We’ve got some tough games coming up. We face the Wild on their home ice tomorrow night, and then we’ve got the Capitals at home on Saturday. Both teams were in the playoffs last year and are favored to repeat.
If we want to keep our winning record, I need to be on my game. I need to win face-offs, execute the playbook, and score goals.
In short, I need to be the leader this team needs.
The pressure is…intense. I’m not the only one feeling it.
Coach has been wound tight all week, though he’s doing his best to hide it. Which only makes me feel like a bigger asshole about the secret I’m keeping from him.
AboutwhoI’m keeping secret.
I skipped dinner at his place last week, and I still feel guilty as hell about it.
During my time in Atlanta, the only meals I’ve missed were when either Coach or I were out of town.
If I keep making excuses, he’s going to get suspicious.
But I just couldn’t do it. Couldn’t sit across the table from him and make small talk while pretending I hadn’t spent the morning with my face buried between his daughter’s thighs.
Something has to give, but I’m no closer to a solution than I was six weeks ago.
I round the corner and nearly collide with the woman who’s been consuming my thoughts day and night.
Ava looks up, startled, and a soft smile lights her face. “Hey, you.”
“Hey yourself.” I let my gaze drift over her, admiring the gauzy dress that hugs her curves in all the right places. “I like the dress.”
A faint blush stains her cheeks. “Thanks. It’s new. A little treat for myself.”
“You deserve it.” I lean in, crowding her just a little. She smells divine, like flowers and sunshine, and I can’t get enough of it. Can’t get enough of her. “You know whatI’vebeen thinking about all morning?”
“What’s that?” Her voice is breathless, and I’m not gonna lie, I love that I have this effect on her.
“Have you ever had sex in a locker room?” I ask, pitching my voice low.
Her eyes widen. “Knox—”
“It’s always been a fantasy of mine,” I continue, backing her up against the concrete wall. “And now here you are. In just the right place at just the right time.”
I reach for her hand, intending to pull her into the locker room, but she laughs and shakes her head.
“We can’t. It’s too risky.” She looks up and down the hall. “What if someone catches us?”
She’s right. It’s a terrible fucking idea, but tell that to my cock.
“Everyone’s gone. I was the last one out of the gym.” I lean in, brushing my lips against the shell of her ear. “Besides, you deserve a reward for all your hard work. The team’s doing great, and it’s because of you.”
She shivers, and I know I’ve almost got her.
“Plus,” I add, pulling back to meet her gaze, “you can totally make my fantasy come true.”
Ava bites her lip, clearly torn between desire and discretion. Her need for release at war with her need to follow the rules. “I don’t know…”
I take her hand and lead her to the locker room, pushing the door open just enough for her to peer inside. “See? Completely empty. Everyone else is gone.”
She peeks, skeptical, then gives me the side-eye. “Are you telling me that in all your years of playing hockey, you’ve never hooked up in the locker room?”
I hold up three fingers. “Scout’s honor.”