Fearless King

by Hughes, Maya

“I have a lab session at eight in the morning. I’m free after that—we can grab lunch.”

  “Liv…” My throat worked up and down.

  “I know. Just don’t say anything else. I’ll see you on Monday, and I’ll be watching your games. Get some rest. Night, Ford.” She rushed out the words like she knew exactly what was going through my mind: that the doubts would creep in once the orgasmic high wore off. She ended the call.

  “Night, Liv.”

  * * *

  Three excruciating days later, the town car from the airport might as well have been going backward. Her moans had gotten under my skin so deep I didn’t think I’d ever be able to erase them. They were the soundtrack to every time I wrapped my hand around my cock. Her erratic breaths and sweet moans were an inescapable part of me now. I’d never be able to erase the memory, and I didn’t want to.

  My hands opened and closed in an involuntary rhythm. The tension rolled off me in waves, and I let out a deep breath. Maybe it was best I didn’t see her yet. I needed to calm the hell down.

  “Dude, you need to get laid.”

  My gaze snapped to Declan, sitting beside me in the back of the car. Usually, this was a chance to decompress without the rest of the team around, but now it made me want to scream.

  “You don’t need to worry about my bedroom habits.”

  “If you come out of the net like that again, Coach is going to ream you.”

  “I saw an opening and I took it.” I shrugged. Yes, coming out of the net the way I had could have been a fatal error, but I’d seen my chance to end the game and I’d taken it.

  “Don’t give him too much shit. He’s the highest-scoring goalie in the league after that little bit of mischief.” Heath turned around from the front seat. “And I’ve never been prouder.” He wiped a fake tear away from his eye. It was exactly the type of shit he loved.

  “It’s just a little out of character.” Declan stared at me with suspicion swimming in his eyes.

  “Maybe I’m trying to go for it a little more, trying to stop hiding in the net.”

  “You definitely can’t hide now—they’ve been replaying those goals on SportsCenter nonstop. Welcome to the limelight, buddy.” Emmett nudged me with his elbow.

  I stared out the window at the slowly thawing city whipping by. Liv’s words had echoed in my head throughout the games. I’ll be watching. That had been my focus, not trying to make the highlight reels. Liv’s special tone chirped from my phone. Tilting it away from the guys, I checked my screen.

  Liv: Great game! I’ve never seen you play like that before. The clips have been running on TV nonstop.

  Looked like I’d managed to do both.

  Liv: Do you want to get something to eat?

  That was probably safest. Somewhere crowded, brightly lit, where I wouldn’t think of laying her out on the nearest surface and burying my face between her thighs. We needed a place where the only trouble I’d get myself into was the mental ass kicking going on in my head. The weariness from travel wore off and tamped down the itch in my hands to run my fingers through her hair and get her back into my bed again. This time, she’d have a different type of hangover.

  17

  Ford

  Liv: Do you want to get something to eat?

  A simple invitation carried so much more weight now. Normally, I’d crash at my place until practice in a few days, but her message sent a surge of energy rushing through me.

  We hadn’t talked much after the call, only a few texts and chatting through the online Scrabble game we played. Her last play had been F-I-N-G-E-R-S. It seemed we’d both had that night constantly running through our minds. Words like moan, suck, touch, and kissing kept popping up when there were far harder and higher-scoring words available.

  She came down the stairs of her apartment building, her radiant smile lighting up everything around her. Pulling on her gloves, she ducked under my arm as I held the door open for her. The leftover snow from the weekend had turned into sickly brown piles and dotted the street and sidewalk. Her cheeks were flushed, and I wanted to tuck her against my chest to warm her up.

  “How’d your test go?”

  “As well as can be expected when you’re bleary-eyed after ninety hours of studying. That’s why I needed to get out of the house.” Her hands were shoved deep in her pockets. “Can we walk?”

  “Sure.” I sent the car away and turned back to her. “Where are we going to eat?”

  She turned to me and smiled, the kind of smile where you shared a secret with someone else. This time it just so happened that secret was that I knew what she sounded like when she came and I couldn’t wait to hear it again. The smile was infectious, and I couldn’t hold mine back.

  “You’re going to love it.” She looped her arm through mine, and I filled her in on the latest behind-the-scenes news from the road as we walked.

  Late-night tacos might as well have been heroin based on how packed the place was. The small taco shop had ten tables crammed into a space that could barely hold five. Someone stood up just as we walked in the door, so I snagged us a table.

  The fluorescent lights above us washed the whole place out, except for Liv. She was like a glowing beacon in the crowded sea of people in need of a spicy meat fix. I smiled at her little dance from the counter to our table with our food. She’d nearly knocked her chair over when they called her number. Her entire body got in on the giddiness of tacos, and she wasn’t even drunk like half the people who stumbled in and ordered.

  Pushing back the paper lining in the plastic basket holding the tacos, she looked like she’d found the Holy Grail. “I swear, I eat at least ten of these a week.” Lovingly picking one up, she caressed the side of the shell and stared at it like it was the Second Coming.

  “Are you sure all you do is eat them? ’Cause right now it looks like I should leave you two alone for some private time.” The breeze battled with the overheated interior of the restaurant whenever someone opened the door. Liv kept her coat on, and I unbuttoned mine.

  A few heads had turned when we’d walked in, and someone stopped by the table and asked for an autograph. Being a sports figure, I was used to it, and Liv didn’t seem to mind. Growing up with Colm as her brother, she’d been in the center of all this for a long time.

  I hated when they stared, though, the people a couple tables over not even being discreet when snapping a few pictures. This was another reason I hated going out. Behind the mask on the ice, I could pretend they weren’t looking at me. The driving energy of the game kept thoughts about how many sets of eyeballs were on me every second out on the ice. But up close and personal, once the mask came off, I couldn’t deny it. I was a bug on a slide under the city’s collective microscope.

  “You’ll stop talking crap when you taste these, and then you’ll be sorry.” She let out her best evil laugh.

  I leaned back in my chair, content to watch her enjoy her meal.

  “I ordered these for you. They’re the best tacos you’ve ever had.”

  “Not possible. I’ve traveled all over the country, and I’ve had some pretty damn good tacos.” My dinner from earlier had barely digested, but her love of them was infectious.

  “I’m telling you.” She held it out to me.

  I eyed the taco. “Looks pretty basic.” I pushed back the tortilla and checked out the contents: shredded meat, pico, some lettuce. No cheese? I’d suffer through it. My attempts at keeping my skepticism didn’t seem to be working.

  “Give it a chance,” Liv sing-songed beside me.

  Outside the large plate-glass windows, people stared. I felt like a zoo animal on display. Flashes bounced off the surface, and I hoped it ruined their shots. At least Liv’s back was to the windows; she didn’t need to get roped into the circus of the hockey world any more than she already was.

  “Ford Kenneth Atherton…” She shoved it toward my face. “Eat it. Now!”

  I leaned forward, elbows on the table. She’d used my full name. My cheeks w
eren’t cooperating with the scowl I was trying to pull off. Damn cheek muscles selling me out. Squeezing my lips, I gave a serious look my best shot.

  I took it from her hands and had my first bite. I froze as the flavors invaded my mouth and pillaged my taste buds. My eyes widened.

  “See, I told you.” With her free hand, she picked up another from the basket and bit into it. “Great, right?”

  The smirk on her face told the whole story.

  Grabbing a napkin, I mumbled under my breath, “Not bad.”

  She cupped her hand over her ear. “Sorry, what was that? I didn’t hear you.”

  Dropping my napkin, I leaned across the table, cupping my hands around my mouth. “I said, not bad.”

  A dab of spicy salsa hung out on her chin. Reaching over, I wiped away the spot on her face with my thumb, cupping her cheek with my hand. Her eyes got wide, and I snatched my hand back. There were too many people there. Heads were turning outside, more camera phones being pulled out. Our season had been hotter than usual, which meant more attention on us. And my goal had been making the rounds so even more people seemed to be recognizing me. No good deed goes unpunished, right?

  Her lips curved up, and she crumpled her napkin, then dropped it into her empty food basket. “Why can’t someone come up with a taco shell that doesn’t disintegrate on the trip home? I’d take a hundred and stash them in the freezer.”

  “Maybe that’s why. You’d never make it out of your apartment, and they’d have to use a crane to lift you out.”

  She threw her head back and laughed. “You’re not wrong.” Slipping her gloves on, she scooted her chair away from the table. One second she was there, and the next she was completely engulfed by the giant black coat on the back of a guy throwing himself on her.

  I jumped up out of my seat and grabbed the back of his jacket. What the hell?

  “Liv! Is that my dance extraordinaire torturer?” His slurred words spilled out.

  I jerked him back off Liv, holding him by the collar, and he stared back at me, glassy-eyed.

  “Ford, it’s okay. I know him. He takes my classes.” She peeled my death grip off the back of his coat. “Hey, Tyler, looks like you’ve had some fun tonight.” Getting up from her seat, she helped him stand straight.

  “A little. Not too crazy.” He swayed, and she kept her hands on him.

  It shouldn’t have bothered me. There was no reason for it to bother me, but damned if I didn’t want her hands off him.

  “You’re on a date?” He wrapped his arms around her. “Lucky man! Dude, you should see how flexible she is! Or maybe you know already.”

  My head jerked back. Was this guy talking about her flexibility inside or outside of the classroom? And just how flexible was she? The barrage of images flooded my brain.

  “She’s the best dance teacher out there. I couldn’t do this before.” He tried to lift his leg above his head and toppled over, nearly taking Liv with him.

  I grabbed his arm and steadied him, putting myself between them. He was one of her students. Some of the tension in my neck eased up.

  “Are you on a date?” His words were a slurred mess.

  Her gaze darted to mine and back to his. “No, not a date. Just out with a friend.” A zap straight to the central nervous system—and ego. I pressed my lips together to keep from saying anything I’d regret.

  Colm would have killed me if he knew the things running through my head right then: staking my claim, taking her back home with me, seeing exactly how flexible she was.

  She gave him the patronizing dealing-politely-with-a-drunk-person smile. “Who are you here with? Are your friends looking for you?” Standing on her tiptoes, she peered around.

  “They’re over there somewhere. I saw you and had to come say hi.” He swung his arm around, and I ducked under his wildly flailing limb.

  “Let’s get you back to them.” She nodded toward him, and I helped her get her incredibly drunk and flexibility-knowledgeable friend’s order from the counter; then we escorted him back to his group of friends.

  Liv shivered beside me when we stepped outside. Camera phone flashes went off, lighting up the front of the restaurant. I shoved my hands into my pockets to resist wrapping my arm around her and tugging her in close to my side. More people crowded around.

  “Are you Ford Atherton?”

  “Are you the goalie?”

  “Great game!”

  “You guys are kicking ass this season.”

  “Is that your girlfriend?” someone shouted.

  I shook my head. “No, not my girlfriend.” Glancing over my shoulder at Liv, my stomach knotted at the unreadable expression on her face. Had I just fucked up? She wasn’t my girlfriend, and she’d just told Tyler we weren’t on a date. We didn’t even know what the hell we were, and the last thing we needed while we tried to figure it out was our pictures plastered all over social media.

  The few people standing beside us became a crowd at whiplash speed. Selfies turned into signing anything the drunk people had handy. As is usually the case, these people had had too much to drink and got overly fixated on something, and that something was me.

  People who’d probably never watched hockey in their lives jockeyed for position to get a picture with me in case I was somebody who could raise their social media profile. Nothing drew drunk people in like more drunk people. They were like a bunch of ants swarming all over a piece of candy, and I was the unwrapped lollipop sitting on the sidewalk.

  Liv stepped back and let the inebriated mob take hold of me. Flashes dotted my vision long after the pictures had been taken. I hadn’t been this blinded since my last trip to the eye doctor.

  Taking one more picture, I waved to the ring of people surrounding me and offered up free tacos. Darting inside, I dropped a wad of bills on the counter, told them the deal, and barely made it out past the rushing tide of people swarming for free platters of tacos.

  Liv watched it all, staying mostly clear of the mayhem.

  I popped outside through the mob and joined her on the sidewalk.

  “Sorry, I didn’t think about what would happen if people recognized you.” She nibbled on her lower lip.

  “Don’t worry about it. That’s not how things usually go for me.”

  “You’ve had one of the best seasons in recent memory. Plus they’ve played your goals a lot while you were gone, and not just on the sports segments but on the regular news too.”

  I dragged my fingers through my hair. “Perfect.” Not exactly fading into the background.

  “We should probably go. You don’t want more people to figure out you’re here. You are a celebrity, after all.” She held out her phone. Social media posts came pouring in and tagged the account the team had required me to make. I only had two posts, a picture of a hockey puck and my jersey, but the tag notifications pinged Liv’s phone continuously.

  “Let’s go.” I put my hand on her shoulder and ducked my head until we turned the corner.

  “That back there doesn’t happen to you often?” She thumbed her finger toward the crowd.

  I shook my head. “Not even a little bit. The bar by my place is super quiet. No one ever goes in there. I tend to be a homebody beyond that.”

  “Maybe that’s why Colm is always adamant about having family dinners at his place. I never thought about it before.” Her eyebrows furrowed, and she kept her hands in her pockets.

  The mention of his name should have thrown a cold bucket of water over my head, but it didn’t. We stepped up to the entrance of her apartment. Come back to my place danced on the tip of my tongue. I opened my mouth, and my phone buzzed in my pocket at the same time hers went off. She reached for hers, and I took mine out.

  “It’s Grant,” we said at the same time. I responded to his text, and she answered his call.

  “Yes, that was me tagged in a few posts. Nothing, we ran into each other. Just grabbing some food. It wasn’t a date. Someone in the crowd shouted that out.”

&n
bsp; Grant: You’re out with Liv.

  It wasn’t a question. Of course he’d be following me on social media. With the jackals circling with their phones, it was a miracle I could take a piss without the world knowing.

  Me: Ran into her

  Grant: Did she say anything about the date I invited her on?

  He’d asked her out again? I squeezed my eyes closed. Why couldn’t this just have been a high school crush that blew over? My gaze cut to Liv. It was the same kind I’d sworn hers would be for me, and look where we were now. How did I stop him from getting hurt?

  She ended the call and tapped her phone against her palm. Turning to me, her lips disappeared into her mouth as she looked like she was attempting to swallow them.

  “He asked me out again.” Her neck strained, and her eyes filled with that same lost worry that crept into mine when I thought about him around her. Dragging her hands through her hair, sending golden wisps up into the air, she looked to me like I’d have the answers. “I…I don’t know what to do.”

  “I know.” I ran the backs of my fingers along my chin.

  “This is all my fault. I didn’t think, after all this time, he still saw me like that.”

  I closed the gap between us and ran my fingers along her cheek. “How could he not? You’re impossible to forget, impossible to stop thinking about.”

  Her fingers tightened around the front of my coat. “I feel the same way about you.”

  Our eyes locked, and that low undercurrent I’d been fighting sliced through all the buzzing distractions around us as it all faded away.

  Her breath fanned across my face, warming it from the winter chill. I slid my hand along the back of her neck. Her soft strands ran through my fingers. She licked her lips, inviting me to take a sample. Wet, full, beautiful. Her eyelashes fluttered, and she stared deep into my eyes.

  Dipping my head, I captured her lips. She parted them, and I savored the taste of her. Pressing her against the wall behind her, I bracketed her between my arms, the cold, rough brick a contrast against her warm, sweet softness.