Page 72 of Played
Mostly everyone is shouting and laughing, and Solomon’s frowning, sitting in the same spot he claimed on one of the leather couches since the time we arrived over an hour ago. I met the man a few weeks ago, have been his lover for a couple of weeks, and still it’s like Iknow himknow him. And yeah, this is so not his scene.
“From the reaction you got when you stepped up in here, I’d say your teammates are glad you came out.”
When he and I arrived, a loud roar and spontaneous applause broke out, growing more deafening when Solomon flipped them off.
“Yeah, well, they need to thank you. Because if you’d turned me down, I would’ve kept my ass home. All this fucking peopling makes me itch,” he says, lifting his beer bottle up to his mouth for a deep drink.
I laugh, taking a sip from my own vodka and cranberry. Does my ridiculous heart trip over itself at his casual words? Yes. Yes, it does.
“It’s not a problem. At all. I’m off tomorrow, and after the last shift I had, I needed this.”
He frowns, his gaze sharpening on me, and mentally, I groan. Damn. I hadn’t meant to let that slip. I want to forget the last twenty-four hours happened and enjoy this night, hanging out with Solomon.
It scares me that when I spend time with him, all my problems and worries evaporate under the heat of his body, his beautiful eyes, and just ... him. What happens when he takes that away? Because contrary to my most recent decisions, I’m no fool. This ... situationship with him has an expiration date. I may not be able to pinpoint that exact day, but it’s going to happen. Either he’ll pull the trigger or I will.
Either this lust between us will burn out and he’ll move on.
Or I will get tired of pretending I’m not second best to a ghost.
One of them is bound to give, sooner or later.
In the meantime, though, I’m going to enjoy the time. And the sex. Good God, the sex.
I flick my gaze over him. From the tousled sandy-brown curls to the thick beard framing that sit-on-me mouth, down his wide black-T-shirt-covered chest, over the long, thick thighs wrapped in jeans of the same color. One of his powerful arms stretches across the back of the sofa behind me, and the hand not toying with my curls rests on his leg.
He’s such a beautiful, beautiful man, and I’ve gone past the point of wanting him tocravinghim. These last couple of weeks have been ... I sigh silently. Wonderful. Too wonderful. When he hasn’t been on the road and when I’m not on shift, I’ve been spending days and evenings with him and Khalil. The only thing that comes close to being sexier than watching this man twist in orgasm is seeing him with his son.
Single dads.
I get why they’re so popular in movies and books.
Fatherhood is hot as fuck.
“I suggest you start thinking about something other than what’s running through your mind right now. I have no problem finding the nearest bathroom and bending your ass over in one of those stalls.” He drops an abrupt wet kiss on my lips, then lifts his head, arching his eyebrow. My mouth tingles, and so does my pussy. This man has me so gone. “Don’t think you’re distracting me, though. What happened on your shift?”
I sigh, wishing he would just follow through on his threat. Not only would I enjoy the hell out of it, but I’d rather be riding his dick than talking about my day. Also, I can’t deny that I’m surprised he even asked about my job. If there’s one topic we don’t discuss often, it’s firefighting. As a matter of fact, it seems as if he actively avoids anything having to do with my job.
“Just butting heads with someone at the firehouse,” I say, downplaying the run-in with Matt. “We don’t exactly see eye to eye on some things.”
His frown returns. “Is it that guy from a couple weeks back, when we were there? The one with the eye problem?”
Damn. He forgets nothing.
“Yes, him.”
“You don’t see eye to eye on what?”
I shrug, glancing away and looking over the partying guests as if I’ve never seen them in the time I’ve been here.
“Just work stuff. Nothing major.”
“Adina.” Solomon raises a hand to my chin, pinching it and tilting my head back so I’m staring directly into his eyes. “Is everything good? He’s not giving you problems, is he? I didn’t like the way he looked at you then, and he seems off to me.”
“It’s nothing.” I shake my head, dislodging his hold on me. “Nothing I can’t handle. I’m a big girl,” I say, mimicking Matt’s words.
His eyes narrow on me. “That don’t mean shit to me, ma. Just because you can handle something doesn’t mean you should or even have to. I can just imagine some of the bull you have to deal with.”
“The same you have to deal with, being one of how many Black hockey players in the league?”
