Play With Me || 2 || Off the Ice Series

1 | The White Picket Fence *

ARDEN

I am fucked. Completely and utterly fucked.

I shoot a glare at my two supposed best friends, Rose and Aster, who are standing just a few feet away, twin grins plastered on their faces. Those smiles do nothing to quell the anxiety curling in my stomach like a coiled snake, ready to strike.

Rose and Aster are identical twins, gorgeous stunning, manipulative twins. Aster is my sister-in-law, married to my brother and we'd become close over the years. I had met Rose through Aster, and they had both become closer to me than anyone else. 

They are my best friends, and I tell them everything. Well, almost everything and judging from their faces right now, they aren't happy I've been keeping something from them - even if they only think they know what it is. To be honest, I've been trying to rid myself of the memory for the last two years - longer if I'm even more honest with myself.

They smile wide, faces full of mischief as my eyes narrow on them.

'Girl week,' they said. 'It'll be fun,' they said. 'Just us,' they said.

So why the hell were there two hulking ice hockey players standing behind them, staring at me with equally amused expressions?

I bite my lip, narrowing my eyes on Aster, knowing she's the mastermind behind this. My brother's wife is nothing if not a professional meddler. 

Matt appears then, holding a tray of coffees and looking at me with a grin. I send one back as he passes coffees to Aster and then Levi. "I didn't know you were here yet, otherwise I would've gotten you a coffee." My brother says, wrapping an arm around me to pull me into his side for a hug. 

I shrug, "I can get my own." I murmur, feeling my stomach drop as I look from my brother to the two other men. 

I shift my gaze to Tobias first, offering him a tight, strained smile. His grin widens, and I swear there's a glint of delight in his eyes. Then I look over at Levi, who's standing just behind him, and narrow my eyes further. My heart sinks as I realize what this means.

If Matt, Tobias and Levi are here, then that means the fourth member of their little group is not far behind. 

I'd first met Tobias and Levi at Matt's wedding to Aster, Tobias had knocked up Rose and, unbeknownst to Rose at the time of their one night together, he was friends with Matt - her identical twin sisters' fiancée – and well things kind of went haywire after that. But that's their story to tell. Levi and Tobias work with Jason, and that was how they'd met Matt. 

Jason Wilde, professional hockey player, panty dropper, charmer and he just so happens to be my brothers' best friend. Rose and Aster know that though. What they don't know is that Jason was the boy I'd given my virginity to when I was seventeen and then he never spoke to me again.

I tend to leave that tidbit of information out of conversations. Mainly because if Aster knew, she would tell my brother and then the whole thing would blow up in my face and if I told Rose, she would tell Aster and then, well you know where this is going. 

I hadn't seen Jason much after that night and then I went off to university and he went on to become some hot shot hockey player. I hadn't thought of Jason Wilde in years.

Hadn't seen him, heard of him or searched for him in over ten years. He was my brother's best friend, and he would stay that way. Untouchable and unapproachable.

Until he showed up at Matt's wedding and then I made the dumbass mistake of sleeping with him . . . again.

Because apparently, I'm a woman that likes to repeat her mistakes. But that night was all it took for Jason to decide he wanted to explore more with me. He was my brother's best friend, that night was all we could ever be.