Page 17 of Icebreaker

I'd seen it happen before. Personal drama could create a poisonous atmosphere in a locker room and tear a team apart from the inside out. How could I risk being responsible for that, letting my selfish desires jeopardize the entire team's fortunes?

But God, how he looked at me—that heat and hunger in his eyes. He was like a siren luring me to the rocks. Quinn danced closer. His fingertips skimmed over my chest and arms, and then he leaned in, exhaling a hot breath against my neck.

I was gone. Quinn's caress awakened a primal need deep inside me, like a spark landing on a dry prairie.

His shirt hung with one end tucked into the waistband of his jeans. I tangled my fingers into it to hold him close. "Quinn, we can't…I can't…"

I wasn't entirely sure he heard me. He merely offered a sweet smile, reaching out to tangle his fingers into my sweaty hair at the back of my head. "Shh. Don't think. Just feel."

Damn. I'd lost all control. I let him sweep me into the music, the heat, and the intoxication of his body pressed against mine. I forgot about my fears and the ghosts of my past and focused on the moment and on the pounding of my heart.

We danced, lost in each other and the beat. We finally stumbled off the dance floor, breathless and trembling, our eyes glowing with desire. Something had shifted between us. We'd crossed a line we couldn't uncross.

I gripped Quinn's bicep. My voice was hoarse. "What are we doing?"

He smiled and raised a hand to my cheek. "We're living." He brushed his thumb over my bottom lip. "We're taking a chance."

I took a deep breath. I had to be the responsible one and put the brakes on before we could lose ourselves in something we'd regret tomorrow.

"Quinn…we need to slow down. This is all happening too fast."

I thought I saw a flicker of disappointment, and it made my chest hurt. Seconds later, he'd nodded, taken a deep breath, and stepped back, creating some necessary space between us.

He reached up and ran his fingers through his hair. "You're right. I didn't mean to push. I think I just got…carried away."

I squeezed his shoulder. "No need to apologize. I was right there with you, rolling the snowball down the hill. Let's take a minute to cool off and clear our heads."

He nodded. "That's a good idea. Need another beer?"

I sighed, thankful that he'd given us an easy off-ramp. "Sure, why not?"

We sat on stools at the bar. It was awkward, feeling our knees touching and sensing the heat in the air around us, but I tried to ignore it. I took the cold bottle, held it to my forehead, and focused momentarily on the chatter of others around us.

I cleared my throat and tried to move the conversation to a safe topic. "How about that game today? We took it to them with that last goal."

Quinn blinked, and he shook his head. "Really? You want to talk about hockey right now?"

I shrugged and swallowed another mouthful of beer. "You got a better idea?"

Quinn looked down slightly, focusing on my lips. He coughed and then looked away. "No, it's okay. Hockey's fine. With you and Max feeding me the puck all the time, it's hard not to score."

Our conversation settled into easy territory. We reviewed the game, and the tension between us slowly eased. Whenever we hita lull, I jumped in, worried that the undercurrent of attraction would pull us both into the deep end.

When we finally called it a night, we settled our tabs and headed out into the chilly, blustery night. Quinn placed a hand on my back. "Thanks for being willing to come with me to the bar."

"And with all the other guys." I chuckled. "Seems you were the only one who showed up."

"Okay, so shoot me. I wanted some one-on-one time. I'm glad we did this even if it didn't go quite how I thought it would."

"It's good. I'm glad we slowed things down. I don't want to rush, not when it's this important."

He looked up at me. "I get it. We've got time…all the time in the world."

After reaching out and squeezing my hand, he turned and walked away. As I watched, my pulse raced, and my mind reeled with everything I wanted to say but was too afraid to say out loud.

When I reached my apartment, I collapsed onto the couch with a heavy sigh, staring at the ceiling and the hand-sculpted mobile my sister Maja bought me for my 30th birthday. A conflicting jumble of emotions and desires battle in my head, leaving my heart raw.

I knew that pursuing a relationship with Quinn was probably a terrible idea. He was my teammate, and he'd become a friend, someone I relied on every time we stepped onto the ice.

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