Sweet Disposition

Several days had passed and the young couple still hadn’t said anything to the team. It seemed that every time they promised each other that they would say something, Claire would find a way to back out of it, coming up with some lame excuse as to why it wasn’t the right time and that they should wait just a little longer. Claude knew she was afraid that they would somehow treat her differently, however he couldn’t help but get annoyed at her constant hesitation, his understanding could only go so far.

His thoughts would often drift back to his conversation with Danny on the plane and how his older teammate had not so subtly alluded to the fact that the majority of the team already either had their suspicions about their relationship or had figured out that the two were together. He knew that they’d get shit for it, the usual ribbing until the novelty wore off, but they were good guys who loved her like a little sister. They wouldn’t dream of treating her differently.

The young couple bickered about the looming need to get it out in the open here and there. Claude usually relented because he hated fighting with her, but each time he did so, he made it clear that the conversation wasn’t over.

Today, however, he didn’t plan on letting it go, he wanted to tell his teammates at practice and he was dead set on persuading her to get over this irrational fear of hers so that they could move forward in their relationship.



He groaned as she rolled from his arms to turn off her phone alarm, disliking the absence of her warm body against his. She let out a long sigh before finally willing herself to get up, knowing that if she didn’t now, it would be a hell of a lot harder to drag herself from the warm sheets and comfortable pillow that was her boyfriend’s chest later. Claude reached out, gently grabbing her wrist and pulling her back to him before she could even make it to the edge of the bed to stand up. “5 more minutes,” he mumbled, his eyes closed and his voice husky from sleep.

She sighed as his arm encircled her waist, trapping her against his body, wanting nothing more than to oblige and stay snuggled against him under the covers, “Not today Roo.” He grumbled in protest, his arm tightening around her as she squirmed in a vain attempt to escape his strong, yet gentle, grasp. She stopped after a minute or so of struggling to get out of his iron hold, weighing her options of how to get him to relinquish his embrace. A small smirk made itself present on his lips as he took her stillness for surrender, her silence lulling him into a false sense of security that he was the victor.

He felt Claire move her lips close to his ear, her warm breath tickling his skin, “If you let me go, I’ll make you breakfast and if you’re a particularly good boy I’ll even let you have desert before dinner tonight.” Her hot breath in tandem with the very sultry edge to her soft voice sent shivers down his spine and he could feel his cock stirring as his arousal peaked. Oh, if only she actually knew what she did to him.

He unwilling released her with another groan, earning a soft giggle from his girlfriend as she got out of bed, quickly pulling on one of his t-shirts over her nude form. He watched her pull clothes from the overnight duffle that always came with her whenever she spent the night at his place. “I’m going to grab a quick shower before I make breakfast, okay?” He was having trouble focusing on what she was saying, how sexy she looked in his shirt distracting him from reality as the blood from his brain seemed to rush to his dick at the sight of her. “Can I join you?” he asked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

“As tempting as that is,” she said, biting her lip pretending to mull it over, “I think I’m going to pass. Now, be a good boy and go get ready for practice.” She gave him an impish grin before turning and making her way out of the room, clearly giving him no option as she headed to the guest bathroom. She laughed as she heard him call out after her, “Vous allez être la mort de moi Claire.” (You’re going to be the death of me Claire.)

“Fuck,” he breathed, his head falling back against his pillow. He didn’t bother going after her knowing that she would lock the bathroom door. Her mind was made and he was not getting any this morning, much to both his and his morning wood’s displeasure. He huffed, blaming himself for waiting this long to finally start having sex with his gorgeous girlfriend. Incredible, mind-numbing, sex. He found that after indulging himself with their escapades under the sheets after denying himself for so long had made him increasingly horny and very easily aroused. With a sigh he finally willed himself to get out of bed and all but stumbled into his bathroom to take a cold shower.



Freshly showered and clothed, Claude walked into his kitchen to find Claire making breakfast. The smell of the omelet she was making wafted across the room, causing him to salivate at the tantalizing odour. He could get used to this, waking up next to her, walking into the kitchen to find her cooking up a meal for him. A smile spread itself across his lips as thoughts like this began to fill his mind.

His socked feet padded softly against the wooden floor as he made his way over, wrapping his arms around her waist and nuzzling into her neck. “Cela sent bon,” (That smells delicious.) he murmured, his lips brushing against her skin. She smiled, “Eu le sentiment que vous serait vouloir une omelette ce matin.” (I had a feeling you would want an omelet this morning.) She felt the corners of his mouth draw up into a smile against her skin before he tenderly kissed the milky flesh of her neck, “Vous avez bien deviné. Que faites-vous, psychique ou quelque chose?” (You guessed correctly. What are you, psychic or something?)

She laughed at that, reaching for a plate, choosing not to answer him as she dished the egg onto it. He nipped her earlobe, taking the plate from her hands and darting over to his kitchen table. She turned to him, shooting him a playful glare to which he responded with a look of faux innocence plastered on his face. Rolling her eyes, she turned back to the stove, whipping up an omelet of her own.

She joined him at the small table a few minutes later, noticing that he had waited for her instead of downing it in seconds, which he was usually known to do. “You didn’t have to wait for me, Roo,” she said smiling softly at his kind gesture. “I wanted to,” he replied, with a shy, almost coy, smile, “Besides, I know I wouldn’t hear the end of it if I started without you.” She rolled her eyes at his playful smirk, giving him a light shove as they continued to eat and chat.



“So,” Claude started as they drove to work. Claire looked over at him from the passenger seat, eyebrow arched with a smirk on her lips as she mimicked him, “So… what?” He glanced at her, fighting hard to keep his nerves from showing, “So, we need to talk to the team.” She frowned slightly, the smirk fading away from her pink lips. She had been avoiding this, hoping to be able to put this off a little longer.

“Claude,” she started cautiously. “No, Claire, listen.” She closed her mouth, a little taken aback by his forwardness, allowing him to continue, “I just can’t keep this from them anymore, they’re like my family, yours too and you know it. It’s not right to put it off like this, not to me, not to us. They deserve, no, they need to know about this.”

She sighed, turning her gaze out the window. She knew that he was right, not that she wanted to admit to it. She knew she was being silly and she felt horrible for making him feel so conflicted and torn. “Please,” he begged, his voice soft, “Can we just get it out of the way? I hate having to hide how I feel about you.” She melted at that, there was no way she could say no to that. “After practice, okay?” He almost slammed on the brakes in shock. He had actually gotten through to her. “That way they’ll all be in the same room.”

“Thank you,” he grinned, kissing the back of her hand as they pulled into the parking lot of the Skate Zone, fighting the urge to throw her in the back seat and show her how happy he really was.



Claude plopped down on the bench in front of his stall freshly showered and ready to go. He had worked extra hard in practice, his excitement and nerves fueling him through the team’s time on the ice and his workout session. He had talked to Lavy about addressing the team, who agreed and decided that he himself should be the one to make the announcement, assuring an uncertain Claude that he shouldn’t worry and that he would take care of it.

Regardless, Claude was excited to let his teammates in on the not-so-secret secret that had been plaguing him for months. The rest of his team began to filter into the locker room having finished their showers and post-practice rituals, the room abuzz with idle chat and conversations between the guys as they gathered in for the coach’s final words of the day.

Claire felt her heart begin to pound nervously in her chest as she, Jim, and the coaching staff took their places at the front of the room. Never in her life had she been more thankful that her boyfriend's stall was close to where she stood during these sessions. Peter had informed her of his and Claude’s talk earlier and made her aware of what they had agreed on. Despite his and Jim’s words of encouragement and reassurance the poor girl couldn’t help but fidget anxiously where she stood.

Once the team was all present and accounted for, Lavy began to give the low down on the upcoming game, rehashing strategies that they had gone over earlier and giving them a brief outline of what their practice schedule was going to look like over the course of the next week. Jim made a few announcements to the team regarding injuries and training regiments before turning the floor back to the coach.

Claire felt all of the air leave her lungs in anticipation when Peter began to speak again, “On another note, it’s been brought to both ours and the organization’s attention that one of your teammates and a member of our staff are currently in a relationship. Now personally, I don’t give a shit that they’ve been seeing each other, however the organization has, as we all know it does, made a big deal of it. Honestly, it’s not very surprising to say to you all that G and Claire are said couple. So, I’m just going to ask this once and get it out of the way. Do any of you feel unhappy or uncomfortable with this relationship continuing?"

In seconds a rumble of laughter and catcalls erupted from the large group of men. A few shouted things along the lines of “about fucking time” or “I knew it!” Claire felt her cheeks heat up as a wave of relief hit her simultaneously with the embarrassment that only a large group of older brother-like figures could draw from her. “How long?” Dan Carcillo called out, intriguing many of the players. “4 and a half months,” supplied Claude, a goofy grin spread wide on his face as he glanced at his girlfriend. “I fucking called it! Pay up Gags!” he boomed turning to Simon, laughing as the French Canadian rolled his eyes, handing him the money owed.

“Great,” Lavy called out, bringing the chatter down once more, “Glad that’s settled. Alright, get out of here, see you all tomorrow at 10.” He dismissed them, happy to be done with the political bullshit imposed on them by the organization and getting back to the primary focus, hockey.