Page 30 of Riding Pine
Lukas:Works for me.
Shoving my phone in my pocket, I dig into the amazing dinner the team provided. The rest of this training day can’t be over soon enough.
Still riding high after earning the title of Captain for the Bloomburg Aspens, I pop the tab on a new beer and laugh.
I’m the captain, and while it doesn’t come with a raise or anything, it sure as hell comes with expectations and visibility. I’m up for the challenge of both, and I can’t wait to tell Ben.
All these years I’ve been chasing a championship, but maybe this is what I needed instead. The acknowledgement that I have something in me that a team desires. I’d never thought about it that way before.
With a glance at the clock, my heart rate jumps when I notice it’s almost 8 P.M. and Ben should be here soon. My libido also jumps because I’m suddenly hot all over and craving his taste so much, I put the beer down.
We’ve only had one official date, and while he revealed he’s the team mascot against the rules of his contract, that part made me respect him more. He’s honest from the start, and that goes a long way in my book.
A small knock sounds at the door, and I practically sprint to it. Ripping it open, Ben stands there with wide eyes and looking like the bite-sized snack he is.
His lips tilt into a crafty little grin. “Do you always rip the door off the hinges when you answer it?”
“I do when I’ve been waiting for the person on the other side.”
Ben drops his gaze for a moment, and it’s then that I notice he’s carrying a small bag.
Motioning him to enter, I close the door too hard, and it rattles the frame. Ben laughs as I throw the deadbolt and turn to him.
“Am I locked in for the night?”
“Yes. Is there somewhere you need to be? Any morning classes to teach?”
He looks up at me. The sparkle in his eyes makes me smile because I know he wants the same thing I do.
“The only place I need to be is bent over for you.”
“I love it when you just say what you want like that.”
He moves towards me, heat in his gaze, and remembers he’s holding the bag.
“The first thing I want is for you to put these in your freezer. They’re much better than a bag of peas and the shitty ice pack you probably have.”
Passing me the bag, I look inside to find three bags very similar to the one he used on my eye at his studio. Although the outside of these are covered in fun patterns. One even has little hockey pucks on it, and I chuckle.
“Is this the same thing you put on my eye at the studio?”
“Yeah.” He shrugs. “Just keep them in your freezer so they’re ready. If you hit back, you might need them for your knuckles too.”
He just throws that out casually, and it’s anything but to me. But I do as he asks and settle the three flannel-covered bags into my freezer.
“So…this is the place you found to replace the motel room? It’s nice.”
He toes off his shoes and tries to walk to my living room, but I grab him and pull him into me.
“I’ll give you the grand tour later.”
My lips take his, and he pushes up to press himself into me. His hands slide under my shirt with a groan.
“I never thought I’d appreciate a man’s body that’s as big and hard as yours,” he whispers against my lips as he struggles to remove my shirt. “You have the firmest,” he grunts as he finally gets my shirt off. “And just…you have a lot of fucking muscles, and I like it.”
He lays open-mouthed kisses across my chest, and my body shudders.
“I never thought I’d like a man who was so flexible and…chatty.”
