He shakes his head. “I don’t know about you sometimes, man.” He puts his phone to his ear. After a moment he says, “Hey, baby, I’ve got another surprise for you.” There’s a pause while he listens to whatever Violet is saying. Then he laughs. “No, baby, not that kind of surprise. Yeah. You can pick some of those up—not the ones covered in sugar though. They’re messy, and I don’t like the way they feel. Yeah—Yeah. Those are my favorite, but that’s not why I’m calling… Listen, Charlene’s gonna spend the day with you at the spa.”

There’s some high-pitched shrieking, and Alex laughs again.

“Darren set it up for her on my suggestion, so feel free to come up with some creative ways to thank me later, if you want.” He’s quiet for several seconds, his grin growing wider. Eventually he ends the call and shoves his phone in his pocket. “Tonight’s gonna be fucking awesome.”

“Agreed.”

We get out of the car and take the elevator up to the gym. “You can’t use your sex-a-thon tonight as an excuse to pussy out on today’s workout,” I warn him.

He flips me the bird. “Whatever, dude. This is my warm-up.”

We start with laps on the indoor track and move to weights. Alex is still recovering from his accident last season, so he’s on low weight and high reps for his shoulder. He gets frustrated pretty easily with how slow his progress is, but I don’t let him push himself beyond what’s reasonable. We’ve been friends long enough that he doesn’t get too pissed when I tell him to take it easy.

It’s harder for him to stay within his limits when we’re working out with the team, so he and I go at least three times a week on our own—and that’s on top of his physical therapy sessions.

After weights, we hit the pool and then the hot tub, followed by the sauna. No one’s in there but us, so we sit down and relax, letting the heat do its job.

“I can’t wait to check out the tattoo designs.” Alex runs his palm over the most recent addition to his body art—he had The Cup tattooed on the inside of his right bicep after we won it. He doesn’t have a ton of ink, but he keeps adding to it, so I’m assuming at some point he might end up making it a half sleeve if nothing else.

If there’s one thing I know about addictions, it’s that once you get a taste of something you like, it’s hard not to keep going back for more. I don’t think it’s any different with body art. Ballistic is about to start another full sleeve, and Romero has a massive back piece. Miller and I are the only ones who haven’t bitten the ink bullet before now. I figure if there’s one thing I can safely put permanently on my skin, it’s something hockey-related.

“We go in to see them soon, right?”

“Yeah. Ballistic says they look amazing, but that’s not really a surprise.”

I nod. I’ve been to Inked Armor once for the original consult on the team tattoo, just after the season ended. Since I started seeing Charlene, I’ve spent a lot more time hanging out with the other guys on my team who have girlfriends. It’s not something I usually do, considering my relationships with women haven’t ever been all that conventional. Until Charlene. And it’s still not exactly conventional.

Alex rolls his shoulder. I have a feeling he pushed it a little too hard today, despite my efforts to rein him in. He’s competitive, and he has a hard time with the idea that he might not be in top form by the time training camp starts.

“Can I ask you something?” he says.

“Yeah, man, shoot.” I’m stretched out on the sauna bench, head back, eyes closed.

“It’s about Charlene.”

I try not to flinch, or react in any way. Alex and I are tight, almost like brothers, but we don’t get into deep discussions about my relationship with Charlene. She’s his wife’s best friend, and giving him too many personal details when it comes to her is complicated. It’s not that I don’t trust him, because I do. But since he’s married, I figure whatever I tell him I’m also telling Violet. So I pretty much avoid the topic.

“Violet says she has her nipples pierced.”

I crack a lid. He’s not looking at me; he’s staring at the ceiling.

“What’s Violet doing looking at Charlene’s nipples?”

“So she does?”

“Yeah.” I have to work hard not to picture Charlene’s nipples in my head, or the conversation that led to her getting her nipples pierced. Or how fucking hot it is when she wears the delicate gold chain that connects them to each other, or the one that hooks to her belly ring. She looks so pretty and soft with her clothes on, but the second they come off and the lights are dimmed, she’s a whole different woman. I fucking love it. Most of the time.

“What’s that like?”

“What are Charlene’s nipples like?”

“Violet asked me how I felt about her getting her nipples pierced, and honestly, I have no fucking clue because it’s not something I’ve ever thought about. But apparently it’s something she’s considering, so I figure I should be informed by someone who knows the deal.”

I squeeze the back of my neck, working out how I want to word this. “Well, Charlene likes them because they make sensation much more intense.”

“So it’s good?”

“Yeah.”

“Like, orgasm good?”

“For Charlene, yeah.”

“And you like them?”

“I think they’re sexy on the right woman.” And Charlene is exactly the right woman. The two-month healing time was the best foreplay ever.

Alex nods thoughtfully and doesn’t ask any more questions. I don’t give him any more answers.

After four hours at the gym—half of it spent not working out—I make a stop at one of the stores where Charlene likes to shop, based on the purchases that appear on the credit card I gave her. She doesn’t abuse it, which is why she has it. She only uses it when I request that she get something new, or sexy.

I’m well aware that her salary and mine don’t come close to matching, so I don’t think it’s fair that she has to spend her own money on something I’m going to appreciate for only a few minutes before I peel it off her incredibly sexy, toned body.

I head straight for one of the salesladies and tell her exactly what I’m looking for. Apparently, dark purple is not popular this time of year, and the only thing they have has a floral print on it. Charlene prefers solid colors to prints, so I browse the store, looking for something I think would look good on her curvy, lithe frame. I end up buying two dresses, because I like them both equally, and I’m also partial to giving Charlene options.