Page 84 of Cold as Ice

Mal swallowed the lump in his throat. “Better than I imagined. ’Cause of you.”

He finally let go.

Elliott rose to his feet, grabbed his briefs, and pulled them on. Then his sweatpants. “Anyone worth it would’ve done the same. Taken their time with you. Made sure you were enjoying it the way you should.” Elliott’s voice was self-deprecating, but Mal didn’t believe it.

He had too many walls and layers to be fooled when he saw Elliott erecting his own.

“No,” Mal said firmly. “No, they wouldn’t have. It was you, because it had to be you.”

Elliott stopped getting dressed. Turned. “Did you talk to Ramsey?”

“No? Why?” Mal couldn’t understand what on earthRamseyhad to do with this.

“Uh, no reason. Just . . .” Elliott gestured again. “Just wondering. You know how he likes to interfere.”

Mal nodded. “Look at Finn tonight. I’m pretty sure he orchestrated that whole thing, but it was so good, soseamless, I couldn’t pick out how.”

“I know,” Elliott said. He shot Mal a look. “Did you still want to study?”

What Mal wanted was to peel Elliott back out of those clothes and tuck him back into bed, their bodies pressed together again. But he didn’t.

Instead, he nodded and reached for his clothes. Elliott was too good of a hockey player to not play just because he wasn’t very good at math. Mal was going to make sure he made it. No matter what.

Chapter 11

“I didn’t hear youcome in last night.” Jane leaned forward and pouted into the mirror she’d hung right next to the door, putting the finishing touches on her makeup. Bright red lips, dark smoky eyes, all appropriate considering her costume as the devil.

“I was out late, studying,” Mal said, willing himself not to flush.

But his friend knew him better than that.

“You? Malcolm McCoy was out late studying? With who?” She paused. “Not Elliott. Oh my God, itwasElliott. You’re going all red!”

“I am not,” Mal said, even though the sliver of himself he could see in the mirror proved him a liar.

Jane whirled around. “You did it, didn’t you?”

It had been a few days now since it had actually happened, and Mal had intended to tell Jane, but she’d been so busy with this new choreographer, and he’d been in the thick of the hockeyseasonplusclasses. Plus, well, he couldn’t deny it, plenty of tutoring and also “tutoring” with Ell.

He’d barely seen her. And when they did pass each other, he hadn’t known how to come out with it and say,by the way I had sex and it was great. Better than I’d ever dreamt of. But I think it’s not just the sex. I think it’s Elliott. He’s funny and sweet and thoughtful and even though we’re totally different people, I think we’re more alike than I ever thought.

“Yes,” Mal admitted.

“Oh my God,” she shrieked again, throwing her arms around him and hugging him hard. Her devil horn headband, perched perkily on the top of her blond hair, lurched and nearly fell right off. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because of this, right here,” Mal said. “You’d make a big deal out of it.”And I’d want to make a big deal out of it, even as I’m trying to stay chill.

“Itisa big deal,” Jane said reproachfully.

“Only because I waited all this time,” Mal said.

“And was it great? Elliott treated you good, right? He was gentle and careful and—”

“How do you know who it even was?”

Jane rolled her eyes. “Like it was ever going to be anyone else. You wanted Elliott, and he sure wanted you. Got you too, I think.”

Mal didn’t know what to say. Hefeltgot, but he also wasn’t sure if that was the orgasms talking. Orgasms like the ones he and Elliott were sharing would make anyone feel special.

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