Page 50 of Snapping the Ice
Turning his head, his brown-eyed gaze swept to mine.
“I know you’re concerned this might be an experiment for me, but it’s not. There are…” I widened my eyes. Holy fuck, what was I about to say? I swallowed hard. “Feelings involved.” I gauged his reaction.
He twisted into my side, grabbing my neck, and buried his face in my shoulder. “I have feelings for you too, Lucas.”
Hugging him, I kissed his head and stroked the back of his long hair. “You hit me hard and fast, and I can’t deny it. From the first day of my shoot, I’ve been obsessed with you. I don’t know why, but it is what it is.”
He lifted his head and pressed a lasting kiss on my lips, his hand gliding to my cheek and thumb brushing against it. “The moment you entered my studio, I felt a connection with you, too. I never thought we’d be together, though.”
“Well, we are.” My lips tugged into a grin. “Deal with it.” I chuckled. Fuck, what time was it?
“Hello?” Evan knocked on my door. “We have to leave soon.”
“I know,” I called with a huff. Shit, I didn’t want to leave Ezra. “Ihave to pack.”
“Okay.” He slid off the bed and dressed.
After saying goodbye to Ezra, I climbed into an Uber with Evan for our drive to the airport. I glanced at the apartment building as we drove off. Fuck, I hoped he was okay.
“Will you be able to focus on the games this week?” Evan, sitting in the seat next to me, eyed me.
“Yeah.” No. I twisted my lips. I had to let this go. Ezra was a full grown man, older than me. He could take care of himself.
“He’s getting an order of protection, right?” Evan grabbed the handle above the window, his attention shifting outside.
“He is. He’s doing that tomorrow.” I threaded my fingers in my lap. “Tate came by his place this morning and the neighbor called the police. She sent Ezra the video.” Shit, the police were supposed to contact him today. Why hadn’t they called him before I’d left? Maybe it wasn’t a priority, and they had other shit to handle.
“Jesus.” Evan squeezed my thigh. “He’ll be all right.” He looked me over. “How is it? Being gay, I mean.” He lifted the corner of his mouth.
“What?” With a snort, I shook my head. “It’s great, actually. You should try it.” He couldn’t help but chirp at me. Maybe he was trying to distract me from the other bullshit. Leaning over, I cupped his ear and whispered, “You should try sucking dick some time. It’s amazing.”
“Dude.” He scoffed a laugh. “No, thank you.” His gaze snapped to mine. “Did you…?”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I said, “I don’t kiss and tell.” That’d fix him. Now he’d be wondering about it the entire trip.
After checking into our hotel in Vegas, we had some downtime. Because it wasn’t on the Strip, the hotel was inexpensive and we each had a room. The game wasn’t until tonight, so I could chill and relax. Speaking with Ezra was first on the agenda. I called him and the phone rang twice.
“Lucas?”
“Hey, Ezra. I’m here in Vegas.” Warmth fluttered through my heart. I paced across the dingy carpet and gazed through the window at the parking lot below. I was on the second floor. “How are you doing? Have you heard anything?” Tate wouldn’t try to show up at my place, would he?
“I’m fine. I’m relaxing and watching a funny show.” He sighed. “I can’t remember the last time I did that.”
“Good.” My gaze ran over the bare wooden headboard and white sheets and comforter on the bed. I traced a line across the desk across from it. “Have you heard from the police yet?”
“I have. An officer called me, and I gave him all the details. He said getting an order of protection would help a lot. Then they can patrol my studio and my apartment more.”
“Shit, really?” Maybe I could stop worrying so much while I was gone. I sat on the edge of the bed. “Let me know as soon as you file the order, okay?”
“I will.” He breathed in. “Lucas, don’t worry about me. I can handle this.”
“Yeah, okay.” I slumped. I needed to focus on hockey right now.
“Can I watch your game tonight?”
“You can. I have a streaming app on our television you can use.” I straightened my shoulders. I’d play well and make him proud tonight.
“Great. Score a goal for me.” He snickered.
