After taking a quick shower, he came back into the room to find Piper sleeping soundly. She was so beautiful and he hated to leave her. It made him nervous, and he knew he would worry constantly about her until he got home. Running his fingers along her jaw, he moved her hair out of her face, leaning down and kissing her on her cheek before leaving.

Driving to the arena, Erik couldn’t shake the feeling that something was about to happen. He read that the Braxton Hicks meant her body was getting ready for delivery. She was only thirty-five weeks; five left to go. She was concerned that if the baby came early there could be something wrong and Erik had to admit that worried him, too.

He had told his father that he didn’t love the baby yet, but that had changed with each day that went by. He loved Dimitri and he couldn’t wait to hold him in his arms. He just prayed and hoped that the baby was healthy and strong.

Pulling into the parking lot of the rink, he parked his car and got out, reaching for his bag in the backseat. His mind was full of Piper, and as he started for the back door, he wondered if should call her and if she was awake.

“Erik!! Woohoo! Erik!”

Erik turned to see a group of girls waiting by the fence, waving with seductive grins on their faces. A part of him knew he should have just waved and kept going, but they were fans. He loved fans. Tucking his phone back into his pocket, he threw his bag over his shoulder and made his way over to where they stood. There were three of them, all blondes with big br**sts and nice trim waists. One of the girls wore a short skirt with a shirt that didn’t leave anything for the imagination. The other girl, the youngest-looking one, wore a skintight purple dress that had the Assassins emblem on the chest. The last girl’s jeans hung low on her hips while her shirt didn’t cover her br**sts at all.

Puck bunnies.

His mind was telling him to walk away but he didn’t. He wasn’t sure what he was thinking as a smile came across his face before reaching for a puck one of the girls had held out for him to autograph.

“Are you ready for the season?” one of them asked.

Erik nodded as he signed the paraphernalia they held out for him. “I am; are you guys ready?”

“So ready,” one of them cooed. “Can I take my picture with you?”

Erik glanced up as his heartbeat quickened. The girl was gorgeous, slutty gorgeous, the way he used to like his females. Pinning her with a grin, he said, “Through the fence?”

She nodded, bringing one of her lips between a set of perfectly, straight, white teeth.

“Yeah, unless you want to climb over, I promise, we’ll take good care of you.”

Erik chuckled, his c**k straining against the zipper of his jeans. He tried to ignore it, tried to ignore the girls, but it was hard. Closing his eyes, trying to get his head straight, he took in a deep breath when someone called his name.

“Titov, come on.”

Erik looked over his shoulder to see Phillip calling after him. Thankful for the distraction, he waved goodbye to the bunnies and walked over to Phillip. Reaching his best friend, he saw that he was upset.

“What’s wrong?” Erik asked as they entered the back entrance.

“My sister has been calling me all week,” he said, moving his hand through his hair. Like him, Phillip didn’t have a great childhood, but unlike Erik, Phillip wasn’t f**ked-up from it. His dad left when he was young and his mom turned to drugs. She died soon after he joined the Assassins, leaving behind Phillip and his older sister and her daughter. He thought that when his mother died all the crap would have stopped, but apparently his sister followed down the same path as their mother and was deep into drugs, too. One would think that no one could overcome such a crap-ass family, but Phillip had.

With a shake of his head, Phillip said, “She wants money, says my niece is starving.”

Erik nodded. “Do you believe it?”

“No, I know she just wants money for God knows what, but I was thinking of sending the money to Claire myself, but then I know how she is; she does anything for her mom.”

Erik shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t think you should send it. I’m pretty sure Claire is okay; if not, she would call you.”

Phillip nodded. “Yeah, I didn’t think of that. Thanks.”

“No problem,” Erik said, trying to walk away, but Phillip stopped him.

“What were you doing?”

Erik shook his head. “Nothing.”

“I saw your face. You were flirting with those girls.”

Erik made a face. “I was not, I was signing autographs. Don’t worry, it was nothing.”

But it was everything.

What was he thinking?

Phillip shook his head as he started to walk away, but Erik stopped him. “Okay, maybe it is something.” Phillip turned with a knowing grin as Erik went on: “I don’t really know if I love her or not. I thought I might but I’m not sure.”

“What? What happened? You told me you guys were solid only a couple of days ago,” Phillip said with a frustrated look on his face as they entered the locker room. “They are just whores; don’t let them f**k with your head.”

“No, I got hard, Phillip. I wanted to put my dick so far down that girl’s throat and get lost in the pleasure,” Erik confessed, shaking his head. “If I loved Piper, why would I want that?”

“Dude, we are men. We all want sex all the time. It’s okay. It’s not like you did it.”

“But I could have.”