by Kat Mizera
“Your ex was a lucky girl,” she murmured. “She has no idea what she lost, does she?”
It was mostly a rhetorical question, but Miikka answered anyway.
“She didn’t like to live in the U.S.”
“Did you ask her to move here with you?”
“Yes. When I leave Nova Scotia, I ask her. She say not yet; we were just nineteen. But then it never happened.”
“Were you together a long time?”
“Many years, from grade school years. From the age of ten, though of course not with sex at that age.”
“That’s kind of sweet, that you were together so long.”
“We were young, so when I left to go to QMJHL we decided not to be…” He frowned. “Not just with one person… What’s that word?”
“Exclusive?” Charli supplied. “Like you were dating other people?”
“Yes, we date other people but in summer, when I go home, we are together. Last year, she decide no more. She wants to get married, have babies.”
“You don’t want that?” she asked, her tone much gentler now.
“I’m only twenty-four. Hockey keeps me busy. No time for children yet. In a few years, sure, but not now.”
“And she wouldn’t wait?” Charli asked, meeting his eyes.
He shook his head. “She’s already married to someone else.”
“Wow.”
“They get married in January. My sister tell me.” He seemed sad, and she hated she’d asked him something that made him unhappy.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to make you talk about something painful. I was just teasing.”
“Is okay. If I loved her, I would have married her years ago. But now I see I didn’t. Not really.” He stroked her back. “What about you? You have boyfriend in school?”
“Yes.” She swallowed, suddenly uncomfortable. Kendra was the only person in her life currently who knew anything about her past. She didn’t like to talk about it. Hell, she didn’t even like thinking about it, but sometimes it was hard not to.
“You cannot tell me?”
“We were together for three years, all through high school, but he was a year older. He left after graduation and joined the military. He never came back.”
“No letters, no calls, nothing?”
“Nope.”
“Did you break up before he left?”
“No. In fact, he said we’d get married as soon as I turned eighteen. But that wasn’t until the following summer, and by then…” Her voice trailed off and she sat up. “You want some water?”
“Charli.” His voice was quiet but insistent.
“What?” She didn’t move, but she didn’t look at him either.
“What else? Why don’t you want to tell me?”
“It was a long time ago.” She got up. “I’m going to get us some water.”
She went downstairs and padded into the kitchen. She rested her head against the refrigerator, squeezing her eyes shut. It shouldn’t have been so hard to talk about after all this time. Especially not to Miikka, who was so kind and easy to talk to in general, language notwithstanding. She just hated thinking about it. About Roy. About how he’d abandoned her and their unborn child. How her parents had reacted. Everything that happened after that.
“Charli.” Miikka’s arms closed around her.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to—”
“It’s okay. You don’t have to talk about it.” He kissed her shoulder. “Get water and let’s go back to bed.”
He waited as she grabbed two bottles out of the fridge, and then he held out his hand to her. She slipped hers into it gratefully, letting him guide her back up the stairs. They drank some water and then put the bottles on the nightstand. She curled back against him, content to let him stroke her hair.
He didn’t say anything, didn’t ask her anything else. He was just there for her, letting her sort through her thoughts. Her feelings. The past.
“You can tell me anything,” he said after a while. “But not if it hurts you. I’ll wait until you’re ready.”
He was being so sweet, but she didn’t know if she would ever be ready to talk about it. Not to him or anyone else.
15
As expected, Miikka didn’t see Charli again until after the next game, which they lost. He was tired and disappointed as they settled in her bed, his mind not even on sex for the first time since he’d met her. The team was struggling, which was nothing new for them, but it frustrated him. He’d played on championship teams as a youth and in the juniors, but since playing professionally here in Alaska, they lost more often than not. They had a lot of talent on the team, but there were issues with coaching, travel and a dozen other things that seemed to muck up the chemistry.
It was frustrating for Miikka, and while he loved his teammates, in the back of his mind, he wondered about asking for a trade. It felt like a bit of a betrayal even thinking about it, but each subsequent season left him more and more dissatisfied. He was at the height of his career right now, both in age and performance, but the results were disappointing.
“I’m sorry it was a rough night,” Charli said to him as they lay in the darkness.
“I’m sorry I’m in bad mood,” he responded, reaching for her.
“It’s okay. I wish I could say something to make you feel better, but I don’t think there’s anything to say.”
“You lose in hockey. There are eighty-two games in season. We cannot win them all, but this is different. The playoffs are so close and this happens every year. We come close and then everything is bad. I can’t explain it.”
“What’s Coach Saunders going to do? Is she coming back next season?”
“I don’t know. She has new baby, but we need her and I think she needs us. Mr. Caldwell will probably take care of baby so she can work.”
“He’s a billionaire—I’m sure they have nannies.”
“Yes.”
They were quiet for a while. This time Charli was the one letting him gather his thoughts in whatever way he needed to. When she’d needed time the other night, he hadn’t pushed her, so she appeared to be offering him the same respect. It was nice to be with someone who gave him those kinds of options.
“I’m tired,” he said after a moment. “Can I just hold you? I need to sleep. But I promise to make it up to you in the morning.”
“You don’t owe me sex,” she said softly, turning to nestle into his shoulder. “Sleep. Rest. You have a trip coming up. I’ll be right here.” She draped an arm around his waist, found her favorite spot in the hollow of his shoulder and they drifted off to sleep.
When she woke in the morning, he was between her legs, his mouth doing those wonderful things it could do, and she nearly came the moment she opened her eyes.
“That was fast,” he chuckled. “I can fuck you now?”
“Oh, yes. Please.” She sighed happily as he sheathed himself with a condom and slid into her. He was by far the best lover she’d ever had, and though she didn’t have many to compare him to, Miikka did things to her no one else ever had and she loved it. She’d had zero experience receiving oral sex before Miikka and now she wanted him to do it all the time.
Of course, having him inside of her was her favorite thing. He seemed to know exactly what to do to make her come, and the way he kissed her… Her thoughts went on the fritz again because she was already gearing up for another orgasm. Everything he did sent her over the edge relatively quickly, to the point that it was a little embarrassing. Luckily, he always got off when she did, so they seemed to be in tune to each other.
“Miikka!” Her second orgasm caught her by surprise and her body jerked against his. She dug her fingernails into his ass, pulling him deeper, opening wider for him, each thrust making the waves roll over each other.
“Voi vittu kun sä oot kuuma!” Fuck, you’re so hot. He slammed into her a few more times before finally resting on top of her, their bodies sweaty. “Murusen
i, you make me so happy.”
“You make me happy too.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. “I’m going to miss you.”
“I have homework for you while I’m gone,” he whispered, his voice laced with humor.
“Homework?”
“Yes.” He lifted his head so he could look into her eyes. “I make flash cards for you. Except these will have sex words. In Finnish. You will learn by the time I come back.”
“Hey, that’s not fair,” she protested with a chuckle. “Only five days? How many words do I have to learn?”
“As many as possible. There will be test when I return.”
She frowned. “I don’t give you tests.”
He shrugged. “This is not my problem.” He playfully tweaked her nose before sliding out of bed and out of reach as she swatted at him.
“Just wait, mister… You’re in trouble now!” she called after him.
He laughed.
The team had just landed in Seattle when Miikka’s phone rang and his sister’s name flashed on the screen. He was pleasantly surprised and answered with a grin.
“Tara! How are you?” It was nice to speak in Finnish, too.
“Hi.” His sister sounded a little down.
“What’s wrong?” he asked automatically, following his teammates to the waiting bus.
“Can I come back?” she asked. “I can’t stand it here right now. I need to get away.”
“Of course. Any time. I’ll buy your ticket as soon as I get to the hotel. When do you want to come?”
“Today,” she mumbled.
“I’m on a road trip,” he said. “I won’t be back in Anchorage for five more days, but I’ll book within the week, okay?”
“Thanks.”
“You want to talk?”
“I quit my job,” she blurted out.
“Another job?” he asked quietly. “Why, Tara? I thought you loved working at the shop? Selling clothes and fashion?”
“The owner was always yelling. Nothing I did was right. If we had a good sales day, it was because of the other girl working. If we had a bad sales day, it was because of me. If any of my friends came into the shop, even when they bought things, she would say she wasn’t paying me to socialize, even though the others hang out with their friends constantly. The owner didn’t like me and made me miserable every day. I couldn’t take it anymore.”
“Okay. Come to Anchorage and you can stay with me until I leave for home.”
“If you don’t get to the playoffs, will you leave right away?”
Miikka hadn’t thought about that at all and he paused, thinking of Charli. They’d just started to get serious, so the last thing he wanted was to leave her for the summer. He loved going home, though, spending time with his family and friends. Charli had more than another month of school left, which meant even if he asked her to join him for part of the summer, he had to wait.
“I’ve met someone,” he said finally. “I don’t know what I’m going to do because I don’t want to leave her. Not this soon.”
“Is it serious?” Tara asked with interest. “Who is she?”
“Her name is Char-lot. She’s a schoolteacher and has been tutoring me in English. She’s lovely. A little shy, but very sweet, very pretty. You’ll like her.”
“I can’t wait to meet her! Does Mama know?”
“Not yet. Please don’t say anything. I’ll tell her next time I talk to her, but I’d like to enjoy this new relationship for a little bit before the whole family starts demanding to meet her.”
“If she’s a teacher, she has time off in the summer, right? You could bring her home.”
“Yes, but I also want to spend time with her here, where we can relax and learn to be a couple. She’s had some bad experiences in the past and I want to show her I’m serious, that I’m not going anywhere.”
“I hope she deserves you,” she said softly. “You’re a good guy, and I don’t say that just because you’re my brother. Any girl would be lucky to have you. Now go buy me a ticket so I can get there to meet her!”
He chuckled. “All right, I’m on it.”
He disconnected and smiled.
“Was that Tara?” Donovan asked. He was sitting next to him and though Miikka had been speaking Finnish, he’d greeted her by name, so Donovan had probably heard him.
“Yes.” Miikka grinned. “She wants to come for the end of the season, maybe stay through the playoffs.”
“Excellent.” Donovan paused. “She still single?” He’d met Tara when she’d been visiting in Anchorage back in January.
Miikka shrugged. “I don’t know, but she didn’t say anything about a boyfriend.” He squinted. “Why?”
“Just curious. She’s nice. We hung out one night when she was here and I would’ve asked her out if she’d stayed longer.” He paused. “Would you have a problem with that?”
Miikka shook his head. “She’s a grown woman. I ask only that you’re good to her.”
“I’m a nice guy,” Donovan said with a smile. “And it’s just a date. I don’t even know that she’d say yes.”
Miikka smiled. “She will. I think she liked you too. She said you were very nice.”
“I told you.” He grinned as the bus pulled to a stop in front of the hotel. “You ready to do this?”
Miikka nodded. “Yes.”
The Blizzard lost two out of three games on the road trip, so they came back with virtually no chance of making the playoffs. If they lost again, the season was essentially over and they were done for the year. Charli’s heart broke a little with each loss because she knew how hard it was for Miikka. He’d sounded dejected on the phone each night, which wasn’t like him at all. He was always happy, upbeat and joking around, but last night he’d sounded downright morose and she wished she had something she could say that would cheer him up.
The team had just landed, though, so he was on his way over and while she would follow his cues for what he might need from her, she had a bottle of wine chilling in the refrigerator and some leftovers she could warm up for him if he was hungry. She wondered if he liked his shoulders rubbed and would ask him once they settled in for the night. She wanted to spoil him a little, after the rough few days he’d had, the way he always spoiled her.
16
Miikka hadn’t realized just how hungry he was until the smell from the kitchen hit his nostrils. He’d changed clothes and come back downstairs just as Charli turned to hand him a plate.
“Let’s eat in the living room,” she said. “That way you can relax.”
“Thank you.”
“Bottle of water?” she asked as he took the plate from her.
“Yes. Please.” He watched her grab one out of the refrigerator, as well as a bottle of wine and a wine glass, and grinned at her. “I’ll have wine after I eat.”
“Okay.” She grabbed a second wine glass and they settled on the couch. “Do you want to talk about the road trip?” she asked after a moment.
He wrinkled his nose. “Not really. It’s…frustrating. I’m tired of losing but there’s nothing I can do so I just focus on one game at a time.”
“Well, I’m here to distract you in any way I can.” She leaned against him and rested her head on his bicep.
“Food and wine?” he asked.
“If that works. We can also watch TV or talk or whatever.”
“I think maybe ‘whatever’ is a good option.”
She laughed. “What type of whatever did you have in mind?”
“Have you been studying your Finnish words?”
“Some, yes.”
He smiled. “Perhaps it’s time for your test.”
“I still think this is unfair since you’ve had nearly ten years to learn English and I’ve had like, a week… But fine. I’m up for a challenge.”
“What if we raise stakes?” He’d heard the term when playing poker with the guys, so he hoped he was using it right.
“You want to raise the
stakes?” She lifted her head and eyed him. “Like how?”
“We play like strip poker. If you make mistake, you take off piece of clothing.”
“And what about you?”
“While I eat, you can make cards with harder words in English. Things we have not yet studied…”
“Hmmm… I think somehow I’m going to get shafted with this, but I’m game.” She got up and went into the kitchen, coming back with paper and a pen. “However, since we’re raising the stakes, your turns will be harder. Whatever word you get, you have to use in a sentence. And it can’t be hockey-related.”
He chuckled. “Okay. I am interested to test your Finnish.”
“All the words you gave me were dirty or sexy.”
“I know.” His eyes met hers and she laughed.
He finished eating quickly and took his plate to the kitchen. He rinsed the dish and utensils, along with the frying pan she’d used, and put them all in the dishwasher. When he walked back into the living room, he laughed when he saw Charli. She’d changed into sweatpants and added a light jacket and a scarf to her wardrobe.
He playfully wagged his finger at her. “This is cheating.”
“You can put more clothes on,” she said with a teasing shrug.
He looked around and grabbed a big floppy hat she sometimes wore when she worked in the yard.
“That’s incredibly sexy,” she deadpanned.
“Yes?” He struck a pose, putting a hand on his hip and jutting it out awkwardly.
She put down the cards. “Okay, I’m ready. Wine?”
“Yes.” She poured him a glass and he sat across from her.
“Who goes first?”
“You.” He took the cards he’d made for her and scanned them. “Okay. First word. Tell me how to say dick in Finnish.”
She met his gaze without flinching. “Mulkku.”