Page 208 of Pucking Wild

She gasps. “What?”

“Tess, I bought this house. My contracts are all approved. The Nike deal, the new deal with Bauer, my contract extension with the Rays. You’re looking at a guy with a twenty-million-dollar four-year contract and a four-mil signing bonus,” I say, unable to avoid puffing out my chest a bit.

“Four?” she says, eyes wide. “I thought it was three.”

“MK negotiated,” I say with a grin.

“Oh—Ryan, that’s amazing,” she cries, coming around the island to wrap her arms around me.

I let her hug me, taking another shameless hit off her scent. She’s all floral and coconutty. I want that scent bottled. I’ll wash all my sheets and clothes with it. I want to drown in her. But I know a Tess-scented detergent isn’t enough. I wanther. I want everything.

She lets me go, spinning around again. “When do you move in?”

“Whenever I want,” I reply. “It’s ready now. Seller was motivated, and so was I.”

She smiles. “I’m really happy for you,” she says again. “How does it feel?”

I glance around and shrug, slipping my hands in the pockets of my jeans. “Like it’s a house.”

“And they told me all you hockey boys lack common sense,” she teases.

I just smile, watching her fill up this empty space with her light. “It’s not a home, Tess.”

“Well, not yet. But you gotta give it a fighting chance. At least put down a rug. Maybe a couch here,” she says, pointing to a spot on the floor. “Plug in your Nintendo, toss a few boxes of Kraft mac and cheese in the pantry, and you’ve got yourself a Casa de Ryan.”

“That won’t make it my home,” I reply solemnly.

She turns around, slower this time. “Curtains, then? Maybe something blue. And a dish of seashells. Apparently, no Florida home is complete without a decorative dish with some shells. Oooh, can that be my housewarming gift to you?”

“It’s not my home, Tess,” I say again.

I can almost see the relief on her face as she lets out a little breath. “Oh, is it like a rental, then? Diversifying your assets?”

“No, I’m gonna live here. This is my house. I’m gonna decorate it top to bottom. I’ll work out on my patio in the mornings, do beach walks at night. And yes, I’ll make my mac and cheese on the stove and play Mario Kart when I’m bored. But none of that will make this my home. Only one thing can do that.”

She goes still, her chest rising and falling as she eyes me warily. “What are you doing?” she finally asks, unable to play dumb a second longer.

“Not proposing,” I reply.

The breath she’s holding leaves her in a puff through parted lips. “Ohmygod, you were scaring the shit outta me,” she says, her hand covering her chest as she takes a deep breath. “Ryan, you said no marriage. You said you don’t believe in it—”

“Andyousaid no man will cage you,” I counter. “You said you’ll never be someone’s wife again. So, I didn’t know how to fucking do this without making it seem like I’m proposing to you when I’m not. ‘Cause neither of us want that…right?”

She blinks at me, tears in her eyes, saying nothing.

And now my heart has fucking stopped. “Oh…fuck.”

She steps forward, one hand reaching out to me, whether to pull me closer or push me away, I have no fucking idea. “Ryan—”

“Tess, what the fuck are you doing to me,” I cry, dragging both hands through my hair.

“Nothing!”

“You can’t stand in the house I bought for you, wearing my cum between your legs, looking at me like that when I ask if you want to get married. I’m gonna freak the fuck out!”

She gasps. “You—what? Ryan, tell me you didnotbuy me this house!”

“Of course, I bought you a house,” I shout, gesturing around. “I gave up my death trap apartment weeks ago. And you said you couldn’t keep staying in Ilmari’s house after all the peeping Tom bullshit. I wanted a place where we couldbothstart fresh. New chapter, right?”

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