She clears her throat. “Erik, this is my friend Kelly.”
“Kelly, nice to meet you,” I say, turning to offer her my hand for a handshake.
Kelly’s eyes are wide as she shakes my hand and gives Allie a big smile.
“I have to go to the bathroom,” Kelly says, grabbing her purse and sliding off her barstool.
I drop my ass on her seat as soon as she leaves. Allie grabs her martini and takes a long drink.
“I miss you,” I say, turning to face her.
Allie runs her fingertips across her pink lips, clearing away a couple stray drops of her drink.
“I miss you, too,” she says softly.
“You do?”
Her eyes soften. “Yes…very much.”
I put my hand on her knee and she stiffens. I pull it away.
“No,” she says quickly. “That was…it made me shiver, but…it wasn’t bad.”
I gently rest my hand back on her knee and she smiles, putting her hand on top of mine.
“You’ve done an amazing job with the kids,” I tell her, trying to make my words as sober as possible. I know what I want to say, but I want to make sure she knows I mean it. “I’m proud of you. And I’m sorry I didn’t get where you were coming from back then. I’m sorry…about a lot of things.”
“Me too.” She leans in close to me. “That day we fought…I said horrible things to you. Things I didn’t mean. And I’m sorry I hurt you.”
She smells so fucking good, her light, sweet scent washing over me like an ocean breeze.
“I never stopped thinking about you,” I confess, my tone so low I’m not sure she can hear me.
Allie inhales sharply and when I meet her eyes, they’re shining with tears.
“Me either,” she says, squeezing my hand. “I wish…I wish things were…”
“I know. Me too.” We simply stare at each other, mesmerized, for a long moment and I say, “But we’re both here right now.”
Kelly returns, breaking the spell between us. I slide off of her stool, gesturing for her to sit down.
“Hey, no, don’t get up.” She gives Allie an apologetic look. “I’m not feeling so great. I think I’m gonna use my key to let myself into your house and rest on your couch. I probably won’t be feeling well enough to leave there until late tomorrow morning. So…” She turns to me. “It was nice to meet you, Erik.”
She leaves then, and Allie watches her go, her cheeks blazing and her mouth hanging open.
“Well, that’s…” She laughs. “I don’t even know what to say.”
I give her thigh a gentle squeeze. “Hey, I don’t mean to be…I guess what I’m trying to ask is—”
She cuts me off. “Yes.”
“Yeah?” I look at her hopefully.
She picks up her drink and throws the rest of her martini back, then grins at me and says, “Yes. Definitely yes. Let’s go.”
I link my fingers through hers and together we walk over to the table where the guys are sitting. I lean down to speak in Anton’s ear.
“Hey, can you and Mia cover me at my aunt’s house until six tomorrow morning?”
“Yep, no problem.”
“And can I have the key to your cabin?”
He fishes around in his pocket, pulls it out and hands it to me.
“Sorry to cut out early,” I say. “It’s just—”
“Get the hell out of here,” he says. “Happy birthday, man.”
I clap him on the shoulder. “Thanks.”
I look up from talking to Anton and realize that Alexei is introducing himself to Allie. “Allie, right? I’m Alexei, Easy’s best friend. It’s nice to finally meet you. You know, he talks about you all—”
“Ignore him,” I tell Allie. “He’s only got one ball.”
The guys are yelling out goodbyes, birthday wishes and several other lewd comments. I dismiss them all with a wave, grab Allie’s hand once more, and lead her out of the bar.
I’d love nothing more than to take her someplace better than Marnie’s Holiday Inns, but my options in Greentree Falls are limited. Kelly is very graciously staying with the kids at Allie’s house, and I sure as hell can’t take her to my mom’s or Aunt Jo’s.
As long as it’s me and her, though, I don’t care where we go.
Me and her. I never thought I’d have that again, and if all I get is one night, I’m going to make sure we both enjoy every last second of it.
Twelve
Allie
When we step out into the warm, summer evening air, Erik looks around the parking lot with a frustrated expression.
“I rode with Jonah; I just realized I don’t even have a car here.”
“I wouldn’t let you drive it if you did,” I say, laughing. “You’re kinda drunk.”
He turns to me and grins the happiest, cheesiest smile, before suddenly sweeping me into his arms and lowering his lips to mine. It’s a surprise but totally welcome. My entire body warms and my stomach flutters, dormant feelings rising to the surface once again.
Holding me close in his strong arms, he kisses me softly, his lips familiar but also somewhat new. I press myself against his chest and give in as he deepens our kiss, pulling me tight.
We’re both breathless when I pull back from the kiss, smiling and absolutely stunned.
“I miss you telling me what to do,” he mumbles, still a little tipsy. He cups my cheek and brushes his thumb over my skin.
“And you doing the opposite?” I close my eyes, savoring the feel of his touch.
“Yeah, that too.”
“We were so good together,” I whisper.
“The best.”
Opening my eyes, I say, “We can call an Uber. It’ll probably be John Hawkins, though.”
“Our old gym teacher?”
“Yeah. He’s Greentree Falls’s main Uber driver these days.”
I take out my phone and open the app. “I’d take a ride from anyone right now. Fucking Big Bird could pull up and I’d jump in the car.”
“Where are we even going?” I laugh, thinking this is completely crazy, but it just feels so right. I may have had too much to drink and seeing Erik might have gotten to me, but right now, all I want is to feel.
“We’re going to Marnie’s.”
That makes me laugh even harder. “Remember your senior year when we tried to get one of her cabins for homecoming and she called your mom and told her?”
“She was so pissed.” He laughs at the memory. “She chased me around the house with a wooden spoon and I thought she might actually try to beat my ass even though I was eighteen and twice her size. I kept telling her to calm down because I was worried she was going to give herself a heart attack.”
“She’s a good mom,” I say. “She asks me about the kids all the time when we see each other at Fox Foods.”
“She’s always liked you a lot.”
“Even after everything that happened?”
His expression is tender as he looks down at me. “She understood, Allie. Better than I did back then.”
A minivan pulls up beside us—our Uber. And the driver does end up being our old gym teacher, now bald and a little heavier, but still full of energy.
“Erik Zimmerman?” he asks as we get into the vehicle.
“Hey, Mr. Hawkins, how’s it going?”
“It’s John, please.” He breaks into a huge grin. “Never thought I’d be picking you up tonight.”
“It’s good to see you,” Erik says, taking my hand.
“You, too.” He glances at me in his rearview mirror. “And Allie Douglas. How are you?”
“I’m good.”
“Everyone buckled up?” he asks, checking our destination on his GPS.
We both confirm our seatbelts are on, and I feel like a teenager taking the requisite drivers ed course with Mr. Hawkins all over again. He talks to Erik about hockey the whole drive to Marnie’s, reliving the championship the Blaze apparently won a couple years ago.
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��ve never followed hockey. Every time I entertained the idea of watching one of his games on TV, I’ve chickened out because I figured it would be too hard.
Erik holds my hand the whole ride to Marnie’s, which is just outside Greentree Falls city limits.
“You kids be safe,” Mr. Hawkins says as he parks the car.
We assure him we will as we get out, and as he’s pulling away, Erik gives me an amused look.
“Don’t you feel about sixteen years old right now?” he asks me.
“Totally.”
He takes a cabin key out of his pocket, trying to read the keychain in the dim light of Marnie’s parking lot.
“Number six,” he says, keeping my hand in his as he leads the way.
The path to our cabin is covered in mulch. The earthy smell of it is one of my favorite things. I realize as Erik and I walk hand in hand by moonlight that I haven’t felt this mix of giddy excitement and total contentment since we were together.
“I really miss you,” I blurt out. “I know I said that earlier, but I meant it.”
“I really miss you, too.” He squeezes my hand, and looks down at me, his eyes slowly moving over my face to my hair and back again. “You’ve only gotten more beautiful.”
I snort out a laugh. “That’s nice of you to say.”
“Hey,” he says, making sure to catch my eyes. “I mean it.”
“Thanks.”
He points to a wood sign ahead. “There’s a turkey on that one; I think that’s it.”
I squeeze his hand, excited, and he gives me a quick grin before reaching down to pick me up. I squeal as he lifts me off my feet and jogs the rest of the way to cabin number six.
“I get to carry you over the threshold after all,” he says as he climbs the stairs.
Setting me back on my feet, he says, “Gotta get the damn door unlocked first.”
“I feel as excited as I did before our first time,” I admit.
“Me too.”
He unlocks the door and picks me up again, turning sideways to carry me into the cabin. I fumble for the light switch on the wall, finally hitting it.
“Holy shit,” Erik says as we lay eyes on the Thanksgiving cabin for the first time.
There are turkeys everywhere in the main single room—the rugs, the pictures on the walls, the kitchen towels. Even the bedspread has a huge cartoon turkey printed on it and is covered by an assortment of earth-toned pillows.
“I may gobble when I come,” I say, giggling as Erik sets me on my feet.
We dissolve into laughter as he closes and locks the door, but as soon as he turns to face me and our eyes lock, nothing feels funny anymore.
I reach forward to grab his shirt, and pull it up and over his head, getting my first look at the chest I’ve been dying to see.
The muscles carved into his ebony skin are bigger and lined deeper than before. His shoulders are wider, his muscles more cut.
My lips part as I reach out, my fingertips connecting with his smooth skin. Every ridge and valley I touch is firm. By the time I get down to the waistband of his jeans, he’s way more than firm beneath it.
Just as I move to unbutton his jeans, he picks me up by the waist, pulling me against him as he walks toward the bed. His mouth descends on mine, hot and demanding.
I wrap my legs around him, both of us groaning as our bodies try to get closer.
He lowers me to the bed and leans back, forcing me to relax my grip as he slowly removes my shirt. His eyes darken as he takes in my full C-cups, covered in a black bra.
“They’re bigger than before,” I say, warm with embarrassment. “Everything is.”
“I know,” he says, his voice a little hoarse as he takes in the added curves of my breasts and hips. “And I love it.”
“You do?”
He slides the straps of my bra down my shoulders and cups one breast in his big hand, lowering his lips to it. I gasp as his tongue flicks over my nipple, my body aching for him to touch me everywhere.
“You’re the only one,” I say, excitement and nervousness causing me to ramble. “I mean, not the only one ever; I was with two other guys after you, but…in so many ways, you’re the only one. You know?”
He looks at me, his lips turned up slightly in amusement. “You’re the same for me, Allie.”
He returns to my breasts then, kissing and licking and nipping in ways that make my back arch off the bed. I moan with pleasure, my hands in his hair.
“You’re the only man who’s ever made me come,” I admit, looking up at the wood ceiling of the cabin.
He stops, his breath warm on my breast as my statement hangs in the air.
“Really?”
“Yes.” I cover my face with my hands, wishing I’d stayed quiet.
Damn drinks. And damn hot pro hockey pleasure giver.
“Babe.” He says it softly, and hearing him call me that again after ten years brings tears to my eyes. I can’t stop them from trailing down the corners of my eyes.
“Just forget I told you,” I say, sitting up as much as I can and reaching around to unhook my bra. “Please resume what you were doing.”
“Anything you want.” He sits up and unbuttons the waist of my jeans. “Do you have any idea what these legs of yours do to me?”
I breathe out as he slides them down, my voice shaky as I say, “Tell me.”
“They make me want to slide my hand inside your panties. Hear you moan as I rub your soaking wet clit. I’ll only do that for a few seconds, though. Then you’ll moan even louder when I take these panties all the way off and spank that sexy ass.”
“Yes,” I say, pleading for it.
“Then I want you to bend over and spread your legs so I can fuck you from behind.” He slides the crotch of my panties aside as he speaks, his fingertips stroking the slit of my opening and making me gasp. “You miss having my cock inside you, don’t you?”
I go for the waistband of his jeans, desperate for him. He takes my wrists and pins them above my head, though, one of his legs covering both of mine at the ankles so I can’t move.
God, I’ve missed this. Erik is the sweetest, most easygoing person ever—outside the bedroom. In bed, we learned we both liked it best when he took charge. I’m hot and achy all over as I wait for the next, delicious thing he’s going to do or say.
“You’re gonna suck my cock dry later,” he says, his gaze dark on mine. “Aren’t you?”
I nod eagerly. “Yes.”
“You’re gonna swallow every drop, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“And you’re gonna spread these sexy legs and get fucked hard.”
I moan and squirm, trying to break free, but his hold on my wrists is firm. All my life, I’ve had to be in control. Take care of others. Make the best decisions. Being in bed with Erik is the only time I’ve ever fully let go. He’s the only one I’ve ever trusted enough to surrender to.
“But first,” he says softly, “I’ve got something else in mind.”
He uses his free hand to tug my panties down and off around my ankles and trails kisses down my stomach until he reaches my inner thighs.
When he dips the tip of his tongue inside me, my back curves up off the bed and I cry out. It’s been so long. Neither of the other two men I dated after Erik even attempted oral, and I never asked them to. I think I knew it wouldn’t compare to what I’d already had from him.
All my inhibitions are forgotten as he licks and sucks at my core. He remembers exactly what I love, pushing his fingers inside me just as I’m about to come in order to push me over the edge hard.
I shatter into a thousand blissful pieces. Erik doesn’t stop, and the satisfaction goes on and on, leaving me breathless and boneless as the last wave subsides.
“I’m still on the pill,” I say, relaxing my legs.
His grin is sexy as he asks, “You want to wait a few minutes?”
“I’ve waited ten years; I think that’s enough.” I spread my thighs wider and
he takes in the view.
He gets off the bed and unbuttons his jeans, sliding them to the floor along with his boxer briefs and stepping out of them.
I stare, trying not to remember a time when he was all mine. Every last inch of him.
He slowly kisses his way back up my body and I wrap my arms around him as his lips trail between my breasts to my neck.
“This isn’t just sex for me,” he says in my ear. “You’ve always been more.”
“I know.”
I kiss the dark scruff on his jawline and he nibbles on my ear lobe the way I always loved.
“You sure this is okay?” he asks.
I furrow my brow. “It’s okay with me. Are you having doubts?”
“Never.”
He pushes himself inside me then and I let out a long moan. Nothing has ever felt better than Erik. My body recognizes his and my mind couldn’t forget if I tried.
Erik takes his time, going slowly to help me relax and take more of him. By the time we hit the rhythm we learned long ago, I’m panting and sweating, building toward another climax.
“I still love you,” I say softly, my eyes on his.
The words just slipped out—I didn’t even mean to admit that truth. For a moment I hold my breath, wondering if I just made an epic mistake, but his expression softens.
“I still love you too, Allie. Always have and always will.”
He kisses me then, and while I’m grateful for this moment, I’m also mourning the last ten years we lost.
But here and now, he’s mine again. I turn off the past and immerse myself in the present.
Soon, he’s thrusting his hips hard enough to rock the headboard against the wall. I know he’s ready to come but he’s holding back, waiting for me.
As soon as I get there, I tell him I’m coming, he groans hard and buries himself in me completely, his whole body tensing before he shudders and exhales hard.
“Damn,” he says, kissing me and then rolling over and pulling me into his arms.
“It was always amazing, but for me that was better,” I admit as I curl myself into his chest.
“For me, too.” He kisses my forehead.
Easy: A Chicago Blaze Hockey Romance Page 8