Ben Ryder - Noah Read online

  Amy sat quietly throughout the meeting, knowing full well that most of the issues were due to Arnold. But she didn’t say anything, as if they were all there to share the blame. He understood, since it would come down on her neck, but that didn’t make it any easier to swallow.

  Callum had so been looking forward to spending a couple of days outside Toronto with Noah, somewhere it was unlikely anyone would recognize him. Noah completely understood, but they were both incredibly disappointed that they didn’t get to taste the freedom.

  Instead, they settled for tastes of each other at Callum’s apartment.

  To make up for her folly, Amy offered Callum tickets to the next home game for the Bobcats. “Aren’t these great seats?” Amy asked enthusiastically, probably trying to get some kind of positive reaction from Callum. She had arranged the second row executive seats and insisted she come along so he wouldn’t be alone for his first hockey game. But he knew it was because she wanted another chance to see Noah. Callum felt guilty that the ticket Noah had surprised him with for the same night had gone to waste, but after looking around at the arena and locating where Noah’s seat would have been, he couldn’t disagree he had a better view.

  The 18,000-strong crowd erupted as the Bobcats took to the ice to play the Chicago Falcons. “This is going to be a long night for them,” Amy said. “They have to get on a bus right after this and head to Montreal, as they’ve got another game tomorrow.”

  “Yeah, Noah mentioned something about it the other day.” Just before the game began, Callum saw Noah searching the seats for his face. Noah finally pinpointed him and skated over close to the Plexiglas. He skidded to a stop, causing a cascade of ice to fly from his blades. He looked up and gave a short nod, smile, and a wink to Callum. The women in the seats around him went wild, each thinking it was for them. Amy looked around with a particularly smug look on her face, as if to inform them Noah’s favor was for her.

  Callum felt like his chest was about to burst. He had never felt so special. With the game underway, they took to their seats, occasionally jumping up when Noah came close to the goal area. Callum was mesmerized by Noah’s presence on the ice. He was so dynamic, so determined, and so utterly confident. Even though he had seen Noah in all his naked glory, he was equally turned on watching him in full pads and gear in complete control on the ice.

  “Callum, I know it’s a bother, but Arnold has asked me to ask you if you could help out with—”

  “Amy, why did you contract with these people if they can’t do their jobs?” Callum interrupted pointedly. “I know, I know, but it’s too late now. He needs help setting up the banner signs in the arena. The sponsors and advertisers will go crazy if they’re not ready for the opening. Please, Callum, I promise this will be the last time.”

  “Amy, I’m not the entertainment software guy, Arnold is. And if he doesn’t get his shit together soon he’s going to have to figure out a way to reroute his software so it’s independent of the mainframe,” he said without looking at her. He was growing increasingly frustrated that she was distracting him from the match.

  Callum watched as one of the Falcons forwards tried to catch up with Noah. Or was he a wing? Callum tried to remember the gummy bears and their positions. Whichever he was, the player was bearing down on Noah, who was speeding down the ice toward the goal. Callum rose to his feet again to cheer him on. Noah knocked the puck to a teammate, who took control of it and smacked it toward the net. A loud clink rang through the arena as the puck bounced off the top bar of the goal. The player following Noah turned quickly and slammed him hard into the Plexiglas. Outraged, Callum took to his feet, shouting in protest.

  “What the fuck?” Callum shouted in anger.

  “So will you do it?”

  “Did you see that?” Callum asked, ignoring her question and pointing at Noah, who was being helped back onto his feet by a team member. “Did you see what that fucker did to him? Number thirty-two?”

  “Yeah, that’s Dubrevnik,” Amy said, looking unbothered. “Callum, will you help Arnold?”

  Callum waited to respond until he knew Noah was okay. Once Noah got to his feet and skated back down the ice to join the ongoing play, he turned to her. “This is the last time, Amy. I mean it. And next time, make him to do his own dirty work. Why is he leaving it all up to you to ask me?”

  “It’s my responsibility to liaison with and manage the contractors.”

  “That isn’t an answer. At the end of the day—” He stopped mid-sentence, as Noah pelted across the ice toward them at full speed, his face full of fury. He tossed his hockey stick to one side. Amy nudged Callum and nodded in the direction of a distracted Dubrevnik, who was casually skating up the side of the rink in front of them with his eye on the puck being shuttled between Falcon players.

  The Plexiglas shook as Noah slammed into Dubrevnik with his shoulder at full force and speed. Dubrevnik was knocked to the ice but immediately scrambled to his skates as he watched Noah tear at his padded gloves with his teeth before shaking them off his hands.

  With his bare knuckles, Noah smashed his fist squarely into Dubrevnik’s face. Dubrevnik rebounded from the punch quickly and pulled at Noah’s jersey sleeves in an attempt to either keep his balance or stop the barrage of punches Noah was raining down on him. The Bobcats knocked their sticks against the boards in front of the players’ bench as Noah continued swinging brutal punches onto their opponent’s face. Callum winced and twitched at every punch thrown.

  Dubrevnik hit the ice again and Noah backed off, raising his hands to indicate to the referees he wasn’t going to hit him while he was down and he considered the fight over. Before he turned to skate away, he gave Dubrevnik one final look of disgust, as though he was collecting saliva in his mouth to spit on the man who dared to challenge him. Callum stared at the crimson drops spreading on the ice as Dubrevnik held his bleeding nose and eye.

  As a referee escorted Noah to the penalty box, he turned to look at Callum. Callum sat stoic, unsure how to meet Noah’s gaze. Amy again assumed Noah had turned to look at her and was giving two thumbs up. Clearly, not only did she approve of the fight, but she was also thrilled Noah had managed to cause enough damage to Dubrevnik’s face that medics were checking him over.

  “Do you think he likes me?” Amy asked. “Has he ever mentioned me during your workouts?” “Do you mean does he like you as a person or is he interested in a relationship with you?” Callum asked, instantly regretting that he gave her a choice.

  “Oh come on, you know what I mean. Is he interested? I thought we got on really well on our night out. But that was weeks ago and I haven’t heard from him. I’d love the chance to get to know him better.”

  “I’m sure you would.” Callum didn’t mean his words to come out so harshly. He was taken aback by Noah’s aggression and wasn’t too sure how to feel about it. At the same time, Amy’s interest in Noah was starting to rile him, to say nothing of the constant work favors she requested. Callum had a limited amount of time left in Toronto, and he wanted to spend as much of it as possible with Noah, not working out other people’s problems.

  Noah scored two final goals, securing the victory for the Bobcats. After each score, he glided around the rink, soaking in the cheers. The crowd grew louder and louder until it felt like the arena was shaking. Once the buzzer sounded, ending the game, a couple of small fights erupted between players, but thankfully Noah wasn’t involved.

  After the game, Callum walked Amy to her car. “Could you put in a good word for me? You know, with Noah,” Amy said through the driver’s window of a convertible BMW.

  “Amy, I’ll be honest, I think he’s got the last few weeks of his contract on his mind at the moment.”

  “I know he’s on the bus now and won’t be back for a few days, but when you see him, can you test the waters for me?” she asked, as if deaf to what he’d said.

  Callum gave a noncommittal nod and waved her off.

  It was almost midnight by the time Cal
lum got to bed. He hadn’t had a chance to speak to Noah after the game, as he knew he would be surrounded by the other players on the bus. Their phone conversations when Noah was around his teammates were always abrupt and one-sided, so Callum sent a simple text message.

  Great game. As his eyes grew heavier and his mind finally began to switch off, Callum’s phone vibrated on the bedside table. He picked it up and was temporarily blinded by the notification of 1 Unread Message—Noah. He unlocked the phone and read the message.

  I know you saw it from your seat And heard above the shouts so loud The punch that raised you to your feet Not an act that makes me proud It’s aggression they expect to see I should have let my violence pause Of the thousand faces watching me All I saw was yours

  It kills me that you saw me fight It must be hard to think me tame Your first time in my world tonight Please know it’s just a game

  Callum read the simple poem over and over again. Since he’d arrived home that evening, he’d been on YouTube and seen that these types of brawls happened at nearly every hockey game. His view had already changed on the subject, but he was so touched that Noah, who of course knew the fights were common, still took the time to send the poetic message to reassure him.

  He tapped in his response and looked at the message. His finger hovered over “send” for a moment before it finally came down on the “delete” icon. He knew the three words were too much, even though in that moment they were what he wanted to say the most.

  Instead, he sent three different words.

  Come back soon.

  Chapter Nine

  1:10 p.m. A SOPHISTICATED woman with black shoulder-length hair walked into Stompers, weighed down with boutique shopping bags. There must have been a break in the rain, as she tottered into the wine bar dry and looking cheerful. She smiled at Callum before joining the man with the paperwork at the table. Callum looked through the glass-fronted bar and saw that the dark gray sky had broken up and patches of sunlight were streaking across the pavement outside. The sunshine brightened his mood and he desperately tried to see it as an omen that good news was coming.

  “H ONESTLY,if I hear her say your name again I think I’m going to scream,” Callum said over the weight bench. “The woman is relentless! She keeps badgering me to hook you two up.”

  It was the last set of reps for the day and Noah had once again put Callum through torture as he steadily increased his weights.

  Noah gave him a wry smile.

  “And you can knock that look off your face.”

  “Does she think I’m sexy?” Noah said with a smug grin. “Does she want a piece of this?” Noah swayed and ran a finger down his chest toward his crotch. Callum looked around the gym and saw people looking over at Noah’s display.

  “You’re getting brave.” Noah straightened himself up and sighed. “Sometimes I forget where I am when I’m with you. You have that effect on me.”

  Callum had noticed it, too, in recent weeks. The team’s schedule kept Noah away from Toronto a lot. But on the days he was in the city, if they ventured outside Callum’s apartment, Noah seemed to have become less cautious with his words and actions. It wasn’t anything too blatant, but Callum sometimes felt he’d become the one with paranoia that people might overhear something said or interpret a gesture or a touch as one share by two lovers. But each time he thought to say something about it to Noah, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Noah just looked too happy.

  “Speak of the devil,” Noah said, cutting his eyes across the gym to the blonde walking in their direction. Amy strode toward them. It seemed she had run just far enough to get a healthy flush in her cheeks that, Callum had to admit, made her look radiant. It also wasn’t something he had seen before, because this was the first time either of them had laid eyes on her in the gym.

  “Hello, boys!” she said brightly as she approached them. “I thought I might find you in here.”

  Of course you did, Callum thought as Amy dabbed her face delicately with a towel.

  “Hello, beautiful!” Noah said as he leaned down and gave her a friendly kiss on the cheek. While it was probably wise to display that to a woman in public, Callum knew the sign of affection would only spur her on.

  “Noah, could I ask a favor?” she said, reaching up toward her ear. She pulled her hand down almost immediately, realizing her hair was in a tight ponytail and she was unable to reach one of her locks. “I think I may have strained my lower back at work. I remember you said you had some exercises you did when you injured yours, and I was wondering if you could show them to me?” Amy turned and tipped forward at the waist, arching her back a little, which raised her petite Lycra-covered ass higher. “It hurts just here,” she added, bringing her hand around to just above her ass to ensure it would bring Noah’s eye.

  “Sure!” Noah said with far too much enthusiasm for Callum’s liking.

  “You guys go ahead. I’m going to hit the sauna,” Callum said, grabbing his sweat towel. “See you later,” he added with a knowing look to Noah.

  Before he undressed, Callum checked his phone for messages and saw he had missed a call from his boss at Alphatech. Knowing the reception was poor in the locker room, he walked back to the front desk to get a better signal. It was 10:00 p.m. in London and it was rare that Ian would call so late unless it was something important.

  “There’s my boy!” Ian shouted into the phone above what sounded like loud disco music and even louder happy chatter and laughter in the background. “My golden boy!” Callum had heard this tone before and instantly knew Ian had been drinking. “Hang on, I can’t hear a word. Let me get out of here.”

  As he waited for Ian to get somewhere quieter, he heard his name being called out in an echoed chorus of “Well done, Walker,” and “You’re a fucking star, Callum!”

  The background noise of music and chatter was replaced with the sounds of traffic. “Ian, what’s going on?”

  “We’ve only gone and got the fucking Olympic bid!” “No way!”

  “And it’s all down to you. The whole office is here in Knightsbridge celebrating. Wish to almighty fuck you could be here with us, Cal. We really do. Couldn’t have done it without you.”

  “That’s great news, Ian!”

  “You’ll be back for a few months, then we’re packing you off to Rio.” “How long do I have to be down there?” Callum asked less enthusiastically as he began to realize exactly what this meant.

  “Callum? You there?”

  “Yes, how long do I have to be there for?”

  “Callum, can you hear me? Listen I don’t know if you can still hear me, but I will e-mail you the details as soon as they’re all sorted.” There was another short pause before he heard Ian say, “Stupid fucking phone—” Then the line went dead.

  Callum stood outside the gym for the next ten minutes trying to get a stronger signal, but he was unable to reach Ian.

  With a numb mind, Callum went back into the locker room, stripped naked, and jumped into a shower cubicle. After rinsing off, he wrapped a towel around himself and made his way into the empty sauna and laid his back against the paneled walls. He sucked in the hot air and tried to relax, but his mind was racing.

  The door squeaked as someone joined him. “Oh, you’re still here?” Amy asked, looking a little disappointed as she walked into the sauna with a white towel wrapped tightly around her. She’d obviously showered, as her long blonde hair was out of the ponytail and fell onto her shoulders. Callum noticed that, despite it being wet, she had styled it like a bikini model who had just walked out of a swimming pool. Sure enough, Noah followed behind her, rolling his eyes as if he hadn’t been able to escape her.

  Freshly worked out, with his veins engorged and his muscled pumped, he looked every part the Adonis. Amy sat opposite Callum and tapped at the wooden bench to indicate Noah should join her. They were arranged the same way they had been at dinner.

  “Let’s get this heat up, shall we?” said Amy. She silkily rose and adj
usted her towel, then walked over to the wooden bucket and bent down, her ass conveniently facing Noah, and ladled water onto the hot coals. Noah took his chance while she had her back to him and opened his knees wide, exposing his cock through the curtained towel. Callum read Noah’s lips as he mouthed “Fuck me tonight.” There was just enough time for Noah to cheekily bounce his eyebrows a couple of times and close his knees before Amy turned back around.

  Amy sat down and talked about the arena, knowing that was the only subject the three of them shared. Callum and Noah sat and listened while she explained the plans for the opening of the new arena and the plans to demolish the old one. Noah turned his head as if he was paying attention, but it was clear to Callum that Noah was ensuring Amy kept eye contact with him as much as possible, which she seemed to relish. With each small chuckle, she put her hand on his thick bicep as he sat with his arms crossed and his shoulders against the wall.

  What she hadn’t noticed was that Noah opened his knees again, as if to gain a more relaxed position. Sitting right next to him, it was impossible for Amy to see that Noah’s towel was loose enough for Callum to see his thick cock growing longer against his leg. Noah continued to smile at Amy, but Callum realized it was a smirk, since he knew Noah was getting a kick out of getting away with it.

  For a moment Callum looked at Amy. He’d seen her make a fool of herself before. She was a manipulative woman who used her looks to get what she wanted and acted as if butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth. But as he watched the two of them, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of pity and guilt that Noah and he were now the cause of her looking like a fool. Though he knew there was nothing malicious about Noah getting a thrill from showing his cock to him in front of her without being detected, it still didn’t quite sit right.

  Amy must have realized she’d left Callum out of the majority of the discussion, as she turned polite conversation to him. “You’re only here for another couple of weeks. You must be excited that you’ll be going home soon.”