He stared down at her, his gaze so focused, so heated, her skin burned. Then he reached out with one finger and trailed the tip along her flesh. From the line of her neck to her collarbone, down to trace the swell of each breast at the edge of the lacy material. Over and over, back and forth. Her nipples tightened, straining at the lace, waiting for his touch.
Val’s breath was nothing more than shallow gasps of need, of anticipation. She wanted him to touch her, to feel his hands on her, to feel his tongue swirl around the hardened peaks.
“Justin, please.”
His gaze slid from her breasts to her eyes. The desire, the heat, the need in his dark eyes burned her as much as his touch. She lifted her hand, cupped his cheek against her palm and traced his lower lip with her thumb. He turned his head and captured her thumb in his mouth, sucking gently before nipping.
Val gasped, the ache between her legs growing, pooling. She tried to lift her hips, to ease the ache, but Justin shifted, holding her still with the barest squeeze of his legs around hers.
“Justin.”
“Shh. Not yet.” He nipped her thumb one last time then took her hand in his, stretched her arm over her head and held it there. He shifted, just the smallest bit, his mouth lowering to her chest.
Liquid heat filled her as his mouth closed over one nipple, his tongue teasing it through the lace. Val’s breath escaped in a hiss, her back arching as sensation ripped through her.
Justin moved to her other breast, teasing and nipping, always through the lace. He ran the fingers of his free hand along her neck, down her breastbone, the touch gentle, searing. Then his fingers slipped under the lace of her bra, sliding it down, freeing first one breast then the other.
Then God, yes, his mouth was there, his tongue swirling around her nipple, sucking. His teeth closed over the tight peak, nipping gently, licking again, sucking.
Her back arched, her heels digging into the mattress, but she still couldn’t move. Pressure was building, knotting her stomach, coiling tight between her legs.
“Justin.”
He ignored her cry, filled with breathless need, his mouth moving from one breast to the other. She reached down with her free hand, tangled it in his hair, holding him in place as he sucked, licked, teased.
Too much, not enough. Val threw her head back, her eyes closed, her chest rising and falling with each harsh breath, with each gasp. Justin’s hand tightened around hers for a brief second then released it. He trailed his fingers along her arm, cupped her breast and squeezed, his thumb grazing the hard peak of her nipple. Then he moved, sliding down her body, his mouth and tongue trailing fire, dipping into her navel, down even more, teasing the swell of hip.
Justin shifted, his strong legs no longer holding her own together. He grabbed her pants, slid them all the way off, tossed them to side. Her thong followed.
Val pushed to her elbows, her eyes slowly focusing on the man kneeling between her legs. His shirt hung open, revealing the hard planes and dips of his sculpted chest and abs, the thin line of dark blonde hair that started at his navel and disappeared below the waistband of his jeans.
His eyes, so dark, filled with liquid heat as he watched her, his finger caressing the sensitive flesh of her inner thigh. Higher, teasing, slowly moving higher still, so slow—
Val fell back, her hips surging forward as finally, finally he touched her, his finger running along her clit, up and down, again, over and over. He slid his finger inside her, slowly, teasing.
“You are so wet. So ready.”
“Y-yes.” God yes, please. She wanted him, needed him. Needed to feel him inside her, filling her.
“Not yet.”
She heard the words through the haze of need, tried to focus, struggled to make sense of them. Then his mouth closed over, his tongue licking, tasting, stroking. Val sucked in a breath, her back arching, her hands clenching at her sides, fisting the comforter.
Too much. It was too much. She dug her heels into the mattress, groaned when Justin grabbed one leg and placed it over his shoulder, opening her even more. And his mouth, that wonderful talented mouth, drove her to the brink, held her at the edge until she wanted to beg, to scream, to promise whatever he wanted. Anything, as long as he’d send her flying.
His tongue stroked, teased, tasted, holding her on the edge. And then he slid a second finger inside her, his touch slow and deep.
Val exploded, the world around her shattering into bright shards, a rainbow of lights behind her closed lids. She screamed his name, or maybe it was just a moan, she didn’t know, didn’t care.
Nothing existed, nothing except the searing pleasure washing over her, around her, inside her. Over and over, never-ending.
The waves slowed, a little at a time, the shallow gasps of her breathing evening out. And then Justin was there again, a heavy weight between her legs, the tip of his cock teasing her, threatening to send her over the edge once more.
“Val.”
She heard her name, tried to force her eyes open, the lids fluttering as her hands reached for him.
And then he was inside her, stretching her, filling her. She cried his name, wrapped her arms around him, buried her face in the crook of his shoulder as he thrust.
In. Out. Harder. Faster. Over and over. Sensation spiraled, swirled, pulling her under. Pushing away the rest of the world until they were the only two there.
Until the only thing that existed was the man in her arms, filling her, sending her flying.
“Valerie.”
Flesh against flesh, searing. And then the world exploded, crashing around her. Justin’s mouth closed over hers, swallowing her screams as he thrust. Once, twice. Once more, their bodies melded as one, their groans swallowed by the other.
Sensation exploded again, searing, intense. Waves crashed around her, over her, pulling her under, Justin’s soft kisses and murmured words the only anchor she needed.
Val wasn’t sure how much time had passed, didn’t care, not when she was curled against the hard length of Justin’s body, his arm wrapped so protectively around her. She turned her head, dropped a kiss in the middle of his chest, snuggled a little closer. His hand drew lazy circles on her back, trailed down her arm, the touch light and soft against her skin.
She wanted to close her eyes, drift off to sleep, wake up next him in the morning. But she couldn’t, not yet. Val shifted, turning over so she could prop herself on one elbow, and looked down at him.
Her heart stumbled in her chest, took off at a crazy uneven pace. He looked so peaceful. Calm, at ease. His eyes were closed, his thick lashes fanned against his cheek, too long and dark for a man of his size but somehow, just right on him. His mouth was relaxed, one corner tilted just the tiniest bit, like the smile was a permanent part of his expression.
And no matter how small that smile might be, it lifted Val’s spirits to see it. Justin hadn’t smiled in a long time. Too long. To think that maybe, just maybe, she had something to do with it filled her with a warmth she didn’t want to examine to closely.
“Did you need to leave?”
Justin’s body stiffened under hers, his hand stilling on her shoulder. He opened his eyes, their color so dark in the shadows of her room. He didn’t say anything for several long seconds, the silence between them heavy. Val held her breath, waiting.
“Do you want me to?”
“No!” She winced at her quick answer, at the almost desperate tone in her voice. “I just—I meant, I wasn’t sure if you wanted to stay.”
Justin smiled and closed his eyes, his hand moving along her skin again. “There’s no place else I want to be right now.”
“Good.”
Justin chuckled, tightened his arm around her and pulled her down, settling her head in the crook of his shoulder. He dropped a kiss on her temple, his breath warm against her skin. “You should stop thinking so much, get some sleep.”
“I’m not the one who has practice and a game tomorrow.”
“I’ll be fi
ne. Better than I have been in a long time.” His voice was soft, just above a whisper, fading into the quiet surrounding them. Val sighed and snuggled closer, her hand resting in the middle of his chest. His heart beat steady, strong, beneath her palm, hypnotizing her, lulling her into the grayness between slumber and awareness.
She didn’t want to surrender to the grayness. Not yet. There were questions she wanted to ask Justin. Questions she had no business asking but needed the answers to anyway. Questions she should have asked earlier. Not now, not when they lay here together, their bodies entwined in the dark.
Her eyes drifted shut, snapped back open, closed again. She should just give in, let herself drift off—
“What happened with your wife?”
Justin stiffened beside her, tension pouring from him, thick and oppressive. He didn’t move, barely breathed. The steady beat of his heart changed, becoming harder, pounding against the palm of her hand.
Several long minutes went by, minutes where Val cursed herself for speaking. For bringing it up. Why couldn’t she have just stayed quiet? Why did she have to ask? Especially now, of all times. It wasn’t her business, never would be. She took a deep breath and let it out, ready to apologize, to tell Justin to forget she asked. But then he moved, rolling to his side to turn on the light.
For a second, Val thought he was going to leave. That he was going to climb out of bed and get dressed, that she had ruined a perfectly good night by opening her mouth. But Justin merely sat up, leaning against the headboard. He watched her for a few long seconds, his dark eyes filled with shadows. Then he let out a deep sigh and ran one hand through his hair, mussing the dark blonde strands even more.
He bent one leg and drew it to his chest, the sheet hanging dangerously low across his hips. He must have seen her look because he laughed, nothing more than a quick burst of air, and pulled the sheet higher.
“I won’t be able to talk about much of anything if you keep looking at me that way. Especially not about my ex.” He ran a hand through his hair once more, tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling. Then he let out a long sigh, the sound filled with resignation.
“I can’t believe you asked about her. Not now.”
“I’m sorry. It’s none of my business, I shouldn’t have asked.”
“But you did, so there must be a reason you want to know.”
“No. Yes. I mean—” Val snapped her mouth closed. She didn’t know what she meant. No, she shouldn’t have asked. She didn’t even know why the question had been there, niggling at the back of her mind.
No, that was wrong. She did know, had been mulling it over for the last few days, ever since Justin told her his divorce had been finalized.
And she hadn’t even known he was married.
Val sat up, moving to sit beside him so she wouldn’t have to look at him. Maybe that would make it easier for him to talk about it.
Easier for her to listen.
She pulled the sheet up, anchoring it with arms, then grabbed a small throw pillow and hugged it to her chest. Her fingers toyed with the fringe, twisting the fabric first one way then the other. “How long were you married?”
She felt Justin sigh more than heard him. And still he didn’t say anything. Val thought that maybe he wasn’t going to answer after all, that he decided this was an insane conversation to be having.
And it was.
“All total? Legally married? Almost five years. How long did we live together before I moved out? Six months, maybe a little longer.” Val opened her mouth, ready to ask him why they hadn’t divorced sooner. But Justin kept talking, his words flat, void of any emotion. “We were legally separated for three years before the divorce was finalized.”
She turned her head just the slightest bit to the side, watching him from the corner of her eye without being obvious. “Why so long?”
“Why?” He laughed, the sound short and bitter. “Because she thought that by dragging it out, she could get around the prenup she signed before we married.”
“Oh.” She wanted to tell him that was a good thing, that at least he’d had a prenup. But it sounded like a weird thing to say, so she just kept her mouth shut. About that, at least.
“Val, that whole fiasco—it’s not something I like to talk about. Not many people even know I was married, not even most of the guys on the team. I don’t like admitting what an idiot I was. The marriage should have never happened in the first place.”
“Then why the drinking? You said the other day, when I asked, that you started drinking because of the divorce.”
“Fuck.” The word was barely more than an agonized whisper and Val had the impression Justin didn’t even realize he said it. He scrubbed his hands over his face, the faint sound of stubble rasping against his palms filling the silence. He dragged his hands down, across his jaw, then let them drop in his lap. He took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling, a muscle twitching in his clenched jaw.
Val hugged the pillow tighter and waited, wondering if he was going to say anything.
“Not because of the divorce. Shit.” He took another deep breath and let it out. “Because the divorce was just another sign of me being a fuck-up. More proof that nothing I do is ever right.”
“What? Why would you even say that? Sometimes things don’t work out. That doesn’t mean you’re a fuck-up, that nothing you do is ever right.”
“Yeah, tell that to my old man.”
“Your old man? You mean, your father?”
“Yeah.” Justin sighed again, shook his head and finally looked over at her. Shadows filled his eyes, shadows of regret, of pain. “This is—listen, I really don’t feel like going any deeper than I already have, Val. There’s some messed up shit I still need to deal with, shit nobody else needs to know about, okay?”
Val didn’t know what to say. She could tell he had said more than he wanted, that he opened himself more than he had expected to. Part of her wanted to tell him things would be okay, that he was a fighter. But what right did she have to tell him that? She didn’t know what he was going through, didn’t really know what else he had to deal with, didn’t know what monsters lurked in the closet of his past. She couldn’t make empty reassurances, couldn’t give him empty words, no matter how well-meant.
Val shifted to her knees and leaned over him, placing her hand in the center of his chest. Her eyes captured his, holding his gaze, her face so close she could see the flecks of gold mixed in the brown of his eyes.
“I’m sorry.”
Justin watched her for several long seconds, the pounding of his heart ticking away the time. Then he reached up and cupped her cheek, his thumb caressing her lower lip, the touch feather light and so achingly tender.
“I know.”
“Did you want to leave now that I messed everything up?”
He smiled, just the tiniest bit, and shook his head. “No.”
“Good.” She paused, her eyes searching his. “I’m here if you need me.”
“I know.” His eyes searched hers, his gaze going deeper than she wanted. He cupped her chin in his hand and leaned forward, his lips brushing softly against hers. Once, twice. Once more.
Justin leaned over and turned out the light, plunging the room into darkness. Then he took her in his arms, moving so they were once again laying down, her head tucked against his chest. His lips were warm against her temple, his breath a soft whisper against her skin.
“Get some sleep, Val. I’m not going anywhere.”
Chapter Eleven
Justin dropped to the bench, not bothering to hide his groan. He didn’t have to, not when at least a dozen other groans echoed in the locker room around him. He closed his eyes, took a few deep breaths, then leaned over to unlace his skates.
“You’re looking better.” The comment was said quietly, nothing more than just that: a comment. Justin gave Mat a nod of acknowledgement and kept unlacing his skates.
There were things he could say or comments he could make but h
e didn’t. Why bother, when they would be nothing but excuses? Excuses for his drinking, excuses for his behavior, excuses for his shitty play and excuses for letting the team down.
Justin was done with excuses.
He tossed the skates to the side then pulled the practice jersey over his head, tossing that to the side as well. The first round of playoffs started tomorrow and they had home-ice advantage.
And Justin knew exactly how lucky he was to be playing, instead of being a permanent healthy scratch. Or worse, being up north in the minors. No, it wouldn’t have been easy to pull off, not with his contract and everything else, but there was no doubt in his mind that Sonny would have made the move happen somehow.
It was that threat that served as a wake-up call. But that wasn’t the only reason he’d started getting his act together. It had one hell of a lot more to do with a pair of wide hazel eyes than it did the coach’s steely ones.
Justin still didn’t know what the hell had happened, how he’d ended up with Val, how they ended up being together. One week they had been casual friends. The next week, it was like they had been together for a long time. And not in a bad way, not even close.
Val made him smile, made him feel like he belonged, like he had a place to go home to. Which was absolute crazy talk, because he hadn’t really felt lost. Yeah, maybe he had let things get to him too much, had hit the booze a bit too much. But he hadn’t realized he was missing anything until Val.
Justin didn’t want to look into that too much, didn’t want to question it. He was playing like he used to play, reading the game and making the plays. His ice time had increased and there was a good chance he’d be on the second line starting tomorrow night.
He hoped.
He reached down and rapped his knuckles against the bench three times, just in case.
“What was that for?”
“What?”
Delay of Game (The Baltimore Banners Book 6) Page 9