by Ciz, Alley
“It’s the All-Star break,” Tuck answers, cutting Ryan off.
“I’m well aware,” I deadpan.
“So…” Tucker gives me a look that screams, You’ve got to be kidding me. “We always hang out. But what do I find when I get home? Nothing.”
“Hey.” Ryan rears back.
“Sorry, Cap. What I meant was I get home, expecting to find three Donnellys”—he holds up three fingers—“only to find I’m missing one.”
“Good job counting, bro,” I tease.
“Fuck you, man.” There’s zero heat behind Tuck’s words. “Who the hell do you think our nieces get their smarts from?”
“Me,” Ryan and I say in unison.
“Whatever, not the point.” Tucker waves us off. “What’s important here is when I ask my little sis where her twin is, I have to hear you’re ditching us because you went and got yourself a girlfriend.”
“Little sis?” Melody directs the question to me.
“Back in our college days, Tuck here thought two older brothers wasn’t enough for JD and declared himself big brother number three.”
“BB3 for life.” Tucker thumps his chest with a fist.
It’s his unwavering loyalty that keeps him alive when he lives for pushing buttons.
“I have so many questions right now.” Mels covers her mouth as if to hold in a laugh.
“Tuck has that effect on people,” Ryan says wryly.
“Hate the game, not the player.” Tucker mimes brushing off his shoulder.
“Do you even hear the things that come out of your mouth?” Ryan’s brows furrow as if to say, what the hell?
“Listen…just because you two don’t take advantage of the perks that come with your station—”
“Our station?” I snort.
“Why do we hang out with you?” Ryan facepalms.
“Jake,” we say, again speaking in unison.
Melody’s eyes are wide as they bounce between us. She wore a similar expression the night The Coven ambushed her. I give her a squeeze and drop a kiss on her temple.
“Your family…”
“Yeah?” I ask when she doesn’t continue.
“It’s not like anything I’ve ever experienced before.” Her words are barely a whisper.
I feel a twinge in my chest. It made me so angry earlier having to hear about how, outside of her brother, her family is so absent.
Mine, on the other hand, takes invested to entirely different levels. Honestly, cockblocking like this is only the tip of the shit-show iceberg Tuck is usually the ringleader of.
“Tell us the truth.” Tuck leans over, tapping his ear as if waiting for me to part with some big secret. “You didn’t come home because you’re hiding out from Blondie, right?”
“Why would I be hiding from JD?”
Mels is looking on like all she needs is a bowl of popcorn to really enjoy the show.
“Um…” He looks to Ryan then back to me. “Because even Jake ran away to Chance’s earlier to hide from her ranting over your latest Insta post.”
“It’s true.” Ryan nods. “I think Jake is looking to get a sign made that says Don’t piss off pregnant women just so you’d have to wear it this weekend.”
I snort. I wouldn’t put it past Jake to do that. He did marry my sister, after all, and revenge is her middle name. Fine, it’s Danielle, but it could be revenge.
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.”*
THE BIG HAMMER: Did you really just hit me with a GIF from Another Cinderella Story?
BROADWAY BABY: Did YOU really just catch THAT movie reference?
THE BIG HAMMER: The Coven, baby. I’m also surprisingly well versed in Hallmark Christmas movies.
BROADWAY BABY: Nope, not even a little bit surprised by this information.
THE BIG HAMMER: What are you doing?
BROADWAY BABY: Just got to rehearsal. You?
THE BIG HAMMER: *picture of Jase, Ryan, Tucker, Jake, and Jordan in different rows in first class*
BROADWAY BABY: Safe travels. Text me when you land?
THE BIG HAMMER: You got it, baby. Try not to miss me too much while I’m gone.
* * *
After twenty-five years, one would think I would know better than to underestimate JD. But as Jake and Ryan unfold a ping-pong table in one of the hotel’s empty banquet rooms, I realize that’s exactly what I did.
“When did we get so old that busting out the ping-pong balls isn’t for beer pong?” Wade Tanner, All-Star from the LA Lions and fellow BTU alum, drags over a chair to watch the show.
“I don’t know who you’re calling old, Grandpa, but I’m still a young stallion.”
“Grandpa?”
“If the shoe fits.” I pop a shoulder.
“Cara, baby,” Wade calls to his college sweetheart. “Jase is calling us old.”
“No.” I shake a finger. “I called you”—I point to Wade—“old. Not your wife.”
“She’s older than me.” His words have a screech to them.
“Bro,” Ryan jumps in. “Don’t throw your woman under the bus.”
“Yeah, man. Talk about bad form.” Jake pulls JD into his side, resting a hand on her baby bump.
I cup my hands around my mouth to shout over the noise. “Balboa, I need some protection over here.”
“Oh, is the big bad enforcer not tough enough to handle his friends on his own?” Rocky takes the open chair next to me.
“No? Hold me.” I throw my legs over hers. If she wasn’t also pregnant, I would have jumped in her lap.
“Donnelly.” Gage’s tone is a warning. “Don’t you have your own woman now? Get your hands off mine.”
“Champ, play nice.” Only Rocky could get away with admonishing the six-foot-seven heavyweight giant.
“Only for you, Blue.”
The room continues to fill with our squad and family members. A lot of the other players are out, living up the nightlife, but our group is simple and prefers laidback gatherings like this.
“So.” I turn to see Rocky with the smirk all the Covenettes have whenever they are being all Coven-y. “I heard you were Tuckered the other night.”
“Did you really just use his name as a verb?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Geez.” I rub the back of my neck. My balls are still blue no matter how many times I’ve taken care of myself. “Don’t let him hear you. You know it would go straight to his head.”
“Oh yeah…I can see it now.” She holds her hands in the air as if putting the next words up on a screen. “You’ve been Tuckered would be a hashtag. Skye and Jordan would have that bad boy trending faster than your slap shot.”
“Lord help us if that happens.”
“Unk, Unk.” My nieces—JD and Jake’s almost-two-year-old twins—Lucy and Lacey toddle-run into the room.
“How are my favorite girls?” I scoop them into my arms before anyone else can claim them. Blood or not, every male in this room is considered their uncle. It’s a fight to love up on them.
“Don’t bogart the cuteness.” Vince swoops in as the girls cry, “Bin, Bin,” still not mastering the V in his name.
See what I mean? I’ve had them for like two seconds. Luckily for Vince, my phone vibrates in my pocket, so I let him have them.
Freeing my phone, I see the screen flash with a selfie of Mels kissing her Mr. Potato Head, and I swipe to accept the FaceTime call.
“Hey, baby.”
“Hey, All-Star.”
My pulse picks up seeing her happy face. My girlfriend is too damn beautiful for words.
“Is that Broadway?” Cali calls out, butting in, of course.
“You mean my new best friend?” Tuck asks while Jake says, “Hey!”
“Relax, Brick. You’ll always be number one in my heart.” Tucker thumps his chest twice with a fist then points to Jake.
“What are you up to?” Melody’s voice brings my attention back to the phone.
“About to watch my wombmate kick my brother-in-law’s ass in ping-pong.”
“Ping-pong?”
Before I can say anything, my hand is batted and my phone is snatched away.
“Hey there, best friend.” Tucker plasters on his charm-the-ladies-out-of-their-panties grin as he looks into the camera of my stolen phone.
“Hi, Tuck.”
“She was my friend first.” Cali shoves Tucker to the side, taking his turn.
“What are you guys, five years old?” Rocky plucks the phone from Dumbass #1 and Dumbass #2. “Jase rarely gets to see Mels. Let the man speak to his own girlfriend.”
See why she’s my bestie?
“I’d listen to her. I taught her everything she knows.” Gage tucks his wife into his side.
“Fake news,” Vince shouts.
“Listen, baby,” I say once she’s back in my hand, “can I call you back later after I ditch the crazies?”
“Yup. Besides, I have my own crazies to keep me entertained in the meantime.”
Could she be more perfect for me?
I hang up and pocket the p
hone before anyone else gets any ideas.
“Things are going good there?” Rocky turns, giving me her full attention.
“Yeah. I mean we don’t get to see each other as much as I’d like, but we’re making it work.”
“You seem…” She tilts her head, studying me. “Different.”
“Different?”
“Yeah, different. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but you seem…I don’t know…more settled.”
I pause, taking stock. Am I?
Yes, yes I am. Melody silences all the noise, the bullshit, and helps me see past my own insecurities to who I could be.
“Can I ask you a serious question?”
“Here?” She gestures to the craziness around us.
“When you and your octopus—”
“Kraken.” Her tone says, Be nice.
“Sorry, couldn’t help myself.” I mime waving a white flag. “But in all seriousness—”
“Can you do that? Be serious, I mean?”
“Oh, Balboa.” I chuckle. “And you call yourself my best friend? It’s like you don’t even know me.”
“Oh no, Jase.” She ticks a finger in a no-no gesture. “It’s because I know you that I say that.”
Years of friendship is all she needs for proof.
“Fair enough. Can I ask my question now?”
“Yes, you big baby.”
“Why are we friends?”
“That’s your question?” She arches a brow.
Oh my god, this is karma getting me back for all the shit I’ve given her through the years. But doesn’t me helping her get together with her husband count for anything?
“No.” I suck in a deep breath. “When…when you and Gage started dating…I know…I know you told him all the stuff about the gym and your…feelings.” I shudder like feelings are something contagious.
“You mean like how I felt pigeonholed into the job and how I felt like I needed to work twice as hard to feel like I deserved it?” Her gray eyes soften in understanding.