A Drop of Pretty Poison: A Brother’s Best Friend Romance (Pretty Poison Trilogy Book 2)

“Stop moving,” I tell Hayes as I try to get the bleeding to stop.

Apparently, he thought it was a good idea to shoot a hockey puck at Isaac’s junk. Revenge for hitting on me. Fucking caveman. But he should have known Isaac would retaliate, which he did—by elbowing Hayes right in the nose as they were getting off the ice.

And I’m no doctor, but this looks broken.

“Will you just hold still?” I say exasperatedly.

He turns his head away and pushes my hands down. “No. I don’t care how much I’m bleeding. You are not sticking tampons up my nose.”

I sigh. “Fine. Bleed out and let Isaac take credit for your murder. That’s your choice.”

His glare somehow looks more intense when it’s mixed with the slowly intensifying black and blue shade under his eyes. Before he can answer, the front door opens and closes, and his mom’s voice rings through the house.

“H?” she calls.

“In here,” I answer for him, and the look he gives me makes my eyes roll. “She would’ve found out eventually. And she’s a nurse. She can help you.”

His mom turns the corner and freezes. “Oh my God, it looks like there was a massacre in here.”

Hayes mumbles something about her being a drama queen, but I can’t say I disagree with her. Bloody tissues are all over the sink and the bottom of his shirt is a mess from his drive home. I told him he should’ve let Coach take care of it at the rink, but he claims he didn’t realize how bad it was bleeding until he was already on his way home.

That’s code for “my pride is too big to let Isaac know he caused damage.”

As I step out of the way so his mom can get in front of him, she lightly places her fingers on the sides of his nose. His eyes pinch closed and he whines.

Yeah, definitely broken.

“Well, it’s not out of place, but it is broken,” she tells him, and I shoot him an I told you so look. “Care to tell me how this happened?”

“Just a hockey thing,” he tries, but she knows him better to buy that.

“Try again.”

Hayes exhales through his mouth as she works to get the bleeding to stop. “I took an elbow to the face.”

“Because…” I press, earning a glare that tells me I’ll probably pay for this later.

“I shot a well-aimed hockey puck into his no-no place.”

I snort at his choice of words, and my laughter gradually builds when I realize that was for his mom’s benefit. Around his friends? Sexy motherfucking badass. Around his mom? Angelic mama’s boy.

“Take off your shirt,” she instructs him. “It’s garbage now.”

He whines. “It’s one of my favorite shirts!”

“Well, you should’ve thought about that before you shot a hockey puck into your teammate’s lower region. Now it looks like part of a crime scene.”

His mom holds up the garbage can, looking at him expectantly, and he mutters “such bullshit” under his breath as he pulls it over his head. The minute his abs come into view, I force myself to look away.

The last few days, we haven’t been able to keep our hands off each other. It’s like I’ve become some kind of sexually addicted monster who can never get enough. And being this turned on in front of Hayes’s mother is not my idea of fun. But it might be Hayes’s, if the way he smirks when he notices how affected I am is anything to go by.

His mom comes back with a new shirt for him, and she turns to me while he puts it on. “So, I saw your car outside. Are we not playing hide and seek with Cam anymore?”

Hayes and I share a look, and he answers for us. “Nope. She finally came to her senses.”

My eyes meet his and I raise a single brow at him, warning him of what’s coming next. The moment he catches on, I smile at his mom.

“You should have been there. Hayes handed Cam a knife and told him to stab him.”

Her jaw drops and she backhands Hayes in the stomach. “You did what?”

He squeals at her smack then whirls around to frown at me. “Seriously?”

I shrug, smiling sweetly. “What? I can’t be the only one mad about your reckless move.”

“It was romantic!” he shouts.

“Oh, yes,” I sass. “Your blood all over the ground and my brother getting hauled away for your murder would have really sealed it for me.”

He turns to his mom. “Do you see the abuse I deal with?”

She chuckles. “I like her. Someone needs to keep your ass in line.”

I fist-pump and grin. “Ha! I have your mom on my side. I win!”

As I do a happy dance just for the sake of rubbing it in his face, he groans. “There is not enough testosterone in this house.”

I’M STANDING IN THE kitchen, scrolling through my phone, when I hear Cam coming down the stairs. The second he sees me, however, he turns around to go back up. I roll my eyes as my mouth opens.

“He’s not here.”

Without a single word, he comes down and goes straight to the fridge. I know I shouldn’t get involved. It may be a battle that centers on me, but Hayes has made it clear that this isn’t my fight. But there’s only so long I can sit around and watch him miss his best friend, and it’s already been a week.

“Do you want me to break up with him?” I ask.

His actions halt. “What?”

“Do you want me to break up with him?” I repeat. “Is that what it’s going to take to get you to talk to him again?”

Cam pulls his attention from the fridge and turns around to face me. “What did he do, send you to yell at me?”

“No. Actually, if he knew I was even talking to you about this, he’d probably yell at me. But this is ridiculous, and you know it. He’s been your best friend for years.”

“Yeah, which is all the more reason for me to be pissed,” he argues. “He knew you were off limits, and he didn’t care. He fucked me over without a second thought.”

Wow, he really is delusional. “That’s bullshit. You weren’t there. You didn’t see how fucking hard he fought against this. He didn’t want to be with me, even though we’re both crazy about each other, because of you. For fuck’s sake, he chose your friendship over me at first!”

I check the time and notice I need to leave, but as I head toward the door, I stop—glancing back at Cam.

“And for the record, you don’t own me. The only person who can deem me off limits is me.”

He says nothing as I leave the house, but I didn’t expect him to. Cam is as stubborn as they come. I had no hope of getting through to him. I just wasn’t going to let him think I was okay with him being a dick.

THE PARKING LOT IS empty as I pull in, and the rink looks closed. That’s strange. I open the text thread with Hayes to make sure I came at the right time.

Don’t ask questions. Just meet me at the rink at 8 p.m. 😘

Looking at the rink again, my brows furrow. His truck isn’t anywhere to be seen. My only option is to shoot him a text.

Hey. I’m here, but it looks closed.

His response comes in seconds.

I’ll be right out to get you.

Get me? Since when does he need to come get me? I’ve been coming to this rink longer than he has. But sure enough, he pushes open the door and waits for me.

I shut my car off and hop out, walking over to him. “Where’s your truck?”

“In the back,” he answers, but offers no further explanation.

All the lights are off. It’s so dark, I can barely see Hayes standing beside me. And if he were anyone else, my mind would probably be going crazy with scenarios on how I’m about to die.

“What are we doing?” I ask. “Why are the lights off?”

He chuckles, pulling me closer against him with his arm around my waist. “Didn’t I tell you not to ask questions?”

“I don’t follow the rules. And besides, that was before you brought me into the pitch black.”

“So impatient,” he murmurs. “Don’t worry. We’re almost there.”

His body moves behind me, and he circles his arms around my waist as we go a little further. I don’t even know how he can see where we’re going. Even as my eyes adjust to the dark, I can barely see anything at all.

“Okay,” he says, stopping us.

He pulls a remote out of his pocket and presses a button, and the entire rink is cast in soft twinkly lights. They’re strung over the glass and go all the way around. In the middle of the ice, there’s a table, set with a tablecloth, two covered meals, one which has a rose on it, and a candle in the middle. Two chairs sit on either side.

My eyes water as I take it all in. “You did this?”

“Do you like it?” It’s hard not to notice the vulnerability in his voice.

I let my eyes rake over everything once more and then turn my head to look back at him, as much as I can anyway. “I love it. You’re amazing.”

“You are amazing,” he corrects me with a kiss. “I’m just trying to be somewhat worthy of your attention.”

My heart melts as he takes my hand and leads me onto the rink and over to the table. He’s a total gentleman, pulling out the chair for me to sit and then sliding it in. As he hands me the rose, he lifts the lids off the meals to reveal subs, and I can’t help but giggle.

“I know,” he says with a grin. “But we’re on an ice rink, so it was either that or salad.”

I shake my head with a smile. “No, it’s perfect. You’re perfect.”

Over all the years I’ve had a thing for Hayes, I always knew what kind of guy he was. I never fantasized about romantic things with him because I knew that wasn’t him. It was always more sexual, though there was the occasional picture our future together ones mixed in.

This is more than I could have ever imagined.

He lights the candle and sits down, taking a sip of his beer. “I really missed you today.”

“Clearly,” I joke as I look around once more. “How did you do all this?”

“I got some of the guys to help me,” he confesses.

“Cam?”

He shakes his head. “No, he still hates me. But we managed without him.”

A pit forms in my stomach, knowing how hurt he is about it, and I sigh. “I’m so sorry, H.”

But he reaches over and puts his hand on mine. “Don’t. We’re not going to talk about it tonight, okay? This night is about us.”

And somehow, I melt a little more as butterflies come alive in my stomach.

AFTER WE’RE DONE EATING, Hayes suggests we take the opportunity we have to skate together. It’s not often that we get the chance. My shifts usually line up either right before or right after his hockey practices, and by the end of them, we’re both exhausted. Putting on skates is the last thing on our mind.

But not tonight, so we lace up our skates and hold hands as we leisurely glide around the rink.

The lights that Hayes and the guys hung make it so much more intimate in here. I can only imagine all the shit they gave him for this, too. He probably had to listen to Owen’s comments for hours.

“So,” Hayes starts. “Is this up to your romance standards?”

I chuckle as I nod. “Yes, definitely.”

“Good, because there’s something I want to ask you, and I need it to be memorable.”

My mouth goes dry as he stops us and turns to face me, looking deep into my eyes. “A-are you about to propose right now?”

Jesus Christ, Lai. If he is, way to ruin the damn moment.

But it doesn’t ruin it at all. He doesn’t get scared at the thought of that much commitment or look at me like I’m insane. He just smiles and shakes his head.

“No,” he says with a small laugh. “I’m sure that will happen eventually, but you once told me I’m not allowed to skip steps. So, Laiken…” He pauses just to drive me insane. “Will you officially be mine? My out-in-the-open, hold-your-hand-no-matter-who-can-see girlfriend?”

There is so much happiness in my heart, so much pure joy that it radiates out of me and I beam at him as I nod. “Yes.”

He smiles just as brightly, wrapping his arms around me and picking me up. Our lips meet and he spins us around while we both smile into the kiss. He said he wanted to make it memorable, but I think he could have asked me this anywhere and I would always remember it.

Who could ever forget the moment all their dreams came true?

ONE THING ABOUT THE two of us is that we’re super competitive. To be honest, it’s why I don’t enter figure skating competitions anymore. I was too hard on myself, and it started to take a toll on my mental health. But that part of me is still there just as much as Hayes’s is. So of course, when the topic of me beating him in a race came up, he demanded his rematch.

We slide the table and chairs out of the way and then take our places at the one goal line. I know he’s determined to beat me, and after everything he did for me tonight, I should let him have it—but what’s the fun in that?

“Ready?” he asks, and I nod.

He counts down from three and we both take off. It’s neck and neck up until the halfway point, but with a little extra push, I take the lead. And being the showoff I am sometimes, I spin around and wink at him as I cross the goal line backward.

“How in the fuck?” he asks in disbelief.

I skate circles around him. “Just face it, babe. Figure skaters do it better.”

He scoffs playfully. “Only because you don’t have to focus on as much. We have to worry about our speed and our balance while controlling a small block of rubber with a wooden stick. Oh, and we have to fight off grown men at the same time.”

Giving him a look, I glide away from him, and I can feel his gaze on me. I pick up speed just before I execute the trick I’ve been working on. The one I haven’t let anyone see yet.

The fucking triple axel.

It’s as if everything is in slow motion as I spin through the air, and relief floods through me as I land it. Hayes’s jaw drops, and he looks even prouder than I was when I finally got it.

“When the hell did you learn to do that?”

I shrug. “You’re not the only one who needed a distraction after we split.”

And that’s when he slips up. “Bullshit. I would have noticed that when I—”

His mouth clamps shut as he realizes what he was about to admit, so I smugly finish it for him.

“While you were watching me from the office? Yeah, I made sure not to work on it then. I didn’t need you seeing me fall on my ass.”

He exhales. “You knew I was there?”

A small laugh bubbles out of me. “Contrary to what you might think, you’re not exactly good at being discreet. You’re good at hockey, though…for the most part.”

“Damn.” He clutches his heart like he’s been shot. “You’ve been my girlfriend for all of twenty minutes and already you’re insulting me.”

I skate up closer to him and wrap my arms around his neck, kissing him quickly. “Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it.”

“All right, Rochester,” he says, using the nickname I haven’t heard in a while. “Let’s make this interesting. You get three shots. If I block all of them, I get to fuck your mouth again.”

God, it was so damn hot when he did that, it hardly sounds like a punishment. “And if I score?”

He smirks in a way that would have my panties ripping themselves right off if they could. “You can sit on my face for as long as you want.”

Holy fuck. That’s something we haven’t done yet, surprisingly, but with the way it feels when he eats me out, I’m sure it’ll feel incredible. And an unlimited amount of his mouth on my pussy is more than enough incentive.

Still, I don’t want to seem too eager.

“You’re not a goalie,” I point out.

The look he gives me shows he’s at least somewhat hoping I win, and I shiver at the thought. “All the more reason to do it.”

I STAND IN THE middle of the ice, holding the stick firmly in my hands while he blocks the goal. I wonder if I should tell him that I used to play against Cam when we were younger. But if he’s underestimating me, that’s no one’s fault but his own.

He keeps his gaze laser focused on me as I take the puck and start skating toward him. I try to use his lack of pads to my advantage, but as I shoot, he blocks it with his skate.

First shot missed.

The second doesn’t go much better, this time getting blocked by his stick.

“Last chance, Blanchard,” he taunts.

I weigh my options between each possible outcome. If he wins, I know I won’t mind him fucking my mouth again. I never imagined it, but choking on his cock and seeing the reactions it pulled out of him was nothing short of incredible. But he’ll always bring up how I couldn’t score a goal against him.

If I win, however, I get his mouth on my pussy for as long as I want. And getting to wipe the smug grin off his face is an added bonus.

Sorry, babe.

I move a little further away, then allow myself to gain speed before grabbing the puck on the way. Hayes’s brows furrow as he watches me. It’s clear he’s determined to block this last one and win the bet, but as I fake right and shoot left, it goes straight into the back of the goal.

He puts his tongue in his cheek and drops his stick, while I raise my arms in the air and celebrate. But the second I hear him skating after me, I squeal. There’s nothing I can do to get away from him. He grabs me, and the stick falls to the ground as he lifts me up.

When he places me back on the ice, I spin around to face him, smiling proudly. “I scored!”

His eyes move across my face, and he puts his hands on my cheeks. “So did I.”

Closing the gap between us, he kisses me softly, but it doesn’t take long before it turns heated. His one hand slides down my side until he grips my ass, making me arch my hips against him. I moan breathlessly against his mouth.

“You know what Coach said,” I warn. “No sex on the ice.”

He hums, and I can feel when he gets an idea because he smirks. “Yeah, but he said nothing about the locker rooms.”

This night just keeps getting better.