Almost Perfect

by Doyle, Dawn

  “And he just changed his mind,” Jonah clicked his fingers, “a fucking one-eighty.” The huge fucking smile across his face left me confused.

  I blinked hard and fast, my eyes shooting down to where my hands had tightened around my hockey stick so tight, that my knuckles were stark white. “Huh?” I asked, my voice strangled while I fought to get out of my goddamn daze.

  Jonah huffed a long breath, then threw his hands up. “Are you serious right now, Maddoc?” he yelled, jabbing his finger toward me. “Coach pulled our asses off the bench for next game!”

  “What the fuck?” I drew out, a tornado building deep inside me, increasing in speed, ready to burst out and punch a motherfucker in the face. Lovingly, of course. “When the fuck did this happen?”

  Jonah raked his hands down his face. “Did you not listen to a goddamn word I said?” he asked, throwing his hands up. “Coach sent the text a half hour ago. Apparently, he’d decided it was in the teams’ best interests to leave it be. He said some shit about Trent retracting his statement, he somehow deserved what you did…” He snorted in disbelief as I bolted up to a sitting position, my beloved stick falling to the side. “I know he did—I was there—but seriously, Mad, what did you say?”

  “I haven’t said a word,” I replied, wondering what the hell happened between me apologizing to coach and him not giving a shit. The first day Kaia had come to training, he’d held me back to discuss the incident. He didn’t give a fuck about Trent this time, he was more interested in how I got the guys to follow my lead in the most talked about win these past few weeks. I’d shot him a blinding smile, batted my lashes, and then blew him a kiss. “Just like that,” I’d said. Yeah, by the bulging vein in his forehead and the thunderous glare he’d shot my way, I didn’t think he was all that happy about it. Or it could’ve been the foaming spittle in the corner of his mouth that gave away his displeasure. Either way, he wasn’t a happy bunny.

  Jonah’s brows furrowed, his head tipping to the side. He crossed his arms over his chest as he thought, wrinkling his green Nike sweatshirt. “What do you think changed his mind?”

  I shrugged, then stood up, grabbing my twig and placing on the rack over my desk, right above the blue and white tattered remains of my very first stick. “I don’t know, man, just concentrate on training harder than ever.” I turned from my display, and leveled him with a serious as fuck gaze. I wasn’t kidding around. “He doesn’t want to fuck up the last game of the season any more than we do, so don’t question how and why, just be glad our asses aren’t warming that fucking bench.”

  God, I have to tell Kaia.

  My heart skipped at that thought, the one that went straight to her at this news.

  “You look weird, are you okay?” Jonah asked, narrowing his eyes as he turned his head a little. “You’re kinda smiling, but kinda look a little out of it.” His face fell, then he deadpanned. “Are you on something?”

  I barked out a laugh. “Fuck no, man, I’m just happy, that’s all.” And in love with the most beautiful and sexiest woman on the fucking planet.

  Hey eyed me skeptically again, his mouth tightening as though holding back a grin. “Would this have something more to do with a certain girl we can’t talk about outside of the team?”

  Fuck, I unleashed my mega watt smile at the mere suggestion of Kaia, unable to control myself whenever she was mentioned. “Maybe.”

  Jonah clapped me on the back, then turned his body toward the door. “I’m glad you finally pulled your head out of your ass, man.” He walked away while I continued to grin like a moron.

  I picked up my phone when it beeped, and saw I’d gotten a text from said woman.

  ‘I’m back from class. Daria and Cash are on their way to the house, so I’m here all alone.’

  My thumbs flew over the screen. ‘Not for long, cupcake. I’ll be there soon to keep you company.’

  ‘You better, donut.’

  ‘I’m on my way.’ I paused, deleting the three words I’d added without even thinking. It was getting harder and harder not to say, and now, type those words to her. I checked the message again before hitting send, grabbed some essential items, then headed out. Okay, I rushed out of the house like my ass was on fire because the woman I was disgustingly in love with required my presence.

  God, I’m so fucking whipped.

  And I couldn’t be happier.

  Kaia

  Not a thing was out of place, every surface clean, all unnecessary crap put away, and my clown nose back in its bottle. As I turned around and around, double and triple checking like I was on a Marie Kondo kick, I relaxed.

  “Perfect,” I whispered to myself after fluffing the last cushion on the couch.

  I walked into my room, and checked my reflection in the mirror. Rosy cheeks, freshly dried straight hair hanging down my back, and a coating of mascara on my lashes. I picked up my clear gloss and swiped a thin layer over my lips, then rubbed them together.

  I turned side to side, checking my outfit. The tight, pink tank Daria had insisted I wear may as well have not existed. It barely covered my chest, the thin spaghetti straps not matching up to the weight up top.

  I smoothed the fabric down to where it sat above my navel, at least six inches higher than the band of my white skirt that sat on my hips, the flowing fabric swirling as I moved back and forth.

  I checked my phone for the time, and my heart lurched when I saw that Maddoc was going to show up within the next fifteen minutes. Butterflies fluttered about in my stomach as though they were fighting to escape. My breaths sped up, my exhales shaky as I attempted to calm my raging nerves. I pressed my trembling hand to the exposed skin of my front, willing the tumultuous waves to calm down enough that I wouldn’t be a hot mess when he showed up.

  Why am I so nervous now?

  There was no reason for it, other than the fact that I hadn’t seen him all day, and this was our second official date. I had food in the oven, drinks in the fridge, and the dining table set up with plates and glasses, and two long white candles in silver holders.

  “Fuck!” I squeaked, my hand flying to my chest when my phone rang, the ringtone that of a FaceTime call. Jeez, my heart was racing fast, too fast, and I had to close my eyes to center myself before I went into full-blown panic mode. I snatched it up from the counter, and cursed when I saw Sean’s name on the front. I answered and waited for the connection.

  “Hey, sis,” Sean said when his face showed up on the screen. “How’s things?” His voice was so calm, it was flat, his usual playfulness absent, especially from his face.

  “Fine,” I replied, smiling wide. “How’s things with you? Is training going okay?”

  He narrowed his eyes. “Good.”

  I narrowed mine. “Doesn’t sound good, Sean, you sound pissed off about something.” And a pissed off Sean, usually followed with a pissed off Daryl. And like always, the carbon copy appeared on the screen. “Hi, Daryl.”

  “Hey, Kaia,” he replied, his tone and expression rivaling Sean’s.

  I threw my hand up. “Okay, guys, I give up. What’s wrong? You call me, sounding and looking pissed, then just give me the ‘hey, Kaia?’” My gut sank, my heart leaping out of my throat. “Is Mom and Dad okay?” I rushed out. “Has something happened?”

  They shook their heads, and Sean answered. “Folks are just fine, Kaia, we wanted to talk to you.”

  I could’ve folded in half with the relief that flooded through me. “You scared me, you idiots.” I ran my hand through my hair, and collected myself. “Okay, shoot. What did you want to talk to me about?”

  “You look nice,” Daryl pointed out, his glare burning into me through the screen. “Going somewhere special?”

  I shook my head and swallowed, hoping to hell that my racing pulse didn’t transfer to my mouth. “Uh, no, I’m just having dinner at home,” I said, inwardly cringing when my voice shook.

  “Oh,” Sean said, then the pair exchanged a glance.

  They were starting
to irritate me. I needed them to say what they had to say before Maddoc walked through the door. “So, now that we’ve established that I’m not going anywhere, are you gonna tell me why you called? You know, considering you should be training.”

  Daryl moved back from the screen, just enough that I could see both their faces. He leaned his elbows on whatever Sean’s phone was propped up on, and clasped his closed fist before resting his mouth against it.

  Sean rested his head on his hand, then a sly smile curled his top lip, the kind that would chill any guy that was facing off against them on the ice. He sucked in a lungful of air through his nose, and slowly released it, making me feel like I was under fire for something, as though I was being punished for bad behavior.

  No, it’s impossible.

  Daryl lifted his head. “Tell us, dear sister, how the hell is Maddoc?”

  “Yeah,” Sean drew out. “We’d love to know all about Maddoc Dass.”

  I froze. All of my senses left me, as well as my ability to breathe. My lungs burned with the lack of oxygen, no air able to get past the enormous boulder lodged in my throat. My grip tightened on my phone, and held onto my stomach as nausea rolled inside me, swirling around and around in time to my increasing heart rate.

  “Look at you, thinking you’re so slick,” Daryl said with a lop-sided smile. “Did you really think you could hide this from us? Kaia, we’ve got eyes and ears all over the fucking place.”

  How the hell did they find out? Maddoc and I had been careful, only letting our guards down behind closed doors. We were going to wait until the end of semester when I could see my brothers face-to-face and tell them under no uncertain circumstances were they to interfere any more. I had it planned, a big speech, the reveal—so to speak—or whatever pathetic crap I’d hoped would get them to understand. I’d written and screwed it up so many times, I’d filled my waste basket, finally deciding it was probably better to just come out with it.

  I trembled, starting from my fingertips, my hands, up my arms, until I was shaking with anger. The rolling in my stomach had gone from wanting to puke, to a raging inferno ready to blow and burn everything down. Not even the scorching droplets sliding down my cheeks tempered the flames roaring in my gut.

  “I’ve had it with you!” I snapped. “You don’t have the right to decide what’s best for me.” I glared at them, my anger flaring up again. “You go anywhere near Maddoc, try to ruin his career, have his contract with the Jets revoked, you’ll never see me again. If you so much as breathe wrong in his direction, that’s it for us.”

  Sean’s hand shot up. “Wait, Kai—”

  “No, you’ve been getting away with this shit for too long, and I can only blame myself.”

  “Let us explain,” Daryl urged, holding his palms together.

  I rubbed my forehead as though attempting to erase the migraine that threatened. “Listen to me, and listen good. Maddoc and I are together, and he just so happens to be a hockey player—a phenomenal one, too. He’s sweet, thoughtful, kind, and I love him.” I gasped, and threw my hand over my mouth after the words had fallen out without meaning to.

  My brothers’ brows shot up to their matching hairlines, their faces looking more identical even to me. “You do?” Sean asked quietly, his voice almost a whisper.

  Daryl’s lips tightened. “You’re deadly serious about this guy?”

  I nodded quickly. “I am. He’s good to me, and he makes me happy.” He did. Maddoc was everything I could ever want. I’d seen it before, over and over, but I’d been too angry that he was out of my reach to believe it. Hell, he’d even gone to the store and bought tampons for me when he knew I needed them. How many guys did that?

  He’d done that for me, even after what he’d said to Willow.

  My heart!

  I hadn’t given it much thought at the time, probably because I’d been an ornery bitch, but now that I thought about it, Maddoc had been there for me more times than I’d deserved.

  “Fine,” Sean grumbled.

  I blinked quickly, taken aback. “Excuse me?”

  “You heard him,” Daryl replied in the same grumpy tone. “We’ll butt out, but we just want to say one thing.”

  I blew out a long breath as though impatient, but my chest was squeezing so hard that I had a hard time keeping my hand away from rubbing the spot over my heart. “Okay, I’m listening.”

  Sean cleared his throat. “We know all about the stunt he pulled last game.”

  “The fight with the Cats was sweet,” Daryl said with a snort. “That kids’ golden.”

  Sean glared at him. “We’re trying to be serious here, dick.”

  “Shit, sorry.” Daryl’s smile slipped.

  Sean pointed at me. “He better be fucking grateful we’re on his side… For now.”

  Their eyes lifted as though something had appeared in front of them, but when their lids scrunched in anger, I looked over my shoulder, and an icy rush ran right through me, down my spine to my feet.

  “Hey, cupcake, the door was open,” Maddoc said, gesturing to the front door. “I knocked, but…” his voice trailed off when he saw my phone. He walked over to me, his expression never wavering.

  “Look who it is,” Daryl drew out, bitterness and warning dripping from every word.

  “Hi,” Maddoc said, and slipped his arm around my waist from behind me. “Great game. Congrats on the win.”

  “See it on TV?” Sean asked.

  “I was there,” Maddoc replied. “My sister’s a fan.”

  Daryl snarled. “Are you?”

  I knew that look. Assessing, judging, figuring out what Maddoc was after.

  “Not particularly,” Maddoc snapped, eyeing my brother in the same way.

  Sean moved closer, a deep, irritated frown tugging his brows “No?”

  Maddoc’s lip curled in one corner, his smile not meeting his eyes. “I don’t like how you treat my girl, so no, I’m not a fan.” He held me closer and pressed his lips to the top of my head.

  Daryl’s stoic expression wavered, then so did Sean’s. After a beat, the pair cracked up laughing. “Good answer,” Daryl said when he took a breath.

  “Yeah, you’ve got a huge pair of balls, Dass.”

  Maddoc didn’t say anything, he just stared at my idiotic, immature brothers.

  “Yeah, but if you hurt her,” Sean said, still guffawing, “you’re fucking dead.” They continued laughing like a pair of psychopaths, then the call ended.

  “What the hell just happened?” I whispered, staring at the blank screen.

  Maddoc turned me in his arms and hooked his finger under my chin, tilting my head back. “I think your brothers gave us their blessing.”

  “Me too.” I looked up at him, searching his face, wondering what he’d heard. “How long were you standing there?” I asked, feeling my hands shaking as my nerves refused to calm the hell down.

  He cupped my face in one hand and ran his thumb across my cheek. “The part where you said I make you happy.” When I sighed, the tightness in my shoulders disappearing, he pressed his lips to mine in a soft kiss. “You look fucking gorgeous.”

  Without looking, I placed my phone on the counter, then ran my hands over the crisp black fabric of his button down shirt, up over his chest, his shoulders, and down his arms to where the sleeves were rolled up his forearms. Sexy as hell.

  “So do you,” I whispered. He kissed me again while slipping his hands to my bare waist, his finger tips brushing over my skin as his tongue slipped inside my mouth. I moaned loudly, and wrapped my arms around his tight middle, and then down to grip his fantastic ass.

  “Frisky, huh?” he asked, but from the large bulge in the front of his jeans, it was obvious he was as turned on as I was.

  “When I’m with you, always.”

  He dipped forward to kiss my cheek, my jaw, then down to my neck. My skin prickled as his lips worked down to my collar bone.

  The sound of the oven timer interrupted us, and Maddoc groaned agains
t my throat. “Damn it,” he breathed, hot air wafting over me, sending goosebumps over my flesh. He pulled away and walked over, grabbing the oven mitts. I watched as he worked effortlessly to take the lasagne out of the oven, then placed it on the cooker top.

  He turned around and headed right back for me, a wicked glint in his eyes, and a sexy as sin smile on his darkened lips. The green of his irises had all but disappeared behind his dilated pupils, the hungry look making me squeeze my thighs together to dampen the ache building there.

  “Maddoc,” I whispered, backing up. “What are you doing?” My nipples pinched tight, and I swallowed as his eyes zeroed in on my chest, his tongue darting over his lips.

  “Baby, there’s only one thing I’m interested in eating right now, and you’re it,” he growled. I sucked in a sharp breath, at the same time my core clenched. I pulled my lower lip between my teeth, and flushed when Maddoc gripped his crotch, moaning as though in pain.

  “Fuck, you make me so damn hard,” he groaned. He reached me in a couple of steps, and stooped, sliding his hands up the back of my legs and under my skirt. His paused, his eyes bulging his lips parting when he reached my ass. “Damn, cupcake, you coulda warned me you weren’t wearing any panties.”

  I flushed hotter. “That wouldn’t have been any fun,” I purred.

  “Oh, but now we’re gonna have so much fun.” He hoisted me up, and I wrapped my legs around his waist and my arms around his shoulders as he carried me to my room. “But first, I’m having my dessert.” He kicked the door closed, then deposited me on my bed. He crawled over me, his hands roaming over every inch as he went. Once he reached my face, he brushed my hair back, and gazed down at me, his eyes soft, shining, and I swear I heard the same angels’ chorus as they sparkled in that impossible way they always did.

  He sucked on my lower lip, then shifted down, peppering kisses down my body, sucking my nipples through my tank top, and down to my navel.