Major Misconduct (Aces Hockey #1) by Kelly Jamieson Page A

now.”
    “Are you kidding?” Marc shook his head. “Every guy is now fantasizing about a threesome with Lovey and her friend.”
    Army’s jaw dropped. He sent a scowling glare around the table. “Shut the fuck up.”
    Marc shook his head, unable to stop chuckling. “Dude. You had to expect that.”
    Army’s face got red, like his blood pressure had risen rapidly. “There will be no threesomes,” he said in a quiet, tight voice to Lovey.
    She was laughing too, holding on to the table to keep from falling off her stool. “Oh my God, Duncan. You are hilarious. Would you just butt out of my sex life?”
    “Did someone say butt sex?” Rupper spoke from behind Lovey. “Didn’t know you were into that, Armdog.”
    Army’s face now became purple. “I’m not!”
    Lovey patted her brother’s cheek, still chortling. “It’s okay if you are. Your sex life is your own business.”
    Marc laughed again. Christ, he hadn’t had this much fun in…well, he wasn’t sure. His abs actually hurt from laughing. And that was when he realized that cold hard knot was…gone.
    “Okay, okay, everyone,” Lovey called, holding up her hands. “Jillian and I are not lesbians.” She paused. “That doesn’t mean a threesome is off the table, though.”
    Army clenched his fists and growled as everyone laughed.
    Marc slapped his teammate’s back. “You need another beer, Army. I’ll buy.”
    It wasn’t long before Marc regretted that this Corey dude knew Lovey was into guys, because he was hitting on her big-time. This pissed Marc off. He listened to them talk about hockey.
    “Are you kidding?” Lovey said. “Bennet is totally underrated. The offensive guys get all the attention because they score goals, but he’s good—always in position, blocks all kinds of shots.”
    Corey gave her an amused look. “You sound like you actually know what you’re talking about.”
    Lovey froze, then tipped her head. “You did not just say that.”
    “Uh…”
    Her eyes narrowed at him. “You think because I’m a girl I don’t know what I’m talking about?”
    “I…uh…didn’t mean that…”
    “Yeah. You did.” She shook her head.
    “She’s right, man,” Marc said to Corey. “Bennet is better than people think. He’s a quiet guy, he plays in a quiet way. He’s smart and he’s a good skater.
We
notice the things he does, even if everyone else doesn’t.”
    Lovey met his eyes. A slow smile curved her mouth and it felt like a kick to his heart. “Thanks. Excuse me. I need to use the ladies’ room.”
    Heh. She was good. Damn good. A strange feeling of pride swelled inside him.
    Hell. What the fuck was he proud about? She wasn’t his.
    But he wanted her.
    There. He’d admitted it. He wanted her to pull him into that circle of light and warmth she seemed to create everywhere she went, to ease his pain and frustration, to make things seem good again. But he couldn’t have her. He knew that. Army would hurt him if he touched her. He had no intention of touching her. He’d just have to ignore guys hitting on her and her flirting with them.
    When Lovey returned, she ended up talking to Stoykers and Hughie. Marc grinned. That Corey dude was done. What an idiot.
    But then she was flirting with other guys.
    Marc would be driving, so he couldn’t drink the ten beers he wanted. Too bad this wasn’t a night he’d let Duncan drive. After watching Lovey flirt for a couple of hours, Marc had had enough. “Gonna head out,” he said to the others, sliding off his stool. He reached for his jacket, which was hanging nearby.
    “I’m ready to go too,” Lovey said. “Can I get a ride home with you?”
    He hesitated. He glanced at Army, who just shrugged. “How about you, Jillian? Need a ride?”
    “That would be great,” she said. “But I could take a taxi.”
    “No problem, I can drive you. Where do you live?”
    She gave him her address in Streeterville, just a short detour out of their way, and he nodded and headed out