One-Timer (The Baltimore Banners Book 9)

by Lisa B. Kamps

  “Seriously, Harland. Look.” Dillon tried to nod in Coach’s direction without being obvious. “You really think Coach isn’t watching you? Are you trying to get cut?”

  “I said—” Harland clenched his jaw and leaned in closer, anger flashing in his eyes. “Leave me. The fuck. Alone.” He ripped his arm from Dillon’s grasp and stormed across the lobby, his strides long and angry.

  Dillon hesitated, watching him walk away, frowning. Yeah, something was definitely going on with Harland, because it hadn’t just been anger flashing in his eyes: he’d seen regret and pain as well. But from what? It didn’t make any sense—

  “Frayser. Get a move on. Now.” Coach’s voice boomed across the now-deserted lobby. Dillon nodded then readjusted his grip on the bag and hurried out the door.

  He couldn’t worry about Harland, not when the man wouldn’t worry about himself.

  Chapter Twenty

  Maggie brought her hand to her mouth, trying to cover the jaw-cracking yawn. It probably didn’t work, considering how loud it was. Well, that—and this was about the fourth time she had yawned in the last thirty minutes. Dillon seemed almost as distracted as she was, but even he had to notice that.

  And yeah, he noticed. He looked up from his spot on the sac and raised his brows in silent question. She brushed him off, knowing if she said anything, they’d both get sidetracked by conversation—and neither one of them could afford it. He had some serious catching up to do since he hadn’t had much time to do any studying during his road games this past week. And she had a stack of reports to organize. And a lesson plan for another tutoring job she had just taken on. Not to mention her own work, since classes had officially started.

  Yeah, no wonder she was tired already.

  She pushed the glasses up her nose and blinked, trying to focus on the blurry formulas scrawled across the page. A few more blinks and she was finally starting to get back into the zone, blocking everything else out as she focused on her work.

  And then Dillon’s phone chirped, the sound loud in the silence surrounding them. Maggie jumped, startled enough that the pencil flew from her hand. She muttered to herself then bent down to pick it up, watching Dillon from the corner of her eye as she did.

  He was reading something on his phone, his brows lowered in a sharp frown. His lips moved, forming a few profanities that she had no trouble understanding, even if he didn’t say them out loud. She straightened in the chair then sent it spinning with a quick push of her toe.

  “Everything okay?”

  “Hm?” Dillon looked up, the frown still on his face, a vacant look in his eyes. He blinked, shrugged, then tossed the phone next to him on the overstuffed sac. “Yeah. Maybe. I’m not sure.”

  “What is it?”

  He opened his mouth like he was going to say something then closed it with a snap and shook his head. “Nothing. I don’t think.”

  “Oh.” She kept watching him, wondering if he’d maybe change his mind and elaborate. It was obviously something, for him to look so worried. But he didn’t say anything, just bowed his head and went back to studying.

  And she should do the exact same thing, instead of sitting there, watching him. But she enjoyed watching him, especially when he sprawled out in the sac like he belonged there. It hadn’t taken him long to claim the sac as his own. And okay, maybe he didn’t really have much choice, considering she didn’t have a whole lot of furniture in the tiny studio, but still…

  And okay, she was being way too…sentimental. Dramatic. Dreamy. Something. She was probably just overreacting. Or over-compensating, since she hadn’t seen him since last week. And maybe she was even pouting, just a little.

  Because it had been a week since they’d seen each other and here they were, sitting miles apart. Studying.

  No. Dillon was studying. She was sitting there daydreaming.

  Maggie rolled her eyes and swiveled back to the desk, her gaze dropping to the top paper. Okay. Time to get back to work. If Dillon could do it, so could she—

  His phone chirped again, twice in a row. Maggie sighed and glanced over her shoulder, ready to ask him if he could put the thing on vibrate or something. No way would she be able to get back into her zone if his phone kept going off.

  “Fuck. No fucking way. Shit.” Dillon’s voice rose with each word. He jumped to his feet and started pacing, one hand running through his hair as his other typed something into the phone.

  “Everything okay?”

  “Shit. No.”

  “What happened?”

  His phone chirped again. And again. Three more times. He kept swearing to himself, his pacing becoming more clipped with each message he read. He finally stopped and dropped into the sac chair, like the bones supporting him had turned to limp noodles and just gave out. He lowered his head, running his hand through his hair one more time.

  “Fuck.”

  Okay, now she was worried. Maggie pushed away from the desk and made her way over to him, honestly afraid something catastrophic had happened. Her heart pounded against her ribs, making it hard for her to take a deep breath. She dropped to her knees next to him and reached for his hand, squeezing his fingers tight.

  “What happened? Is everyone okay? Was there an accident?” Please, no. She didn’t want to think the worst but her mind was spinning with possibilities, each of them worse than the one before. The look on Dillon’s face didn’t help: lost, bewildered, stunned. Like he still couldn’t process whatever news he’d just received. Like he was still in denial.

  “It’s Harland.”

  Harland? Maggie frowned as she tried to place the name. A split second later, a face pushed to the front of her mind: young, cocky. Hair longer in the front, brushed low over his forehead, hanging in a pair of light brown eyes that seemed to dare life to throw whatever it had at him.

  She hadn’t been impressed with him, either time she’d met him. Not because he had been too cocky and sure of himself, coming across like the typical arrogant jock she was so used to. At least, not only because of that.

  It was because he was hiding something behind that façade. And maybe it wasn’t a façade, maybe it really was his true personality, but he was still hiding something. That was why she had been uncomfortable around him: she didn’t like people who hid things, because she couldn’t trust them.

  But that didn’t mean he deserved to have something bad happen to him.

  She tightened her fingers around Dillon’s and took a deep breath, preparing herself for the worst. “What happened? Was he in an accident? Is he hurt?”

  “No. Worse.”

  Worse than hurt? Oh, no. No wonder Dillon looked so stunned. What must he be feeling? Maggie leaned forward, running her free hand up his arm, resting it on his shoulder. “Is he…what happened?”

  Dillon blinked, his eyes finally focusing on her, like he was only just now aware of her kneeling by his side. “He got sent down.”

  “He got—” Maggie’s mouth snapped closed and she frowned. Sent down? What did that mean? She didn’t know, but she didn’t think it meant he had been in an accident or something. She dropped her hand from his shoulder and sat back on her heels. “What does ‘sent down’ mean?”

  “Just that. He’s not playing for the Banners. Coach just cut him and sent him back to the Bombers.”

  “The Bombers? I’m not following you.”

  “They’re our minor-league team. Up in York.”

  “New York?”

  “No. York. In Pennsylvania.”

  “Oh.” Maggie still didn’t understand. “So, your friend isn’t hurt?”

  “No. I mean…well, probably. If I know Harland, he’s fucking furious. Dammit. I told him to get his head on straight. I fucking told him. We all did. I knew this was going to happen. I knew it.”

  Maggie pulled her hand from his and stood up. “So he wasn’t in an accident or anything. He’s not hurt.”

  “No. Why would you think that?”

  “Because you were acting
like something catastrophic had happened. I thought it was going to be bad.” Maggie moved back to the desk and picked up a fresh pencil, ready to get back to work.

  “It is bad.”

  Maggie bit back a sigh then placed the pencil on the desk. “Okay, I give up. Why is it bad?”

  “Because he got sent back down to the minors, that’s why.”

  “Does that mean he’s not a hockey player anymore?”

  “No, he’ll still be playing hockey.”

  “Then what’s the big deal?”

  “He won’t be playing in the pros.” Dillon leaned forward, a crease furrowing his brow as he stared at her. He didn’t show it but she could pick up on his impatience. And even though he didn’t say as much, she knew he didn’t understand why she wasn’t placing as much importance on it as he was.

  “Don’t you get it? Playing in the pros is what everyone aims for. It’s a big deal, and not many people get the chance. And Harland just threw that chance away.”

  “Okay, maybe. But he’ll still be playing hockey, right? So no big deal. There are more important things in life than sports.” She didn’t mean for the words to come out so sharp, so biting. The tone surprised even her and she looked away, trying to think of something to say to soften her comment.

  She heard footsteps behind her, a little hesitant. A pair of hands settled on her shoulders, warm and strong. Her head tilted to the side as Dillon’s mouth traced tiny kisses along her neck.

  “You’re right. There are more important things. Like saying hello the right way. I never did that tonight, did I?”

  “That’s, uh—” Her eyes dropped shut as he nipped the corded flesh at the base of her neck. What had she been saying? Oh, yeah. “That’s not exactly…what I meant.”

  “No? Then how about this?” He ran his hands down her arms, down past the hem of her sweater. His fingers dipped inside the waistband of her leggings, immediately finding the hot dampness between her legs.

  Her breath left her in a rush and her hips tilted up, seeking more of his touch. His chuckle was nothing more than a warm breath of air against her ear as he bent down and picked her up from the chair, cradling her against his chest.

  His mouth descended on hers as he carried her the short distance to the bed. The breath hitched in her chest as he lowered her to the bed, following her down.

  “I, uh, was talking about studying—”

  “I love studying with you.”

  “That’s, uh, not what I meant.”

  She felt him grin against her mouth, felt a tickle of cool air against her bare skin as he dragged the leggings down past her thighs, pulling them off. Her hands reached for him, yanking at the button of his jeans, tugging at the zipper.

  She was going to say something, the words were there…about something. But their clothes disappeared and the only thing that mattered was the feel of Dillon’s hot flesh against hers. The sound of his harsh breathing as his mouth explored every inch of her body.

  The feel of his heavy fullness entering her, filling her, completing her.

  Words didn’t matter, not right now. Not when she had Dillon.

  Not when he made her body come to life, not when he sent her soaring.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  The tension of the last month was finally starting to ease. At least, the tension among the team. Harland’s departure hadn’t been a big surprise to anyone, not really. That didn’t mean it didn’t have an effect on the team dynamics. It did.

  Another player had been called up to replace Harland: Kostya Stepichev, a twenty-year old Russian from Moscow who had been drafted this past summer and was now spending as much time learning English as he was on the ice. The language barrier aside, Kossy was a great player who promised to get even better. At least he understood enough English to get by during practice. And what he didn’t understand, their defenseman, Nicolai Petrovich, helped translate.

  Coach had been making changes in the lines, testing out different combinations to see what worked. Not just what worked, but who worked better together. Dillon was on the second line now, along with JP Larocque and Ethan Kincaid. The three of them had chemistry together, sensing where the others would be most of the time. Dillon was enjoying it and secretly hoped Coach would keep their line intact.

  Corbin seemed to have found his groove as their back-up goalie, too. Probably a good thing, since the latest rumors going around said that Alec may not be back at all and was thinking of retiring. Dillon had no idea what to make of that and didn’t want to think too much about it. Alec had stopped by practice the other day but didn’t say anything. Dillon knew a lot of the guys were taking that as a good sign.

  So yeah, the tension was finally starting to ease—for the team. His personal life was a different matter.

  Maggie was quieter now whenever he showed up, and she looked exhausted all the time. He got a glimpse of her schedule and understood why: she was busy. All the time. With her course work, her additional classes, her recent internship at some research lab. And her tutoring. She had two more students now besides him.

  And he got the feeling she was more impressed with their progress than she was with his. Part of him couldn’t blame her. Even he had to admit he hadn’t been spending as much time getting caught up as he needed to. At the beginning of the year, when he first started, he thought it would be a piece of cake. Buckle-down for some hard-core studying, take two exams, and that would be it.

  But now it was March, and the hard-core studying had flown out the window. He’d been able to take the first exam and barely passed. Now, in addition to the studying, he had to find time to get in some mandatory lab work as well. Why the hell had he thought it would be so easy?

  Because he hadn’t been thinking, that was why.

  It didn’t help that he hardly saw Maggie, either. Between her insane schedule and his, they were lucky to see each other in person once a week—if that. It sure had been one hell of a lot easier at the beginning of the year, in that tiny lull right after the holidays.

  But he was seeing her tonight. Actually seeing her for something besides studying. She had invited him to a party at some dorm or something, he couldn’t remember the details. He just knew he was meeting her there, and that he was dragging Ethan with him to introduce him to Cindy. They might hit it off, they might not. Dillon didn’t care one way or the other. He just hoped Maggie didn’t want to spend the entire night at the party, because he was really hoping for some alone time.

  Some serious alone time. Some long overdue alone time.

  He pulled up in front of Ethan’s apartment building, not even bothering to put the car in Park as Ethan climbed in. Then he was driving off, trying not to speed in his hurry to get there.

  “So where are we going again?”

  “Some party. A friend of mine invited me.”

  “And you’re dragging me along, why?”

  “Just for company.” Dillon readjusted his grip on the steering wheel and tossed a quick glance at Ethan. “And, uh, maybe to meet Maggie’s girlfriend.”

  “What?” Ethan turned in the seat, not bothering to hide his surprise. “Oh, come one. Are you trying to set me up? For real?”

  “No, not a set-up. Just, you know, like a meet. That’s all.”

  “Shit. Really? I wish to hell you would have told me this before. I never would have agreed to come.”

  “Yeah, that’s why I didn’t tell you.” Dillon glanced in both directions, looking for traffic, then merged onto the highway heading north. “Listen, it’s no big deal. Seriously. No expectations. Besides, it’s a college party. You know how those things are.”

  “No I don’t. Not a clue.”

  “Really? You’re trying to tell me that you never went to a party when you were in college?”

  “Never went to college, man.”

  “No shit. Really?”

  “Yeah, really. Thought about it but—” Ethan shrugged, dismissing the whole idea. “How about you?”

&nbs
p; “College? Yeah. One course away from getting my degree.”

  “One course? That sucks. What were you going for?”

  “A Bachelors in Environmental Science.”

  “In what?”

  “Environmental Science. You know, conservation, go green. Shit like that.”

  “Yeah? One course away, huh? That totally sucks. I don’t know, I think I’d have to go back just to finish.”

  “I am.” And fuck, he hadn’t meant for that to come out. Dillon held his breath, waiting for the sarcastic remarks and teasing. There were none. Ethan just tossed him a glance then shrugged again.

  “That’s cool. When are you going?”

  “I’m, uh, actually doing it now. I’ve got some lab work to do and then my final in a few weeks and that’s it.”

  “No shit.” Ethan nodded. “Pretty cool. No idea how you’re doing it, though, not with as crazy as things get.”

  “Tell me about it. But Maggie’s helping me so that’s all good.”

  “Maggie. That’s the girl who’s having the party?”

  “The one who invited us, yeah. She’s my girlfriend.”

  “And she’s into all this environmental stuff?”

  “No. She’s actually going for her Masters. In chemistry. That’s the course I’m taking: chemistry. I hated that shit in school.”

  “So she’s helping you? Pretty convenient.”

  “Yeah, if you say so.” Dillon hit the off-ramp for the road leading to the campus. Now all he had to do was fine the right building. He glanced down at the GPS then took a right.

  “So how’d you guys meet? I mean, that’s pretty awesome that you got a girlfriend who can help you with your work and all.”

  “She’s, uh, actually my tutor.” Dillon made a series of turns, following the GPS prompts. He glanced over and noticed Ethan staring at him, his mouth slightly open. “What?”