Page 22 of Hat Trick
I don’t want to be an afterthought to them. I don’t think I could handle it. So the best thing I can think of is to avoid the temptation. To be sure we’re all on the same page. To make sure the rules are crystal clear.
“Out with it already.”
My head snaps up to find Dom raising a brow at me, empty spoon in his hand as he swings his feet back and forth on the counter. Of course he knows I’m spiraling. He always does.
This is the first time I’ve seen him outside of hockey this week, and I guess now is as good of a time as any. “We gotta talk about it.”
“It?”
I look at him deadpan. “Don’t play dumb.”
Dom just stares back at me. Ugh. He’s going to make me say it. He does this to me all the time. He knows how in my head I can get, and just because I don’t word-vomit all over the place like he does, he tries to force my hand.
And it almost always works.
Like right now.
I take a deep breath, then explain, “We have to talk about what we want out of this.” I gesture between the two of us. “And what we want out of the relationship with Lil.” He still says nothing.So annoying. “Because even though I really like her, I love you. You’re my best friend. Whether we’re fucking or not, I don’t want to losethat. I—” I look away from him, not wanting to meet his eyeline as I confess something so vulnerable. “Ican’tlose us.”
He’s quiet still, and I’m about two seconds away from saying, “Just kidding, nevermind,” when I hear the clang of the spoon against my granite counter. Then, his hand reaches out and fists the front of my Panthers T-shirt and pulls me to him. I stand between his legs, still not meeting his eyes as mine focus on the ridges of his muscular stomach. He refused to put his shirt back on after the car wash, something about, “The show must go on, Emmy.”
“Emerson,” Dom finally says, his deep voice softand full of concern. “Look at me.” Shoving my embarrassment aside, I force my eyes to finally meet his, the color of the richest whiskey, shining with compassion and understanding. He gives me a soft smile before saying, “I’m not going anywhere. Lil or no Lil. Sex or no sex. You got me.”
“That’s easy to say now,” I mumble. But I regret it almost the moment the words leave my mouth. Because one thing Dom isn’t, is a liar. When he says something, he means it.
But he doesn’t react to me questioning his morals, instead he gently tightens his hold on my waist and adds, “Yeah it is. Because you were my best friend first. Before anything else, that’s what you were. It’s what you are now, and it’s what you’ll always be.”
I’ve never explained to Dom the reason I constantly feel this way, but the man’s not dumb. Regardless of how often we tease him about being all looks and no brain, he’s actually insanely smart. And what’s more, he can read me like a book. Anyone really. For a twenty-one-year-old hockey player in college, he is weirdly in touch with his emotions, and everyone else’s apparently. “So what do you think we should do?” I ask him.
He thinks for a moment. “I think… I think we should have this conversation with Lil. She’s part of this now. No more secrets. No more sneaking around. Which means we all have to be on the same page.” He’s right, so I nod my head in agreement. “So we’ll text her and see if the three of us can talk tomorrow, okay?”
I exhale a long breath. “Okay.”
Then, a mischievous smile takes over Dominic’s faceas he plays with the hem of my athletic shorts. “But for now…”
There he is.
“Seriously?” I ask, mocking exasperation.
He rears back in shock. “I’ve been staring at you shirtless and sudsy all afternoon. Sue me for being a little horny.”
I place my hands on his thighs, reveling in the way his quads feel beneath my grip. “A little?”
Dom shrugs. “Okay, a lot. But it’s been a week, and seeing you all shy just now really sent me over the edge.”
I can’t help it. I tip my head back and bark out a laugh. “You’re impossible, you know that?”
“Impossibly irresistible.” He wiggles his brows at me.
“Shut up,” I laugh as I shake my head.
“Okay,” he replies before grabbing the side of my head and crashing his lips into mine. I groan into his mouth, all the tension from just seconds ago almost instantly leaving my body.
Fuck I’ve missed him.
And because I live alone, and I’m not opposed to fucking where I eat, I use my hold on his thighs to slide him backward on the peninsula counter. He lets out a low chuckle, clearly amused that he got his way, before he turns himself, lying parallel to the length of the counter. I climb up and kneel between his legs and stare down at him. Wanting my lips on his, I fold myself over him and slant my mouth over his.
I get lost in him. Lost in the way he tastes. The wayhis warm body feels against mine. Lost in the way his hands roam over me. And forever lost in the way he has the power to quiet my mind when I can’t seem to do it myself.
