Chapter 4 Ch-04

KNOX

“Keep it the fuck down, dipshit,” I yelled, pounding my fist against the wall separating my room from my best friend’s.

He'd been going at it since 3 am, and it's been an hour since then.

I seriously couldn't take it anymore.

The creaking of his bed abruptly stopped.

For three glorious seconds, there was silence. Then Ryder’s muffled voice drifted through the wall.

“Hey bro. I tried not to be too loud. Sorry, man.”

The asshole didn’t sound remotely sorry.

“Yeah, I can tell.” I bit out.

There was a brief pause, and then the bed started creaking again.

Unbelievable.

I grimaced and backed away from the wall.

Christ.

This was my fault. I accepted Ryder’s request to move in with me when I should have told him to fuck off.

After kicking Tammy out three weeks ago, coming back to a silent apartment had started feeling fucking unbearable.

Because every time I was alone, my thoughts somehow found their way back to Ezra Monroe and his stupid fucking face.

I swallowed hard around the lump in my throat.

No.

Not thinking about him.

The point was, Ryder insisted I needed company, and for the first couple of days after he moved in, I’d convinced myself I’d made the right decision.

I mean, what’s there not to like?

Gaming all fucking night with my best friend while moving through packs after packs of beer. Good stuff.

But now?

I was starting to remember exactly why we’d never worked as roommates during freshman year.

Ryder was a fucking sex addict with no understanding of the phrase ‘personal boundaries.’

He was the type to walk around the apartment completely naked without a single ounce of shame.

And the type to fuck at least five different girls in three days.

Listen, I wasn’t a prude by any means. Far from it. Sex was sex, and I’d enjoyed it as much as the next guy.

But there was a healthy sex life, and there was Ryder.

Gritting my teeth, I turned around and snatched my running shoes from beside the dresser.

If I was already awake, I might as well make the morning useful.

I grabbed my hoodie and headed for the front door.

Normally, I’d run until my lungs felt like they were scraped from the inside, but hockey season officially kicked off today.

That meant the coaches expected the team at the rink early, and as captain, I couldn’t exactly stroll in whenever the fuck I felt like it.

So I’d keep today’s run short.

Two hours later, I dragged myself through the apartment door.

My chest heaved with every breath, sweat soaking through the back of my shirt.

Although my hamstrings burned, I felt way better than I did earlier.

The smell of chocolate protein powder hit me as I strolled into the kitchen.

Shaggy blonde hair sticking out at odd angles would make anyone look stupid.

But not Ryder.

The guy stood there, looking like he had just walked out of a men’s magazine while vigorously shaking a blender bottle like his life depended on it.

“Hey, dude.”

His laugh pulled me out of my thoughts.

“Sorry about that earlier, man. Seriously didn’t mean to wake you.”

“Right.”

I walked straight past him, opening the refrigerator to grab a bottle of water. I twisted the cap off and emptied half of it in one go.

A loud burp escaped me as I tossed the plastic into the recycling bin.

Ryder winced.

“Jesus, Knox.”

I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. “You woke me up at four in the morning. I think you should be grateful I’m not punching you in the face.”

He grinned.

“I swear, man, Jessica was just so fucking hot. You gotta see—”

“Jessica?”

A female voice suddenly cut in from the doorway. I turned around to see the girl Ryder had been exorcising this morning because those screams could have only come from a possessed soul.

“Heyyyyy...”

Ryder barely had time to turn before “Jessica” punched him in the side.

“My name is JULIET, asshole.” She hissed as he gripped his side with a grunt.

Then she snatched her purse from the counter and marched toward the door while my best friend ran after her. “Wait, wait. I swear I was just sleepy. J—“

She slammed the door shut in his face.

Ryder stood there in nothing but his boxer briefs—thank god—staring at the closed door as he scratched the back of his head.

I had to bite down on the inside of my cheek to keep the laugh from escaping.

“Don’t.” he glanced over his shoulder at me.

Still fighting my laugh, I shrugged. “I didn’t say anything.”

He scoffed. “Whatever.”

Smirking, I waved a finger at him. “Be ready in thirty.”

His brows shot up. “For what?”

“Practice.”

“Dude, practice isn’t for another couple of hours.”

“Yep, but you’re driving us.”

His expression immediately soured. “You know I hate driving.”

“I hate being woken up by 4 am too, asshole. Deal with it.”

Ignoring his whining, I turned around to my room to go take the shower I desperately needed.

Forty-five minutes later, we made it to the rink and thank fuck, Ryder was no longer complaining I made us leave so early. The guy could be really annoying when whining.

It was the first official day of the new season, and judging by the noise around me, everyone else on my team shared my sentiments.

Guys who hadn’t seen one another since summer were catching up about new hookups and whatever other bullshit they’d gotten themselves into during the break.

I tuned most of it out, keeping my attention on my skates as I tightened the laces.

The locker room door opened just then, and as the conversation gradually died down, I knew it was Coach.

I straightened immediately, nodding at him. “Morning, sir.”

The guys echoed my greeting, and Coach Jeremy smiled as he looked around the room.

I usually had problems with all my coaches since high school, as we never saw eye to eye.

But Coach Jeremy was honestly the only good coach I’d ever had. He was a great guy who knew hockey like the back of his hand and clearly loved to teach the game.

His methods worked, and even though we flopped last season, I had high hopes this year.

“Good to see all of you back.” His voice dragged me out of my reverie.

He gave us the usual welcome to the new season speech, reminding us what we’d worked for last year, what we failed at, and what he expected from us this season.

“The rookies will be joining us today,” he finally concluded. “Captain, I’ll leave the welcome to you.”

Smiling, I nodded and stepped forward. This wasn’t my first rookie welcome speech so I was prepared.

Coach stepped aside, and all of our attention turned toward the door.

One by one, the new players walked into the locker room.

I barely paid attention to the first few, mentally moving through my speech.

Then the last guy stepped through, and for a second, I honestly thought my brain had glitched out.

But no.

It was real.

My gaze locked onto him.

Curly ginger hair. Pale skin and those impossible blue eyes.

That fucking face.

My stomach dropped so violently it felt like I’d taken a puck straight to the gut.

Ezra fucking Monroe.