The other big reason was that I hadn’t been confident enough to stand up to his will and to the pressures of Chicago. But now that I was here, things weren’t as scary as I had feared. Sure there were politics, but they were going to be tame compared to C2C Sports. There was no doubt that I was tougher and more confident now. I knew what it was like to battle, to get fired, and to pick myself up again.
I was a better person now. And my reward for being a better person was going to be sex!
I knocked on his bedroom door and thought I heard a mumbled “Come in.”
The room was dark and Jimmy already lying in bed. Now it was my turn to sit on the side of his bed.
“Hey.” He raised himself up on his elbow. The sheet fell away and I could see his chest. Even in the semi-darkness I could see the dark bruise again.
“What happened?” I asked, putting my hand lightly on the bruise. I felt his warm flesh and hard muscle.
“Speared in the second period,” he said. “He drove it up under my equipment in the scrum.”
He captured my hand in his own. “So, Kelly—why did you come in?”
I swallowed. Why did I come in?
“Oh yeah. I think I’ve made up my mind.”
“Really?” He sat up and the sheet fell further. I could see the whole side of his body, his concave stomach, and even a little of his hip. I remembered that he slept raw. Remembered? Ha, I had never forgotten that fact.
“Yes. I’d like to take the job—and everything that comes with it.”
He smiled in the dim light. “Everything?”
“Uh huh.”
With perfect coordination, he stretched out and pulled me beside him in the bed.
“So, starting immediately?” he asked. His face loomed close. I put my hand up and felt the familiar planes of his soft skin. There was stubble where his patchy playoff beard was growing.
“Maybe not work, but the benefits package for sure.” I kissed him. His breath was minty. He pressed his lips against mine, gently at first, and then excitedly increasing the pressure. I kissed him back, all the time running my hands over his strong back.
Jimmy groaned. “God, Kelly. I want you so bad. I’m not dreaming, am I?”
“Nope. This is for real.” I pulled off my t-shirt. “You’re already naked, so I better get caught up.”
“Oh yeah.” He cupped my breasts, and sucked each one in turn, over and over until my nipples were hard and tight. The sensation of his hungry mouth on me was incredible. “This body—I think about your body all the time.”
“Mmm, me too. I mean, I think about your body.” I squeezed his arms, feeling his biceps’ definition. Jimmy’s strength was so sexy for me, that sensation of being enveloped in his arms and feeling safe. I placed kisses over his defined chest, pausing to lick his tiny nipples.
“You’re not naked yet,” he grumbled. He yanked down my shorts and pulled my hips towards him. “I remember this ass.” He squeezed it for emphasis.
My body gravitated towards his. I relaxed into that gorgeous skin-to-skin heat as we kissed some more. Jimmy separated my legs and rubbed his thumb against my clit. I moaned and arched my back in response. He explored a little more, inserting one finger into me.
“You’re very wet, Kelly. Another good thing about you I remember.” He kept touching me the whole time, and I couldn’t stop pushing against his hand. I was almost dizzy with need.
“Oh God, let’s do it,” I pleaded. I needed to feel his cock inside me so badly; it was like this hollowness in me. “Are you good to go?”
“I’m healthy, yes.” Jimmy frowned down at me. “Kelly, I want you so bad, but I really, really want this to be good for you. So I think I should do a little more foreplay first.”
“Fuck the foreplay. Let’s just do it.”
He still hesitated, so I reached down and stroked his cock. It was certainly hard enough, so I didn’t get why he was hesitating. I pushed him onto his back and straddled him, parting myself and guiding him inside.
Jimmy groaned. “Feels so good.”
It did. All the tension of not touching each other for the past week was dissolved in the sensation of Jimmy inside me, filling me up and starting the perfect friction of our bodies meeting—completely linked. This was how it was for us: when we made love, all our defences and misunderstandings fell away and we were like one.
I rode him with a smooth rhythm, and he grunted each time I hit bottom. The building sensations were incredible, and I could feel an orgasm building inside me. I clamped down hard and rubbed my clit against his flat stomach, and that was enough to set me off.
“Oh yes,” I hissed as the first wave of orgasm hit me, and my body relaxed a little. Jimmy grabbed me by the waist and moved me off him and onto my back.
“My way now,” he said. He got between my legs and started to tease my clit with the tip of his tongue. Then he started to alternate between sucking hard and licking gently. After having him inside me and then coming once, I was already so stimulated that everything he did was fantastic. I was coming in little spurts, over and over. I was thrashing around so much that he had to hold me down. I didn’t realize how much noise I was making until Jimmy laughed. He moved right up next to me and kissed me on the nose.
“Good thing I didn’t sneak into your room while my parents were here, like I wanted.”
“I guess,” I gasped. It was hard to think of a time that sex like this wouldn’t be welcome.
He kissed me, and I could feel his still hard cock pulsing against my stomach. Jimmy smiled and then grabbed my ankle and pulled my leg up. He slid his cock easily into me. This time the sex was slow and almost gentle. His eyes were wide open, and he was watching my reactions to his slow, methodical fucking.
I was impatient, of course—I wanted to go faster and harder. But I sensed that he wanted things to be gentle and sweet. And considering the lovely orgasm he had just given me, I was willing to do whatever he wanted. Besides, it felt fantastic this way too.
“Oh, Kelly,” he sounded breathless and I thought he was close. “It’s so good.”
He started pumping faster and finally made one last, deep thrust. I watched him as his face tensed and veins in his temples pulsed, then he came and released his hold on my leg. I pulled him into me and kissed his eyelids. He collapsed onto me and lay there.
“Fuck. That was amazing.”
“Almost as good as the last time I had sex,” I said.
“What?” Jimmy drew back from me and sounded very offended. “Who was that?”
“You, silly. That last night in my apartment.”
“Really? So all that time I was worrying about you and other guys, you were all alone?”
“Yeah.” I laughed a little. “I guess I was saving myself for you.”
He frowned. “I wish I did the same thing. But I never thought I’d be back here again—with you. It’s something I wanted so much.” He put a hand on my cheek and cradled my face. He opened his mouth to speak and then closed it.
“What were you going to say?” I wondered.
“Nothing. Baller told me I need to cool it with you. That I’m too intense, and I’ll scare you off.”
I laughed. “I’m naked in bed with you. We just had sex. I’m pretty sure that means I’m sticking around.”
He shook his head and looked sad. “You might break up with me again. I don’t want that to happen—ever.”
“It won’t. I’m here to stay.” I wrapped my arms around his neck, and looked up at him until his eyes met mine. “I love you, Jimmy.”
He broke into a huge grin. “That’s what I was going to say. But you said it first! Man, Kelly, I love you so much.”
We nestled into each other and got ready to spend the night together. The first night of our second chance.
* * *
The next morning, we were eating breakfast and holding hands. It made eating harder, but we couldn’t stop touching each other.
“Last night was so—” I di
dn’t even know how to describe it.
“I know,” Jimmy said with this huge grin glued to his face. “I’m so happy we’re back together. I’ve wanted this for so long.”
“Me, too.”
“It’s dumb. If we both wanted it, why we weren’t together?”
“We had to grow up a little first. You had to get me fired to get my attention.”
“Ugh. Am I ever going to live that down?”
“Nope, never.”
“Kelly—would you rather be on TV? Was that your dream job?”
“I really liked it, well, parts of it. But I don’t think I ever had one dream job. I loved coaching kids too. It just didn’t pay anything. My new job with Fresh Ice sounds incredible.”
“Okay. But if you change your mind, I can talk to people I know here in Chicago.”
I smiled and kissed him. “That’s sweet, but I’m good.”
“We’re flying out to Vancouver this evening,” he said. “What time is your flight at?”
“Two. Maddy is on my flight, so I can get a ride with her.”
“I’ll drive you both there. I want to spend as much time as possible together. Did you want me to make arrangements for your flight back here for Game Six?”
I shook my head. “I can’t come back here. I can’t even go to Game Five in Vancouver. I told you all that.”
“What? That’s ridiculous, we’re back together now. Surely, that changes everything. I need you at my games—your support is so important to me. It’s the playoffs. Our first run at the playoffs in years.” He gave me his puppy dog look as he said this. There was a familiar sensation as Jimmy’s persuasiveness flowed over me. “And you can’t tell me you don’t want to watch the games—it’s the Canucks too.”
“It’s April and Ben’s wedding next Saturday. We’re having a girl’s night tomorrow, and I promised to be around all next week to help April. I’ve got work as well.”
“But Kelly, you’re taking on this new job. So you can quit your old jobs and if money is an issue—”
“Wait. Listen to me. When you asked me to get back together, do you remember what you said?”
He ran a hand through his hair. “I said a lot of things.”
“Yes, but the most important thing was that you wanted someone to tell you when you were being an asshole. April is my best friend, and she’s supported me through tons of crap. I’m the maid of honour, and I’m going to do everything I’ve committed to—regardless of the hockey playoffs.”
“But hockey is so important to you, to both of us.”
“Yes, but some things are more important than hockey.” I wished my parents were here to hear me say that. Well, maybe not here, since we were both half-naked and had a post-sex vibe on.
He grimaced. “It’s not like I’m asking you to miss the wedding. And what if we get knocked out? Won’t you feel bad then?”
“Jimmy, you guys had your best season ever—all without me. Stop trying to guilt me, because it’s not going to work.”
He grumbled a bit more, but I felt proud of myself. I had proven that Jimmy couldn’t bowl me over the way he used to.
“What about game seven, if there is one, you’d come to that, right?”
“Maybe,” I said. That game would be mid-week, and Ben would want to watch it too, so there was a chance. I didn’t mention the possibility of Jimmy being my date at the wedding because that would mean that he was knocked out of the playoffs. Neither of us was superstitious, but still. Besides, Phil was the best man, and I didn’t want to cause any extra drama on April and Ben’s big day. It would be enough for me to know that I had a wonderful new job and a wonderful old boyfriend. I didn’t envy anyone getting married; after all the hassles I’d seen firsthand, I wasn’t going there for years. But having someone I loved and who loved and supported me—that was what I craved.
Jimmy’s bottom lip was sticking out a little. He reached over and started pushing the hem of my t-shirt up my bare thigh. “Well, can I at least convince you to come back to bed with me before you have to get ready to go?”
“Always,” I told him and kissed him.
46
To Do List
July 2010
Fourteen months later.
James
* * *
“We’re sleeping with the Stanley Cup?” Kelly exclaimed as she walked in the bedroom.
I had carefully arranged the trophy in the middle of our king-sized bed, with the top of it on a pillow. There was plenty of room for both of us on either side.
“It’s been a dream of mine since I was a kid,” I told her. I made sure that we were getting the Cup overnight so I could do this. Today had been our public celebration with a big parade in Fredericton. Then at night, we’d had a private party for my buddies and a few teammates. Before they took the cup tomorrow, we’d host a breakfast for our family and close friends. Kelly’s family was here as well.
“Shocker,” Kelly said. She got into her side of the bed. “Haven’t you polished off your whole list yet?”
This past year had been the most monumental one in my life, and I had checked off a lot of items on my life list. A great start to the hockey season had come to a screeching halt when I got a serious concussion. Kelly had looked after me then, even when I was being a huge pain. She and my mom had really bonded. Both of them ganged up on me and insisted I take the long view and not rush my return to the ice. They helped me ignore pressure from the team as well as my own determination to get back out there. I was forced to take a full recovery, but it paid off later in the season when I wasn’t as tired.
When I did get back, it was non-stop action. No sooner was I back into regular season action then the whole league halted for the Olympics.
Kelly was stoked to be back in Vancouver, where the whole atmosphere was non-stop partying and celebrations. And she turned out to be a celebrity in her own right—a whole bunch of people had seen these sports videos she had done, and she was getting recognized everywhere. She even got an offer to return to television broadcasting, but she had turned it down because she loved her work with the Fresh Ice Foundation more.
Kelly loved watching the women’s team, including our friend Deirdre Tough, win the gold medal. The men’s final was so tight, but we won, and the celebration afterwards was incredible. I got to knock another item off the list.
After the Olympic break, we continued our regular season push. It was a gruelling journey, but when we finally won the Stanley Cup in Philadelphia, it was so satisfying. Winning the cup after all our hard work, and being part of a team that had battled together, was the best moment of my hockey life—so far.
Despite the pressures of the jam-packed year, my anxieties had never taken over my life. This was partly because I had learned methods of coping from my therapist, and partly because Kelly was there to help me to relax. She put things into perspective. She never brushed off my concerns, because she understood how important hockey was. And although I was aware I was being a huge downer after losses, it wasn’t until Kelly began refusing to go home with me after a bad game that I tried to change. After all, if mind-blowing sex was the one way I could feel better afterwards, why jeopardize that?
Today’s Stanley Cup celebration in Fredericton was yet another goal to check off. All the kids in town had been so excited to see the Cup and wear my gold medal. And it was a great opportunity to thank everyone who had supported me along the way.
But now that I had won the Cup, there was one more thing I could check off my list.
“Are you just going to go to sleep?” I asked Kelly. I couldn’t actually see her since we were both lying down on opposite sides of the Cup.
“We can’t have sex with the Stanley Cup between us.” Kelly laughed. “Besides, it’s pretty late.”
“I thought you’d want to touch the Cup, and you know—kiss it or something.”
“I think I’ve done everything possible already. I drank out of it, I posed for photos with it, I lifted
it into the air. Man, was it heavy.”
“But it’s such an icon. You should really look at all the details of it,” I insisted. I sat up and looked at her over the Cup.
“Argh, Jimmy. Why are you bugging me?” She got up on one elbow and ran her fingers over the base, feeling the engraved letters. “It is cool, isn’t it? It’s like the whole history of hockey.”
Kelly started reading out famous names and making comments. “I know there a few women with their names on the Cup. I wonder if I can find one.” Finally she ran her hand over the rim at top. She cocked her head and then looked inside the bowl.
“Oh hey, there’s something here. Holy smokers! It’s a diamond ring!” She picked up the ring, and even in the dim light it sparkled. As it should, since the diamond was big enough. “Do you think someone left it in here during the party tonight?”
“I don’t think so. Do you like it?”
“Like it? We’re not shopping, where did it come from?”
“Maybe it’s like Cinderella—it belongs to whoever it fits.” I held her left wrist and put the ring on her finger. It fit perfectly, I had made sure of that. “Well, look at that. I guess it belongs to you.”
Kelly’s eyebrows went sky high. She held her hand out and looked at it. “Jimmy, that’s ridiculous. It looks very expensive, so we need to find out who—”
I leaned over the Cup and kissed her.
“Kelly, will you marry me?”
She stared at me in total shock. Her lips were parted, and her dark hair fell around her beautiful face. The face I wanted to wake up to for the rest of my life.
“Oh my God. This is your ring? You’re crazy, Jimmy.”
“Your ring. Yeah, I’m crazy—in love.”
“I love you too. But everything’s so awesome right now. Why do you want to change things?”
“Because it’s so awesome. I want us to spend more time together.” As usual, Kelly wasn’t reacting like most girls. But at least she wasn’t saying no, which was my big worry.
Hockey Is My Boyfriend: Part Three Page 27