Sure, JD warned me to cool it with the Bishop stuff, and I listened—mostly. She may not have changed my social passwords—something it sounds like she wishes she did as blocking Bishop from my feed isn’t enough to keep the juicy stuff from me. Shoutout to Vince for sending me the goods.
I had to respond to Bishop’s boast about how he beat me out for hardest shot last year. It was my duty.
The highlight reel I posted of all the times I’ve bested him through the years was a thing of beauty, if I do say so myself.
“Don’t you think this feud has gone on long enough?” Ryan arches his brow, giving me the I’m not mad, just disappointed look our dad perfected when we were younger. “You guys have been sniping at each other since high school.”
“Every hero needs a villain.” I offer a shrug.
“Bullshit.” The uncharacteristic roll of Ryan’s eyes gives away just how annoyed he is. “Neither of you idiots are hero material, acting like children. You’re antiheroes at best.”
I’ll take it. I love Deadpool.
“There’s one thing I never understood.” Tucker kicks off his shoes, making himself right at home.
“Only one?” Ryan counters.
“Oooh, Cap has jokes tonight.” Never trust that gleam in Tuck’s eyes.
“Spit it out already, bro,” I prod.
“I always thought your brodium started after the Frozen Four.”
Ryan and I share a look, silently asking, you wanna take this or should I?
With a heavy sigh, Ryan asks, “Brodium?”
“Like the opposite of bromance, because odium means a general hatred or disgust directed toward someone as a result of their actions.”
“Do you always get a vocab lesson when he shows up?” Mels jerks her chin at Tuck. I squeeze her a bit tighter, adoring her for not being afraid to trash-talk, even if her voice sounds a bit forced.
“Oh I like this one.” Tuck bounces a finger at Mels. “She reminds me of Blondie a little.”
I like her too. A lot, actually.
“But stop trying to distract me from my point.” He wags his finger at her as if to say, Naughty girl. “High school? Isn’t he from Maine or something?”
“Massachusetts,” the resident Bruisers fan corrects.
“Same diff.”
“What?” Mels’ easy smile is back as she tries to hide it in the curve of my arm.
“Still in New England, so it counts.”
“Oh my god.” She shakes with laughter. “How you can go from giving definitions of advanced vocabulary words to mucking up geography is beyond me.”
“Covenette,” Ryan coughs under his breath, and I’m full-on cat-who-ate-the-canary grinning. That right there is the highest honor.
Dragging up my history with Bishop isn’t my favorite way to spend a weeknight, but if I don’t offer some kind of explanation, we could be at this all night. Information and females—two things Tucker goes after like a dog with a bone.
“We met at the hockey camp in Lake Placid.”
One of the most prestigious summer hockey programs is run out of the upstate city. It’s invite only, as in they only offer spots to the most promising-looking players under eighteen. Naturally, Ryan was invited multiple years. Unfortunately, so was Bishop.
The summer before my senior year, I was finally offered one of those coveted spots, and Bishop and I didn’t get along from the moment I stepped inside the dorms.
“The one year I was invited, we butted heads the whole time. Hell…” I scoff in the back of my throat. “I knew who he was from visiting Ry with JD through the years, but the asshole was on my case every chance he got.”
I rarely—hell, never—talk about that summer. I don’t need Ryan internalizing the shit Bishop spewed, but I know I gotta give them something.
I hold my girl a little bit tighter.
“He loved to tell me I was only given a spot because the camp recruited Ry”—I gesture to my brother—“to help coach.”
Mels stiffens beside me, and Ryan curses under his breath.
“Normally I can shake shit like that off.” Lies. “But I always suspected there was a vein of truth to the statement, and thus the brodium”—Tuck smirks at my use of his word—“was born.”
“That’s crap.” Mels whirls on me, cheeks flushed in anger. Ah, that’s why she stiffened. My baby was offended on my behalf. “Hel-lo.” She pokes me in the forehead with each syllable. “All.” Another poke. “Star.” Poke.
Snatching her hand before it can make contact a fifth time, I nip the tip of her finger, her eyes flaring with banked heat, and place a swift kiss on her parted lips.
“So…” Tucker breaks into our moment. He waits, looking to me, then Mels, then Ryan, and finally back to me. “Has she passed the test yet?”
“Why do I feel like, knowing your friends, he’s talking about a literal test?” Melody’s eyes open further, a full circle of white now around the irises.
“Because, baby.” I wink and she blushes, just as I knew she would. “You already know us so well.”
Tucker snorts. “God, Cap. I thought you and Jake were cheesy with this love stuff. But, damn, Jase…you’re like a giant wheel of gouda.”
I need to start taking applications for new friends.
“Tuck,” Ryan warns. I may not have the same connection with Ryan that I do with JD, but anyone can pick up on my frustration. It’s palpable—well, unless your name is Tucker Hayes, apparently. “You wanna clue us common folk in on what test you’re referring to?”
I’m glad Ryan asked, because I’m almost too afraid to.
“How are her driving skills?”
“Um…I live in the city. I take public transportation everywhere,” Melody answers.
“Ah, I get it.” Ryan leans back, the leather creaking under his weight. “But it’s not much of a test without Madz here.”
“Well, seeing as your bestie is avoiding you, I don’t think we have much of a chance getting our ringer here.”
“Tuck.” It’s my turn to issue a warning. We are all well aware of the strain on Ryan and Maddey’s relationship lately.
“Sorry.” Tuck holds his hands up in surrender. “But how ’bout it? You up for a little MK?”
“MK?” Mels looks to me.
“Mario Kart,” I explain. “We’re the reason the younger generation plays. It’s a staple of the squad.”
“Really?” Her black eyes sparkle with interest. Like with The Coven, she doesn’t back down, and I adore it.
“You up for the challenge, baby?”
“Bring it on, All-Star.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
THE BIG HAMMER: Would you believe me if I told you Tuck almost got strip-searched by TSA this morning?
BROADWAY BABY: After meeting him? Also-fucking-lutely.
THE BIG HAMMER: OMG. You really are the perfect woman.
BROADWAY BABY: *GIF of Selena Gomez saying, “Tell me something I don’t know.”*