Rush the Edge: A Brother’s Best Friend Hockey Romance (Blue Devils Hockey Book 3)

He’s such a show-off.

I stand beside my brother with pursed lips and crossed arms as Kane scores a goal. My brother brought some of the residents from the hospital, most of whom have bags under their eyes from lack of sleep. He asked that I come hang out with them for the remainder of the period, and without having much reason not to, I agreed.

Once I slid my way into one of the empty seats, I realized pretty quickly that the only reason he wanted me to make an appearance was because none of his co-workers believed that his sister was the mascot.

“So, like, was that your dream job or…”

I don’t bother moving my attention from Kane while I answer one of them. “Oh yeah,” I joke. “That’s what every little girl dreams of…being a mascot when they grow up.”

Everyone laughs.

My brother swoops in to vaguely explain the situation, leaving my Lupus diagnosis out of it, which landed me in this position, but I tune him out and watch the game. Kane is fierce on the ice. He always has been, but as a man with much more control of his body, he weaves in and out of clusters of players, shooting down the ice quickly.noveldrama

The goal buzzer sounds again, and my jaw drops.

Is he serious?

Another goal?

My lips curve from the sight of his smile. His teammates meet him at center ice and clap him on the back. Warmth settles into my belly. It isn’t often that Kane looks genuinely happy, but when he does, all feels right in the world. My world.

One of my brother’s friends…Tom or Tim…Ted?…comes into my sight, blocking my view of the ice. He asks me how I’m liking Chicago. I quickly move to see the game and answer him blindly, not really paying much attention to the conversation. My sights are glued to Kane, who heads to the bench. He talks to Malaki before they both swing their sights on me.

My stomach lurches.

Kane’s lip curves with the crook of his eyebrow.

Yeah, yeah. I know. You got two goals.

He winks at me, and my face warms.

The guy to my left is still chatting away, but instead of continuing the conversation, my teeth sink into my bottom lip as I try to hide my smile. Kane jerks his chin and gives me a questionable look. It takes me a second to realize that he’s silently asking me who the guy is beside me.

“A friend,” I mouth.

Kane glares, and the thought of him being jealous twists something dangerous in my lower stomach. I know I shouldn’t push the limits any further with him, but it’s too fun not to. While keeping his attention, I reach over and grab onto Tim’s arm to cease his endless talking.

“It was really nice to meet you, Tim,” I say with a smile.

From across the ice, I’m sure it looks like flirting. But anyone in the near vicinity knows that I just shut Tim down as nicely as possible, considering he was still in the middle of a conversation.

My brother snorts.

“It’s Ted.” Tim—I mean, Ted corrects me, and I wish I felt bad.

“Told you not to hit on my sister,” River jokes. “You’re not her type.”

I crinkle my brow. “And what is my type?”

River taps his chin a few times. “Cocky, arrogant, athletic⁠—”

My heart races.

“Blond hair.”

Is he describing Kane on purpose?

Does he know?

Better question…does he care?

“So assholes? Great,” Ted mumbles.

“That’s not true,” I blurt.

Kane isn’t an asshole.

I quickly try to cover my tracks with my brother. “I’ve dated guys with brown hair,” I admit.

“Hooking up isn’t dating,” River says under his breath.

I scoff. “Says the guy who hooks up with a new girl every time he goes out.”

One of his female co-workers furrows her brow. “You do?”

I smile deviously at my brother, who shoots me a thanks a lot look. I scurry down the stairs to get back to the Blue Devils’ bench because now that it’s almost intermission, I unfortunately have to get back to my job.

The buzzer sounds right when I make it to the opening in the ice. The team stands to head back to the locker room for their last break. I stay out of their way, smiling at the few that glance in my direction.

Until Kane comes into view.

Butterflies swarm my stomach.

He steps off to the side casually. “Friend?” he questions.

“Hmm?” I murmur.

He sighs impatiently.

Sweat trickles down the side of his face from his damp hair, and the most erotic thought pops into my head. I wonder what he’d do if I licked the little bead?

The end of the line is quickly coming to a halt, and we both know that he has to go into the locker room while I skate out onto the ice. I give him a playful smile while he relentlessly glares at me.

Once the last player passes, Kane steps in line with him.

I try to move past with my foam tridents trapped in my arm, but Kane stops me at the last second. His arm wraps around the front of my belly, and his warm breath coats the side of my face. “Feels like you’re daring me to do something, Daisy-Petal.”

My heart pounds. “What are you going to do, Kane? Claim me in front of everyone in attendance?” I laugh softly because the thought is completely outlandish.

“I could.”

I roll my eyes playfully. “You will not. My brother is here. Not to mention, we’d be on national television.”

“Seems like you’ve forgotten who you’re dealing with.” His voice is tight, and my grasp on the situation starts to slip.

My confidence starts to waver with the seriousness of his tone. Someone calls his name, and he slowly slides his arm away. I let out a breath that I didn’t know I was holding as he flicks his chin to the ice, silently telling me to get out there.

I blink several times and move toward the rink. With the tridents still trapped in my arm, I skate quickly in an attempt to untangle my thoughts, but the entire time I’m skating and throwing merch to fans, I circle back to my biggest worry: that the thought of Kane claiming me in front of every single person in attendance, including my brother, makes me giddy.