Isn't It Bromantic (Bromance Book Club #4) by Lyssa Kay Adams

            Vlad knocked three times in quick succession and then twice more.

            A moment passed, and someone from inside knocked once.

            Vlad knocked two more times.

            “There’s a secret knock?” Elena whispered.

            “Be quiet,” Vlad hissed. “And don’t laugh. He doesn’t like it when you laugh.”

            “Sorry.” Elena cleared her throat.

            A single window in the center had something covering it. The scrape of wood against it made her stand on tiptoe to peer over Vlad’s shoulder. A pair of eyes looked out through the previously blocked window. “Coin,” a dark voice said.

            Elena slapped a hand over her mouth to cover the bark of laughter that threatened to ruin it all. Vlad held up the Swiss cheese coin like the one Colton had shown her. There was a sound of locks turning, and the door opened. A burst of cold air from inside rushed out.

            Vlad crutched forward slowly, and Elena stayed as hidden as possible behind him. But when Vlad crossed the threshold, the mysterious man began to close the door. Elena shoved her foot in the door as Vlad whipped his head around.

            “Wait—”

            The man’s hand shot out and gripped her shoulder, holding her back. “Who is this?”

            Vlad swiveled on his crutches, an ominous look turning his face into an intimidating mask, and Elena got the first glimpse of what he must look like to opposing players on the ice. She’d be lying if she said it didn’t sort of do things for her.

            “Do not touch her,” Vlad warned.

            Whether it was the tone or the expression, it worked. The man dropped his hand but shook his head. “You know the rules. No nonmembers.”

            “It’s my wife,” Vlad said in that same menacing tone.

            The man narrowed his eyes. “Where has she been? Why hasn’t she been here before?”

            “She’s been away at school,” Vlad said. He balanced a crutch against his side so he could extend his hand to her. “Elena, come here.”

            She skirted around the man and skidded toward Vlad. He pulled her against his side. “She knew nothing about this until now,” he said. “I’ve never told her about this place.”

            Elena glanced around the tiny, dark space. It had probably once been the welcoming entryway to a small shop or pub but had long ago decayed into the kind of moldy, cramped staging area she always imagined for illegal organ-harvesting operations. Which wasn’t that far-fetched. Her father had uncovered just such an operation several years before his disappearance.

            Behind them, a short hallway ended with a slight ramp, where a thick black tarp of some kind hung low to the ground and blocked her view of whatever was beyond.

            “He’s not going to like this,” the man said.

            Now that Elena’s eyes had adjusted to the darkness, she could actually see him. He wore a red bandanna around his forehead, and a tight hairnet covered what appeared to be the smallest man bun ever attempted. The smudges on his black-rimmed glasses told her he spent too much time in the dark.

            “Well, bring him out here,” Vlad said. “Let’s ask him directly.”

            “No. I can’t do that. Only coin holders get to see him.”

            Vlad shifted to pull Elena closer to him, but at the same time, the movement caused his crutch to dislodge from under his arm. It fell to the floor, and inside the small space, it was as loud as a gunshot and had nearly the same effect.

            Man-bun Man jumped half a foot and whipped a short-handled prong knife from his pocket. The kind used for soft and medium-hard cheeses and, in this case, maybe their throats.

            Vlad lunged forward on one leg, grabbed the man’s wrist, and simultaneously shoved him against the wall. “That’s a fancy cheese utensil you’ve got there,” Vlad said in a deceptive drawl. “I’d hate to have to break it.”

            Elena muttered a Russian curse word and stepped forward. “Stop this! You’re going to hurt yourself.”