by Stacey Lynn
I shove my face into her neck and kiss her shoulder to hide whatever look that thought brings to my face. The last thing I need to do now is scare her off by moving too fast.
I’ve promised to move at her speed. But hell, I hope she gets to where I am quickly.
Sliding my arm beneath her, I hold her hip and roll us so I’m on my back and she’s on top. We stay connected and I hold her close until eventually she pushes up, one hand at my chest. Her hair falls into my face and she laughs, pushing it out of the way.
When I see her face again, she’s smiling down at me, biting that lip I waste no time in popping free.
“What’s so funny?”
“I guess this takes away any concern of morning-after regret.”
“No.” My hand goes to her cheek and I lean up to kiss her. “No regrets. Ever.”
Her expression softens and she brushes those warm, sweet lips over mine. “No regrets.”
Collapsing back on to me, I take her weight and hold her in my arms until my alarm finally goes off.
I tap her but a handful of times. Give it a squeeze until she squirms. “I gotta get up and get rid of this condom. Get ready for camp.”
She clings to me like her arms have grown suction cups. “But I’m comfy.”
“You want, I can make you more comfy in the shower.”
Comfy. I don’t think I’ve ever used this word.
“No way,” Tessa says. She lifts her head enough I see a glimpse of her smile through all that hair and then she rolls off me and onto her back. “More sex might kill me.”
“Look at you, dirty girl, no one even suggested sex. I just said a shower.”
She glares at me out of one eye. “Right. Didn’t even cross your mind.”
“Trust me. I think if my dick gets any more friction, it might fall off.”
“Gross!” She presses her hands to her face and laughs. I kiss the back of her hands before climbing out of bed. “I do not need that visual.”
“Don’t worry,” I call out on my way to the bathroom. “I’ll be perfectly healed by the time I get home.”
I glance at her over my shoulder. Her eyes do a quick lift from my ass to my face. She looks embarrassed for a second before her grin peeks through. “Sounds like my days and nights have just gotten a lot more busy, then.”
“Damn straight. And before I forget… I’m taking you to dinner tonight but don’t wear that sexy dress or we’ll never eat.”
I leave her gaping at me, do my clean up, shower, and when I’m dried off, I stop at the doorway to the bedroom. She’s remade the bed perfectly. Nicer than I do it. Possibly nicer than my cleaning company does it. But more, I miss the sight of messy sheets and rumpled pillows and her curled up, naked, next to me.
Later. I remind myself. I’ll get more of that later. And hopefully, a hell of a lot more.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Jason
* * *
Coach Woods slaps me on the shoulder as I jump off the ice. “Nice job out there today.”
“Thanks.” I rip off my helmet, the chin straps already tugged free before I hit the walkway. Today’s practice went a hell of a lot better than yesterday’s, thank God. And I gotta admit, I was worried last night’s activities and this morning’s would make me sluggish.
Fortunately, I played like the King and star I am and never once threatened to punch my own teammates in the face.
I haul off past our coach who’s still watching some of the new guys and recently drafted. Some of them will take the ice with us on pre-season, some won’t even make the travel roster. Regardless, my spot is secure so I’m done for the day, ready to shower, and then more than ready to see what kind of dress Tessa will be wearing when I get home tonight.
Hitting the locker room, my first stop is to Hendrix. My second to Newman. Both guys kicked ass today too and even though Newman will probably never get Jude’s spot on first line now that my brother is back and skating as good as ever, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t kick some serious ass.
“Nice job, today,” I tell Newman, holding out my fist.
“And your attitude’s better than yesterday, so we all win.” He shoves my chest and I stumble backward, my ass hitting Hendrix’s shoulder who’s bent over and untying his skates.
“We’ve talked about this, Taylor. I don’t swing that way.”
“Dick.” I shove his head playfully. “You kicked ass today too. Everything good?”
“Good as it can be,” he says.
Last night’s conversation jumps to my mind and I want to ask him if something else happened, but I know he won’t answer anyway. Not here with all the guys milling around. If he hasn’t brought it up publicly, it’s not my place.
A loud boom comes from the entryway and all of us veteran players who are already stripping down for the showers turn to see Sawyer sauntering in. His helmet is held loosely at his hand and his grin is a large as my dick. That’s to say… huge.
“Hey assholes! Guess who’s getting hitched!”
“You finally drugged Debbie enough to agree to marry you?” Jude asks, ripping at his shoulder pads.
“Shut up, asswipe.” Sawyer points at him and grabs his crotch. “She’s been bewitched by my dick for years. Now she gets it forever. She’s fucking thrilled.”
Since I’ve already congratulated him, thanks to my in with Tessa, I stand back and listen to all the other teammates offer their typical locker room crap and congratulations. Sebastian is the last one on his feet, and he grabs Sawyer into a bear hug. “Happy for you, man,” he says, slapping Sawyer’s shoulder.
“And that’s not all.” Sawyer turns to everyone and throws his arms up, spinning in a slow circle. “Apparently my swimmers are pretty damn functional because Debbie’s also knocked up. That’s right, guys.” He slaps his own fist to his shoulder. “I’m gonna be a dad!”
Another round of whoops and cheers go up in the locker room. Next to me, Sebastian’s face turns ashen and his head falls forward.
Shit. This can’t be easy for him. I press my hand to his shoulder and give him a little shake and when he turns, meets my gaze, I nod. It’s the only consoling I can do for him. He takes it, swiping a hand down his face before he backs off.
“I gotta hit the showers,” he mutters. He tears off his jersey and pads and I move to Sawyer while he’s still getting congratulations.
“Too bad it’s season and we can’t celebrate properly.”
“Fuck that. Debbie’s starting to feel better, so I say we all have to go out and celebrate this shit.”
“Maybe some other night. Next weekend before pre-season games? I got plans tonight.”
Sawyer’s jaw falls. “You… you’re putting off celebrating my baby and wedding for a week? What plans are that important.”
Definitely not the time to tell him about his sister. Or what we did only hours ago. Or for hours last night. “Important ones,” I say instead.
I turn my back and head to my locker when he calls my name. “How’s Tessa doing anyway? She made any permanent plans? Because I gotta say, Debbie’s so damn happy she’s here and helping her with the wedding stuff.”
“She’s good.” I don’t look back at him. “Don’t know about her permanent plans though. She’ll figure it out.” And I’ll be there to help her and to ensure things go my way this time.
I get rid of my clothes and pads and take a shower. It’s been a long ass day and while it’s not even four, I’m in a hurry to get back home, but before I do that, I need to go make another death-defying trip to Sylvia’s office. I got an email from her earlier saying there’s a stack of gear I need to sign for an online auction starting soon.
I plan on risking her wrath by asking her why in the hell she hasn’t called Tessa back yet. If I want to get her to stay here permanently, the least I can do is help her find a job.
Selfishly, now more than ever, I want the opportunity to have her on the road with me as much as possible.
I’m i
mmediately arrested at the sight of Tessa in my kitchen when I enter my apartment. Hell if this isn’t something I want to come home to seeing every day for the rest of my life. She’s wearing nothing special. Cut-off jean shorts, a simple, white tank top tucked into the waistband. I’ve already seen her wear them but now that she’s been running in the sun, the white makes the tan she’s getting seem darker. And over all of it? The damn, chunky gray sweater she’s always wearing in my apartment.
She’s drinking a glass of what looks like lemonade when I walk in and her smile lights up the whole damn condo and my dick twitches in my shorts.
“Sylvia called me. I have an interview with her early next week.”
I can’t even take the credit for the help. When I showed up at the marketing department earlier to sign my gear, Sylvia’s lights were off and the main receptionist for the floor said she hasn’t been in all day.
But now, I’m only focused on Tessa’s tan thighs peeking out from those shorts. The memory of the taste of her and feel of her pressed against me.
I drop my workout bag at the door and kick off my shoes before moving straight toward her.
My hands go to her waist and I lift, setting her on the kitchen counter. Her eyes light with anticipation right as I drop my mouth to hers. “That’s fantastic, Tessa. I say we should celebrate.”
Her hair is curled, loose waves that fall to the ice as she tips her head to the side. “With dinner out?”
“Yeah. We’ll get to that.”
“Oh.” Her blue eyes brighten and her cheeks darken. “Then how do you plan on celebrating?”
As she asks, she runs her hands up and down my arms and her ankles hook at my back.
“Like this.” I kiss her, diving my tongue into the cavern of her mouth and tangling my tongue with hers. She tastes like sweet sugar and sunshine, a hint of mint saying she’s recently brushed her teeth.
“I like the way you celebrate,” she whispers, teasing me, smiling. She’s so damn gorgeous when she smiles at me.
“Then you’ll like this even more.” I step back, putting space between us and my hands go to the buttons on her shorts. I pull them down her legs slowly as she rocks her hips, lifting side to side so I can remove them and then I drop them to the floor while I press one hand to the center of her chest until she’s lying down on my counter.
This is just one of the many places I’ve wanted to take her since she stepped foot into my apartment last week. Once she’s naked and exposed, not to mention soaking wet, I take my time eating her until her screams are bouncing off the walls and her skin is flushed and her thighs are clamping down around my head.
And two hours later, I grin as I sit across the table from her at Spagoli’s, an Italian restaurant down the street from my building. They make damn good carbonara and I feel like carb-loading for the night ahead of me.
Her hair is still disheveled even though she tried to tame it and every time she smiles at me, I tuck it into my memory bank, adding them up, wanting to never forget a time when I’ve made her smile.
“How’s Joey doing?” she asks, twisting her fork around a pile of her own spaghetti. “Is he looking forward to the season?”
“He’s been giving Jude and I shit all week. We play them a few times this year and he’s determined this year is their year.”
“Vegas has that good of a team?”
“They made some good trades last year. Picked up some promising talent in the draft. In truth, yeah, I think they’ll be hard to be beat.” I take a bite of food and when I’ve swallowed, I grin. “But we’ll be better. Always.”
She shakes her head, laughing at me. I don’t care. The Ice Kings are good. We might have gone out early in the playoffs last season but with Jude back, I have no doubt we’ll take it all the way this year.
“And Jude?” she asks, like she’s reading my mind. “How’s he feeling?”
“He’s in top form. Looking great. Nervous I think to be on the ice again but that’ll fade. Pisses me off our first game is against Boston, though.”
“I saw the game he was injured. That was nasty. Selkin should have been out for the season.”
“Then I wouldn’t have been able to beat the shit out of him when we played them again.” She’s not far from wrong though. Niklas Selkin is a powerhouse and a major dick. He’s had more fines than any player in the league and his ass should have been kicked out of the league or benched far before he took out Jude.
“Yeah, I saw that game, too. I didn’t blame you one bit for going after him like that.”
This is a surprise. I’ve always known Tessa hated growing up in the shadow of her brother. With Sawyer’s talent and his personality, he casts a large spotlight of attention. So it surprises me that she spends time watching the games. I’ve always assumed she’d ignored them.
“I didn’t realize you watched hockey.”
She snorts. “Hard to miss it when you live in Canada. But of course I watch the games, or at least as many as I can. I couldn’t miss a chance to see Sawyer play.”
“Just Sawyer?”
“Just Sawyer.”
Little liar. Her wink gives her away but since I’m enjoying this playful side of her, I don’t tease her further. Instead, I switch to her phone call from Sylvia and ask her if she’s looking forward to the interview.
“I don’t think anyone looks forward to an interview, but the job?” She shrugs and it’s not exactly the reaction I’m hoping for. “I suppose maybe it could be a good thing. I guess we’ll see.”
There’s hesitancy in her eyes as she glances at me and back to her plate.
I don’t push as much as I want to ferret out all her concerns and worries and solve them for her. Pushing too hard too fast made this all messed up in the first place. I’ve already made her a promise. If she wants to get a job and stay here, we’ll work it out. If she wants to end up moving back to Toronto, we’ll work it out.
“How’s the wedding planning with Debbie going?” I ask and her shoulders seem to slump with relief that I’m not going to ask about the job.
This makes her smile ignite and she starts prattling on about dresses and flowers and finding venues next week with Debbie and I listen to her every word, not because I give a shit about flowers or venues or even Sawyer’s wedding, to be honest. I listen because when Tessa is excited about something, her entire face comes alive and she’s magnetic.
As for the rest of my worries, I shove them to the back of my mind.
We’ll get there. Someday. We have all the time in the world.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Tessa
* * *
“You’re hired.”
“I’m… what?” My hand that was on the doorframe to knock since Sylvia’s door was already open, still hangs in the air.
In front of me is a woman, graying hair, keen eyes behind a set of thick black-framed glasses. She’s dressed in a black button-up shirt where the buttons at her chest are threatening to revolt against their confinements.
And she… what?
“You heard me. Come in. It’s time to work.”
“Um.” Not to look a gift horse in the mouth, but I’m a bit thrown. “I’m Tessa Chauncy. Here for the interview?”
“You has the job. I’m busy. Let’s vork. You vant that, yes?”
I hesitate before stepping into Sylvia’s office. She’s already as much as Sawyer and Jason warned me about when Debbie and I met up with them for dinner after finally finding a wedding venue for her and Sawyer. It’d been a heck of a long day on Saturday, and Debbie was so tired she almost fell asleep at the dinner table. Because she was tired, I spent most of the meal asking the guys more about Sylvia and the job. They warned me she was gruff. Hard to penetrate.
Sternness is stamped on her features and she gives me a huff I swear is impatience when I don’t immediately rush to do her bidding. But what does she expect?
“I’m hired?” I ask, tiptoeing on her carpeted office floor like there are bu
ried bombs in my way. This must be a joke.
She sighs and pushes what looks like a tablet and notebook to the edge of her desk. “I do not have zee time for interviews. You want the job? It is yours. And if it’s yours, you vork. Starting today.” She peers at me over the top rim of her glasses, chin dipped low. “Unless you do not vant thee job?”
Until a few moments ago, I still wasn’t entirely certain. I’ve spent the last two weeks debating whether or not I want to be in Charlotte permanently and technically, I still have my job waiting for me. I have another week and a half before I have to return. If offered this job, my plan was to give me time to consider it, figuring I could take another week before having to decide.
Things are going so well with Jason. The nights are the best, but the days are pretty great too even though he’s starting his pre-season games this week and will begin traveling. Something, if I do take this job, I could go with him on trips. There’s something thrilling about the idea of being with Jason on the road, watching most of his games live that has me making my decision.
“Oh, I want. Yes, ma’am. I want the job.” If I don’t take this, another job might not come along, and then where will I be? My uncertainty about returning to Toronto is based entirely on my relationship with Jason. It shouldn’t be, I know this, but things have been so incredible between us, I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. At least this gets me more money, quick employment and I have a feeling it’ll be a thousand times more exciting than working in a bank.
I can tell that by this first impression of Sylvia.
“Good. Then we work.” For the next twenty minutes, she rattles off duties for me to do, schedules I must make and contacts I have to call. She gives me the temporary password on the iPad and tells me to go find someone named Emmy to help with the official hiring paperwork to get me on payroll. Then she tells me how much money I’ll be making and my jaw drops. Twenty-five thousand more than I make in Ontario.