All three guys shook off his words like a pitcher shaking off the catcher’s guidance. They dropped their gazes to their screens and scrolled for the fine print.
The orchestrator of said fine print, Piper, walked over to their table. She wore jeans and a silky crimson cami that left her arms bare and showed a hint of cleavage.
Mikah’s heart made a thud like the official had just opened the penalty box door. He shoved along the bench seat, making room for her.
Piper slid in beside him. She smelled like lemons and sunshine again.
She smiled in greeting for all of them. “Dahlia sent me over. We thought you might have questions about the new app.”
She sounded enthused, as she should. She’d caught three of his bros like mackerel on a line.
“We’re limited to two drinks?” Liam had his finger on his screen as if his desperate scrolling would void his agreement. “That’s criminal.”
Piper gave a half shrug. “Maybe in Canada, not here.”
Mikah motioned for the waitress to get Piper’s order. She hurried over and the fringe on her icicle outfit shook under the lights. Despite her glitz, she didn’t hold his attention.
Piper smiled. “Belgian, please.”
The waitress returned quickly with her bottle of beer.
Mikah paid.
“Thanks.” Piper thanked both him and the waitress.
He liked the curve of her lips around that word and how she’d said “please” a moment before. He nodded. “You’re welcome.” His fingers twitched, wanting to touch her face and tilt her sparkling green eyes so she was only looking at him. They were the gorgeous shade of nature that came out in April right when they won their season. They were his favorite green. Should he stroke his thumb along her arm and see if they changed color? That was friendly. An arm around the shoulders? Even his bros did that with each other. Was he really thinking about putting the moves on the Purity Minder? He tightened his grip on his condensation-covered bottle and reined in his thoughts.
“Two beers though?” Liam was still trying to piece that together. “Are we Amish now?”
Mikah needed to move Piper over to a table by the window if he didn’t want to hear this all night. Which he didn’t. Damn. She’d painted her nails the same shade as her blouse. They’d look good biting into his skin. And that red lipstick on her mouth. He wanted to hear her scream Please as he smeared it. He shifted on the bench.
Piper was focused on the mackerel instead of him. “Two free drinks, the rest are charged to your account. Plus, you don’t have to give your credit card to strangers all over the country. You simply pay a premium rate that goes to the team drinking budget, which funds future drinks.”
From the way they were nodding, no one else at the table had a math degree or they’d figure out they were simply buying their own drinks in advance at a concessions-level markup. He’d clue them in later.
Piper chewed on her bottom lip and tucked a strand of her golden hair behind her ear. “And you get a ride home.” She sounded like a cheerleader and looked like a woman he wanted tangled in his sheets tonight. Screw her Purity Minder title, he was going in.
Mikah put his mouth to her ear to explain what she’d suggested the organization was offering Liam. “A ride means a lay to a Canadian.”
Piper shivered. “We’re not offering that service.”
He breathed in her perfume. “I know, I saw the modesty menu.”
“Purity pamphlet.” Piper corrected him.
The bar manager showed up at the rounded corner of their puck table and bumped fists with each of them. He had a shot waitress line up vodka shots in hockey formation on the tabletop, plus a few extras. This was the last outing before regular season, so they were all in. They grabbed their relative positions and tossed them back. “To the win.”
Piper too. Her red lips right on the rim, and she swallowed the liquor in one go, but with a lot of blinking at the fiery taste. He wanted to taste the vodka on her tongue.
His bros stayed put, giving them no privacy. Kiernan held his phone over the table, and his finger hovered over the screen. A full minute passed, and he hadn’t made a move to swipe.
Bro. If Kiernan were this slow on the ice, the season was going to be a wash. Mikah looked over Kiernan’s shoulder.
Kiernan was eying the uninstall button. An adjacent supermodel image held a sign under her tits that read, “Are you sure?”
The animated image had him hesitating.
Kiernan gave up and pocketed his phone.