Nick

Probably wasn’t nice of me to leave Kami to my mother after dropping that bombshell, but if we’re going to do this—if we’re going to date—then it’s probably not the worst thing I’ll ever do to her.

Not that I’ll be a dick on purpose.

It just happens.

When I get back upstairs after showering all the cow snot off both me and Tiger, who was a very agreeable shower companion and now smells like my shower gel, Kami’s sipping something out of a mug while Felicity grills her at the table.

“You swore you were over him,” my sister is whispering. She’s worried—you can tell because she’s leaning really close and gripping Kami’s arm so hard, she’s probably leaving a mark—and I have a moment of panic.

Because I don’t want to hurt Kami.

And I haven’t ever done this committed-relationship thing.

Kami doesn’t blink, just shrugs a little. “Something feels different,” she tells Felicity, and my heart starts beating again.

She’s right.

Something is different.

“Tell me he didn’t send you thirty of his bobbleheads for one of his daily presents,” Felicity whispers. “Because if that’s what’s different—”

“Good idea, sis.” I drop into the seat beside her still holding Tiger, so Kami’s across the table from us. “Who wouldn’t want thirty Nick Murphy bobbleheads?”

Kami smiles as she sips whatever’s in her mug. Tea? I don’t think she drinks coffee. Or maybe it’s hot chocolate.

I need to find out.

“I’d take thirty Nick Murphy bobbleheads,” Felicity says sweetly.

“Only because you’d make them say terrible things,” Kami points out.

Ares stifles a laugh behind me. Dude’s always sneaking up. Walks quiet for a big guy.

“Holy shit, where’s your beard?” Felicity suddenly yelps.

I rub my chin, because yeah, it feels weird, and probably will for a few days. “It didn’t survive the cowpocalypse.”

“But—but—but it’s your lucky beard.”

“Not doing me a lot of good this season, is it?” I pass Tiger over to Kami, who I’m hoping will be a much better good luck charm. “Think I got her clean.”

“She looks beautiful and snot-free. Thank you.”

I don’t like the surprise she’s trying to mask in her eyes.

Like I’m not supposed to do little things for people.

“You washed a dog? In your shower? Voluntarily?” Felicity asks. Her hand goes to my forehead. “Are you sick? Do you have a fever?”

“Knock it off, smart ass.”

“Have you ever bathed a dog in your life?” she presses.

“I used to give you baths.”

Ares and Kami both eye me like they’d be willing to team up to make sure someone put powdered mango in my underwear every day for the rest of my life if I’m about to make a joke about Felicity doing anything bad in the bath when she was a kid, and I almost start itching just thinking about the last rash I got before I realized I was allergic.

“And it was such a pleasure to take care of you that I thought I’d try it again with Kami’s dogs,” I add quickly.

Tiger barks. Or something. It’s like a cross between the sound of a fart and a semi horn, except smaller.

I realize Mom’s missing, and I glance around.

“She’s out back with the camera crew,” Felicity tells me. “Which is exactly where we need to be if we’re going to get your interview done before you guys have to leave for practice.” She nudges Kami. “Want to watch?”

Kami slides me another look, my skin goes hot all over just from having her attention on me. “Do you have a voice for Sugarbear?” she asks Felicity.

“Of course.”

“Does Sugarbear secretly think Nick’s a total goober?”

“Hey!” I object.

Both women ignore me. “Only way to find out is to stick around,” Felicity tells her.

“But can I sneak out before your mom realizes it’s a good chance to grill me?”

“Ares has you covered.”

Ares grunts in agreement.

“Then I’m in,” Kami announces.

We all head out back, where the fog is slowly lifting. The Thrusters’ camera crew is setting up in front of the table. I try to slip beside Kami, but Felicity blocks me and lowers her voice so low that it only registers because she’s fucking terrifying.

“I swear to God, Nick, if you hurt her—”

“Good job, Nick,” I interrupt in my own low voice. “Way to grow up and try to be a bigger person. It’s about time.”

“I’m not saying you don’t have it in you,” she hisses back. “I’m saying Kami’s my sister. You’re committing incest.”

“Now you’re being ridiculous.”

“Fine. You’re committing friendcest. And you better marry her and be ready for all the blood and gore of childbirth because if you’re serious about her and this isn’t just some test to see if she’s your hockey good luck charm, then you’re going to give her as many babies as she wants and change all the diapers and clean up the yard of all the dog poop because that’s exactly the sort of thing people in committed relationships do. And if this is just a test to see if she’s your good luck charm, I will end you.”

A sliver of guilt jams itself under one of my fingernails, but it’s on my left hand, and I can still play with the guilt sitting there, so I just stare my sister down.

I do think I’ll play better with Kami not mad at me anymore.

I’m already feeling better about practice this morning, knowing she’s having dinner with me Tuesday night.

But more, I’m really fucking selfishly glad I get to see that smile again. Even if she does keep hiding it behind her mug.

And it has nothing to do with hockey, and everything to do with just wanting to be near her.

Also, I’m pretty fucking certain I don’t deserve this chance, but hell if I’m going to waste it.

I cut around Felicity and slip an arm around Kami’s waist. “Hot chocolate?” I ask with a nod at her mug.

“Cow snot soup,” she replies.

I recoil for half a beat before she cracks up at her own joke. “Oh, your face,” she says on a giggle.

Sugarbear moos in amusement. Tiger tries to run in place, her feet dangling since Kami’s holding her under the chest.

“Nice,” I tell Kami. “You know the difference between me at the net and me here?”

“Careful,” she warns me, her eyes going playful, that smile so bright it’s doing more than the sun to melt off the fog. “You don’t score unless I say you can.”

“Well, fuck.” She beat me to my own I block the shots on the ice, but I score all the goals here.

“Get over here, Romeo,” Felicity calls in mock exasperation. “My bratwurst needs to mortify you.”

“In a minute,” I tell Felicity, but suddenly my pants are tight around the middle and I’m two feet higher in the air than I was a minute ago, feet dangling just like Tiger’s.

“Now,” Ares says from behind me, where he’s lifted me by my waistband.

I shrug at Kami while I squirm in my pants.

Not the first time Ares has tried to give me a wedgie, and it won’t be the last.

Mom’s leading Sugarbear over on her leash. “Here you go, sweetheart,” she says to me. She licks her thumb and rubs at a spot on my chin. “Oh, you cut yourself. Hold on.”

“Mom—”

I try to duck her second attempt, but Ares grabs me by the shoulders and holds tight while my mother licks her other thumb and rubs my chin again.

“There. Now it won’t show on camera.”

“Wow, Murphy, your mom is hot,” Thrusty the Bratwurst says, courtesy of my ventriloquist sister. “Think she’d lick my chin next?”

“Oh, hush,” Mom tells Felicity, but she’s blushing, and she tries to smooth her hair down. She skitters out of the way, lavender track pants swooshing.

“Come back, Mrs. Murphy,” Thrusty calls. “We want to hear about how excited you are to be a grandma to a cow!”

“She’s such a good grandmoo,” Felicity vents in a dopey cow voice.

I choke on a snicker and try to glare at her. “Really? That’s your cow voice? Sugarbear sounds way more intelligent than that.”

“Says the guy with the hairless face,” she replies as Loki, her pet monkey, who adds an indignant shriek behind me.

Because the monkey’s sitting on the cow’s back, and they’re both giving me twin looks of who’s the dumbass?

“What happened to your beard, Murphy?” Thrusty asks before I can interject a single word, because that’s how Felicity rolls.

She’s fucking hilarious, and I know she’s improvising every word out of her mouth.

“My cow sneezed and it fell off,” I tell Thrusty.

“Weak-ass whiskers,” Thrusty says.

“Strong-ass sneeze,” I reply. “She would’ve blown you all the way to Kentucky.”

Loki screeches like he’s laughing, and Sugarbear moos.

“You think shaving’s gonna improve your game?” Thrusty asks.

Felicity’s not being mean. It’s just what everyone wants to know.

“Nope, but I’ll tell you what will.”

The bratwurst leans in conspiratorially. “You got a plan, Murphy?”

“Fetch,” I tell it.

“With the cow?”

“Sugarbear. And you know what she likes?”

Thrusty suddenly flies to Felicity’s other side. “Bratwurst?” he says sarcastically.

I shrug. “I was going to say me, but sure. I’ll bet she likes playing fetch with bratwurst too.”

Kami’s giggling, and fuck if the sight of her happy doesn’t put a spring in my heart.

Is Lavoie right? Is this what love’s like? Because I’d give my right nut to keep her smiling like this every day.

I look back at Felicity, and I see something I haven’t ever seen before.

At least, not directed at me.

It’s happiness.

Not that I don’t make my sister happy—we snipe at each other, yeah, and I get why she doesn’t want me dating one of her best friends—but this is a different kind of happy.

It’s an I’m happy for you smile.

An I’m happy for you smile that disappears as fast as I caught it.

“If the cow likes you, she must not have any better options,” Felicity quips as Thrusty.

“He’s a package deal,” Sugarbear replies. “I get Felicity too. She’s moooootiful.”

“Can we back up a minute?” Felicity says as herself. “Sugarbear, how did you end up moving—I mean, moooooving in with Nick?”

“She was a gift,” I say quickly, because I know Felicity too well to let her answer that as herself, or as Thrusty, or as Sugarbear, and especially as Loki.

“Someone likes you that much?” Thrusty asks.

“They didn’t know I have a thing for cows.”

Felicity’s eyes take on a spark, and fuck.

I’m going to be getting cow shit for years. Possibly actual cow shit. Which I’ll still save for use against Zeus Berger just when he’s starting to get comfortable.

“When you say you have a thing for cows…” Felicity says as Loki, who’s now climbing onto my shoulder and picking at my hair.

“They’re cute.” If I’m going to dig a hole, might as well dig it deep. I rub Sugarbear’s snout. “Who wouldn’t love this sweet face?”

And I do like the cow. She’s a really good substitute for a dog.

“You heard him, ladies. Nick Murphy likes cows.” Thrusty grins at me, which is disconcerting regardless of the number of times I’ve done interviews with the puppet since Felicity started with the Thrusters last year, because a sausage with a rocket pack coming out its ass should be disconcerting. “The cuter the better. Think maybe you need a stuffed cow to fit inside your pads next time you start, Murphy?”

“Got a nice warm spot in my armpit just the right size for a bratwurst,” I reply.

“You have issues, dude,” Loki says.

I probably do.

But Kami’s bent over with her face stuffed in the sleeve of her jacket, trying not to laugh, and I suddenly don’t care if I get a thousand stuffed cows sent to me at the arena.

Kami likes me again.

I don’t know where I’m taking her Tuesday night, but it’ll damn sure be somewhere spectacular.

I’m not about to fuck this up again.