Pucked Up

“You’re gone for a couple of weeks after this, right?” she asks me.

“Yeah. I fly to Toronto tonight. I think my flight’s at nine or something.” I should check that when my phone works again.

Her eyes light up. “You excited to see Su

“Why are you so interested in my sex life?”

Natasha laughs. “It’s your lack of sex life I’m interested in. Is she still holding out?”

Natasha knows a lot more about my personal life than most people. She’s watched me blow through bu

When I don’t answer, she gives me a knowing smile. “So after you visit Su

“Yeah. Randy’s meeting me in Toronto, and we’re road tripping together.”

“You’ll have fun. It’s not the usual hockey camp deal, is it?”

“I wanted to change it up this year, and it’s close to Su

“Smart. You coming back after that? Or do you have more stuff pla

“I have ideas for another project, but it’s local, and I’mma need Vi’s help.”

“How is Violet, anyway?”

“A

“It’s amazing she deals with you at all.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m awesome.” I give her a cheeky grin. “Vi’s good. She and Waters got engaged.”

“I heard. You don’t sound very happy about that.”

“It’s whatever. I mean, they haven’t been together that long. Like, six months? It feels way soon, ya know?”

“Sometimes when you know, you know.”

The first night I met Su

“I’m sure he’d do the same if you screwed Su

“Truth. That’s not go

I fish my phone out of the bag of rice Randy—or one of the girls, more likely—put it in. It’s been plugged in this entire time, but I’ve still got nothing except a blank screen. Natasha emails me a few dates for sessions that I’ll have to check at home, before I leave for the airport. I want to call Su

Natasha gives me a one-armed hug and waves to Randy, who’s floating on his back in the pool. Well, the top half of his body is floating, thanks to the pool noodle, but his legs are sinking. She doesn’t so much as look at Lance as she walks past him to cut through the house, and he’s too busy socializing to notice.

I shove my phone back into the rice bag. I’ll have to check it again later. I’m not sure how long it needs to dry out before it starts working. If I’m still having problems in a couple of hours, I’ll have to hit up the phone store. I don’t like not having access to people when I need it. I’m hoping this camp isn’t so remote I can’t get a signal. That’ll fuck things up for me. I rely on daily messages to Su

All of a sudden there’s a music change. We go from rock—which is how we work out—to some pop dance crap.

Lance scans the patio. “Where’s Tash at?”

“She left.”

“What? When?”

“A minute ago.”

He jumps up and jogs across the concrete, his brows creased. I have to wonder what the deal is there. Sometimes I feel like all the flirting Natasha puts up with from Lance isn’t just him being him. Lance digging on her would be all kinds of fucked up since she knows exactly how frequently he lets the bu

Randy paddles over to the edge of the pool, and hoists himself out. “What was that about?”

“I’m not sure,” I say, because I’m not, and I’mma keep my hypothesizing to myself.

Lance’s doorbell goes off and, like Pavlov’s dog, Randy goes ru

I recognize a couple of these girls. I hope my dick hasn’t been inside any of their holes. Although there’s a good chance it has.

Randy doesn’t waste any time. He starts ru

Dick Yeller stomps past Flash Beaver, heading for the house. The new girls notice and whisper among themselves. It’s too much drama too early in my day.

I hadn’t expected the bu

“This must be torture,” Lance says from beside me.

I glance over at him. While I was busy scoping the scene, he must have come back outside.

“What do you mean?” I drain what’s left of my bottle of water.

“All the girls.”

“It’s no big deal.” Honestly, I figured it’d be a lot harder than it is. Although the bu

I change the subject. “Did you find Natasha?”

“Nah. She was already gone by the time I got inside.” A twitch under his eye is the only tell that I’ve hit a nerve. “You know, if you disappeared with one of the bu

I take off my sunglasses and pin him with a cold glare. “My balls could be so fucking blue they look like they’ve been handled by a Smurf, and I still wouldn’t do that to Su

He raises his hands in the air. “I’m sorry, man. I didn’t mean to upset you. I just figured . . . I don’t know. It can’t be easy. She’s all the way in Canada, and you’re here. Long-distance relationships don’t really work, you know?”

I drop my sunglasses back in place. I don’t want to think about it not working, which is a real possibility. I don’t know the stats on long-distance relationships, but I’m guessing they aren’t good.

Realistically, if me and Su

I nab one of the lawn chair floaty things and toss it in the water, jumping in after it. This isn’t a conversation I want to have with Lance, not before I see Su

I must fall asleep on my floaty chair, because all of a sudden I’m really fucking awake, and I have to take a piss. Getting out means dealing with the bu