Page 111 of Stick It
To Jax.
And the undeniably inappropriate hot tub sex we had. I will never step foot in that room again without feeling how deliciously my walls stretched around him, the feel of him coming inside me, his lips on my skin and hands in my hair. Once wasn’t enough. Instead of getting him out of my system, he’s burrowed so deep now that I fear I’ll never not want a taste of him. The chemistry between us is off the charts, crackling like a live wire every time we’re near.
Finn, though, he’s an entirely different problem. On one hand, I feel on stable ground with him in a way I don’t with the others. I know where I stand with him, even if his impulse-driven kisses haunt my dreams at night. During the day, all I want to do is shake some sense into him. I want to scream at him that his best friend is a misogynistic asshole and how can he not see that. But I can’t force him to see something he doesn’t, and if I could figure out a way to get Kyle to confess, then I’d have done it by now. I have to hope that Kyle will slip up and show Finn his true colors. At this point, it’s the only thing that will make him understand who he’s really protecting. Who he’s choosing to side with. And until such a day, I guess I’m stuck living in a world where I simultaneously want to kiss the asshole and shake the living daylights out of him.
Exhaling sharply, I force myself to refocus on the game. Graywater Lightning has the puck and is closing in on Griffin in the net. Bodies shift. Sticks clash. My fingers dig into my thighsas I watch them set up a perfect one-timer, but Griffin tracks the shot and snags it out of the air like it’s nothing.
A loud whistle. A roar from the crowd.
I grin, clapping along with everyone else as players rotate off the ice. Movement in my periphery catches my eye, and when I glance to the left, Kyle is climbing over the boards as his replacement takes the ice. His body language drips smug arrogance despite the fact that he fumbled a couple of simple passes earlier. His gaze finds mine almost instantly, like he was expecting me to look his way.
The smirk that curls at his mouth is razor-sharp, full of something taunting, something cruel. A reminder. A warning. I’ve been doing everything possible to avoid him all week, with the guys running interference when we have to be around each other, but any time we’re alone like this, no one else present, I witness the Kyle who is capable of attacking an unsuspecting woman in a dark parking lot.
I don’t take the bait.
Instead, I keep my expression blank, my posture loose, even as goosebumps pebble along my arm.
Kyle exhales a quiet chuckle, barely audible over the roar of the crowd, and then, without another word, he turns his back to me. Dismissive. Like I’m nothing.
The irritation pinches, hot and pulsing beneath my skin. Gritting my teeth, I turn my attention back to the ice just as the final buzzer sounds.
The Steelhawks win.
The guys are all celebrating, shouting, and hollering as they clear the ice. And even though I didn’t play a single second, I still clap, still offer my congratulations as they file past me toward the locker room.
Jax slows as he reaches me, pushing his helmet up onto his head. Sweat makes his hair stick to his forehead, and the helmetonly enhances his strong jaw and draws my eye to the faint scar on his cheek. For a moment, I lose all track of time as I drink him in. He is so effortlessly hot. Moody and mysterious with a panty-melting smile.
Before I can swoon entirely and embarrass myself, I wrench my gaze to his. I suck in a breath when I find him staring blatantly at my lips. “You have no idea how badly I want to kiss you right now.” His voice is thick, gravelly, piercing straight through me as my body involuntarily leans closer to his.
The words“yes please”are on the tip of my tongue. As if sensing that, Jax clears his throat, pulling back just enough for me to remember where we are and who is looking on.
Right. Making out with a team member in front of an entire arena of fans, plus the rest of the Steelhawks, definitely isn’t a smart move. Especially when I have no idea what is happening withthree other Steelhawks,and I have Kyle just itching for dirt on me.
“Good game,” I tell him as I wrangle my hormones back under control.
He flashes me a cocky smirk. “You coming out tonight?” His voice is still gruff, pupils dilated, likely with adrenaline from the win.
“Are you?”
The corner of his mouth tugs up. “I’ll go if you go.”
Before I can answer, Ethan skates over to stand beside Jax. He’s got his helmet tucked under his arm, and his damp hair sticks up in all directions when he runs his fingers through it. It shouldn’t be hot, but it is. Itsois.
“She’s going,” he states, making the decision for me.
“Is that so?” I challenge with an arched brow.
He pierces me with a no-nonsense look. You’d think that kiss yesterday might have burnt off some of his controllingenergy, but unsurprisingly, no, it did not. “The whole team is going out—and that includes you.”
“If the whole team is going out, then that sounds like the perfect opportunity to get the house to myself.”
Jax laughs. “Good one, Menace. Like Ethan would let you stay home alone after last night.”
I huff, knowing he’s right. “I didn’t do anything wrong,” I argue, “and I feel the need to remind you both that I’m not a child.”
Reaching over, Jax wraps his gloved hand around mine. “We just want to make sure you’re safe.”
My gaze drops to where the coarse fabric rubs back and forth across my skin. “I know.” I’m frustrated. I hate that this is how it is. I hate how weak it makes me feel to rely on others. And I hate the niggling voice in my head that says the guys are only spending time with me out of obligation.
