Three Pucking Wedding Dates (Hockey Harems #1)

7. Oakley

7

OAKLEY

“ G ray, we really missed you out there,” Reid says, his green eyes locked onto Gray’s. “You know, if you’d been there, the other team might have backed out before the game even started. I don’t know why we’re still playing teams like that.”

“Ah, come on, give them a break!” Gray grins, running a hand through his tousled hair. “Besides, I had some…important business to take care of.”

His words make me smile. “Important business, huh?” I tease, raising an eyebrow. “Is that what they’re calling me these days?”

“Don’t worry, it’s a compliment.” Gray winks.

“I was wondering how you got here,” Reid comments, throwing another drink to the back of his throat. “I thought you were still iffy about airplanes.”

Just the mention of it makes me shiver.

“She still is,” Gray admits. “But she did okay.”

I think I did better than okay, but I guess Gray would know better than me.

Thankfully, the conversation begins to drift. “I saw the magazine,” Reid says, which makes me frown. Magazine? What magazine?

Gray sighs. “Did Coach see it?”

Reid shrugs. “No clue.”

“What did it say?”

“After a devastating heartbreak with supermodel Lena Wilde, you were secretly meeting up with your new mystery girl.”

Understanding rams into me like a train. That’s why Gray told me to walk ahead of him—because he didn’t want me to be subjected to the reporters…now, I believe him. They really wouldn’t have left me alone if they caught us together.

“New mystery girl?” I repeat, shaking my head. “I’ve been called worse. Who’s Lena Wilde?”

Gray sends Reid an uncomfortable look, making me frown. The boys and I have never had secrets before…although it isn’t like we talk as much as we used to either.

Nobody answers. “Hmm? Lena Wilde?”

I look at Reid pointedly, but he shakes his head. “Not a chance, dollface. You’ll have to ask Gray.”

“Gray?” I turn my gaze to him, watching the way he squirms in his seat, avoiding eye contact with me. “Is she an ex-girlfriend or something? You can tell me. My ex-fiancé cheated on me with my evil stepsister. Trust me, I’m not in a position to judge anyone.”

Gray lets out a breath, eyeing the drink in front of him before grabbing hold of the glass and quickly drinking it. Once it’s gone, he turns to look at me and sighs. “Yes, Lena is my ex.”

“And she’s a model?”

“Yeah, look at her.” Reid pulls up a picture of her on his phone, and my jaw drops.

Lena has to be the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever laid my eyes on. She’s Brazilian, with perfect tan skin and an even more perfect smile…as far as I can tell, since she doesn’t smile in most of her pictures. Not that she has to—even frowning, she’s stunning. Her eyebrows are perfectly arched, and her hair is thick, dark, and curly, framing her face just perfectly. Her eyes are black, or close enough to it.

I’m not jealous. Okay, maybe just a little bit.

Gray has been throwing hints to me the entire time I’ve been here that he wants to be with me, but how could he want me after being with a literal goddess? I’m nothing compared to her.

I take a sip from my water to wet my suddenly dry throat. “What happened between the two of you?” I ask.

“She was ready for the next part of her life—marriage, children, getting a home together…” Gray lets out a breath, staring straight ahead. “And I wasn’t.”

“Why?”

“Because she wasn’t the one for him,” Reid answers so Gray doesn’t have to.

I want to ask more questions, but from the look Reid gives me, I realize I have more to do with their breakup than I could even imagine. So, I keep my mouth shut.

“Alright,” Reid says, clapping his hands together and breaking the tension. “Enough of that. Let’s talk about something more fun. Remember when we all went camping that summer and Oakley got lost trying to find her way back from the bathroom in the middle of the night?”

I’m grateful for the subject change, but it could have been anything but this. “Hey!” I protest, feigning offense. “It was pitch-black and those paths were confusing!”

Gray chuckles, his eyes crinkling at the corners, and I can feel my heart swell. The sound of his laughter is a balm for my bruised ego.

“Or how about the time Gray accidentally set off the fire alarm while trying to cook dinner?” Reid continues, grinning mischievously.

“Hey, now,” Gray interjects, a playful pout on his face. “That was one time, and I swear it was a faulty smoke detector.”

“Uh-huh, sure,” I chime in, raising an eyebrow skeptically. “Because the pan full of burnt food had nothing to do with it.”

“Okay, okay,” Gray concedes, waving a hand dismissively. “You two are never going to let me live that down, are you?”

“Absolutely not,” Reid replies, laughing.

As we continue to reminisce, I find myself smiling genuinely, caught up in the warmth of our shared memories. How could I have let years go by without seeing my best friends?

While Gray and Reid talk, I can’t stop thinking about Gray and Lena. Did he really end a relationship with a supermodel because he’s waiting on me? And if he did, what am I supposed to do next? Do I want him to be my boyfriend? Heck, do I want a boyfriend at all? I find myself stealing glances at him, trying to decipher the emotions playing across his face.

“Oakley?” Gray’s voice pulls me from my thoughts. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” I reply quickly, forcing a smile onto my face. “Just lost in thought for a moment.”

“What about?” Reid asks, ever the instigator—and it’s only gotten worse the more drinks he’s had. If memory serves me well, the shorter his sentences get, the more drunk he is.

“I have to pee.” I smile at them and grab my phone before navigating through the bar to find the closest bathroom. There’s a line in front of it, which makes it take longer to get inside than I would have liked, but once I’m in, I quickly use the bathroom before flushing and making my way over to the sink.

I turn the knob and start to wash my hands as my eyes fall on my reflection in the mirror. I’m not ugly—far from it—but I’m no supermodel either.

I’m surprised when I step out of the bathroom to find Gray leaning against the wall, eyes half closed. When he sees me, they spring back open, his playful smile overtaking his features.

“What are you doing?” I ask, raising an eyebrow at him.

“Waiting for my princess.” His hands reach out and find my arms, and he moves me lightly to the beat of the music.

He’s drunk.

I knew he was getting close, but thought he would have stopped. How many did he have from the time I left the table until now?

“You’re drunk,” I laugh, shaking my head. I haven’t seen him like this since he was a teenager.

“Maybe.” He’s not bothered by it in the least. Then, all of a sudden, he gets serious. “What’s going on with you and Reid?”

The question catches me off guard, and I start shaking my head, trying to figure out how to answer. “Why are you asking that?”

“I saw you.” He narrows his eyes at me, his grip getting a bit harder. “He’s a player, Oak. A…player. Look at ’em.” He gestures over at Reid, who’s still sitting at the bar, but he isn’t alone.

There’s a woman standing up beside him, lips in a smug little grin. He’s flirting with her, and she’s very happy to be accepting his advances.

It’s not a shock to me, though. Reid has been a playboy ever since I’ve known him.

“Gray, I—” I start to protest, but he cuts me off.

“I just don’t want to see you get hurt,” he says, his gaze intense and unwavering. “You deserve so much…so much better.”

“Like you?” I whisper, knowing that’s where this conversation is going. Gray’s cheeks flush, and he looks down at his feet for a moment before meeting my gaze once more.

“Maybe,” he admits softly. “I can’t help it, Oakley. I can’t help but want you…can’t help but love you. No more fighting these feelings.”

Before I can respond, he leans in and presses his lips against mine. His kiss is slightly sloppy, most likely due to the alcohol coursing through his veins, but it’s filled with passion and sincerity. My hands instinctively reach up to tangle in his sandy-blond hair as our lips move together.

We can’t do this. He’s drunk.

I pull away, breathless and flushed, and I’m left reeling from the intensity of our kiss. My thoughts swirl with confusion, jealousy, and desire—all mixed together in a dizzying cocktail. My heart races with uncertainty, but I know one thing for sure—we need to talk about this later.

“Gray,” I say firmly, my voice barely more than a whisper. “We’ll discuss this later, okay? When you’re sober.”

He nods, his expression a mixture of vulnerability and hope. “Okay, Oaks.”

The night has worn on, and I can feel the exhaustion settling in. It’s time to head home. Turning to Gray, I ask, “Do you have your phone? We should call Charlie to pick us up.”

“Yep,” he replies, fumbling for his phone in his pocket. As he hands it to me, our fingers brush against each other, sending a jolt of electricity through me. His touch is gentle yet filled with unspoken longing, and my heart aches.

With a shaky sigh, I unlock his phone and scroll through his contacts, eventually finding Charlie’s number. As I press the call button, I glance back at Gray. He’s leaning against the wall, watching me intently. For a brief moment, my thoughts drift to the passionate kiss we shared, the connection that seemed so real.

But then reality crashes down around me.

“Hey, Charlie,” I say when he answers the phone, forcing a cheerfulness into my voice that I don’t truly feel. “We need a ride back to the house. Can you come grab us?”

“Of course, Miss Price,” Charlie replies, his voice warm and familiar. “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

“Thanks, Charlie.” I hang up and slip the phone back into Gray’s hand, our fingers brushing once more.

“Is he coming?” Gray asks, his eyes heavy-lidded, exhaustion beginning to seep into his expression. His earlier energy has dissipated, revealing a man who’s had far too much to drink.

“Yeah, he said ten minutes,” I reply.

Gray nods and leans against the wall, his eyes slowly drifting closed.

“Gray,” I murmur softly, wanting to reach out to him but holding back. “Stay awake, okay? Just until Charlie gets here.”

He manages a weak smile, his brown eyes opening just enough to meet mine. “I’m not going anywhere, Oakley.”

As we wait, I stand beside Gray, the warmth of his body radiating toward me. The steady rise and fall of his chest is comforting, grounding me in this moment. I want to savor it, to let myself believe that everything between us could be simple and easy.

But nothing in my life is ever simple and easy.

“Hey, Oaks?” he whispers.

“Yeah?”

“Pick me.” He lets out a slow breath. “Not Reid, or even Theo. Me.”