Page 62 of In His Skates

His eyes widen. “Not me.”

I follow him down the tunnel toward the dressing room. If Keanu’s teammates were betting that he’d be late, it means it must happen quite often. He was late to shoot the commercial as well. “Well… I’m trying to change my ways.”

“That’s good to know.” Simon claps me on the shoulder, making me wince. “What’s the matter with you?”

I roll my shoulders back. “I don’t know. Maybe I overdid it this morning.”

Simon’s face splits into a grin. “Sure, sure. Practice did that.”

It takes me a second to understand his insinuation. “This isn’t a sex injury!” I blurt out just as Coach Edwards walks out of his office. Kill me now.

He frowns. “Are you hurt?”

“No, sir. Just a little sore. I think I slept wrong.”

Simon snickers next to me, and I’m forced to elbow his side. God. Do men ever grow up?

“Make sure you see the physio after practice. You have to play tonight.”

I swallow the lump in my throat. Fuck. I completely forgot Keanu had a game coming up. What the hell am I going to do?

“Yes, sir,” I manage to croak.

I try to pay attention during the meeting, but there’s a lot of information to absorb. For Keanu, this is just routine; for me, it’s all brand-new, and I can’t ask questions because this is shit that I should know. My headache intensifies.

I’m lost in my head, massaging my temples, when I see from the corner of my eye a naked butt cheek. I turn and notice other guys are in several states of undress. Shit. Why are these players changing clothes now? Isn’t that supposed to happen after practice? My face and ears burn. I fidget on my seat, getting more uncomfortable by the second. Maybe Keanu is right. I am a prude. So what if these men are naked? I’ve seen dicks before.

Yeah, you more than saw one last night.

Ugh. Stupid brain. Why did I have to think about sucking Keanu’s dick now? And worse, why is his body reacting to the memory and giving me a boner? I move my hand to my crotch area, trying to hide the bulge.

“Are you all right, man?” Simon asks next to me.

“I’m fine,” I grit out without making eye contact.

A moment later, he touches my arm. “Key, it’s all right.”

“What?” I squeak, looking at him.

“It’s okay. That happened to me before.” I have no idea what he’s talking about, but his eyes shine with understanding.

“I’m not sure I follow.”

He glances at his teammates and doesn’t elaborate. Oh my God. He must have noticed I have a hard-on. He doesn’t make a move to get going either, so I have no choice but to sit next to him in silence while I wait for Keanu’s dick to go to sleep again.

It only happens when everyone is gone from the dressing room. I get up, but Simon holds my arm. “Wait. I want to talk to you.”

“We’ll be late for practice.”

“We have a few minutes. I need to say this now before I lose my nerve.”

My forehead crinkles. “What’s going on, Simon?”

He puts his hands on his hips, glances down, and sighs. “Here goes nothing. I’m gay too.”

I blink fast, trying to process his words. Why would Simon come out to me now…? Oh God. He thinks I’m gay because I got an erection in the middle of a room full of naked guys. What a major clusterfuck.

“Simon… I⁠—”