by Toni Aleo
I shook my head, completely and utterly blown away by him. He was… Shit, he was Gus, and I absolutely adored that about him. That no-holds-barred, no-shits-given-about-anything way he had. I was feeling things I hadn’t felt in a really long time. Dangerous feelings.
“How was practice?” I asked, trying to distract myself from the flush warming my face. “How’s your hand?”
“Fine. I got the stitches out this morning. I’m good.”
“Will you play tonight?”
“Duh, and watch out, ’cause I’m scoring all the goals for you tonight.”
“For little old me?” I gushed.
“Yup, for being so amazing.” He laughed.
I couldn’t help it. I swooned at that.
“So I gotta be honest,” he said.
I looked up from my soup. “You brought me food thinking we’d do it behind the building?”
He thought that over. “Man, why didn’t I think about that? Yet, not what I need to be honest about.” He chuckled softly. “So I brought you food because I wanted to talk to you about where we are on the meeting-the-parents thing.”
I choked a bit on my lunch. “Um. I don’t think we’re anywhere near that.”
He made a face of distress. “See I assumed so, but my mom is being a pain in my ass about meeting you when they come this way next month for a game.”
I held his gaze. “Next month?”
“Yeah,” he said shyly. “She says I talk about you too much and that I need to bring you to dinner with them.”
I smiled and reached out to cup his chin. “Look at you being all vulnerable and shit.”
He playfully smacked my hand away. “Just say you’ll go.”
I laughed. “No way. I’m sure I can get something out of this.”
Gus glared. “All you’ll get is a nice smack to that ass if you don’t go.”
“Maybe I want that nice smack?”
His lips curved as he leaned toward me, kissing the side of my mouth. “Please,” he said.
“Oh my,” I gushed, fanning myself. “Gus Persson begging might be the hottest thing I’ve ever seen.”
He leaned into me. “See, and every time I look at you, I think you’re the hottest thing I’ve ever seen.”
I rolled my eyes. “Stop.”
“No,” he insisted, nipping at my nose. “You know they call me the Bus. Nothing can knock me down. I do the knocking down. But with you…fuck, Bo, you knock me clean on my ass.”
I was breathless as I held his gaze. “You’re laying it on thick.”
He shot me a dry look. “Just say yes so she’ll leave me alone.”
I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. I mean, sure, we were joking around, but these were his parents. Meeting them meant something more than I wanted it to mean. I could see he really wanted me to go. That he wanted to show me off to his parents. I swallowed hard, thinking of how to lighten the intensity of what I was feeling. “Yeah, I’ll go, but I want lobster.”
He scoffed. “Anything you want.”
“And wine, lots of wine. Oh! And ice cream.”
“I love a woman who eats well.”
“Then you picked a good woman to take to dinner,” I said with an exaggerated wink. “Also, I want you to say all that stuff about being the Bus again. But I want you to say it while we’re doing it behind the building.”
He shot me a lusty look. “Done deal.”
With a grin on my face, I grabbed a fork and looked down at my salad. I realized it didn’t have tomatoes. That meant Gus remembered I didn’t like tomatoes. Breathless, I glanced over at him and beamed. “This was really sweet of you.”
He shot me a small little smile that tickled my gut. “It’s nothing. Just a guy bringing his girl some lunch between classes. All guys should do this.”
“Your girl, huh?”
He leaned over, pressing his forehead into mine. “All mine.”
That fluttering feeling filled my chest as I held his lusty gaze. His eyes were so dark and sinfully sexy. All I wanted was him to take me on the bed of this truck. But then, it was more than that. I wanted every single inch of him to touch me, and I wanted to touch him. I wanted to become one with him. I wanted to consume him.
Hell, this thing really was moving from just a good time to something more. I couldn’t stop it, and I’m pretty sure Gus couldn’t either. Not that he would even try. I was pretty sure he was happily driving the bus that was about to go straight through every wall I tried to put up.
And I think that’s what scared me the most.
For the simple fact, I didn’t want him to.
I wanted to ride passenger.
Like the damn idiot I was…
Chapter Twenty-Five
Bo
Bo: So we’re gonna be cool, right?
Gus: About what?
Bo: Don’t be difficult. Tho, I know that’s how you love to roll. Just to drive me insane.
Gus: lol I won’t disagree on that, but no really, I don’t know what you’re talking about.
Bo: Sure you don’t. I mean when I get there. Let’s play it cool. I don’t want a huge spectacle around us. You know what I mean?
Gus: I think what you’re saying is that you want me to ignore you when you get here?
Bo: You do that, then I’ll kick you.
Gus: Rude. And mixed signals. Tell me what you want, Bocephus.
He was going to drive me into an early grave, I swore it. Rolling my eyes, I leaned back in Lizzy’s truck and stared at the screen as she drove.
What did I want?
We had been inseparable the last two weeks since my allergic reaction to Unicorn Spit. When we got back to his apartment, I promptly threw that bottle in the trash. I even went and got him some regular boring stuff to replace it. He wasn’t happy about it, since it didn’t make him hungry after he whacked off… His words, not mine.
But things were good. He was finally able to play again, and while I still had my trusty boot, I was happy. I went to school. I coached. Gus sometimes still helped, and when we were not at work, we were together. This would be our first outing since deciding that we were exclusively dating. The concept of Gus and me dating was still weird to me. Being tainted as I was, I assumed he would already be done with me, moving on, but Gus continued to prove me wrong. He was very diligent and very thoughtful. He texted me first, every morning, and even when I didn’t expect it.
It was really fucking great but also had me on edge.
I was getting used to it. Getting used to feeling good about a relationship and for the first time in maybe forever, feeling good about myself. I still felt I needed to be on high alert, that I needed to prepare myself because there was no way this would last. But the more time I spent with him, the harder that was to do. I wanted to get lost in him—fall over the edge and just be. But I could not get rid of that nagging voice that reminded me that not only was he Gus Persson, the guy with one hell of a track record of loving and leaving them, but also the same Gus the Bus Persson who had a one-way ticket to the NHL.
And where would that leave us?
It scared me. It all scared me. I knew too well and too acutely how fast something that felt so good could not just end but shatter me.
Exhaling hard, I typed back quickly.
Bo: I don’t know. Just be cool.
Gus: I’m always cool.
Bo: You know what I mean! Like just greet me but don’t make a big deal about it.
Gus: So greet you? Don’t ignore you. Don’t make a big deal about it. Question.
Bo: Yes, and yes?
Gus: Is the IT you keep referring to us?
Bo: Yes, it is.
Gus: Okay, so don’t make a big deal about us but greet you.
Bo: Are you trying to get on my nerves?
Gus: Yes. I love that little twitch that your nose does.
Bo: I hate you. See you soon.
Gus: I’m waiting. And you’re coming home with me tonight.
Bo:
Is that a question or a demand?
Gus: Demand, duh.
My heart fluttered as I shook my head. He was maddening, but shit, he was mine. All mine, and I couldn’t help but love how that made me feel. How it felt so damn right. I hated how jaded I was. How, even when I was flushing over his texts and his obvious excitement over us, I still felt I had to be on the defensive. I didn’t want to end up the way Jesse left me. I didn’t want to have those feelings and go through not only what he put me through but then my family, too. Those years will never be fully behind me. And yet there I was.
Thinking about him.
Thinking about us.
Completely infatuated with another rookie who had one foot out the damn door.
Sighing deeply, I let my phone fall to my lap.
Lizzy glanced over at me. “He’s giving you a hard time?”
I couldn’t hide our relationship from Lizzy, even if I tried. Gus was always at the apartment or I was with him. He wasn’t one to hold back how he felt either. He was always grabbing me, kissing me, and being a total dork. “Yeah,” I said. “Like always.”
She giggled. “It’s adorable, and I know you think you hate it, but you don’t.”
“Whatever.”
She laughed as she tapped her hand on the steering wheel to the beat of the new Ed Sheeran song that was playing. “So you leave Friday?”
I nodded, swimming my hand through the air outside the car. It was so beautiful tonight, and I was glad we were going to a beach bar. It was the perfect night for it. “Yeah, I only planned on staying like two days, but my mom wanted me to stay till Tuesday.”
“You haven’t been home in a while, Bo. You have a break. Go.”
I shrugged and looked out the window. “It’s just hard when I go home.”
Lizzy scoffed. “Well, since I know nothing about any of that, I don’t know how to answer.”
I smiled, still not looking at her. “There is nothing to know except that when I lost my scholarship, I really disappointed my family, and my mom loves to remind me about that.”
“Shit happens.”
I glanced over at her. “Not to me though. I was the smart girl who had big dreams and aspirations. I ruined all that.”
“Even though I know you won’t answer me, I’m gonna ask anyway,” she said before glancing over at me for a second. “What happened?”
I laughed, a harsh sound without humor. “I lost my scholarship because I was a dumbass. I really don’t want to rehash it all.”
Lizzy let out an annoyed sigh. “I’m going to get you drunk one night and make you tell me.”
I giggled. “Duly noted.”
She laughed before she reached out and squeezed my wrist. “I wouldn’t judge you.”
I swallowed hard. “You don’t have to. I judge myself.”
“Well, I think you’re entirely too hard on yourself.”
“I know,” I agreed as we pulled into the parking lot of the Sandbox, a college bar I hadn’t been to but apparently everyone else had. Gus and a few of his teammates were there, which meant most of our friends were there just to see them. The Suns’ ice girls were a horny bunch, and the Suns’ players were also of the very horny variety.
Getting out of the truck, I pulled my skirt down some and adjusted my lacy top. Unfortunately, I had to wear a bra with it, but it was cute enough, so I made an exception. Pulling my hair up into a messy bun, I glanced over at Lizzy. She was texting.
“Mr. McMillian?”
She shot me a dry look. She looked adorable tonight in a maxi dress. Her brown hair was down and hung straight along her shoulders. “Roger, you mean?”
“Dude, he’s my teacher.”
“He’s mine too.” She flashed me a grin. “In and out of bed.”
“Dirty girl.”
“You know it.” She giggled as she tucked her phone into her purse. “But yes, it was him. He’s going to meet us here.”
“Think that’s a good idea?”
She shrugged. “I don’t care. I like him; he likes me. Fuck everyone who has an issue with it.”
I smiled. “You amaze me.”
She leaned into me. “Take a page from my book. Enjoy that guy who is completely into you. It doesn’t happen often.”
My smile fell. She pulled the door open and held it for me. I wanted so bad to be like her. To just jump in. But she hadn’t been hurt like I had. She didn’t have the disappointment of her family to carry for the rest of her life like I did. She was just a girl living her life, free enough of the past to live in the moment. I was trying to do the same but had the constant burden of trying not to make the same mistakes as before.
Stepping into the bar, I looked around for Gus and the rest of our friends.
“I think they’re outside,” Lizzy said from behind me before she walked in front of me. “Let’s get a drink first and then head out.”
I just nodded since it was ungodly loud, and I doubted she would hear me. We got some beers from the bartender and headed outside.
I was only half out the door when I heard, “Hey! It’s my girlfriend, Bo St. James. Look, everyone, it’s my girlfriend!”
I froze at the words. My heart jumped, and I swear I almost dropped my beer. My eyes cut to Gus’s as he came toward me. Everyone outside started to laugh. Lizzy about fell over just as Gus wrapped his arms around me, kissing me hard on the lips.
I wanted to smack him.
But when he pulled back, grasping my face in his hand, his eyes burning into mine, the urge subsided.
Some.
“You said to greet you, and if I had my way, this is the way I’d do it all the time.”
I was speechless as he ran his finger along my lip before pressing his nose to mine. “I also don’t want any fuckers here looking at you like they can have you.”
Swallowing hard, I shook my head.
I was falling way too hard for this guy.
And the problem was, I wasn’t sure if he would catch me or let me bust my ass.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Gus
I loved when Bo got that look in her eye.
The one where she wasn’t sure if she wanted to smack me or kiss me.
It drove me absolutely wild.
I wanted to kiss her more than I wanted to breathe.
I ran my fingers along her jawline, getting lost in her beautiful, breathtaking eyes. “You look fucking hot, Bocephus.”
She rolled her eyes. “Thank you.”
“I wanna take you home. Let’s go.”
“I just got here! I have a beer to drink!”
I shrugged. “I don’t care. I got one more night with you before I leave, and when I come back, you’ll be gone.”
“Just for a bit.”
It felt like an eternity, though. “Still, we won’t be in the same place for a couple days, and that’s depressing.”
She smirked. “I’m sure you’ll be fine.”
“Nope, I’ll be distressed, broken, empty! Without you!” I yelled, just for attention and to piss her off. When she twisted my nipple, I cried out, arching away from her. “That’s rude.”
“You’re rude for hollering our business. Hush.” She gave me a flirty smile as she moved out of my arms before tangling her fingers with mine. “Come on. Let’s drink and hang with our people.”
I shook my head. “I don’t care about them. I want to be with you.”
She rolled her eyes. “So needy. Come on.” She pushed through the crowd, bringing me with her. As she walked, I came up behind her, wrapping an arm around her waist. She laughed, the sound so airy and perfect as we walked as one. She smelled fantastic, something fruity and light. Her hair was a mess on top of her head with little red pieces falling along her neck. She had a bit of makeup on—not much, but enough to drive me crazy with lust. She was so beautiful, so hot, and I was glad she was all mine.
Did she know that?
Nope, my Bocephus was skittish as fuck. I had all of these feelings deep ins
ide of me that were insane. I seriously liked everything about her. Her hair, her face, her body, her laugh, everything. These last couple weeks had been fucking awesome. If work or school didn’t keep us apart, we were together. Most of the time, we lay on the couch watching Netflix. When we weren’t watching TV or eating loads of bad food, we were in bed, and there, life was fucking good.
But still I worried that if I did vomit my feelings all over her, she’d freak the fuck out. She had these commitment issues that were annoying as hell, and I didn’t understand them. Shouldn’t I be the one with the commitment issues? Yeah, she had been hurt, and I had never really put myself out there to get hurt, but still. I wasn’t that douche she was with before. I, in no way, had any intention of hurting her. I just wanted to be with her. That’s all I wanted. But I felt like I was up against this wall, and I wasn’t sure how to bust through it just to tell her how I felt.
That I had no intentions of falling for her when I met her. But I did.
Hard.
When we reached our group of friends, she leaned her hip into my thigh. As she drank her beer, she moved her other hand along the small of my back. Holding her waist, I looked around at all the knowing and surprised looks. Max was the only one who really knew about Bo and me. Everyone else seemed shocked. Especially the ice girls. Probably because each of them had offered me anything and everything, and I’d shot them all down. I wanted to say I knew why Bo had captured my attention, my heart, and all that, but I didn’t. I wasn’t sure if it was because she didn’t take my shit or if it was just her. Either way, these people could fuck off. I was with her, and that was that.
“I knew that night at the Penalty Box you two were gonna hook up.” I looked toward Natalie, a girl I had been with and one of Bo’s friends. “It was like fireworks in that place.”
