Page 44 of Love of the Game
Then he looked at the rest of our teammate and shook his head. “I hate you all.” He was beaming from ear to ear.
The ride home was loud. There was cake and party hats, and even noisemakers. Alfie and Bruda owned up to planning the surprise, and they confirmed I hadn’t known, because they didn’t think I’d be able to keep a secret. Mac had held us back to give them time to set up.
“I figure you have something romantic planned,” Alfie said to me.
I shrugged. “Maybe.” But I couldn’t quite keep the smile off my face. Jon bumping me and his grin didn’t help. “Not that I’m telling you yet,” I said to him.
I’d made a reservation at a local restaurant—not the fancy French place in Pittsburgh, but a nice brew pub with lots of beers on tap and a really good menu right in Greensburg. I figured we’d finally have that date, then come home, watch a movie, and spend the rest of the time in bed. Since that first night, I’d been topping him exclusively. Given the way he moaned and cried and came, I knew he liked that, but he’d also said he was vers.
And well, sometimes I liked being on the receiving end. So, I was going to see if he wanted to change things up for his birthday.
I was not about to announce that to our teammates, though.
The drive back to Jon’s was quiet and calm and he spent the scant minutes smiling as if he couldn’t stop. “I love that team,” he said, “so so much. The guys are good to me, even when they’re being absolute shits.”
I chuckled. “Best kind of team.”
“Yeah. So lucky I ended up here. The Otters. Hideaway. Everyone. It’s far from my parents, but this is home, you know? These people. This place.”
I nodded, a little lump forming in my throat. He was right. This place did feel like home. But that was because of Jon.Hefelt like home. “I love you,” I murmured.
“Oh,” he said, breathlessly, as if I’d spoken something profound, as if we hadn’t said it many times since Christmas. Since our kiss on New Year’s. “That’s the best gift I’ve ever received.”
He pulled into his driveway and parked, then pulled me into a kiss. “I love you too,” he said against my lips.
I grinned like a fool. “Is it after midnight, yet?” It had to be something closer to one, actually.
He checked his watch. “Yup.” Just a single word. So unusual for him.
“We should go inside.”
Same grin. “Yup.”
Oh, Isee. There were two versions of Jon when horny: Talks a mile a minute and vibratingly quiet. Looks like I had the latter tonight.
In the foyer of Jon’s house, I didn’t even wait to shuck our coats before I pulled him into a long kiss that left both of us breathless and him dazed. “Happy birthday, Jon.”
“Very,” he said.
I helped him take his coat off, then hung his and mine in the closet. “I had a thought for tonight.”
He licked his lips, and I wondered if he was still tasting my kiss. “You want to try something new?”
I took his mouth in another kiss, sipping and nipping until he melted against me. He’d been wearing burgundy and black tonight, which was such a hot look on him. Then again, everything Jon wore looked great on him. Probably because he was just so beautiful, he could’ve made a plastic garbage bag look sexy. I worked his tie loose.
“I’ll do anything you want,” he murmured. “Well, within reason. No maiming or injuring or weird internet dances.”
I chuckled. “I’m not asking you to do a TikTok meme, I’m asking if you want to top me tonight.”
Those big brown eyes of his widened, and then I was the one up against the wall. His mouth was a firebrand on mine, even as his fingertips caressed my face. This was more like what I’d initially expected from Jon—in control. Strong.
He broke the kiss, then ran his thumb over my lip. “I absolutely can top you.” He nodded toward the stairs. “Bedroom?”
Didn’t have to ask me twice. We went to his—more ours now—and he slowly stripped me of my suit, then peeled off his. It was a careful, teasing dance of touch and tastes. Kisses, licks, and bites. Insistent, but gentle.
“How do you want this to go?” he asked as he nipped his way down my neck. “What’s your fantasy?”
This. This was my fantasy. Being with him in any capacity. “It’s your birthday. Whatever you want.”
