Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 121734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 487(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 487(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
I surged up, barely suppressing a cry.
He groaned, deep in his throat. “Keep riding me, baby. Keep going.”
I grabbed a fistful of his hair and yanked. “I am not your baby.”
He grinned at me. His eyes were wild, lost in hunger. “Right now, you could tell me you want to be called the Easter Bunny and I’d do that. Whatever you want, ba—little Connors.”
That was worse. I lifted myself up off of him, and as he protested, I slammed back down.
He groaned, closing his eyes, and his forehead hit the side of my neck. He clawed at my back, struggling to find a hold because we were both sweaty messes by now. “Shit, woman. You feel so good.” He tipped his head back and grinned again. “I think I might already be addicted to you.”
Something dark and determined flashed in his eyes. Suddenly I was holding my breath, unsure. He rested his forehead between my breasts. His hands returned to my hips, and he began moving with me.
An explosion was stirring. I felt it building at the bottom of my spine, in my core, and as he yanked me over him one more time, lifting my body in the air. I came, a scream ripping out of me.
He cursed, dragging me over him a few more times before I felt him release inside of me. My walls constricted around him and he whimpered. He didn’t seem aware of the sound.
I collapsed on top of him, riding out the wave of my climax.
We stayed there like that until reality came back to me. Until I remembered what I’d just done and who I’d done it with. I welcomed the cold that now invaded me. It pushed out the warmth. Swiftly, I swung myself off of him. Clambering to the side of the bed, I bent down and grabbed the first hoodie I touched. I yanked it on and rose from the bed.
“Rain—”
“We fucked. Now get out.”
I left the room.
Only later did I realize I’d grabbed his hoodie.
39
TYLER
A week later
Iwas just leaving practice when my phone rang. I didn’t even need to look at the screen once I heard the Batman-theme ringtone. I swiped to answer, a big smile already coming to my face. “Nolan. My man.”
“Hey!”
He sounded good. Cheerful. It felt good to hear his voice again. I missed him. I missed my old team.
“It’s been a minute,” he added.
“Yeah.” I unlocked my truck and opened the door to toss my things inside. I rounded to the driver’s seat, and as I pulled out of my parking spot, the phone synced up with the dashboard. Nolan’s voice transferred to the speakers.
“—to catch up, but I was calling for a reason.”
I frowned. “Yeah, man. What’s up?”
It wasn’t that Nolan and I didn’t keep in touch. We texted and sent each other funny memes or reels, but we’d not had a discussion of all the details going on with our lives in a while. I’d been too busy with Skylar at first, then I was distracted by Rain, and now, well, I didn’t have a good reason.
“When’s the last time you talked to your sister?”
My gut churned. “Uh, it’s been a while. Why are you asking?”
Ski knew Nolan. When she and Zoey visited me in New York, Nolan was over all the time. He took to Skylar as if she were his sister, and Zoey was his niece.
“She’s been calling me.”
“What?”
“Yeah, buddy. I’m sorry. I wasn’t sure what to do at first. The first time she called, she cried almost the whole time. I just listened. At the end, I told her to let you know she’d called me. She said she would, but I never heard from you. I know you. You would’ve reached out. I meant to shoot you a message, let you know myself, but you know how it is. Hockey.”
Games were almost every other night. Traveling. Practices. We were busy.
“Anyway, it’s been a few weeks, and she’s still calling.”
I turned in to a parking lot and swung for the closest slot. Letting the engine idle, I sat back. “Ski’s giving me the silent treatment. She got pissed when I told her Zoey should go to a mental health clinic.”
He was quiet for a beat. “Interesting. She didn’t put it in those words.”
“How’d she put it?”
“She said you thought she and Zoey should be separated. When I asked her for the specific wording, she just started crying. Again, I know you, and I was reading between the lines, but she’s not doing so well.”
I pulled up the last few texts I’d sent my sister.
Tyler: Can we talk about this?
Tyler: Please.
Tyler: I miss you. I love you and Zoey. I just want what’s best for her.
Tyler: I’m learning that maybe therapy isn’t such a bad thing.
Tyler: Can you let me know what you decided?