So Pucking Wrong (Thin Ice #9)

Chapter One

As hard as Harlan tried to focus on the action taking place on the ice, he couldn’t. His gaze kept sliding from the owner’s box window to the man whose laughter captivated the room. Tanner Paige was fifty-one. He had dark blond hair that was more gray than anything. His dark blue eyes always swam with happiness. The lines around his eyes proved he smiled more often than not. His bear-sized body was nothing compared to his monster-sized personality. He laughed like a man who knew his worth, which was somewhere in the billions. In fact, this was Tanner’s box. He owned the New Orleans’ Chuckers. The ice was his. The building was his. Every eye in the room was his, including Harlan. But Harlan would be damned if he gave Tanner the satisfaction of knowing it. Tanner already had too much at his fingertips. Thankfully, that was true of Harlan too.

Ten years ago, straight out of college, Harlan had entered the draft. He had been picked up by Los Angeles and that had been his team, his family, and his home ever since. He was by no means the highest paid kicker in the league, but he was definitely valued. His record spoke volumes and his pay matched. It was a good life. One that didn’t need the complication known as Tanner Paige.

Another loud laugh filled the air, turning Harlan’s head. Tanner stood with Harlan’s brothers and brothers-in-law, all of which lived in New Orleans now. He was the only brother who still lived too far away to visit often. With both his brothers now happily married, and working on their relationship with him, Harlan felt obligated to try too. He loved his brothers. Always had. Maybe he felt a little closer to his younger brother, Matt, than he did his older brother, Rider. That was mostly because Rider had moved out when Harlan was nine. Matt was only five years younger. They’d had more time together. Plus, Rider had always been more like a third parent. That made things odd between them. More lecturing and less brotherly love.

Still, as Harlan watched Rider smile and chat with Matt’s husband, he wished he didn’t feel like the odd man out all the time. He recognized that was mostly due to him living far away. Unfortunately, it also had a great deal to do with him not being anything like them. Rider was a brooder, but steady. Matt was a worrier, but also equally steady. Harlan chose freedom from responsibility. He breathed easier while not giving a fuck. Rider and Matt had spent years in misery due to their narcissistic mother. Harlan hadn’t because he didn’t give a shit and she knew it. Middle child syndrome. No one noticed him and he flipped two birds to family ties. The situation seemed to work for everyone. Except sometimes, like now, he felt a little too much like an outsider. He had to go back to watching the game.

A swarm of skates and jerseys moved across the ice. Harlan didn’t truly see a thing. Since Rider managed the Chuckers and Tanner owned them, he supposed that was who he hoped would win. Otherwise, he had no skin in the game. They were up by one with seconds left. All they had to do was hold them. Harlan focused hard and tried to care. The game was the safest place for his mind.

“How long will you be in town?”

Harlan was trying so hard not to notice his family, he nearly jumped out of skin at Matt’s husband’s question. He tried to hide his reaction as he looked Slater’s way. Harlan pasted on a carefree smile. “I’m not sure yet. The season just ended, so…?” He shrugged.

The buzzer sounded, signaling the end of the game. They glanced toward the window. The Chuckers had won. Everyone cheered while Harlan returned to his conversation with Slater.

“Matt would love for you to come by for a visit while you’re here. He misses you quite a bit.”

Honestly, that surprised Harlan. Matt had recently cut the family from his life for nearly a year. Then out of blue, Harlan had received an invitation to Matt’s wedding… to a duke, of all things. It was a little strange to be related to royalty, especially since Slater—while obviously polished—was so normal. He was just some guy with a nice accent and an expensive suit. Harlan saw what Matt saw in him. Plus, the guy openly adored Matt in every way. That was a hard trait to resist.

Matt materialized at Slater’s side.

Slater immediately tucked him close.

The move was so obviously natural for them. Matt just moved into place without ever looking away from Harlan. He was all smiles. “Hey. You’ve been standing here all by yourself all night. I haven’t gotten to talk to you at all.”

Harlan laughed. “It was easier than trying to get a word in with Tanner here.”

Matt snorted. “Yeah. He is very much the center of attention everywhere he goes.”

Slater nodded. “He’s always been that way. Larger than life.”

The comment caught Harlan off guard. “Have you known Tanner long?”

“My family helped him with a tax situation several years ago. He’s damnably hard to dislike. My mother is very smitten. They’ve stayed in touch.”

A bark of laughter burst from Harlan. “Ours too. They met at a surprise party Tanner threw for Rider. Our mom took one look at him and saw her second husband. Thankfully, Tanner is wise to her ways and avoids her as much as possible.”

Matt’s eyebrows rose. “You’re joking.”

“That’s right. I forgot you missed that party.” Harlan chuckled. “You really missed a show. Mom was on her A game.”

“Oh, my god.” Matt sounded rightfully horrified. There was nothing their mom loved more than money. That included her kids. Some people just weren’t cut out to be parents.

Rider and Ben joined the conversation. “What did we miss?”

Harlan laughed at Rider’s husband’s question. “We were talking about Mom at Rider’s birthday party.”

Rider groaned. “You’ve never seen so much cleavage-fluffing in your life.”

Everyone laughed.

A weight lifted from Harlan’s shoulders.

“People are laughing without me. Don’t leave me out.” Tanner was all smiles as he joined them.

They tried hard not to look at each other. Thankfully, Rider had things under control. “We were poking fun at your shoes.”

The loud laugh that burst from Tanner made Harlan smile. He couldn’t help it. Tanner was like happiness in a bottle. It was contagious.

Tanner lifted his foot, showing off a pair of gaudy sneakers with the team’s logo plastered all over them. “They’re my good luck shoes, and you see they work. We won, didn’t we?”

“I’m pretty sure that was Medvedkov’s doing.”

Tanner chuckled at Ben’s response. “Maybe a little of that too.” Tanner, being the center of attention, gave Harlan a free pass to stare at him. His dark blue eyes danced with laughter. The blue t-shirt he wore made them seem even bluer. The sleeves fought for their life against his huge biceps. Goddamn, he was sexy for fifty-one and Harlan didn’t think he had ever thought that before. Money kept people young. Plus, it was obvious Tanner worked out. He had a sexy belly on him, but Harlan was into that. Fuck. Why did he have to smell good?

“What’s everyone’s plans for the rest of the night?”

Everyone except Harlan made noises about needing to get home.

Tanner shook his head. “I come all the way here from Canada and none of you can make it past ten? I’m the oldest one here.” He looked Harlan’s way. “What about you?”

Harlan shrugged, trying not to look too enthusiastic. “I’m game for whatever. I haven’t gotten too old to party yet.”

Rider snorted. “You could stand to party a little less.”

Tanner draped his arm across Harlan’s shoulders. “Don’t worry. I’ll keep him in line.”

“That’s not as comforting as you obviously think,” Ben muttered, making Tanner laugh.

Everyone said their goodbyes and headed en masse toward the door. Tanner’s arm never left Harlan’s shoulders. Then they were alone. The act fell away.

Tanner’s gaze moved his way. A smirk touched his lips. “Alone at last.”

Challenge always fired to life inside him whenever Tanner was around. “Oh dear. Do I need to break out my rape whistle?”

Tanner snorted so hard, it had to hurt. He choked on a laugh. “Everyone else likes me, you know? You’re the only exception.”

Harlan had to point out the obvious. “That’s a broad assumption of yourself. But I never said I don’t like you. I might have said you’re a little too sure of yourself.”

“Damn, Pot. Come, take a walk with this old kettle.”

Harlan couldn’t stop smiling. It was genuinely too much fun being with Tanner. He never knew what would come next. Harlan hoped it was him.

Money bought a lot of things. Actually, it bought most of everything. Tanner hadn’t encountered much in his life that couldn’t be his with enough zeros. He liked that Harlan’s entire family seemed immune to that, sans their mother, of course. They were ballsy. It was refreshing. It made Tanner want them in his corner and watching his back. He didn’t fear they would fuck him the first chance they got. Harlan was a bit of an exception. Tanner really wanted Harlan to fuck him.

Tanner had known Rider for a long time. Since Matt was a former hockey player, they had crossed paths too. It wasn’t until Tanner had thrown Rider a surprise birthday party that he had finally met Harlan, and goddamn. Everything about him was sexual. He bled sensuality. His eyes constantly flashed with the promise of naughty things. He smirked in a way that made it clear he would be a ride no one would forget. Tanner had never instantly wanted anyone more.

He savored the feeling of Harlan tucked against his side as he led him down to the Chuckers’ sideline bench. The closer they got to the ice, the colder the air got. Tanner needed the chill to cool his overheated skin. Otherwise, he would send Harlan running for the hills. They sat on the bench.

“It’s oddly amazing up close.”

Tanner smiled at the wonder in Harlan’s voice. It sounded the way Tanner felt when he thought about this team.

Harlan turned his head. His light blue eyes stole the air from Tanner’s lungs. His nearly jet-black hair and light eyes combined to make him stunning. “Why a hockey team? I imagine you could own anything you want. Why this?”

Tanner shrugged. “I’m Canadian. They strap ice skates to our feet the moment we take our first steps. Hockey is in my blood. When this team went up for sale, I knew it was probably the only chance I’d get to own a piece of something I love. What about you? Why not hockey? That’s the path your brothers chose.”

A sexy smile touched Harlan’s lips, drawing Tanner’s gaze to his mouth. A day’s worth of growth covered his jaw. His full lips were calling Tanner’s name. “I’ve never been anything like my brothers. Hockey is no exception. Rider couldn’t get away fast enough, and hockey was his ticket out. Matt has always been Mom’s baby because he was soft enough for her to manipulate. She saw how much Rider made from his hockey career. So she pushed for Matt to do the same, hoping to bleed him dry. Thankfully, Slater seems to have put a stop to that since they married. Meanwhile, I was the middle child, so I went unnoticed. But I wanted to be like my dad.” Harlan’s sad smile moved Tanner. It was obvious Harlan had loved his father, and it hadn’t been that long since he passed.

Tanner wanted to make it better. “I’d say you’ve accomplished that.”

Harlan’s smile turned laughing. “Some would say I accomplished it too well.”

A laugh burst from Tanner. “Yeah, I’ve heard the rumors.” Harlan’s dad had been a huge womanizer. Word was Harlan was the same.

“Don’t believe half of what you’ve heard. I don’t have any bastard children running around. No matter what my brothers say.”

Tanner wished he could say he hadn’t heard that one, but he had. “It’s three at last count, right?”

A loud groan burst from Harlan. He looked away and shook his head before meeting Tanner’s gaze again. “Okay, so. The first one might have had a legitimate claim. There was enough of a chance that I did a paternity test. That kid isn’t mine. The other two women making that claim, I’ve never even met. When I ignored their bullshit, they went to my parents. I guess they hoped my family would pay them off to spare some embarrassment or whatever. Little did they know my mom would rather die than have anyone call her a grandmother. Plus, there’s very likely some kids running around out there that could call themselves my siblings. That was a Pandora’s box best ignored by everyone.”

Tanner couldn’t stop smiling. Harlan’s outrage was adorable. “So no kids?”

“Definitely not.”

“So all football. No kids. Do you know how to skate, or did you pass on the hockey lessons?”

Harlan snorted. “Are you kidding me? My dad put us in as many sports as he could shove into a daily schedule. None of us had any sort of life until we went to college.”

Tanner tilted his head toward the ice. “Would you like to skate with me?”

“It’s been a while.”

Good. That gave Tanner a reason to touch him. “I’ll keep you upright.”

Harlan’s tongue shot out, wetting his lips in a way that drew the eye. Everything about him was a temptation. “Okay.”

At Harlan’s agreement, Tanner was on his feet in an instant. He was happy for any excuse to possibly hold Harlan. “Come on. Let’s hunt down some skates.”

Together, they headed down the tunnel to the locker room. The equipment manager hadn’t left for the night. He was more than happy to find them skates. In minutes, they were out on the ice.

“Watch out. It’s still torn up out here from the game. They won’t clean it for a few more hours.”

Harlan eyed the ice. For once, he didn’t look as confident. “I probably should’ve thought this through. If I get hurt, that’s my career.”

Tanner hadn’t considered that either. Harlan had a multimillion-dollar leg. He couldn’t let Harlan twist an ankle. Tanner closed the distance between them. Facing him, he held Harlan’s waist while skating backward. Harlan grabbed his shoulders and held on.

The longer they skated, the more comfortable everything felt. Not that Tanner ever felt uncomfortable. Sometimes he got the impression he made Harlan uneasy. It didn’t feel that way now.

“When you asked what we were doing later, I never thought this was what you’d want to do with your night.”

Damn. Now Tanner really wanted to know what Harlan had pictured them doing. “Honestly, I knew your brothers wouldn’t want to hang out, so the offer was for you. Unfortunately, I get the impression you wouldn’t want me to single you out in front of them.”

Harlan cocked his head to one side. His gaze moved over Tanner’s face as if working on a puzzle. “Why do you think that?”

Tanner didn’t play games. “You don’t look or speak to me when they’re around unless I speak to you first. I figured you didn’t want them to know you’ve spent time alone with me.”

“You’re my brother’s boss. I don’t want Rider to worry.”

They weren’t skating any longer, but neither of them pulled away. In the middle of the arena, they stood toe to toe, holding each other. “I’m not that bad of a guy.”

Harlan smirked. “I am, and he knows it.”

“You can’t get me pregnant.”

A loud laugh burst from Harlan, making Tanner smile. “I could try.”

Tanner snorted. “I’d let you, but I don’t think I’d ever see you again afterward.”

Harlan’s smile never dimmed. “You probably wouldn’t.”

Tanner held on to his smile, but Harlan confirming his fears stung. He took Harlan’s hand. “Then we should find something safer to do.”

Harlan didn’t pull away as Tanner led him off the ice. The guy kept him confused. He would cut his losses for the night. It didn’t look as if Harlan would ever be his.