by Ali Parker
"Unbelievable." Jayce glanced back as we walked out in the mid-Saturday afternoon. "Can you believe that lady? She blames us for Will being a total fuck up?"
"Lower your voice, and hush about it. She's in pain. People do stupid shit when they're hurting. It’s her son in there." I gripped the back of his neck and walked out to the parking lot with him. "You got your ride here?"
"Yeah." He pulled from me and gave one more scathing look back at the hospital. "Where am I taking you?"
"To my place. You can crash there too if you need to. I gotta have a nap." I ran my fingers through my hair and walked to his car, got in and sunk down in the dark leather.
He got in and started the car before glancing over at me. "I'm good. I'll go back to my place to sleep. I can't sleep in anyone else's bed."
"That sucks for you." I smiled and pulled out my phone to call Aubrey. "I'm calling your sister. Don't embarrass me."
"Please. You'll do that all yourself."
"Fuck you," I mumbled as she picked up the phone.
"What?" Her voice was thick with hurt.
"Oh no, baby. I was talking to your brother. He's trying to be funny after I've had no sleep all damn night." I gave him a look as he shrugged.
"Oh, okay. Where are you? How is Will?" I couldn't tell by the sound of her voice if she'd slept either.
"He's still in a medically-induced coma. It's looking like he's going to be okay, but you never know with drugs." I yawned.
"You need sleep."
"Yeah. Jayce is taking me back to my place for a nap. I'll find you when I get up, okay? We can grab something-"
"I want to take a nap with you." Her voice grew faint as if she were shy or embarrassed to ask for some of my time.
"Yeah, okay. You want us to come get you?" I smiled as Jayce's eyes narrowed.
"No. I can walk over there."
"What about your feet, baby?"
"I'm okay. This really smart, sexy guy told me to put ointment on them, so I did. They're looking better."
I smiled. "I'm going to kick his ass since you think he's sexy."
We laughed and said our goodbyes as Jayce pulled up to my place.
"Try not to hurt her, okay?" He looked over at me and popped me in the chest.
I groaned and nodded. "Trust me this once, okay? I'm going to be completely open with her. I need Spring Break to think through things, and then I'll commit, or let her go."
"All right. Get some rest, man. I trust you." He pursed his lips.
He didn't trust me, but it was okay. I wasn't sure I trusted myself either.
Chapter 26
Aubrey
I took the long way over to Lucas' house to give me time to think through a few things. I'd been up most of the night, pacing the floor with the rest of the team. When we realized that Lucas and Jayce weren't coming back around four that morning, we'd all gone our separate ways.
Layla and I watched old movies in our dorm room until the sun came up, each of us taking turns crying due to the intensity of the night before. I'd never seen someone almost die from an OD, and I never wanted to see it again. I couldn't fathom how torn up Lucas was. The irony of Will seizing on the floor in his arms on the anniversary of his brother's death was too much.
I wanted to wrap myself around him and offer him the world to ease his pain.
The walk did me good, and by the time I reached his place, I was a bit more calm, and extremely tired. I'd taken a chance asking if I could join him for a nap, but he'd been more than gracious about it, leaving me with hope that things were going to progress with us whether we wanted them to or not.
I knocked on the door once before he opened it and gave me a weak smile. He was in a pair of jeans and nothing else. His thick chest and strong shoulders stole my breath as I moved into the room and slid my hands over his skin before wrapping him in a hug.
"You okay, baby?" He cupped the back of my head and drew me in tightly with his other arm locked around my lower back.
I nodded as a fresh wave of tears filled my eyes. "I was just worried about you. That
you-"
"Shhh... I'm okay. I did what I had to do. Life sucks sometimes, but it's all right. You helped me through Bret's anniversary, and your brother helped me with Will. Let's just hope the bastard wakes up. I'm not sure I could stand beside another grave of a friend." He tucked his face against the crook of my neck and breathed in deeply. "Come on. Let's snuggle up and get in a nap. We'll go catch a movie or something later."
I nodded and moved back, feeling silly for crying. He reached up and brushed my tears away before leaning down and kissing me softly, tentatively.
"You all right?" he asked and brushed the tip of his nose up my jawline until his lips swept past my ear. "You hurting?"
"No," I whispered as I ran my fingers over his shoulders, up to his neck and through his hair. "I was worried about you."
"Don't be." He sucked my earlobe into his mouth and breathed a groan into my ear. "I'm going to get through this, and so are you. It's going to be okay."
I pulled back and nodded before taking his hand and moving toward his bed. We stopped at the edge of it, and he tugged off his jeans and crawled up into the dark silk sheets. His black briefs were tight and left the outline of his erection front and center.
"Take off your clothes and come let me touch you." He put his hands behind his head and watched me intently.
I nodded and slipped out of my shoes, tugged my t-shirt over my head, undid my bra and slid my shorts over my hips.
"God, you're hot. Such a beautiful woman. Did you know that?" He reached for me as I moved into his arms and laid down on the bed beside him.
"What kind of question is that?" I smiled as he turned on his side and trapped me against him.
His eyes moved down to the swell of my breasts and he licked at his lips. "It's an honest question. I want you to know how beautiful I think you are. Inside and out."
I smiled. "You're making me blush."
"Mmm... good." He leaned down and licked at my lips. "I wanna make you do a lot more than blush."
"Who's stopping you?" I slid my hand over his hip and ran my nails up the curve of his ass before sliding my hand down into his underwear and squeezing.
"Such a tease." He smiled and rolled over on top of me, propping himself up by his elbows as he brushed my hair from my face. "You're supposed to be here for a nap."
"I'm not the one on top right now." I chuckled as he gave me a smile that would melt hearts.
"Are you saying that I'm at fault for what's about to go down?" He moved down and ran his hands over my breasts, pulling them together, and licked slowly at each of my nipples as I moaned.
"What's going down?" I ran my hands over his upper back, memorizing how good it felt to be beneath him.
"I'm going down." He sucked my nipple into his mouth and massaged my other breast slowly as I closed my eyes and reveled in his touch. "You're too good for me, Aubrey. Tell me to leave. Save yourself for a better man."
"Shut up and make love to me." I pushed at his shoulders and opened my legs.
He chuckled and lifted my thighs and draped my legs over his shoulders, bringing my ass off the bed as he moved to his knees. His strong hands gripped my rear as he licked up the side of my panties and groaned.
My body flooded with wetness as my stomach tightened and electricity danced along my nerve endings. He pressed his nose to the center of me and breathed in deeply before turning his gaze on me. "Watch me taste you. Don't take your eyes off of me, okay?"
"Okay," I mumbled before whimpering softly.
"Yeah. You need this." He gripped my panties and pulled them over my ass. He repositioned us to have him lying flat on his stomach between my legs, his strong hands on the insides of my thighs as he took his time with slow, deep licks.
I moaned and gripped the sheets as impatience drove through me. I needed to feel him inside of me, but unlike all the other men I'd ever known, he seemed to enjoy giving
oral sex. I wasn't sure at the moment if it was a treat or a curse.
He laughed low in his chest and I glanced down the line of my body at him.
"What?" I panted.
"You. I love that you're just the same in bed as you are on the ice or at the Ice House." He flicked his tongue over my clit and dragged his fingers through my folds before pressing them into me.
I undulated my hips and pressed my teeth into my lip as I groaned out, "How?"
"Impatient. Demanding. Hot as hell." He smiled and shook his head. "I'll give you what you want, but one day you're going to have to lay there and let me take my time with you."
"Not today." I lifted my hips to take more of his thick fingers into me.
"No, baby. Not today." He leaned down and pressed his mouth to me as his fingers opened me up and pressed against my most sensitive places.
I arched my back and fire burst from my stomach and shot down my legs and up my chest. A scream left me, and he moaned against my skin, working me harder to keep me on the high. I rode it as everything melted but him. I couldn't access the concern or the pain or the fear that seemed to sit so heavy above us. I couldn't find anything but pleasure.
"Enough," I groaned and pushed at his head.
"Turn over for me." He moved back and gripped my hips hard, jerking me to my left and forcing me on my stomach. "Right there. Stay there while I get a rubber."
"Yeah," I mumbled and slid my hands down to cup myself as my pulse beat against my clit. "So good."
"Not even close to what I can do to you." He moved up behind me and rubbed his cock down the curve of my ass slowly. "Lift your hips some, Aubrey."
I pressed my forearms into the bed and arched my back as he hovered over the top of me and pressed into me a little. A groan left both of us, and I dropped my head down to rest against the bed.
"You know I care about you, right?" He moved back to his knees and tugged at my waist, pulling me up to my knees.
"Yes. Why?" I glanced back as he lifted up and pressed deep inside of me.
"I'm gonna fuck you like I don't. Just remember I do. A lot." He slid his hands up my back as I moaned deep in my chest at his words. "Tell me if it's too much."
"More," I mumbled and moved back, taking more of him inside of me.
"That's my girl." He lifted up and slammed into me, rocking me forward with the power of his thrust.
"Fuck," I whined as he gripped my ass and started to thrust fast and hard. Pleasure like I'd never experienced before shut down my thoughts and dragged me into a pool of depravity where his greedy-ass hands and thick cock were all that mattered.
"You take me so good. You should see how fucking beautiful this is." He ran a hand up my back and gripped my shoulder hard as he continued to stroke himself with my body. "You're getting close, aren't you?"
I whimpered as the air seemed so hard to breathe. I wanted to scream 'yes', but I couldn't seem to do anything but hold on to the sheets as his thrusts pushed me up the bed farther and farther.
He pressed himself deep inside of me and bucked a little as he released my ass and bent over the top of me, pressing his chest to my back as his hand took turns with my breasts.
"Come for me. Come hard." He brushed his lips over the top of my back before pressing his teeth into me and rocking against me harder.
A cry ripped from me as I pushed up to my hands and jerked forward, needing the friction of his thrusts again to take myself over the edge with intensity. He gave me every bit of what I was looking for and encouraged me with the most delicious promises.
I slid my hands out in front of me and pressed my cheek to the wet sheet beneath me as sweat raced down my back.
"How can I live without you after this? You've damned me haven't you, you wicked woman." He popped my ass softly, and I smiled, unable to help myself.
"You've not seen anything yet." I pressed back as he chuckled and worked himself into orgasm in several slow, deep thrusts. He stiffened as he groaned my name, and I took over our sex, lifting up and curving my spine to roll along his need with tight efficiency.
"Shit." He gripped my hips and jerked me back. "No more. No more."
"More." I glanced over my shoulder and rocked against him as he growled low in his chest. "That makes me want to fuck harder, Lucas."
"Note to self. Shit." He pulled out and rubbed his hands over my back before getting off the bed and disappearing into the bathroom.
I dropped down on the sheet and let out a content sigh.
"Here, baby." He handed me a cold, wet wash cloth and crawled up in bed next to me, pulling me to snuggle against his side when I was finished cleaning up.
"I like these kind of naps." I ran my hand over his sexy abs and kissed the side of his chest.
"Me too, but only when you're here." He turned toward me and wrapped me up tightly. "Don't go anywhere. I want to see you when we get up. Okay?"
"Yeah. I'll try." I smirked as he nipped at my nose. I wanted to tell him how much I loved him. That I had loved him for so damn long, but I couldn't. Fear that he wouldn't say it back held me in captivity.
"Thank you for being there for me last night. For today." He leaned down and kissed me thoroughly, taking his time to taste me as his hands moved over my hair lovingly.
"Always," I whispered against his lips before tucking my head against his neck and drifting off to sleep. I could give him Spring Break week to figure things out. What was one more week in the scope of things?
Nothing.
Chapter 27
Four Days Later
Lucas
I didn't want to let her go to the beach with the rest of the Ice Queens, but they'd planned the trip almost a year ago. It was good for me to take some time to figure things out, though there really wasn't anything left to do but step up to the plate. I hadn't stopped thinking about her since she left Sunday afternoon. Making love to her Saturday night had been the most pleasurable night of my life. I'd fucked a good list of girls, but never made love to one. It was a connection, a healing of sorts that I didn't expect it to be.
"Get up to the line and let me see you bust your ass, or you pansies are going to be running drills until we pack for the fucking trip," Coach yelled from the players’ box as his face turned beet red.
"Come on guys. Stop dicking around and let's get in a good hour. All he wants is to see that we're going to fight for this championship. You know it reflects on his ability to coach us." I glanced around at my fellow players.
"Lucas! Are you talking shit over there?" Coach was in a serious mood.
I needed to tell him about this 'making love thing'. I smirked at the thought.
"Nope. I'm threatening lives over here, Coach. You'd be proud." I lifted my hockey stick and let out a loud grunt.
"All right. Let's do this." He blew his whistle and we took off.
I pushed myself as hard as I could and pulled ahead of the group with ease. I was going to miss the group of misfits around me, but I still had a few months to go. No need in getting sentimental just yet.
We reached the far side of the ice and I turned my skate, shooting shaved ice into the air before pushing off and sprinting back to the center. I positioned myself to take the lone hockey puck from the center of the rink as Jayce moved up on my left. The idea of him giving up hockey drove a stake of concern into the center of my chest and threw me off just enough for him to sweep in and steal the prize.
"Gotcha, White," he called over his shoulder as I moved in and slipped it out from under him, tripping him in the process.
"Not in my house, bitch," I yelled and spun to take the puck back down to the other end of the rink to score for the drill to end. The rest of the guys were racing toward me, and my pulse spiked as a smile lifted my lips.
Could I really give this up? The drive to be the best was because of my father and Bret, but the desire to play hard and bring my team the championship trophy was all me. Maybe it was a bit of both. Maybe I did still love the sport outside of the
pressure to live someone else's dream. Was it my dream too?
I didn't know.
With sheer determination and several sick-ass moves, I made it to the other end and scored.
Jayce pulled off his mask and skidded to a stop beside me. "Shit. I wanted to get you this time."
"Never." I winked at him and turned to see coach talking to William. "Hey. Will’s here."
"Thank God," Jayce muttered and moved with me as we skated over toward Will.
"Guys. Will wanted to come by and say something to you." Coach turned and put his hand on Will's back.
The kid looked like he'd aged ten years in the last few days. I'd gotten word Monday morning that he was going to make it, but I figured I would give him a few days before I searched him out and had a long 'big brother' talk with him.
His eyes widened as we all surrounded him and dragged him out to the ice, patting his back and chanting his name.
"Stop. Stop!" He looked over at me as shame filled his expression. "Fuck. I messed everything up."
"We all have at one time or the other." I reached out and patted the side of his cheek. "You joining us again?"
"Not this season." Coach moved up and wrapped an arm around Will's shoulders. "Will's gonna get some help for his drug problem and if he can stay clean for the next six months, we're willing to consider - consider letting him come back to the team. Right, Will?"
"Yeah. I'm sorry for everything." He turned back to me. "Dude, really. I'm such a fucking tool."
"Shut up and suit up. Just because you can't play in the games doesn't mean we don't want the chance to beat your ass up on the ice." I smirked at him and jolted as he moved into my arms and hugged me tightly.
"I won't let you down, Lucas. I'll get better. I'll be the guy you were training me to be, okay?" he mumbled against my chest.
I pulled him back and shook my head. "Right, but this time it's for you. It's for the pussy you're going to score. The money you're going to make. The pucks you're going to take home and the teeth you're going to lose. This time it's for you."
"Right. This time it's for me." The guys busted up in cheers and we jacked around until most of us had fallen on our asses.
