Off Limits

by Vanessa Winters

  “Hello!” I yell out.

  Listening as my voice echoes off, well, something.

  “Ready?” Ian asks.

  “Yes, for the love of God.”

  He snickers. “And… here we go.”

  He removes my blindfold and I have to shield my eyes. There is a lot of light in this—well, wherever we are. I squeeze my eyes shut as I clear my throat, trying not to let the smell of cinnamon apples overwhelm me. But finally, as my eyes adjust, my arm slowly lowers.

  “Oh. My. God.”

  Ian wraps his arm around my waist. “So, what do you think?”

  I furrow my brow. “Where the hell are we?”

  “I believe this particular complex is called Weathered Heights.”

  “Like the book?”

  “That’s ‘Wuthering Heights’.”

  I pause. “I’m not going to ask how I know that.”

  “It’s a good story, whenever you’re ready for it. Though, you don’t like it when I mention my exes.”

  I shoot him a look. “No. I don’t.”

  He winks down at me. “What do you think of the place?”

  I gaze back out into the room. “So, we’re in an apartment complex right now.”

  “Condominium, actually.”

  “Oh, my apologies.”

  “I’ll note them.”

  I shake my head. “This is a big place, Ian.”

  “Mhm. Twenty-two hundred square feet with three bedrooms, three bathrooms, an office space, sunroom, a fully-stocked kitchen, and a privacy balcony with a hot tub.”

  I quirk an eyebrow. “Let me guess. This is your new place.”

  “Yes, technically.”

  I smile. “Congratulations. I know you’ve been looking for a new place for a while now.”

  “It can be our new place, if you want it to be.”

  I blink. “Come again?”

  He takes my hands in his. “Look, Libby. I know things between us kind of started off… weird.”

  “That’s one way to put it.”

  “But, I wouldn’t change it for the world. These past nine months and change with you have been unbelievable. And while I’ve never had a way with words, I do have a way with gestures.”

  “What are you talking about? I mean, what—I don’t—”

  He takes a step closer to me. “I just signed the paperwork yesterday to purchase this place. It’s mine, outright. That won’t change. But, it’s obvious that this is a lot of space for just one person. And the two of us practically live at my place right now anyway.”

  “I mean, your closet is half-full of my clothes.”

  “And you now have your own shower caddy in my bathroom.”

  “I’m pretty sure I’ve taken over your freezer, too.”

  He snickers. “You eat way too much ice cream.”

  “Takes calories to keep up the curves you like to explore every night.”

  He growls softly. “Don’t I know it.”

  My cheeks heat with a flush. “Are you sure about this?”

  He brings my hands to his lips to kiss. “I’m sure about you. Right now, it’s the only thing I’m sure about. I don’t know where my job with my father’s company will take me. I don’t know what will happen once he hands everything to me. I don’t know what will happen tomorrow, or next week, or next year. What I do know is that I want you there with me. I want you at my side. Eventually, I want to make you mine. Fully. I want to make an honest woman out of you.”

  “And to do that, you want me to move in with you before we’re married? Not sure that’s an honest woman at all.”

  He grins. “Gotta make you a bit dishonest before I swoop in for the kill.”

  I roll my eyes. “You’re too much sometimes, you know that.”

  He cups my cheek. “Move in with me, Libby. Come be with me. Let’s make this place our place. A place we share. A fresh start for the both of us so we can move forward and create whatever life it is we want.”

  My eyes dance between his. “You’re being serious.”

  “As serious as I can be, beautiful.”

  Tears well in my eyes as I nod my head. “I think that sound fantastic.”

  As a timer in the kitchen goes off, he wraps his arms around me. With his warmth cloaking my body, Ian’s lips fall to mine. Sealing our deal with a searing kiss. My knees grow weak. He holds me to him as I collapse, clinging to every part of him I can. Never in a million years would I have ever seen this coming. But, now that it’s here, I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be.

  “I love you,” Ian murmurs against my lips.

  My eyes whip open, finding his. “You do?”

  He nods. “More than anything in this world, I do.”

  A tear slides down my cheek. “I love you too, Ian. So much.”

  Now, I finally understand what this funny business called love is all about. I finally understand what the movies mean. What the books talk about. What every bride at the altar feels whenever they gaze into the eyes of the man meant for them.

  Even if the man I love was once off-limits.

  Ian grins. “Come on. I’ve got dinner cooking.”

  “Why doesn’t that shock me one bit?”

  “Hey, you better get used to it. Because I use cooking to decompress.”

  “Does this mean I can expect to have bigger thighs.”

  He smirks. “Only if you let me play with them.”

  I smile brightly. “You’re on, handsome.”

  Then, he thrusts his fist into the air. “Bring on the cinnamon apples!”

  Making me fall apart with laughter as I hold his hand all the way into our new kitchen.

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  Chapter One

  Sophie

  My best friend, Carmen, holds a dress out to me.

  “Come on. Just this once?”

  I shake my head. “You know I hate hockey parties. Why can’t you go with your usual crew?”

  She groans and flops down on my bed. “I already told you!”

  “Okay, but we both know I wasn’t listening, so tell me again.”

  I should feel bad for not listening to Carmen, but when she goes on a rant about her party group, I can’t help it. I don’t care about the puck bunnies. If I did, I would be in the crew.

  “We’ve disbanded!” Carmen exclaims dramatically. “Macy and Des decided to settle down, and Patty wants to focus on school senior year. With them gone, everyone else was like, well we don’t want to be in a crew without them! So now, I have no one to go to hockey parties with. Except for you!”

  “You have so many friends. Ask one of them.”

  “No one else is my best friend!” she cries. Carmen adjusts herself on my bed so she can face me properly. “Come on, Sophie. Go with me just this once.”

  I study the dress Carmen picked out for me. It’s a short, black number I bought about a year ago but I’ve never worn. It was on sale, I think. I have a bad habit of buying anything I find on sale.

  “What’s in it for me?” I ask.

  Carmen grins. “You’ll make me happy?”

  “You’ll have to do better than that.”

  “I’ll do the dishes for a month.”

  “Deal.”

  Her eyes widen. “Wait, seriously?”

  I laugh. “Yeah, of course. I’ll be miserable, but you knew I was always going to go with you. I couldn’t let you go alone.”

  Carmen jumps off my bed and pulls me in for a hug. I love this girl more than anything. We’ve been through a lot together. We both came to Massachusetts from Pennsylvania for school, though she’s from Pittsburgh and I’m from Philly. It was pure chance that we ended up as roommate’s freshman year. It was choice that we continued living together for the rest of our college careers. At the beginning of last semester, we decided to move off-campus into an apartment. We can’t get enough of living together. I don’t know what I’ll do when we graduate in a few months.

  “You’re the best,
Sophie. Now get dressed. We have to go!”

  She scurries out of my room, leaving me with the dress. I turn on my curling iron before slipping into the dress. I don’t wear makeup, but I do want to tame my unruly curls before the party. Less than a half-hour later, I’m ready to go.

  Carmen is lounging on the couch when I walk out of my room.

  “Finally! Let’s go. The party started like an hour ago.”

  “Which means now is the best time to go.”

  “Exactly.”

  I slip on my converse and follow Carmen out the door. I may be wearing a dress, but I’ve never been one for death trap heels. Carmen can balance perfectly on four-inch stilettos. I’d face plant just trying to stand up.

  The apartment complex where Carmen and I live is less than a five-minute walk from campus. The hockey house is technically considered on campus housing, but the school doesn’t pay much attention to what happens there as long as no one gets hurt. Hockey is our school’s best sport, with our players making it to the pros more often than not. Plus, they win the NCAA hockey championship every year.

  The hockey house is practically shaking from the bass when we arrive. I like parties fine, but there’s something about hockey parties that gives me hives. Maybe it’s the fact that the house is far too small for the number of people they pack inside.

  Carmen links her arm with mine. “You ready?”

  I look up at the house. It’s early February in Massachusetts, but people are still milling around outside in short skirts and barely-there tops. I’m glad I opted for a coat. I’ll never understand the girls willing to risk frostbite for fashion.

  “I guess. How long do we have to stay?”

  Carmen laughs. “At least an hour. Let’s go.”

  I follow her up the front porch stairs and into the crowded house. Carmen leads me to the kitchen first so we can get drinks. I won’t survive this party without some alcohol.

  The kitchen is the fullest room in the house. I try to keep up with Carmen, but it’s impossible with so many people around. I catch up with her at the keg.

  “Why did I agree to this?” I ask, shouting so Carmen can hear me over the conversations around us.

  “Because you love me,” Carmen says. She fills a plastic cup with beer and hands it over to me. “You’ll have fun tonight, Soph. I can feel it.”

  I think she might be feeling the two beers she chugged when she got to the keg, but I won’t call her out on it.

  “Let’s go to the living room. That’s where the guys hang out.”

  Carmen is a puck bunny. I’ve always thought it was offensive, but the girls own the nickname. At least they did before the crew disbanded this semester. Basically, puck bunnies are girls who want to hook up with hockey players. They go to all the games and parties, hoping to catch the eye of a player or two. Carmen is a very open person, so I know exactly how many hockey players she has hooked up with since we started college. The number is very high. Not that I’m judging. I’m kind of jealous, honestly. I’ve only slept with two guys in my life. Carmen slept with two hockey players in our first semester at college.

  The living room is slightly less crowded than the kitchen. Carmen drags me over to the couch where two players I recognize sit. They made appearances in our kitchen the morning after their nights with Carmen. Multiple times. Carmen has no qualms against repeat offenders.

  The two guys, and their friend whom I don’t know, stand up when we approach.

  “Carmen!” one says, pulling her in for a hug. “Was wondering when you’d show. Where are the others?”

  “Hi, Damien. You won’t be seeing much of them from now on. Last semester senior year, you know. Plus, they’re all settling down.”

  Damien cringes. “Settling down? What’s the fun in that?”

  “Well, I don’t know. I get the appeal,” Travis says. He looks at Carmen when he says it. The two of them have been kind of off and on for the last three years. From the looks of it, Travis wants to be on for good. I’m not sure how Carmen feels about the situation. I’ll have to ask her later.

  “Anyway,” Carmen says, ignoring Travis. “I brought my friend Sophie along. You remember her?”

  “Of course. Hi, Soph. Fancy meeting you somewhere other than your kitchen.”

  I laugh. “Fancy meeting you wearing more than just your boxers.”

  “I’ve never had the honor,” the third guy says. I hadn’t taken a good look at him until now, and damn I wish I had.

  He’s tall, like most hockey players. His dark hair is cropped on the sides and longer on top. Through his tight t-shirt, I can tell he’s ripped.

  Is my mouth watering? I fight the urge to check. This guy is exactly my type.

  I never thought I’d say that about a hockey player. They’re more Carmen’s speed than mine. I prefer academics to guys who enjoy hitting each other into walls.

  “I’m Matt,” the gorgeous man says. “You must be Sophie.”

  “I am. It’s nice to meet you.”

  “You, too. I’ve never seen you around. Do you come here often?”

  I choke on my beer. “Does that line ever work for you?”

  “I’ve never tried it. I meant it literally.”

  “It’s just the phrasing that’s weird, I guess. No, I don’t come here often.”

  “Shame. Why not?”

  I shrug. “I’ve never had a reason to.”

  Matt raises a brow. “Oh yeah? What kind of reason do you need to come around?”

  “I’m sure we could think of something,” I flirt. This is so not who I am. It must be a combination of the alcohol and my loneliness breaking down my inhibitions.

  I turn to find Carmen so she can help me out of this mess, but she’s nowhere to be found. Did my best friend really ditch me? Ugh. She dragged me to this party and then left me to my own devices. She should know better. I can’t handle myself in social situations! That’s why I avoid parties like the plague.

  “Sorry. Did I come on too strong?” Matt asks.

  I turn back to face him. Is he standing closer than he was before? I try to take a step back, but I can’t. Other party goers have filled in the space behind me. I’m trapped.

  Yet, I’m not that mad about it.

  “No. Just strong enough. I’m not used to this, though.”

  “Used to what?”

  “Hot guys talking to me.”

  Matt smiles. “Really? I have trouble believing that.”

  I scoff. “I’m not fishing for compliments. It’s just… been a while, I guess.”

  Two months, one week, and three days, but I’m not counting. It just happened on Christmas so it’s easy to pinpoint the exact day. I’m not still hung up on my ex or anything. I’m totally over the cheating bastard.

  I unclench my fists. Okay, maybe I’m not that over him. Well, I’m over the relationship, but maybe I’m still a little hung up on the cheating bastard part.

  Who could cheat on me? I’m awesome!

  “You okay?” Matt asks. “You seem a little lost in your head.”

  “Sorry, sorry. Thinking about something I don’t want to be thinking about right now.”

  “You don’t have a boyfriend, do you?”

  “No, not even a little bit.”

  Matt lets out a sigh of relief. “Oh, good. I don’t want to get my ass beat right now. That’s why I’m the goalie. This handsome face doesn’t take beatings well.”

  “Oh, I can imagine. Is it insured?”

  “The face?” He asks before throwing me a wink, “Absolutely.”

  “Are you saying you never get hit in the goal?” I ask. I’ve seen enough hockey games to know that’s not true. Carmen drags me to them once in a while. I usually bring homework with me so I don’t have to pay attention. I cheer when Carmen elbows me in the side, but that’s about it. I only go when she doesn’t have anyone else to go with her.

  “I get hit sometimes, but not nearly as bad as the guys on the line. I don’t get checked into the
wall, at least.”

  “Seems like a good reason to be goalie. Why would anyone want to play any other position?”

  Matt chuckles. “We can’t all be in the goal.”

  “That’d be awkward.”

  “Exactly. Can we not talk about hockey anymore, though? I get enough of that during the day. I come to these parties to get away from it.”

  I look around. “You come to parties at the hockey house to get away from hockey?”

  “I didn’t say it was a good plan, but it’s all I’ve got.”

  “There are other parties.”

  “All my friends come to parties at the hockey house.”

  “You don’t have friends outside of your team?”

  Matt shrugs. “I have some friends in my major, but they’re not big partiers.”

  “Got it. Do you live in the hockey house?”

  He shakes his head. “I have my own apartment off campus. I lived here last year, but I wanted to get away from it for a bit. I want to go pro and if I do, I’ll be living with hockey guys for a few years until I’m making enough to be alone. This might be my last chance to live by myself.”

  “For a few years, anyway.”

  “Maybe. Unless I meet the right girl and move in with her.”

  I bite my lip. Is that a come on? I can’t really tell. Before I can ask, the music gets louder, making it impossible to keep up a conversation.

  Matt leans close to whisper in my ear. “Do you want to go somewhere quieter? The rooms upstairs are usually empty.”

  I look around one last time, but Carmen is still nowhere to be seen. She’s probably in one of the rooms with Travis or Damien.

  “Yeah, let’s go,” I say. Why not? I’m unattached, and Matt is hot.

  There’s no harm in spending some time alone with him.

  Chapter Two

  Matt

  I don’t know what I was thinking, inviting Sophie upstairs. I think we both know what it means when a guy invites a girl upstairs at a party like this—and that wasn’t really my intention.