“Your date didn’t walk you home?”
“No.”
I tensed, half-hunched over as I rifled through the box of stuff I always took with me wherever I moved. Band-Aids and alcohol swabs covered the bottom of it, but I finally got the black tape. “He should’ve walked you home.”
She swallowed hard as I approached her on the couch. I wasn’t sure if the slight reddening of her cheeks was because of the pain or because of me. I knew which one I wanted to be true, even though nothing was going to happen between us.
I sat on the cushion next to her and lifted her jean-clad leg up so her foot rested on my thigh. “How long did you walk on it with it hurting?”
“Probably a mile.”
“You could’ve called me,” I barked out, annoyed that she hurt herself and this guy wasn’t there to assist her. I paused my taping and glared at her. “I would’ve helped you.”
“You don’t have a car, J.D.,” she fired back, her voice a little stronger. “What would I have said? Hey, can you carry me back home?”
“I would have.”
“Well, I don’t have your number.”
I froze. How had we not exchanged numbers? We were roommates. “Give me your phone,” I demanded, not caring that I sounded like a jerk. It was important for us to be able to call or text. She could’ve asked me to come get her. Besides, what if she got locked out of the place or hurt? “Please,” I added, hoping it sounded more sincere.
She slid her phone out of her pocket, and I entered in my number, sending a text to myself so I had hers. Knowing that was fixed made me feel a little better. “Call me next time.”
“I don’t plan on hurting myself again.”
“I would hope not.” I sighed and couldn’t stop staring at her. Her face was so pretty, and her expressive eyes and full lips invaded my thoughts when she was gone. Her brows drew together, and I focused on the task. Helping her with her injury.
I ripped the athletic tape so I had enough to wrap her small ankle, and I weaved it around, making sure it was tight enough to not hurt. “This should help for the next day or so. Can you try moving your foot?”
She wiggled it up and down, and the wince wasn’t as bad. “It feels sturdier.”
“Good. Here, stand up. Put some weight on it.” I set her foot on the ground, stood up myself, and held out a hand to her. She took it, and I pulled her up, not letting go when she shifted her weight back and forth. “Well?”
“Better, yes.”
“You need Advil. Hold on.” I waited until she sat again and got two pills from my bedroom. “This will help with the swelling.”
“Thank you.” She smiled for a second before pushing off the couch and twisting her face in determination.
“Uh, where are you going?”
“To get water.” She rolled her eyes and took a few steps toward the kitchen. Seeing her tough this out sent the weirdest sensation through my body. It was more than lust. I liked her toughness and grit. I liked her.
“Sit your ass down, Ry.” I moved without thinking—something I did around her too often. I put my hands on her hips, lifted her up, and plopped her on the couch. “I’ll get it for you.”
She blinked at me as I narrowed my eyes at her. Her lips parted for a second, those round full pillows teasing my thoughts all the damn time, but then she closed her mouth and nodded. “Thank you.”
With a reluctant sigh, I brought her a bottle of water and sat back on the couch, leaving enough space between us so I wouldn’t be tempted to touch her. She took the medicine and leaned against the cushions, closing her eyes for a second before she shifted her body to face mine. Those expressive blue eyes warmed as she studied me, and her lips curved into a smile that made me nervous.
“Why are you looking at me that way?” I muttered, feeling stupid and off-balance.
“You’re a real mother hen.”
My lips twitched in response, and her entire face softened. She needed to stop looking at me like that, all warm and gooey, before we did something colossally stupid. “I’m used to taping ankles. It’s no big deal.”
“You lifted me off the ground and practically threw me onto the couch. You’re worried about my little ankle. It’s cute.”
“It’s not cute,” I said, sounding as mature as a fifteen year old.
“Are you going to manhandle me or insist you help me out of my clothes if I say I need to change?”
My throat got tight, and I tried not to picture her undressing or helping her undress. I shook my head. “No. Go ahead.”
“Thanks, boss.” She stood, leaned over, and ruffled my hair like it was the most natural thing in the world, and I swore I felt her touch all the way to my toes. I remained as still as a statue when she let go of my hair and hobbled to her room. She left the door cracked, giving me a two-inch view into her bedroom, and it felt so wrong. Forbidden. Hot. Was she undressing for me? Or did she forget to close it?
God, I was sweating. My pulse raced, and my forehead was damp. Touching her foot wasn’t sexy, yet her skin had been soft and warm. I took a sip of her water just as she came out of her room in a tight Moo U shirt and plaid shorts that left her legs on full display.
Holy shit.
Her hair was down and wavy, and she gave me such an easy smile when she came back to sit down next to me. “Happy to report my ankle feels so much better.”
“Good.” My voice came out husky and low, and there was no way I could relax with her sitting this close and smelling this good.
I needed to balance the scales, and the only way to get her to stop being all smug was to mention the guy. The date. The dinner she went on without me. It would also dim the roaring attraction I had to her. “So, uh, how was your date?”
“Honestly? Meh.” She shrugged.
“You were gone awhile for just a meh date.”
Shit. I closed my eyes as my face got really hot. Way too hot. That was a dead giveaway that I watched the clock, and when I snuck a glance at her, her goofy grin stretched even wider.
“How long were you gone, uh, anyways?”
“I think you know exactly how long I was at my date, Jonah.” She nudged me in the side with her uninjured foot. “Did you wait up?”
“No.” I ran a hand through my hair, not looking at her. “Yes. Maybe. I don’t know.”
“Wanna know a secret?”
This was a dangerous, terrible game to play, yet I nodded and watched her. She was pretty easy to read, but now, seeing her this close to me with those short shorts and tight shirt that did nothing to hide her pebbled nipples…god. I swallowed hard. “Sure.”
“I went out with him because of you.”
“Hmm, what now?”
“I figured if I went out on a date and tried to flirt or tease or kiss another guy, it would help me stop thinking about you.” She sighed and played with the end of her hair like she’d just talked about the weather, not told me words that almost pushed me over the edge.
“What do you want me to do about that?” I asked, the question that kept me up at night and left me unable to focus at the gym or at home, all the time now.
Her answering snort wasn’t helpful.
“Is this funny to you?” I asked, my control snapping.
“I mean, you look pissed. It’s not exactly giving me the right vibes.” She chewed on her bottom lip again, causing all the blood in my body to head south, fast.
“I am pissed. I can think of a million reasons why you shouldn’t say things like that to me.” Dammit, my voice got low again, and the mood shifted. The playful, teasing tone was gone and seeing Ryann’s chest move faster almost did me in.
“But I can’t recall a fucking single one right now.”
Her eyes got hazy and filled with heat. Her hand stilled from playing with her hair, and she shifted her weight on the couch so one leg crossed over the other. “You play on a team with my brother, we live together, and I promised Michael I wouldn’t ever cross a line with a teammate again. T
hose are a few though.”
“Right. Those.”
She arched one brow and leaned forward, her lips parting, and I scooted closer to her. Whatever she wanted to say took courage because she took a deep breath, pulled her shoulders back, and stared at me head on.
“Did you kiss your date?” I asked, attempting one last time to dim my fire.
She shook her head, and her gaze moved to my mouth, lingering there as her breath came out heavier, needier. “No.”
“Why?”
“You know why, Jonah,” she said, dragging out my name and licking her bottom lip.
I blinked and moved even closer to her. She tilted her head up and brought her fingers to my chin, cupping it. Her hands on me sent me over the edge, and my body shook with need to finally taste this girl. Even though I couldn’t have distractions, not kissing her had become the distraction. It would go away if I just succumbed to desire.
Sure, yeah.
“I think I know a solution for us,” she whispered, dragging her thumb over my lip.
“God, what? Anything, please,” I begged, swallowing hard and loud.
“Fooling around wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.”
“Fooling around?” I repeated, already imagining how she’d taste and feel beneath me. How her hair would fall over my chest. “How would this be a solution?”
“A way to release this sexual frustration we’re both feeling.” She licked her bottom lip, and I trailed the movement, my body taut with need. I’d jump over the entire couch to take that lip into my mouth if she asked me to.
And I wanted her to ask. Really badly.
“I don’t do relationships. Ever.” There, I said it. She could tell me no, and I’d listen.
A shadow crossed her face, but it was so quick, I convinced myself I made it up.
“Pretty sure we’re not talking about having a relationship, Jonah. If we sleep together, no one knows. Not the team, not Hannah, not Michael. Not a soul.”
Hooking up in secret. No drama. No team bullshit.
I gulped and nodded. “Until the season starts.”
“Should we add this to the rules?” She moved her gaze toward the fridge where she wrote my stupid rules. They seemed trivial now that we were talking about hooking up. I thought she was joking, but worry crept down my spine. This entire up and down, off-kilter feeling just solidified why I didn’t do this shit. Emotions were exhausting, and I didn’t have time to worry about her.
Yet.
I bolted up from the couch, stood a few feet away from her, and rubbed my palms in my eyes. “This is so messed up.”
“How’s that?”
“Neither one of us is happy about this.” I laughed, the unease lightening when she smiled with me. “I’ve never had to…sit down and talk this shit out before anything happened. It’s weird.”
“Yeah, this is a first for me, but I wouldn’t say I’m unhappy.” She leaned against the back of the couch. “I tend to get naked first, talk later.”
God. I swallowed hard again. “Is this something we could do? Now?”
The air crackled with electricity, and she traced a line on her thigh with her delicate pointer finger. It wasn’t a sexy move, yet the softness of her arm, the bright color on her nails, and the way she took a shaky breath made it erotic. “It’s Friday, Jonah.”
“I’ve seemed to forget how to breathe let alone remember the day of the week.”
She snapped her gaze to my mouth, her brows raising as a cocky smirk twisted her lips. “Is tonight your film night, your reviewing notes night, or the hide in your room night?”
“Can it be the night I finally fucking kiss you?”
Shit. I went there. I crossed the line with my words, and I couldn’t take them back.
Heat flared across her face, her mouth parting and her cheeks reddening. The points of her nipples strained against her shirt, and my god, did the woman ever wear a bra? One of our phones went off, the sharp sound of the vibration making a loud buzz, but I didn’t care. They could wait.
“Aren’t you curious who it is?” she asked, her throaty voice increasing my need to touch her. Would it get deeper if I teased her? Licked her?
“Not even a little bit.”
My heart beat so fast my body shook, and when I took a deep breath, the same intoxicating floral scent filled my nose. I plopped down on the coffee table. “Come here, Ryann.”
She stared at me with parted lips. It felt like forever, but she got up from the couch and took a small step toward me. Her body was insane. I stared at her without worrying I took my perusal too far. I was so beyond that.
“God,” I said, dragging my gaze from her bare feet, up her legs to her tiny-ass shorts. The thin shirt hung off her but didn’t hide her curves, and I reached out, put my fingers through her waist band, and yanked her toward me. She yelped, but I settled her right between my thighs. “You can tell me to stop at any time, okay?” I said, trailing my fingertips up her calves and along the back of her thighs. She shuddered against me and placed her hands on my shoulders.
“Okay. You can too.”
“Oh, Ryann,” I said, laughing as I continued feeling up her torso, teasing the sides of her breasts and grazing her collarbone. “I appreciate you saying it, but I’ve been thinking about this, you, for far too long.”
“What do you think about?” she asked, her chest heaving.
I couldn’t stop touching her. Her pulse raced in her neck, and I placed my thumb over the spot, sucking in a breath when she gripped my wrist with her hand.
“You really wanna know?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said, her voice growing deeper.
I waited until she met my eyes, her deep blues even darker with lust. “I think about your legs.” I gripped the back of them, letting my fingers slide right under the edge of her shorts. “Your smooth skin.”
I moved up under her T-shirt where I could finally feel her stomach. A groan escaped before I could stop it.
“Fuck,” I said, closing my eyes at how turned on I was. It had never been like this before, and the chemistry with her was equally terrifying and exhilarating. “You don’t wear bras in the morning.”
“I never do when I sleep.”
“Are you wearing one right now?”
She licked her lips and raised her brows. “Guess you’ll find out, huh?”
I lifted her onto my lap, her legs straddling me where she could damn well feel my reaction to her, and I cupped the back of her head, digging my fingers into her hair. “Kissing you will probably destroy me,” I whispered, before closing the distance between our mouths.
Jesus.
She ground against me and brought her hands around my neck. Ryann tilted my head back as she slid her tongue into my mouth. This wasn’t a soft or sweet kiss. This was hotter. Ryann kissed hard and fast, whimpering into my mouth when I bit down on her lip like she did to me all those days ago. I took it, sucked, and released with a loud pop.
Her expression turned desperate. Wild even. She ran her fingers through my hair and kissed me deeper, our tongues fighting for dominance. She tasted like mint and chocolate, and having her warm body pressed against mine short-circuited my brain.
We made out, taking turns teasing or nipping the other’s lips for what felt like days, before I remembered I had an insanely hot girl on my lap. I reached for her waist, sliding her shirt up a few inches to enjoy her bare skin. When she ended our kiss and dragged her mouth along my jawline, my hands shook. She nipped and bit below my ear, and I jerked from how good it felt.
“Your jaw shouldn’t be sexy, but my god,” she said, sounding like she ran a mile before this. “Why does your skin taste so good?”
I was going to black out from lust alone. I closed my eyes, held her tighter against my erection, and shuddered when she dragged her tongue from my neck to my shoulder and bit down. It stung, but the brief pain was worth it. Knowing she felt as wild as I did snapped the little restraint I had.
&nb
sp; “Time to find out,” I said, determined and so damn needy.
“Find out what?” she asked, sitting up straight so I could see her face again. She was flushed, and her lips were red and swollen. My dick twitched. Her eyes heated, and she ground against my length. “Oh, you feel huge, Jonah.”
She rolled her hips against me, and her face lit up. The image of her mouth slightly parted and lust bursting out of her would forever be etched in my mind.
“Can I touch you?”
“If you don’t, I’ll beg.” Her eyes flashed, and I slid my fingers under her shirt again, tickling the delicate skin beneath her ribs. When I let my palm graze the tip of her beaded nipple, she tensed and gasped.
“Oh, you’re definitely not wearing a bra.”
Her response was a wicked grin.
I traced one finger around the sensitive point, each circle making her whimper. Using my other hand, I did everything but touch them, wanting her to ask me for more. “Does this feel good?”
“Yes,” she said, panting. “Please, just…”
“Just what?”
“Touch me.”
I cupped each breast in my hands, groaning at the weight and fullness of them. They were perfect, and I squeezed them together, flicking my thumbs against her nipples. Ryann threw her head back in a moan. Her breasts are sensitive.
I let go, her cry of pleasure fueling my fire, and I took the hem of her shirt and lifted it off her. There was nothing in the way now, and my god. Her breasts were fantastic. Her dusky pink nipples were mouthwatering perfect, pointed and perky. I bent lower, taking one into my mouth and sucking it. She arched her back and gripped her fingers into my hair as I hummed against her.
I could taste her tits for hours and not get bored. I dragged my tongue from one to the other, not in any rush, and flicked against the point to see what she would do. She groaned and tightened her thighs around me.
“I’ve dreamed about what your tits looked forever.”
“Did you touch yourself when you pictured them?” she asked, her throaty voice making me look up. She stared down at me, a smile toying at her lips. “I’ve fantasized about you that way. How it would feel to have your hands on me. If you have the same intense focus on everything you do.”
Holdout: A Moo U Hockey Romance Page 12