Page 90 of Icebound

“Yeah, but really, I’m glad you came tonight, Phil. Now, come on. Let’s head out. Tremblay’s gonna flip his shit if he sees us like this.”

“He won’t care.”

“Trust me. He will. He always—”

The door swings open.

Rhode strides into the room in a disheveled gray suit with a banana-print lime green tie. It’s been weeks since I’ve laid eyes on him, and from the way my breath stutters when I see him, I should start digging a grave for my heartbreak.

“Alright, Cruz, they don’t have any more rooms available, so we’re throwing it back to training camp. You’re stuck with me, and we’re building a pillow wall. I swear if you spoon me again with your morning wood, I’ll—” He stops when he sees us sitting on the bed.

His gaze narrows on our intertwined hands, and his eyes flare. I jerk away from Micah. Rhode cocks his head, slow and predatory.

There’s heat in his expression, and I know from that look alone that I’m about to make some gloriously stupid decisions that will probably turn into mistakes. I’ll exchange one magical night for a miserable morning, but it’s the hope of it all that has me swapping out rationality for recklessness.

Rhode’s eyes bore into mine like he’s trying to set my body on fire with his stare. “Cruz?”

“Yeah, roomie?”

“I love you, man, but get out.”

22

RHODE

“Fine, okay. I’m leaving. You don’t have to give me murder eyes, old man. We were just talking.” Cruz backs out of the room. “I’ll snuggle with Patty-Daddy tonight. He actually likes me, unlike you.”

I’m more tense than a shootout at the end of a tied game. Cruz picks up his clothes, grabs his bag, and strides out into the hall.

What’s Nina doing here? With him?

She’s wearing a paint-splattered crewneck, and she looks so damn cute, but she’d look even cuter in my clothes. Seeing her on the bed next to him makes me want to throw Cruz out of the room—again.

How many other men has she been with since I last saw her? One? Two? Fuck, I don’t want to know. It’s been over two weeks since I saw her last, so it can’t be that many, right? I rub my face. I’m turning into a jealous prick.

“What’re you doing here, Nina?”

The question comes out more biting than I meant, since I’m still looking at Cruz’s ass print on the mattress.

Her shoulders fall, and she twists her thumbs on the bed. “My sister had a conference, so Micah invited me to come to see you guys play, but we hit really bad traffic, and I missed the game, so now I’m here. I can uh, go if you’re busy.”

She stands, but I grab her hand, panicked at the thought of her leaving. I always seem to say the wrong thing around this girl. “No, don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to see you, just surprised.”

The corners of her lips turn up. “You are?”

“Yeah, I am.”

I sniff the air, getting a whiff of champagne, which has me wondering what the hell her and Cruz were doing. I check to see if her eyes are hazy. “Are you drunk? Because you smell like a wedding reception.”

“No, that was just a whole thing with Cruz. You can ask him about it. I don’t drink.”

I pinch my brows. “What do you mean you don’t drink?”

“That I don’t drink. I don’t like how it makes me feel.”

I tilt my head, somewhat shocked. “Ever?”

“Yeah.”