!” everyone echoes.

The guys are chattering about anything and everything. This is just how things were back home. It’s what I love most about being on a team.

Leaning back in my chair as the next round of drinks are poured, a happiness I haven’t felt in a long time spreads through me.

When I got traded, I thought that it would be the end of everything good. That my relationships at home would be strained with me being so far away. That the only reason I had the friendships back home that I did was because we played together.

It’s so far from the truth, I could laugh.

I found a new family here. I found Graham.

I found everything.

“What’s got you so happy?” Graham asks.

“This. You. The guys.”

“Really?”

I nod, sipping on my beer. “If you had told me a year ago that I would be in this place right now, I wouldn’t have believed you. I was a touch bitter when I first came here.”

Graham winces. “I didn’t exactly make it easy for you.”

“You? Never,” Bode interrupts. “I thought you two were going to kill each other.”

“Hey! We would not have,” I argue.

Marcus snorts a laugh. “You mean before or after the time you two got into a fight?”

“Really. You two hated each other,” Jasper agrees.

“More than I hate my own brother,” Dax tells us.

“Your brother is a shithead and I will die on that hill,” I point out. “Sorry, but when he cheats on my sister, there is no coming back from that.”

The fucker. Duncan played for the Black Diamonds, cheated on Piper, and then was cut because he was sleeping with the assistant coach’s wife.

Real stand-up guy. Thankfully Dax is nothing like him.

Dax sighs. A long-suffering sigh that says it’s not the first time he’s had this conversation. Nor is it one that he wants to be having.

“Don’t worry. I hate him for it too. Among other things.”

“What—”

“Drop it,” Graham whispers to me, ending the conversation.

“Alright boys. I have to get going.” Marcus stands, dropping a few bills on the table. “Drink responsibly, please. If any of you need to be bailed out of jail, don’t call me, Bode.”

Everyone bursts out laughing as the man in question flips him off. “Fuck off.”

“Like I said, be responsible.”

A few more guys come and go as the drinks start to go down easier. Graham doesn’t have more than one, so as the bar gets more crowded as the night goes on, we decide to leave and walk home.

The night air is cool as dozens of people head toward downtown to party.

“You know. We could always go find our own party.” I snicker, grabbing Graham’s ass as we turn up the road that we live on.

Graham wraps an arm around my waist and tugs me close. “The only party we’re going to have is at home in bed.”

“Fucking finally!” I shout, a little too loud.

“What? Can’t keep it in your pants, Fields?”

“More like you tormenting me all night.”

Graham laughs as our building comes into view. “You know you love it when I edge you.”

Slapping his ass, I hurry us off toward the elevator. As soon as it arrives, I’m on him. Kissing him. Licking his neck. Holding him like I’ll never have to let him go.

“Now who’s edging who?” Graham asks.

A dirty smile spreads across my face. “Suck me off and then I’ll fuck you?”

Graham returns the smile, pulling me tight to him.

“Best of both worlds, baby.”