The Dating Tutor: Alec's Story by Melissa Frost Page B

friendly mood.
    As players began to take the ice, Alec skated in the direction of the opposing team instead of his starting position. His eyes locked onto Justin Peters, a defenseman known for his short temper.
    Alec tapped his stick aggressively against the much bigger teen’s, drawing immediate attention to himself. “That was a weak warm-up,” he taunted. He hadn’t caught any of Justin’s warm-up, but that didn’t matter. He was looking for a fight, and he knew exactly what buttons to push. “No wonder they bumped you to third line. You couldn’t hit the net if the goalie stepped out of the way for you.”
    Justin spun toward him with a narrow-eyed look of rage. “You lookin’ to get your ass kicked, Horner?”
    “Maybe I am,” Alec said with a mocking shrug. “But somehow I don’t think you’ve got what it takes to get the job done. I heard little Mackey Malloy from Western Cyprus took you down a few weeks ago. You’ve gone soft.”
    “Mackey Malloy got in one lucky shot!” Justin gave a growl of frustration and shifted agitatedly on his skates. “Who told you—” Not finishing his sentence, he took the conversation in a different direction. He pointed a finger in Alec’s face. “Soon as that whistle blows it’s on. You hear me?”
    Alec bobbed his head in complete understanding. “I look forward to it.” He would have almost felt guilty about starting an undeserved fight, but last time these two teams faced, Justin had taken a cheap shot against Matt and given him a concussion. Matty had missed the end of last season over it. Justin was a brute who deserved to take a few licks every once in a while…though if Alec looked at it that way, people probably said the same about him. Not wanting to linger on that thought, he lined up and waited anxiously for the puck to drop.
    As soon as it hit the ice, he straightened and shook off his gloves. Justin did the same, and they immediately began circling one another, looking for an opportunity to land a blow.
    Justin was the larger of the two, but Alec had speed on his side. Before his opponent could realize what was happening, Alec ducked in and delivered three quick body shots.
    Almost immediately, Justin got a meaty hand up and delivered two rough punches to the side of Alec’s head.
    Thankfully, his helmet absorbed the worst of the blows, but the impact had knocked it askew, obstructing his visibility. Without a second thought, Alec ripped it off and tossed it to the side. He shook his dark shaggy hair out of his eyes and pulled back to circle his opponent, while Justin tossed his own helmet to the ice.
    When they locked up again, Alec managed to get an arm free. He delivered a quick shot to Justin’s jaw. The other boy reared back and Alec hit him again…and again. It felt good. He harnessed all of his recent anger into the movement of his arm as it delivered the blows. It was downright therapeutic.
    Alec pulled his fist back again, but Justin got his around first. It caught Alec in the brow with enough force to jar his head back.
    Pain shot through him immediate and intense, but Alec didn’t shrink back. Instead, he pulled his arm back and delivered a right hook that knocked Justin to the ice. His opponent plopped down in front of him, blinking in dazed surprise at being knocked on his ass.
    Alec’s shoulders rose and fell with labored breaths that forced their way past his lips. Blood was trailing down his face and dripping onto his jersey. The eye that had taken the hit was already starting to swell closed.
    He was so focused on the adrenaline coursing through him that it took a moment to notice the referee who was screaming at him over the roar of the crowd. The man jerked a finger in the direction of the locker room, and Alec understood enough to realize he’d been ejected from the game.
    Cursing in aggravation, Alec snatched his helmet up, skated off the ice, and stalked down the ramp way that led to the locker rooms. The last thing