It’s not my place to get involved, but it’s not in my nature to sit here and let someone I care about go through this alone.
I push to my feet before Jessica can stop me, but I don’t even make it halfway to the door, when Beck throws it open and storms inside.
“We’re leaving.” His face is red, and I’m stunned for a moment at his anger.
“But, Teddy, you just got back.” Jessica tries to intercept him, but he brushes her off and grabs my arm.
“I’m not staying here with him.” Beck’s hold is tight as he drags me for the door.
“It’s late.” Her voice holds definite panic now. “Stay, and we can talk more in the morning.”
“Yeah, I’m not talking to that asshole again,” he throws back over his shoulder.
“Teddy Beckett, stop right there!”
He pauses, and I watch some of the tension drain from him. “What?”
“You will stay here tonight, and we’ll talk in the morning. If you still want to leave, I’ll find you somewhere nice.”
He shakes his head. “Dad won’t want someone like me under his roof.”
“Well, that’s not his decision.”
Beck finally looks at her, and I take a chance and slide my hand into his.
“You’re okay with this?” Beck asks his mom. He sounds young. Like he’s scared of getting in trouble.
Jessica sighs. “There’s nothing I need to be okay with. Besides, there’s plenty you don’t know about me—”
“And that’s how it’s going to stay.” Beck doesn’t quite smile, but he does give in. “Tonight only. I’m out of here in the morning.”
He drags me down the hall to his room. The expensive penthouse no longer holds the awe it did when I first walked in, and as soon as Beck closes the door to his lifeless room, I tug him into my arms.
It’s pure relief when he grips me just as tightly.
“What an asshole,” he says.
“Total shithead.” I turn my head and press a kiss to his temple. “You okay?”
“No. I wish you didn’t have to see that.”
I pull back so I can look at him. His eyes are red with the pressure of holding back tears, and his jaw is tight. “I’m glad I was here.”
His eyes narrow.
“I’m not glad that I’m the reason all that happened, but I’m glad I could be here afterward to remind you that this is okay. People like that don’t get to have an opinion on who we’re attracted to.”
Beck nods. “Will your parents mind if we head up there a few days early?”
“Are you kidding?” I finally let Beck go so I can peel off the wet swim trunks and grab some sleep shorts from my bag. “They’ll be ecstatic to have two extra sets of hands.”
“And …” His frown line deepens. I cross to his drawers and grab a random pair of sleep shorts that he takes from me without really knowing what he’s doing.
“And?”
“That’s … that’s not going to happen again, is it? I’d rather stay here than have your family shitty with you too.”
“Nah, they’ll be fine. In fact”—I grab his biceps once he’s finished dressing—“I think they’ll prefer you’re a big, strong man.”
“I guess we’ll see.”
“We will.” I duck down and lift him off his feet. His legs close around my waist.
“You really like this trick.” Beck finally smiles, still a long way from being real, but it’s a start.
I carry him to the bed and drop down onto my back without letting him go. His weight when he lies on top of me is comforting and familiar, and his skin is warm under my fingertips as I run them down his back. “Boyfriends?” I whisper.
Beck squirms. “Sorry, teammates didn’t seem right.”
“Agreed.”
He tilts his head up. “Are we?”
“Boyfriends?”
“Well, obviously. I mean we’re fucking and dating and we’re kinda past the hating each other thing …”
“We’re definitely past that.” I hug him tighter, sure he can hear the way my heart is beating louder. “Yeah. I, ah—yeah. I want that.”
“Me too.”
I’m not sure how it’ll work moving forward. His dad doesn’t seem in a hurry to support him, and I have no idea how some of the guys on the team will react. Yeah, they’re mostly cool, but it’s one thing to know Grant liked dudes, it’s a whole other thing when two teammates are in a relationship. A breakup could really fuck our chances when it comes to the Frozen Four.
But I refuse to keep Beck a secret. It might have made sense early on when I’d been sure things were only physical, but now we’re actually together, now we’re both committed to this thing, I’m going to claim him.
Beck is mine.
And everyone is gonna know it.
Beck’s alarm goes off at the ass crack of dawn, and I’d hate him for waking me so early on a day where we can technically sleep in if it weren’t for the reason he set the alarm in the first place. He wants to sneak out of here and avoid talking with his mom. He’s already dressed and throws clothes my way as he urges me to get ready.