Face Offs & Cheap Shots (CU Hockey Book 2) Read online

  “Teddy Beckett!”

  Oh, shit.

  I turn toward where she stands at our table with her hands on her narrow hips. I want to scowl, but as soon as I see her, it’s impossible to be mad.

  Her long blonde hair is professionally styled in that easy curl she loves, her eyes bright, but her collagen-filled lips are pouted in disgust.

  I stand fast and try to climb out of the booth, but my teammates are staring at her like she’s an illusion. I shove them out of my way.

  “What are you doing here?” I finally get free. “You’re supposed to be in Greece.”

  “No. We’re supposed to be in Greece.” Tears spring to her eyes.

  “Aww, shit, what happened?” I don’t give her a chance to respond before I’m wrapping her in my arms.

  “I can’t believe you abandoned me, Teddy.”

  I burst out laughing. “Always so dramatic. I thought Harvard would’ve removed that and filled you with pretention by now.”

  “No, that happens sophomore year.” She steps back and wipes her nose.

  “Aww, Baby.” I wipe a tear off her cheek.

  A throat clears beside us.

  All the guys in the booth are watching in confused fascination. All except Jacobs, who’s flicking his cold gaze between the both of us.

  I’m about to introduce him when he says, “You’ve clearly got shit to work out.”

  Yeah, I do. Guess I’ll introduce him later.

  I turn back to my sister. “Okay, let’s get out of here and you can tell me what the asshole did. Let me settle my tab.”

  I don’t get far when Rossi slides out of the booth and stands with her. “Hey.”

  That’s when I notice how every other guy is staring at her.

  I go back to them and grab her arm. “How about you wait outside for me?”

  Baby waves to the guys as she saunters out.

  She’s gonna be the death of me.

  I pay fast and meet her outside. “Let’s go get something to eat.”

  I throw my arm around her shoulder as I steer her to a row of restaurants off campus.

  We only get halfway there when she stops and stomps her foot. “He doesn’t listen to me!”

  “He doesn’t listen to anyone.”

  “There we were, on the boat along the coast of Santorini, and Dad was saying how the business needs new ideas and a new direction and how Teddy is going to make a difference when he graduates.”

  No pressure.

  “So, I started telling him about what I learned in my econ class this year, and he shut me down without hearing any of my ideas.”

  My poor sister only wants to make Dad proud. She wants him to see her like he sees me, and I would give anything for that to happen.

  It feels like the logical thing.

  I don’t want to take over Dad’s company. Baby does. I’m getting my C-grade average to keep my spot on the team, but I’ve come close to failing many classes. I’ve thrown money at tutors over the years to teach me enough to get me through exams.

  Baby, on the other hand, is smart. She goes to Harvard, for fuck’s sake.

  So why is our misogynistic father so content on making me the future CEO of his stupid company? Honestly, I don’t even know what his company does. It owns other companies, and then they own companies, and they’re all under the one Beckett Enterprises conglomerate.

  I’m convinced Dad doesn’t listen to Baby or me to make sure we both grow up to be as unhappy as he is.

  “Okay, change of plans. We’ll get food to go, alcohol, and then we’ll drink ourselves stupid like we should’ve been doing all along in Greece. Plus, I’ve already got a head start on you, so you might be able to drink me under the table tonight.”

  “That will be the beginning of making it up to me for abandoning me in Europe.”

  “Hashtag first-world problems, babe.”

  She sighs. “You’re right. Sorry. You didn’t have plans tonight, did you?”

  “Uh … not any that I can’t cancel.” Unfortunately. “How long are you here for? Actually, how did you know where to find me? You’ve never visited me here.”

  “Please. My brother and hockey. When the arena was empty, I went to the nearest bar. Wasn’t hard to find you. I know my Teddy.”

  “Ugh, if you’re going to stay with me, you need to quit it with the Teddy shit. I’m TJ or Beck here.”

  “Okay, Teddy.”

  Wow, that really is annoying. I almost want to take my phone out and text Jacobs a sorry, but all I manage to get out is: Raincheck?

  By the time me and my sister get everything back to the dorms, he hasn’t replied. I don’t know if that’s a confirmation or an invitation.

  Once my sister passes out in my bed, I’ll go find out.

  17

  Jacobs

  Rossi is the only one I can convince to stay out with me after everyone else calls it a night, and after a few hours of watching me drink myself stupid, he’s done too. I’m not sure how he gets my drunken ass back to the dorms, but with the way my focus blinks in and out, it’s clear I’ve overdone it. Even in my ineb … inebri …

  “How do you say inebriated?” I ask. But it must not come out right.

  Rossi laughs at me. “Not like that, buddy.”

  Ugh. Why am I so … that word?

  Oh, yeah. He called her baby.

  I’m not jealous, I remind myself. At all. Nope.

  Because jealousy would require me to feel something more than contempt and white-hot lust for Beck.

  And damn there’s still a whole lot of lust.

  Even knowing he’s been fooling around with me while he’s got some real-life baby doesn’t stop my dick from reacting to the thought of him.

  It does stop me from acting on it though.

  “Come on, big guy,” Rossi says, swiping us into the building.

  “Buddy … big guy … Stop being so conscending.”

  “You mean condescending?”

  “That’s what I said.”

  He helps me across the foyer and into the elevator before pressing the button for our floor. The ground jerking upward under my feet helps anchor my mind back to the present.

  “Want to talk about what’s going on with you?” Rossi asks.

  “Nope.”

  “Is it Beck?”

  “What?” I round on him, and his eyebrows jump up in surprise.

  “Because he’ll be voted captain.”

  “Fuck captain.” I don’t mean that. “And fuck Beck.” That one I kinda do mean.

  The elevator stops at our floor and Rossi steps out, but I don’t make a move to leave. “Jacobs?”

  “I’m going to give him a piece of my mind.”

  I punch the number for the floor above ours, and Rossi watches me as the doors slide closed.

  Clearly, Beck thinks he can do whatever he wants and not face any consequences. And why shouldn’t he think that when that’s exactly how life works for Beck?

  I get to his floor, and it’s only now I consider that maybe I’m too drunk to do this. But fuck it. When he left with her and blew me off in a text, I’d planned to pick up some chick and bring her back here and show Beck how completely I don’t give a shit about him and his woman.

  Except the dull pain in my chest stopped me from even trying.

  I rub the heel of my palm into my sternum and follow the hall right to the end until I get to Beck’s door. It’s quiet, and even though it’s not that late, I’m surprised they’re not fucking. If I’ve learned anything about Beck, that guy is insatiable. Then again, there’s every possibility they’re not even in there.

  Maybe he took her to some nice hotel.

  Asshole hasn’t taken me to some nice hotel.

  I grit my teeth and start to hammer my fist against the door. The loud noise echoes along the hall, but no one immediately answers.

  I’m about to knock the door down when there’s noise on the other side. The lock clicks.

  I prepa
re myself against what I’m assuming will be a shirtless Beck, but the sweet little blonde answers instead.

  She has big eyes and a Bambi face, and I swear I could crush her without even trying. Her pajamas are matching and satin, and I swear they probably cost more than all the clothing I own combined.

  She came prepared for a sleepover, then?

  I want to tell her. I so badly want to tell her that her precious Teddy has been fucking around behind her back and with me. A guy. But the poor girl looks like a kitten, and while I kinda hate her for my shitty night, she looks too naïve to drag into all this.

  “Where’s Beck?” I grit out.

  Even her confusion is adorable. “He was here when I fell asleep …”

  Of course he was.

  The girl gets this coy look on her face as she slowly checks me out, and it’s so completely unexpected I don’t react at first.

  “Are you one of Teddy’s hockey friends?”

  Teddy. What a ridiculous pet name. “Yes. And you can tell that dickhead I’m looking for him.”

  “What the fuck’s going on, Jacobs?”

  I spin to find Cohen glaring at me from his doorway. “What does it look like? Where’s Beck?”

  “Jesus, are you drunk?”

  “Does that answer my question?”

  Cohen starts to laugh. “Is this about the captain thing? You practically handed it to him, man.”

  “No, this is about—”

  “Everyone, calm down!”

  Finally.

  Beck walks down the hall, arms held out like he’s got everything under control. “Call off the hounds, I’m here.”

  “About fucking ti—”

  “Teddy, where were you?”

  Great. And now she’s talking for me. “Yeah, Teddy. Where did you head off to?”

  His eyes lock on mine, and instead of the anger I’m expecting, I’m hit with the weirdest urge to step forward and stake my claim. Fuck Cohen, fuck the campers, fuck baby.

  I’m not finished with him.

  But like hell am I giving in to that.

  “Went for a walk.” Beck licks his bottom lip. “Didn’t expect to come back and find Armageddon.”

  Cohen waves a hand at me. “Jacobs is drunk and causing a scene.”

  “I’m not causing a scene.”

  “Right,” Beck says. “Because everyone usually hangs out in the hall at midnight.”

  “It’s your fault.”

  “My …” His attention moves from me to his doorway, and suddenly his whole damn face lights up. Beck starts to laugh.

  “What are you …”

  “Jacobs, I see you’ve already met my sister?”

  His … sister. Goddamn it. The fight drains from me, and I’m left standing there, now only a partially drunk fool.

  “Come on, Topher.” Beck’s hand lightly pushes on the small of my back. “Let’s get you sobered up before tomorrow.”

  My feet follow him on autopilot, and as we leave, I overhear Cohen say, “You know, I play hockey too.”

  “Don’t even think about touching my sister,” Beck calls. “She bites.”

  Through the lingering alcohol haze, I’m beginning to realize what a dickhead I’ve been.

  We get into the elevator, and the doors close behind us.

  “I didn’t know she was your sister,” I somehow manage to get out.

  “I figured.”

  We pass my floor. “Ah …”

  “We’re getting you coffee.” Beck’s voice is more serious than I’ve heard it. “And something to eat. I’m going out on a limb here to guess you didn’t have dinner.”

  “Nope.”

  When we arrive on the ground floor, he links his fingers gently through mine and tugs me across the foyer. I follow Beck down a path to one of the twenty-four-hour cafés next to campus. It’s quiet tonight, but during the semester, the place is usually packed at all hours.

  “Go get a table.”

  I do as he says purely because my head is starting to pound. He joins me a few minutes later.

  Beck’s stare burns into the side of my face as I look everywhere but at him.

  “So … I feel like maybe I’ve been an idiot.” My voice squeaks.

  “Just maybe?”

  I roll my eyes. “Can you blame me? What the hell do you call your sister baby for? It’s weird.”

  “It’s not weird. It’s her name.”

  “Like, a nickname?”

  “No. Her actual name.”

  And suddenly, something really amazing occurs to me. “And Teddy is …”

  He sighs. “Mine.”

  “As in, short for Theodore?”

  He buries a hand in his usually perfect hair, making it look sexier than normal. “I could totally lie and say yes, but”—he pulls out his license and slides it over—“I guess you should know the name of the guy you’re fucking.”

  I quickly look around, but there’s only one other person in here and they’re paying us zero attention. Then I look at the ID. Of course his photo is perfect, and there, in small print, is his legal name.

  Teddy Junior Beckett.

  “Wow. Wait …”

  “My dad is Theodore and wanted to give me the proper junior title. Mom wanted Teddy. She won. She’s the only one who can win against my father.”

  “So, your middle name is Junior…” I try not to laugh.

  “There’s no point asking you to keep this quiet, is there?”

  “No way is that happening.”

  He sighs again, but this time I feel like it’s more for show.

  “Baby and Teddy. Separately they’re creepy, but together …” I pull a face. “Your parents really didn’t consider that you guys would be grown-ass adults one day, did they?”

  “Oh, they did. But we’re Becketts. It’s not our first names people care about.”

  “Yikes.”

  “Yep.”

  “Teddy Beckett. Teddy Beck.” My eyes widen. “Teddy B … ear. You realize you’re Teddy Bear from this day forward, right?”

  He smiles at me from across the table, and there’s no hint of his earlier annoyance. “Topher and Teddy. I like it.”

  Something tugs in my gut. Something deeper and warmer than I want to give thought to.

  His foot nudges mine under the table as one of the servers brings over two coffees and a large bacon-and-egg sandwich. “Why did you get drunk tonight? It’s so unlike you.”

  I take a bite to keep my mouth busy for a moment. What the hell am I meant to say to that? I didn’t like that she was pretty and you were touching her and calling her baby. Dear God, I’ve spent my day picturing Beck fucking his sister. Isn’t that punishment enough?

  “Topher?” For once, there’s no teasing note in his voice.

  “You called her baby.”

  “Again, that’s her name.”

  “Yeah, but I didn’t know that, did I?” I mutter.

  Beck lifts a hand to rub the smile from his lips, and I know I’ve given myself away. “You were jealous.”

  “Nope.”

  “Yep. You were jealous because you thought she was some hot girlfriend or something.”

  “Did you call your sister hot?”

  He waves a hand. “You know what I mean. You saw us and you got jealous.”

  “I wouldn’t say jealous.”

  “I would.”

  “I didn’t like the idea of you fucking around on your girlfriend with me. That’s not cool.”

  Beck leans in. “I don’t want to fuck around with anyone but you. No guys, no girls, definitely not my sister. Just your dumb ass.”

  I really like the sound of that. Too much. So much that my smile can’t be held back. “Yours is the only ass I want too.”

  “Good. Then we’re exclusive.”

  That sounds scarily relationship-y. I swallow. “Exclusive.”

  Now that my buzz has died right down, my cock has taken interest in the conversation and the memory of waking up with Be
ck pressed against me this morning.

  And that makes me crazy scared. Exclusive might sound like a relationship, but that’s not what this is. I don’t know why I’m struggling to remember that right now.

  “All right.” I drain the rest of my coffee. “Let’s get back.”

  We drop our shit in the trash and leave. I know I’m gonna regret drinking tomorrow, but as of right now, I’m hovering in the happy place between buzzed and sober.

  “I was waiting at your room, you know,” Beck says.

  “Tonight?”

  “Yeah, that’s where I was. As soon as Baby fell asleep, I snuck out. I’ve been hanging out to see—for it all day.”

  I laugh. “You just like me playing with your ass.”

  “Totally the reason.”

  “So …” I quickly check ahead of us, but the dark path is empty. I reach down and grab his ass. “Are you going to let me in there?”

  He stops walking. “You want to fuck me?”

  I don’t know why the question makes me so nervous. “Is that something you’d do?”

  “Would you?”

  I don’t know how to answer that. The thought of holding Beck down and sliding into his tight ass turns me on probably more than anything we’ve done before. But him on top of me? A flash of him behind me, powerful thrusts hitting my ass as his big arms surround me … Huh. Okay. That’s kind of … hot.

  “You’re scared.” Beck cocks his head. “I get it. I mean, we’ve both topped chicks before, that’s old news. But while you might be the BJ king, I bet I’m a total power bottom.” He leans in and drops his voice. “It’ll be too hard for you to compete with.”

  “You think you’ll take dick better than me?” I’m smiling as I advance on him, and Beck backs up easily until he’s pressed against one of the huge tree trunks lining the side of the path.

  “Come on, Topher, we both know I will.”

  I press my body against his. Maybe if I hadn’t been drinking, I’d be a bit more careful, but campus barely has anyone around even during the day at the moment. “Should we test that theory out?”

  “Not tonight.”

  “Why?”

  “Because after your little show, you know Cohen’s going to be waiting for me to get back with the gossip. Also, you’re still drunk.”

  He’s right. I hate that he’s right.