by Adele Hart
“Not in this case…” I trail off when the door swings open and in walks Clint looking absolutely enormous with the extra height from his skates.
He smiles when he sees me and lets the door shut behind him. “Feisty kitty.”
“Aren’t you in the wrong dressing room?”
“Since you’re in here, it looks pretty right to me.” His helmet is off and his dark hair is soaked with sweat, and for some stupid reason, my girl parts are finding that attractive instead of a turnoff.
Tasha quickly stands, saying, “I forgot to bring that thing I left at that place…”
“No, you didn’t forget it,” I say through gritted teeth. “I picked it up for you. It’s in my b—”
The door swings shut behind her, leaving me alone with Hottie McEngaged Man. He gives me that smirk that makes my knees buckle and I force myself to look away.
“Well, great to see you. Good luck out there.” I reach down and pull a skate out of my bag, then attempt to put it on over my right Ugg boot.
Clint chuckles. “Is that the secret to all those twirls you ladies do? You wear your winter boots under your skates?”
I roll my eyes. “Okay, yeah, I’m a little…keyed up at the moment, so if you don’t mind, I should try to calm myself down a bit before practice.”
“Do I make you nervous, Kitty?”
“No. Why would someone like you make me nervous?”
“Because I want you. Kitty and all.”
My mouth drops open and instead of closing it, I bite my bottom lip. Clint stares at me and I swear to God he’s pulling all the dirty thoughts I’ve had about him out of my mind. I’m suddenly flush with embarrassment and lust. Underwear model fiancée. I clear my throat and sit up tall. “Listen, thanks for the flattery. I’m sure most girls would jump at the chance to be your Winter Games hook-up, but I’m not one of them.”
“Oh, no, Kitty,” he says, shaking his head a little. “This wouldn’t be just a hook-up. If you and I get this fire started, it’s going to burn hot, hard, and for a very long time.”
Well, now, my entire body just went to jelly. Where’s Tasha when I need her? Some friend, abandoning me with this incredible hockey god who’s looking at me like he wants to lick me from my toes to my neck. I shake my head to snap myself out of it. “No, thanks.” My voice comes out high pitched and weak which is not what I was going for at all.
“It’s okay to be scared.”
“I’m not scared, but I’m also not stupid.”
Nodding, he says, “Oh, you’re scared all right.”
“This is never going to happen.” I point back and forth from my chest to him.
“And why’s that?”
“First of all, because I’m not going to blow this for myself. When you fly home, you’ll go back to making millions, even if you leave here empty-handed. If I don’t medal, I go back to being broke, and if I’m lucky, I’ll get another shot in four years, but most likely, I won’t.”
Clint nods and his face grows serious. “And second?”
“What?”
“You said, first of all. That usually means there’s more.”
“Second is that I just don’t like you that much.” I think about his fiancée to stop myself from grinning at the shocked look on his face. I don’t bring her up even though I know if I did, this entire thing would be over instantly and I could get started on forgetting about him.
“Liar.”
“Arrogant goon.”
He shrugs like that’s not an insult. “I may be arrogant, but I’m also right about you. You want me.”
“I do not. You’re so not my type.”
“How do you know that? You don’t even know me.”
“Name the last book you read and when.”
“The Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. Finished it this morning at breakfast.”
Oh, well, I wasn’t expecting that. I shake my head. “All right, so you read. Big deal. Still not interested. Now, you should get going so I can concentrate.”
“I can help you, you know. I’m really good at helping people get in the zone.”
“In the zone? Oh, please. You’ll try anything.”
“When it comes to you, I will.” He smiles. “And I didn’t mean it that way. I meant that a lot of the time when one of the guys on the team is struggling, the coach gets me to have a talk with him. Usually helps.”
“Oh. Well, thanks. If I need help, I’ll come find you.”
“You do that. I’m in building two in the village, apartment thirty-six.” He opens the door, then turns and points back and forth between him and me. “This is going to happen, Dani.”
As soon as the door shuts, I melt into the bench and groan. What the hell just happened? He reads? And he’s some sort of hockey player whisperer. And he’s lickably hot. But he’s also a cheating bastard. Damn underwear models! Who invented them in the first place?
Six
Clint
After I shower, I decide to sit in the stands and watch Danika practice. She’s amazing. A tiny, little ball of strength and agility as she performs her routine over and over. Her coach is a typical dickhead. Never smiling, never satisfied with what she does, no matter how graceful or perfect it looks to me. He just glares, arms folded, shaking his head. Barking orders. Wanting more.
As the practice wears on, I can see she’s getting tired, even though she’s in incredible shape. The more exhausted she gets, the more trouble she has sticking her landing after her triple salchow. She falls again and again and I can tell by her face, she’s getting more discouraged by the second. I want to rush down and carry her off the ice, punch her coach in the face, and take her home with me. Rage courses through my veins as I watch but I know I can’t interfere. I don’t even know her, no matter how much I want her.
Finally, her practice ends and she hangs her head as she steps off the ice. I stand and make my way down to the hallway where the dressing rooms are and wait for her to come out. It takes her almost half an hour to shower and get dressed, but somehow, I know she’s worth the wait. When she comes out, she doesn’t notice me at first. She’s looking down at the floor as she walks.
“You all right?” I ask, keeping my voice gentle, even though I’d like to kick the shit out of her coach.
She looks up, surprise crossing her tear-stained face. “What are you doing here?”
“I watched your practice. Your coach is a real prick.”
Shaking her head, she says, “It’s not him. It’s me. I fell apart out there.”
“I thought you were doing fine until he just kept pushing you past your limits.”
Dani starts walking quickly, passing me as she pulls her wool hat over her wet hair. “He knows what he’s doing. He’s had two skaters medal at the last three Winter Games.”
I match her pace as she hurries to the exit. “If he’s so great, why have you been crying?”
Dani stops in her tracks and turns to me. “Can you just…not…” When she turns to keep walking, I grab her arm with my hand and stop her.
“Dani, you can talk to me.”
“I don’t even know you.”
“Let’s change that.” I reach up and touch her cheek with my fingers. Her skin is every bit as soft as I thought it would be.
She closes her eyes for a second, then opens them and says, “If I were your fiancée, I wouldn’t want you treating another woman like this.”
Where did that come from? “If you were my fiancée, I wouldn’t treat another woman like this.”
“Clint, please. Just go back to your underwear model.”
“Are you talking about Ashley?”
“I don’t know her name. I just know you’re engaged.”
“No, I’m not.” I shake my head. “She wanted me to propose and I thought about it, but then her ex bought her a yacht and she went back to him. Where’d you hear that anyway?”
“One of the girls on the team knows someone who knows someone who knows Ashley.”
“Well, that sounds like a reliable source.” I stare down at her, feeling irritated by the gossip mill and a little bit at Danika for believing it. “I have to say, I’m a little insulted that you’d think I’d be hitting on you if I were engaged. Just because I’m a hockey player doesn’t mean I’m an asshole.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have assumed the worst, but to be fair, you’re probably the most cocky guy I’ve ever met and that’s saying something.”
“Cocky, yes. But I’m also loyal.” I smile down at her. “And very single.”
“Listen, Clint, I really can’t do this.”
“Why not?”
She shakes her head, looking adorably irritated. “I’ve already told you. I’m here to win and that doesn’t involve letting some guy distract me.”
“I’m not just some guy. I’m the right guy.” I lower my face to hers and hold my lips an inch from hers. “I’m going to help you win.”
Seven
Danika
I close my eyes just as his lips touch mine. Softly. Slowly. Carefully, as though he’s testing the waters with one toe only to find me warm and inviting. The sounds of voices echoing around the enormous stadium fade into the background as I let myself disappear into him.
He tastes like mint and smells of soap and aftershave. And the feeling of his mouth on mine is pure heaven. I’ve never been kissed like this before. Not one time. This is what Tasha and I would call a movie kiss—you know, the kind that your leg floats up behind you on its own without you even meaning to. I want to sigh and smile and scream all at the same time, but I won’t because then he wouldn’t be kissing me, and I don’t ever want him to stop.
I let my skate bag fall to the floor with a thump, then roam his perfectly sculpted abs and chest with my fingertips. His hands find their way to my hips and he pulls me to him, then spins us so my back is to the wall and his body is pressed against me, his huge, hard erection pressed against my stomach. I have to crane my neck to reach him because he’s so tall, and for one brief moment, I’m wishing I were Brooke. Or at least had a step ladder.
And, oh, my God. What he’s doing with his tongue right now is heating me up like a vat of lip wax on a burner. His hands move to my bottom and he lifts me up and presses me against the wall, my girl parts right against his manhood. A loud whistling sound breaks the spell and our mouths separate. I hear male laughter in the hall and then someone tells us to get a room.
I bury my head in Clint’s neck, hoping that the people approaching won’t see who I am. There are a few of them, they have Swedish accents as they tease Clint, who they obviously know. He laughs and says, “This is my warm up for kicking your asses.”
When they leave, I lift my face and stare at him. The look he gives me burns through my entire body, his eyes saying so much without him saying a word.
I bite my lip and feel my heart racing in my chest. “If I could be kissed like this every day, I’d never need a massage therapist again.”
“Told you I’d help you.” He grins.
“Wow. Just, wow.”
He lowers me to the floor and kisses me again, this time on the forehead, before pulling me in for a big hug. He’s so huge compared to me that I feel like a child again, safe and warm in his muscular arms.
“Let’s go get something to eat. We need to put some meat on those bones.” He picks up my bag and his hockey bag in one hand, slings them over his shoulder, then takes my hand in his other one and leads me out of the building.
I go along before my brain can tell me how stupid this is, and before I know it, we’re on our first date. We end up going into a Korean barbecue restaurant and Clint asks for a booth at the back. The place is almost empty since it’s the middle of the afternoon. The waiter finds a spot for our bags next to the table and we slide into the curved booth and sit so close together that our knees are touching.
After we place our orders, Clint laces his fingers through mine and we both sit and stare at our hands. At the same time that I say, “You’ve got really big hands,” he says, “God, you’ve got tiny hands.”
Then we look at each other and smile like two fools in love. But we can’t be in love. We’ve only just met and we don’t know each other and when he’s not kissing me, he pretty much drives me nuts.
“I’m so glad that underwear model went back to her husband.”
“You and me both.” He smiles and his eyes flick down to my lips. I ache for him to kiss me again but the waiter shows up with our waters and interrupts the moment. When he walks away, Clint stares at me again, then licks his lips. “I want to take you home with me.”
“I shouldn’t. I have to go to the gym to workout after this.”
“I meant once we get back to the States. To my real home.”
My mouth drops and I quickly close it and shake my head. “You can’t mean that. We haven’t even had a real date yet.”
“We’re on one now.” He leans down and gives me a lingering kiss. “Besides, I knew the moment I laid eyes on you on the plane.”
“Oh, sure, you probably say that to all the girls.”
Clint shakes his head, his face so sincere that I can hardly dare to doubt him. “No, I don’t. You’re someone special. Someone I need to know.”
“In the biblical sense?”
“In every sense.”
Eight
Clint
I drop her off at the door to her apartment. We stand in the hall making out for so long that her face is red from my two days’ worth of whiskers and I’m hard as fucking granite by the time she pulls away for the last time.
“I have to get changed and get to the gym.” She sighs and leans her head on my chest for a second.
“Come to my place when you’re done, okay? I’ll make you some supper.”
“You cook?”
“I’m no Gordon Ramsay but I can make a few things.”
She smiles at me and chuckles a little. “What am I doing?”
“You’re falling for Mr. Right.”
“At exactly the wrong time.”
I shake my head. “Not possible. Can’t you feel it? Everything is finally falling into place. Right now. Right here. And it’s going to be perfect.”
She stares up at me, her face full of emotion. Nodding, she says, “Yeah, I think I know what you mean.”
I pull her in for a hug, inhaling the scent of her shampoo. “Now, you go hit the gym. I need to see if I can rustle up some groceries and tidy up my place. You’d be surprised what a mess a couple of guys can make in two days.”
I all but jog down the stairs of her building and out onto the cold sidewalk. There’s a small grocery store on the other side of the Athletes’ Village campus. Light snow begins to fall and I stuff my hands in my coat pockets, finding myself feeling warm and happy in spite of the bleak day. I am in love. For the first time in my entire life, I am madly, completely, crazy in love. And I know it’s insane to feel like this after only a few hours, but I do. I just do and there’s no stopping it.
I pull my phone out of my pocket and text Hunter: I’ll be entertaining a lady this evening. Can you teach me how to make that pasta sauce, then make yourself scarce?
A moment later, I get a message back from him. Uh-oh! Sounds serious.
Me: I hope so.
Hunter: Who the fuck is this and why do you have Clint’s cell phone?
Three hours later, I’ve tidied our little apartment, done all the dishes, learned how to make a Bolognese sauce, made a huge salad, and prepared a pot for the angel hair pasta, which Hunter said not to cook until she gets here. I’ve also showered again and shaved so I won’t give her whisker burn. I stand, staring out the window, watching for her to come hurrying up the sidewalk. The sky is growing dark now, and I actually don’t even like the thought of her walking alone over here. She’s too little to be out in the world without someone to protect her. I consider going over to her place to walk her here, but then realize that she might be coming straight from the gym.
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Hunter, who is getting ready to hit the town with the rest of the team, comes out of his bedroom. He pulls his coat on and shakes his head at me. “I’ve never seen you like this.”
“Like what?” I turn and look out the window.
“Like an old lady. Tidying, cooking. You even shaved your beard for once.”
“I don’t know how many old ladies you know, but most of them don’t have beards.”
Hunter chuckles. “You know what I meant. She must be something for you to go to all this trouble.”
“She is, man.” I glance over my shoulder. “And if you tell anyone, you’re going to wake up tomorrow morning with no eyebrows.”
I don’t have to wait long after Hunter leaves for her to show up. As soon as I see her, I rush downstairs and out the front door of the building to meet her. She looks lovely, her hair is down, curling out from under her wool cap. Her hands are shoved deep into her jacket pockets and she looks chilly. I’m overwhelmed by the need to warm her up, unable to stand seeing her so cold.
“Hi,” I say, trying to sound casual, even though I’m anything but around her.
She looks up and stops walking, clearly surprised that I’m out here waiting for her. Suddenly, I feel like an idiot. How to play it cool, Clint.
Dani smiles and warmth flows through my body. “Hi, yourself. Have you been waiting out here for me?”
“Just happened to see you out the window and figured I’d come down.” I shrug. “In case you forgot which apartment I was in.”
“I remember.”
I take her hand and lead her into the building, my heart pounding in my chest for some stupid reason. I want everything about this evening to be perfect for her. When we get inside the apartment, the warm air, along with the smell of the pasta sauce, greets us.
“Wow. Smells wonderful in here.” She says, pulling off her hat. “Did you really cook?”
“No big deal. It’s just pasta and some salad.” I spin her to me and unbutton her coat, then slide it off her and hang it up on the coatrack. Picking up her hands, I warm them in mine, then lift them to my lips and kiss her cold skin. When I look at her face, she has this expression I can’t quite read. It’s like she’s in shock but she’s happy about it.