Page 80 of Home Ice

"Sorry, dickface," Barrie rests my hand on my back and whispers into the ear opposite Chloe, "but that woman is way too good for you."

I nod in absolute agreement.

CHAPTER 50

JUST OPEN IT

BRANT

I still have a pizza hangover when I wake up. I should have known Mom was lying when she talked about making a lemongrass turkey, but honestly, it wouldn't surprise me. For being a terrible cook, she's always willing to try new things. I wish some of her baking skill would translate to cooking. She's an incredible baker. I also wish I hadn't eaten that whole large, extra sausage pizza by myself. And the other half of Lily and Chloe's. It was so good, but I've been paying for it since. Before I staggered into bed, I googled "can a stomach explode." The internet didn't tell me no, so that wasn't exactly comforting.

Having Lily lie next to me, though, more than made up for it. I'm sure I overcrowded her, but from the time we got into bed, I stayed pressed against her. My dick wanted so much more, and no amount of reminders that we're in my parents' house or that Chloe was right across the hall did anything to bring it to its senses. Of course, when Lily reached under my waistband and wrapped her hand around it, that didn't exactly discourage it. Did I mention I have the achiest blue balls in the history of blue balls this morning too? Not a great combination.

I try to be still and not wake Lily as I twist behind me to look at the time. A little after nine. The rest of my family will be up and waiting for us. We're all early risers. But it's only seven back home, and I know Lily will want to sleep for at least another hour. My parents and Barrie can wait.

I settle back on the pillow and stare at the strands of wild black hair splaying across Lily's face from every direction. It takes all my willpower to not tuck them behind her ear for her. But that would wake her, and then I wouldn't get to watch her. I wouldn't get to stare at the slight part of her lips. At the way her nose twitches every couple of minutes, as if something is tickling it. I couldn't wonder what she's dreaming about when her eyes start darting behind those closed eyelids.

How did I ever think I loved Serenity? What I felt for her was nothing like this. I could spend every minute for the rest of my life watching Lily sleep, and I would be happier than I ever was with Serenity. I liked Serenity. When we weren't fighting, we had fun. But with Lily, it scares me how much I love her. I didn't know feelings like this were even possible.

When she finally stirs and pulls in a long inhale that somehow captivates me, I hold my breath, not wanting to be the reason she wakes before she's ready. But then her eyelids flutter open, and a curve cracks her sleepy lips. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas."

"Do you know how much I love waking up next to you?" she asks.

"Do you know how much I love you?" She rolls her eyes, but that curve becomes a smile that I want to see every day. "Why don't we do this every morning?"

She draws in a deep breath, and the smile disappears. "You know why. The team might overlook this, but the management? There's a chance I could even have a disciplinary action taken against my license."

"No one would have to know."

"Brant, we couldn't even keep it secret from the team. If I suddenly change my address with HR, we might as well put it on the internet." She laughs to play it off as a joke, but I know the worry is constantly in the back of her mind. It seems so unfair that she could be the one punished for this. "And I can't leave that house. Not yet."

I slide closer to her and drape an arm over the dip of her waist. Moving closer to her would be a lot easier if I didn't have a fucking javelin pointing right up into her stomach. "Your dad would never hold you to that deal. He'd want you to be happy."

Her eyes gloss over and her attention moves beyond my shoulder. We both lie in silence until she finally breaks it. "Speaking of family, we should go downstairs to spend time with yours."

She doesn't wait for me to say anything before she rolls out of the bed. Her already short pink pajama shorts are hitched up on the left side, showing the bottom curve of her ass. When she bends over to dig through her backpack before heading to the bathroom, they rise even more, and damn, I want to drag her ass back to me. I don't care if Chloe is just feet away or if my family is downstairs or if the fucking owner of the team finds out about us. This girl is mine, and every second I can't have her is miserable.

"I thought maybe I would show you your Christmas gift before heading down, but if you're not interested…"

Lily peeks back around from the bathroom door, toothbrush hanging from her mouth. "Brant," she sighs. "You said no gifts between us either." Her hand is on her hip. She's pretending to be annoyed, but I can tell she's really not.

I pull my legs up and tap the bed for her to come sit next to me. "It's not like that, so don't feel bad."

She disappears back into the bathroom, apparently to set her toothbrush down, but then practically skips into the bedroom. "I'm glad, because I got you something too. Close your eyes. I want to go first." I shake my head, but I do as she says. I hear her searching through her backpack for a few seconds. Then I hear the crinkle of paper. "Okay, open up," she says.

The box she's holding is so large, she has to use both hands. I have no idea how she fit that into her backpack along with everything she needed for the trip. "Where did you find hockey wrapping paper?" I ask. The red paper is adorned with green-and-white-striped hockey sticks and silver pucks hanging like berries from holly leaves.

"Internet. I also found hockey-themed lingerie. I saved that link for later." As if my dick weren't already screaming for attention this morning. "Open it." She draws in her lower lip and works it between her teeth.

I find the seam on the bottom, and slide my middle finger along it before I slip it in, parting it just enough to make room before I stop and look at her. "Since this was already wrapped, I didn't have to close my eyes."

"No, but that wouldn't have been as dramatic. Now, open it!" She bounces up and down on the mattress like an excited kid.

"Maybe I want to take my time." I slip my finger just a little further into the seam but then pull it out and trace it along the package. "Maybe I want to savor it." I slide two fingers in this time. The paper tears just a little to make room for me, but it holds.

"Ugh, I hate you. Just open it!"

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