Page 56 of Ice Bet

I needed a solution, and the longer I was surrounded by the cold and my eyes adjusted, the choppier my breaths became.

Aasher eventually sighed. My hands rested against his shoulders as my hair came down like a curtain around us. “Are you sure?” he asked with a tone that stained my cheeks pink.

Gray’s face faded from my head when I stared into Aasher’s eyes. I nodded curtly, adjusting myself in his arms. I glanced at the ice and sucked in a breath, closing my eyes.

It was unfair to feel this unsettled.

The rink used to be my happy place, my home. Now, it brought back nothing but an ugliness that I couldn’t hide from. I was afraid to fall into the same mindset as before and dip into those coping mechanisms that put me here in the first place.

I held on tight as Aasher walked with me pressed against him. When I felt the glass wall against my back, I slowly pried my eyes open and found him staring at me. “This means nothing,” he whispered, taking his hand and dragging it up my leg to rest against my groin. He pushed my leg open farther and crept closer. “You got it? And you tellno one.”

I nodded. My heart was racing even faster than before, but the more I focused on Aasher’s mouth moving, the more I thought about the devilish things it could do instead of the bite of his insult.

Of course it means nothing to him. I’m not his type.

It meant nothing to me either, except for a brief act of saving.

“Wait.”

Aasher’s lips rolled together as he raised an eyebrow, waiting for me to continue. I couldn’t tell if the look in his eye was relief or disappointment. “Second thoughts?”

I shook my head. “I want you to have all the control.”

His eyes widened but only for a second. “I don’t think you know what you’re asking for, Duster.”

This entire problem started with me needing to have control. I knewexactlywhat I was asking for. I never let Gray have control in the bedroom, and after a while, he grew sick of being the submissive one. I was too far along to realize why I was so afraid to let someone else have the power. But I understood it now.

“Please, Aasher,” I begged. “I know what I need.”

He paused before licking his lips. He looked down at the ice before staring right at my mouth. “Fuck it.”

One of his hands disappeared, and he held me up with the other one like I was as light as a feather. The brush of my scarf being unraveled from my neck sent chills flying down my arms. I blushed at how needy I felt with Aasher in charge. Instead of fighting to take back control, I was falling into a trap of submission and anticipating what he was going to do next.

“Put your hands in front of you.”

I did as he said, putting my hands together. My back pressed harder into the glass behind me, and I was thankful that Aasher kept my legs pinned behind his back as he wrapped the scarf around my wrists, tying them together. “Is this okay?”

I nodded, appreciative that although I was handing the reins over to him, he was still being respectful and going slow. I knew it was because of what I’d told him happened to me, but it was much more than I could say for any other guy that I’d been with.

“Good.” His voice dropped low as he moved his hands back to my butt. The warm whisper in my ear was like stepping close to the sun. Sweat threatened to prickle my temples as I inhaled his scent, falling for his words harder than I expected. “Now spread.”

I swallowed my tongue as I followed every one of his commands. A breath hitched in my chest as he lazily dragged his finger over my hip and down the crease of my groin, rubbing his knuckle over the seam of my leggings.How does that feel so good with a layer of clothing in the way?

“You’re already wet.” His teeth grazed my jaw before he nipped at my earlobe.

Oh my god.

“And it’s a fucking turn-on, Riley.”

It is?

“It’s even hotter because I’m not supposed to be touching you. Who knew that I turned you on this much?”

Aasher’s breathing picked up in pace, right along with mine. His hand slowly crept up past my hip and dipped underneath my sweater. He kept his eyes on mine, and I couldn’t decide if he was trying to see if I was going to panic or trying to see if I enjoyed it.

I wasn’t panicking, because I was too busy anticipating his next move.

I didn’t really care if he was a narcissistic hockey player with an ego bigger than the universe, nor did I care that this didn’t mean anything serious, because his touches were way too inviting to want to stop.

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