Hate to Love You

by Jennifer Sucevic

  With my free hand, I cover hers, stilling the movements.

  She frowns. “You don’t like that?”

  “I like it too much,” I grunt.

  Her forehead smooths out as she tilts her head to the side. “And that’s a problem why?”

  “Because I’m not fourteen and I don’t want to come on your sheets.” What’s this girl trying to do? Kill me?

  Her lips lift into a sly grin as she pulls her hand away. I expel a deep breath in relief. As much as I love her touching me—and make no mistake, I love it—I wasn’t kidding. She’s going to make me come all over the place and that, I don’t need.

  Before I realize what’s happening, she shimmies out of her panties and crawls on top of me.

  My gaze drops to her bare pussy, which is nestled against my erection. Even through the thin material of my boxers, her heat radiates against me. I try to remain still, but that’s impossible. Within moments, my hips start moving and I’m thrusting against her softness. I’m mesmerized by the way her pussy slides against the black cotton. After a few more gyrations, her lower lips glisten with arousal, soaking my boxers.

  All I want to do is sink deep inside her silky warmth and bury myself to the hilt.

  My hands grip her hips, locking her in place. I still my movements and stare at her sitting astride me naked like a goddess. Her lips are parted, her pupils are dilated, and her dark hair tumbles in a tangle of waves around her shoulders. Her breasts are soft, firm globes topped with dusky nipples that I long to suck into my mouth. She has a narrow ribcage, flat tummy, and gorgeous, plush pussy lips that I’d give my left nut to sink into.

  She’s driving me insane.

  “What are you doing?” I rasp. Weeks of pent-up need crash through my aroused body. I’m barely able to rein in the lust. She’s pushing me past my limits. Any moment I’m going to snap and then all control will be lost.

  Her lips curve into a smirk.

  Do you believe this girl?

  A fucking smirk…

  “With all your worldly experience,” she says, “I’d think that would be obvious.”

  The groan that slides from my lips turns into a deep chuckle. I can’t stand much more of this sweet torture.

  But still…

  I’m trying to take this slow. I’m trying to do the right thing where she’s concerned. There’s no need to rush this. For once in my life, this isn’t a race to the finish line before moving on to the next conquest. What’s happening here means something. Natalie means something. I want her to realize that.

  “I’m trying to be a good guy, and you’re making it impossible. I don’t want you to regret anything we do together.”

  She leans over and kisses my lips. “I won’t regret this,” she whispers. “I promise.”

  I grit my teeth and flex my hips, sliding against her. I’m hovering over the point of no return. If Natalie changed her mind and decided to shut this down right now, I’d roll off the bed, throw on my clothes, and race home to take an icy cold, thirty-minute shower. Because that’s exactly how long it would take to deflate this hard-on.

  But she’s not saying that. In fact, she keeps giving me the green light. I’m the one who’s pumping the brakes. It’s an unusual position for me to be in.

  Last night she’d had too much to drink. There was no way I could take advantage of the situation, no matter how tempting she’d been while standing there in all her fucking glory.

  But this morning is different.

  She’s the one initiating this sexual encounter.

  “Brody?” My name comes out on a breathy sigh full of need. “Please?”

  Christ. Did I ever think I’d hear Natalie Davies begging for my cock outside of my fantasies?

  Nope. Definitely not in this lifetime.

  “Okay,” I say, giving in.

  I raise my hips and hastily shove my boxers down my legs until I can kick them away. I groan when she nestles her slick heat against me. My eyes are glued to the place where our bodies are connected. With my fingers digging into her flesh, I move her lower half so that she slides against my hard length. Her pussy is pure nirvana.

  “You feel so good,” I bite out. I’m not even inside her yet, and I’m about to lose it. Which is ridiculous. I should be embarrassed, but I’m not.

  I’ve spent the last couple of months feeling not much of anything as far as sex was concerned. I could take it or leave it. I’ve stared at naked women and haven’t felt the slightest twinge of arousal. My roommates are nailing as much ass as they can. Once upon a time, I’d been the same way. There wasn’t enough pussy to plow my way through.

  But somewhere along the line, that changed.

  And sex became mundane.

  This feels anything but.

  How am I ever going to get enough of this girl?

  Natalie throws her head back and a low moan slides from her lips as I flex my hips again. Slow and controlled is the name of the game. I want her to be just as needy and turned on as I am. Is that even possible? I doubt it.

  “Brody,” she whimpers. “I want you inside me.”

  Even though my brain is clouded with pleasure, I know we can’t do anything more without protection. I won’t put either one of us in that situation.

  “Do you have a condom?” There’s one in my wallet. I’ll certainly get it if necessary, but the thought of moving her delectable little body is an unpleasant one.

  Displaying an impressive amount of flexibility—something that will most definitely be explored in the near future—Natalie leans over and opens a drawer on her bedside table. She pulls out a foil packet and tears into it.

  With her teeth.

  Fuck…that’s hot.

  I’m wondering if there’s anything she could do that I wouldn’t think was a turn-on.

  I gulp as she tosses the wrapper onto the table. “You want me to do that?”

  A gleam enters her eyes. “Nope.”

  Sitting back, she slowly rolls the latex over the tip of my dick. Let’s face it, condoms aren’t sexy. But watching Natalie unfurl it onto my cock is sexy as fuck. My eyes flick to hers. There’s a look of utter concentration on her face. Her teeth nip her bottom lip as if she wants to get it just right. When she rises to her knees, I groan at the loss of warmth as she slides the rubber over my shaft.

  She grips the base of my dick with one hand and aligns it against her opening. My eyes are focused on the erotic sight. Still poised over me, she strokes the head against her lower lips.

  Unable to stand another moment of this exquisite torture, I arch my pelvis, needing to bury myself deep inside her.

  I glance up. Her teeth are still nipping her lower lip, and her eyelids have fallen shut. Her cheeks are stained with color. Sitting astride me like this, Natalie takes my breath away.

  By the time she slides her pussy lips around my hard length, I’m on the verge of exploding. I have to grit my teeth against the pain radiating from my cock. She moans and seats herself completely.

  I close my eyes as I immerse myself in her body. She’s so hot and tight, it feels like my dick is being strangled. Fuck…I don’t think I’ve ever felt anything like this before. It feels like heaven.

  My fingers bite into her hips as I slide her up and down my hard length. “Christ, you feel amazing.”

  Natalie sighs in agreement.

  “I’m not going to last much longer.” I grit in warning.

  “Me, neither.”

  I thrust my hips, and she finds her rhythm, the pair of us moving as one. Everything about this moment feels right. I want it to last forever, but I’ll be lucky if I can hold on for sixty more seconds.

  She arches against me, her head lolling back. When her inner muscles convulse, I lose it and we both come at the same time.

  She yells out my name and I chant hers feverishly as an orgasm streaks through my body. I feel it all the way from my head to the tips of my toes.

  When the last little spasm dissipates, she collapses limply
against my chest. Her harsh breathing matches my own. I wrap my arms around her body and hold her anchored to me so that she can’t escape. And then I close my eyes and enjoy the aftermath. Even though I’ve softened, I’m still buried deep inside her body.

  This, I realize in an odd moment of clarity, is exactly where I belong.

  Here.

  With Natalie.

  And I’ll be damned if I let her slip through my fingers.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Brody

  I slam into a forward, stealing the puck and racing toward the net. My skates dig into the ice as I cross the blue line, moving the puck seamlessly between the blade of my stick. The two defensemen I’m scrimmaging against come at me, trying to block my path. I drop my shoulder, hitting one and deking out the other. Once I’m in front of the net, I wind up and take a shot, aiming for the top left corner. Jack, our goalie, slides and catches the rubber disc in his glove before falling to his knees.

  I circle back around as he says with a smirk, “Just an FYI—my grandma takes harder shots than that.” There’s a pause. “And she’s dead.”

  I grin and skate back down to my side of the ice.

  Maybe I didn’t make the shot but I feel like I’m on top of the fucking world.

  I’d be lying if I said my life hasn’t been good up until this point. It has. Sure, I’ve had some shit times. Who hasn’t? The loss of my mother blew my world apart. Nothing was ever the same after that. And most of the time, school sucked major ass. Even after being diagnosed with dyslexia, it didn’t get any easier. I worked with tutors and special education teachers, but for the most part, I had to figure it out for myself. There wasn’t a magic pill that fixed it.

  Hockey has always been there to balance out the bad shit. When my mom died, I spent hours on the ice or in the driveway hitting pucks at the net. When there were issues at school, I could lose myself in practice. I took my aggression out on the teams we played against. I worked myself over until I fell into bed at the end of each day too exhausted to think about any of the problems that threatened to swallow me whole.

  And the girls…there has never been a shortage of them. If anything, they came too easily. There was no challenge to it. If I wanted pussy, all I had to do was crook my finger. It was mine for the taking.

  The best day of my life was when I signed a contract with the Milwaukee Mavericks. I don’t think my father has ever been prouder of me. The only tinge of sadness had been that my mom hadn’t lived long enough to see me make it to the pros.

  The two years I spent playing juniors were fucking fantastic. I worked my ass off on the ice and played harder off it. With no school to worry about, I could pour all of my energies into elevating my game to the next level.

  Playing at Whitmore for Coach Lang has been the icing on the cake. I’ve made friendships that will last for the rest of my life. My teammates are like family. No matter where we end up, they will always be my brothers. Come spring, I’ll have fulfilled the promise I made to Mom and will graduate from college with a degree before heading to the NHL.

  So, yeah, my life has been good.

  All right…Better than good.

  It’s been fucking amazing.

  I’m living the dream.

  And this is only the beginning.

  That being said, who would have ever guessed that something was missing?

  Certainly not me.

  But it was.

  Until Natalie came into my life, I wouldn’t have realized it either. Somehow, she makes everything better. She’s the first girl who has ever meant something to me.

  The fact that I could lose her—lose this feeling—scares the shit out of me. Now the challenge is to convince Natalie that what we have is real. That I’m worth taking a chance on. I’ve got some time to figure it out. But not much. Possessiveness rushes through me. I need to lock that girl down. I want to know Natalie is mine. Then I’ll be able to relax and enjoy the season when it starts in a few weeks.

  I’m jarred out of my thoughts when someone rams into my shoulder, knocking me off balance. I don’t fall, but it’s damn close.

  First rule of hockey—don’t skate with your head down. You’re just asking to get knocked on your ass. And if I didn’t weigh two hundred and twenty pounds, that’s exactly where I would have ended up.

  “Watch where you’re going, McKinnon.”

  I snap to, my eyes narrowing on Reed fucking Collins, who has skidded to a halt a few feet from me.

  My jaw locks. It’s a natural reaction. I can’t stand the guy.

  He’s been a royal pain in my ass since day one, and it’s never gotten better. At first, I thought it would eventually smooth itself out and that it would take some time to find common ground between us. But it’s been three years and that has yet to happen. I’m sure Coach naming me Captain last year only intensified the animosity he feels toward me.

  Well, tough shit. Find a way to man up and deal with it.

  I straighten to my full height, lifting my chin. If Reed is delusional enough to think he can intimidate me, he’s wrong. “What’s your problem?”

  There’s an ugly twist to his lips as he skates a little closer, invading my space. “You’re the one who wasn’t paying attention, not me.”

  I knock my gloves against his chest to back him up. I’m not afraid to throw down. Although, I have to say, out of all the teams I’ve played on, Reed is the first teammate I’ve openly had a conflict with. This isn’t the first time we’ve gotten into it, and it won’t be the last.

  When I don’t say anything, he keeps running his mouth. I swear, that’s the only thing he’s good at.

  “Must have pussy on the brain.”

  I shake my head. The guy is a major douche. “Whatever you say, Collins.”

  This isn’t the time or place to start something. If Reed wants to have a conversation, I’m more than happy to do it off the ice. Where Coach can’t see me kick his ass into next week. Because that’s exactly where this is headed if he keeps flapping his gums.

  When I attempt to skate past him, he slides over, blocking my path. “Well, it can’t be Natalie you’re thinking about. That girl is like a starfish in bed. Bored me out of my fucking mind.”

  I clench my jaw until it feels like it’s going to shatter. I curl my fingers inside my gloves, trying to calm the rage brewing inside. I’m this close to throwing a punch. And by the look on his face, he knows it. The little prick is just trying to set me off. I see it in his eyes.

  “Shut your fucking mouth, Collins,” I growl. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  His smirk widens into a grin as he taunts, “Just remember, that pussy belonged to me first. Do us all a favor and teach her what to do with that pretty little mouth of hers. I could deal with a lousy lay if a girl can give a decent blow job. Maybe when you’re finished with her, I’ll have another go. She can’t be any worse than before.” He shrugs like we’re just shooting the shit, having a normal conversation. “You know what virgin pussy is like. Takes awhile to break in. Didn’t have the patience for it.”

  And just like that, my temper ignites like a fucking powder keg. All rational thought disappears. I don’t think about what I’m doing. Or the consequences of my actions. I throw my gloves to the ice and swing. I land two solid punches to his face. I’m going for a third when someone steps in and pries me off him.

  Reed touches his nose and looks down at the blood soaking his fingers. I huff and puff, struggling against the hold they’ve got me locked in. All I want to do is hit him again.

  “Settle your ass down, McKinnon,” Luke growls in my ear.

  “What the fuck is wrong with you?” Sawyer demands from the other side.

  Coach blows his whistle. It’s sharp and short. Everyone freezes. The sound of my labored breathing is all that fills my ears.

  “Fuck,” Luke mutters. “You’ve really stepped in it this time. Hope it was worth it.”

  I glare at Reed, taking in the
blood smeared under his nose and on his practice jersey. “It was.”

  “Get your ass over here, McKinnon,” Coach bellows. His voice echoes off the walls of the arena.

  “What the hell did Collins say to you?” Luke asks.

  He knows me well enough to realize that if I went after Reed, there was a reason for it.

  I shake my head. I don’t even want to repeat the words. Goddamn it. I should have skated away instead of standing there and listening to the shit spewing from his pie hole. I made a tactical error, and now I’m going to pay the fucking price.

  I jerk out of Luke and Sawyer’s hold and pick up my gloves before skating over to the benches where the coaching staff stands huddled together. I glance at the defensive line coach and see the disappointment swimming in his eyes.

  “Get off my ice, McKinnon. You’re done for today,” Coach barks.

  Head hanging, I don’t say a word. I just leave.

  Chapter Thirty

  Natalie

  There’s a knock on the apartment door. Launching myself from the couch where I’ve been studying, I jog over and open it. I’m surprised to find Brody on the other side. He usually texts before showing up.

  Energy zips through me as my eyes run over the length of him. I can’t help myself. Everything feels different between us now that we’ve slept together.

  He looks, in a word, delicious. I can honestly say I never thought there’d come a day when I would lust after Brody. And here I am, totally doing just that.

  His hair is wet and shiny like he’s come straight from practice. My fingers itch to run through the long strands. My eyes drop to his mouth. Gah…those lips. I’ve never met a man who knows how to use his lips the way he does. They’re sinful.

  It’s only then that I notice how tightly clenched his jaw is. As if he’s pissed off about something. More often than not, Brody is laughing and joking around. There’s usually a perpetual smile curving his lips upward. Sometimes it’s more of a smirk. It used to get on my nerves. Now it makes my tummy tremble.