Scott Thornton stared in quiet amazement as the puck slid past Roy's blocker and hit the back of the net. He was aware of the tank erupting in cheers around him as 17,000 fans got to their feet, but only distantly, as one is aware of a war raging in some far away country. It wasn't until his linemates crushed him close in a triumphant embrace that he awoke from his self-induced stupor.

"Don’t look so damn surprised, kid!" Ricci laughed, hugging his linemate tightly. "You should be used to big playoff goals by now!"

Thornton grinned and nodded shyly, lifting a gloved fist in salute to the fans. The noise in the Tank doubled. Thornton felt a light touch at his back and quickly whispered words as the line skated to the bench. "Nice job, aiskling," purred into his ear, rolling with the soft Swedish accent. By the time he turned around, his teammate was gone.

They went on to win 6-4, Nolan's hard-fought empty-netter the perfect ending to an exhilarating game.

The energy in the locker room was high, teammates congratulating each other and paying deferential respect to their star goalie. Nabokov was cheerful and relaxed, reassured by his solid performance, Saturday's crushing defeat already behind him. They had won, they were ahead and they still had home ice. Life was good.

Scott finished dressing and glanced across the locker room to see Niklas staring at him with open appreciation. Warmth flushed instantly in his face and shot straight down to pool in his groin. The young Swede smiled brightly, even white teeth flashing in the narrow face and Scott felt his knees go weak. Only Nik could make him want him like that with a single smile.

"Ready to go?" Thornton mouthed. Sundstrom nodded and grabbed his duffel, following his linemate out into the parking lot. He threw his sports bag in the back of Scotty's black truck and slid into the passenger seat. The doors closed and instantly Scott's lips were against his, hard and hungry and sweet. The sudden passion of the kiss caught him off-guard and left him clinging and moaning into the older man's mouth. Nik whimpered as they separated, panting and licking his lips where Scott's taste lingered. He started to speak, but the words disappeared as that warm mouth moved to his neck. It happened every time Scott touched him; he lost the ability to think, becoming simply a bundle of hyper sensitive nerves capable only of feeling. Only Scott could do this to him, floor him with a simple kiss, pull apart his carefully constructed shell and reduce him to pure sensation.

"S-Scott," Nik whimpered, grasping reality with both hands. The older man made a "hmm" sound that tickled against his collar bone and sent shudders through his chest. Nik swallowed tightly and opened his eyes wide, blinking up at the ceiling of the truck as Scott did something to his throat with his teeth that made his stomach clench. He really didn't want to stop him, but if they continued like this they would never make it home, and there was only so much that could be done in the front seat of a truck.

"Scott," he tried again, tone a little more firm. The dark-haired man pulled away to look at him and Nik nearly lost his resolve staring into that beautiful face with deep, lust-filled eyes and wild black hair. He swallowed hard and closed his eyes, struggling for some modicum of composure.

"Home," he choked out, opening his eyes to meet Scott's burning gaze. The dark-haired man nodded once, taking a few deep, measured breaths before starting the car. The drive back to Nik's house had never taken so long in his life. He fidgeted restlessly in his seat, trying to find a position that was a little less uncomfortable. Finally his street came into view, and he sighed in relief as Scott eased the truck into the driveway. They clambered out of the car and hauled their stuff up the stairs to the front door without so much as a glance at one another. Nik was fairly sure that if he stopped and looked at the other man he'd rip his clothes off then and there, which wasn't such a bad idea, but he wasn't quite up to providing a show for the neighborhood. There were little old ladies with weak hearts around, after all.

Once inside they made a line straight for the bedroom, stumbling past furniture and piles of clothes to crash onto the bed. Nik straddled the darker man's hips and Scott turned his face away, trying to conceal a wince. Unfortunately Nik saw it and instantly stopped moving.

"Baby? You okay?" he questioned softly, staring down at his lover in concern. Scott nodded and tried to shrug it off, but one of Nik's knees slid against his thigh and he gasped, eyes wide in pained surprise.

"No, you're not," Nik muttered as he climbed carefully off the other man, frustrated with his lover's stubbornness. "Here, let me see," he added in a gentler tone. He undid the zipper to Scott's jeans and slid them down his long, muscular legs, letting them fall carelessly to the floor. Where Nik's knee had accidentally pressed there was already an ugly purple bruise about the size of a fist discoloring Scott's thigh. Nik ran his fingertips across it and winced at Scott's sharp intake of breath.

"Blocked a shot, didn't you?" he asked caustically, sighing at Scott's grudging nod. "Stupid. You should have told Dan about this."

"Not that bad,”"Scott replied gruffly, peeling off his sweat-soaked dress shirt before doing the same to Nik. "Nothing that'll keep me from playing—or anything else," he teased, eyebrows arching suggestively. Nik snickered at the innuendo and shook his head.

"It is bad," he insisted, pressing his lips softly to the other man's. They indulged in a slow, leisurely kiss, allowing the frantic pace of the past few minutes to come down. Nik licked tenderly at Scott's throat, enjoying the feel of the warm flesh beneath his mouth and the pleasure in the other man's moans. He brushed a tender hand across the muscled stomach, scratching lightly at the smooth skin before moving to his hip. He pressed an experimental palm to the angry bruise and sighed at Scott's yelp of pain.

"See?" he muttered against Scott's chest. "This is why we have goalies." Scott growled and pulled disapprovingly at Nik's spiky hair. The even-tempered Swede just smiled.

"Well, it's true," he reasoned. Scott opened his mouth to respond but quickly swallowed his words as he felt Nik's impossibly soft mouth brush gently across the bruise. He let out a shaky breath instead, sighing in pleasure as the younger man covered the bruise in tiny kisses, then licked delicately at the sensitive flesh. It felt so good, kiss by kiss Nik was melting the pain away. Western medicine had nothing on Nik Sundstrom.

"Mm, that's nice," Scott murmured appreciatively, lightly stroking the nape of the blond man's neck. Then, abruptly, "Nik!" a shriek of need as that warm mouth moved to his hardness. The younger man put that talented tongue to good use and smiled as he heard panted moans pouring from the other's man's mouth. Hands circled his biceps and hauled him up until they were face-to-face and Scott bathed his face in frantic kisses, sucking hungrily at his lower lip as his hands slipped between their bodies.

"You are so fucking gorgeous," he muttered half to himself, wrapping his hand around the younger man's erection. Nik gasped and Scott took the opportunity to kiss him, sliding his tongue feverishly into the warm cavern of Nik's mouth. Nik groaned and kissed him with desperate passion, eyes falling closed as Scott did things that made him tremble helplessly. He slipped a hand past Scott's and curled it firmly around the dark man's hardness, moving in time to the rhythm the other had established. Scott moaned and Nik swallowed the sound, sealing their mouths together in a kiss so brutally hungry it hurt. Scott's teeth moved to his neck and bit painfully and Nik's fingers dug into his ribs as they tensed and came together, panting and moaning each other's names. Nik slumped lazily against his lover, still shaky and sensitive in the afterglow of orgasm.

"Mm....you are so warm, Nikky," Scott mumbled sleepily, eliciting a smile with the little-used nickname. "Love you," he yawned, cuddling the blond a little closer as his eyes dropped closed.

"Love you too, Scotty," Nik replied, pressing a kiss to the other man's throat. "Love you -yawn!- forever," he promised solemnly, eyes heavy with exhaustion. Scott Thornton just smiled and drifted to sleep.

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