Page 31 of Ice Block

She stands before me, her lips swollen, her eyes desperate, her cheeks flushed. Her chest, her very exposed chest, rises up and down hypnotically as she tries to calm her breathing. I straighten her sunglasses, still flipped back on her head, tucking one stray piece of hair behind her ear. I lean in, my lips a whisper away from hers. “I fuckingdare youto wink at my teammates like that again.”

Her eyes narrow and her nostrils flare, knowing I’ve won this round. “Enjoy your time on the beach, Maggie fucking James.” I walk out of the alley and head directly back to our room. I skip the gym, my teammates got enough of a show. They don’t need to witness the hard-on I have. My cock has already been talked about enough today. And after feeling her plump lips on mine, after longing for them for months, I need to take care of this erection and hop into a cold shower to get through the rest of this day.

21

maggie

Stumbling my way across the beach, my legs are wobbly as hell. Partly due to the uneven sand beneath me, but mostly because of fucking Vladimir Volkov. I thought my plan of walking by the gym would make him jealous as hell.Damn, was I ever right about that.But Ineverin a million years thought it would end with him grunting like a caveman and dragging me down the one alley that exists in paradise to tell me I’m the only thing he sees. My heart is still pounding from him calling me a goddess, then catching me completely off guard with that kiss.What the Bachelor in Paradise is happening here?I feel less like I’m walking toward my friends and more like I’ve just washed ashore as a piece of an emotional shipwreck.

“Maggie, you’re here!” Kara Reeves jumps up from her chair and rushes to give me a giant hug.

“Kara! Sorry we didn’t get to talk much at dinner last night. I was exhausted from the damn plane ride, but you and Zack seemed to head out pretty fast too.”

Her eyes spark, a smirk creeping up her cheeks. “Yeah. We’vebeen enjoying some…kid-freetime, if you know what I mean. With four kids at home, and Zack’s travel schedule, we’re trying to make the most of a room all to ourselves for a few days.”

“Damn, Kara, good for you! Are you guys trying for number five this week?”

“Hell no! Listen, I love my children and would do anything in the world for them, but four is plen-ty. Zack actually got the ‘snip snip’ right after the season ended, so we’re done with adding to the Reeves family hockey team. Here, we saved you a chair!” she says, pointing to the chair on the other side of Liv. “But, aside from all that, I’m also ready to spend some quality time on the beach with my besties. I’m still bummed Kennedy couldn’t make it this week! Damn pilot schedule.”

“Right? She can’t just be all fancy flying private rich people planes—she has to be even more of a total badass and be in the Air National Guard too. And apparently the government won’t just let you skip mandatory guard duty for the wedding of the year,” I say, rolling my eyes as I walk to my beach lounger.

“Wow, Mags!” Olivia gushes as I lay my beach towel down. “Haven’t seen you bust out that bikini since we went to Cancun a few years ago. You had so many guys buying you drinks at the swim-up bar, you said you were going to take it out of commission. You acted like you were going to hang it at the top of MKE Arena like a retired jersey. What made you wear that today?”

“A lot of pro athletes come out of retirement, Liv. They miss the thrill of the game.”

“They do, huh? And what game would you be playing withthatsuit? Anything to do with your…roommate?”

I glare at her, catching Kara peeking over Liv’s shoulder from her chair on the other side.

“Yeah, what’s happening with you and Vladi?” Kara asks.

I shake my head, not quite knowing how to respond. “Nothing. He’s…he’s…God,he’s infuriating.”

They both snort out little laughs, trying to cover them up with half-assed coughs.

“Laugh all you want! He was flustered when he saw me in this, especially when I paraded by the gym with nearly the entire team in there. So, my plan worked.”

Olivia looks at me with so much horror in her eyes, you’d think I just told her I just smashed her grand piano. “Mags, tell me you didn’t. You paraded by the guys in…inthat?!”

“Don’t be such a prude, Liv. You bet your ass I walked by them in this little getup. He got me all flustered last night, so I decided to return the favor.”

“What thehelldid he do last night?!” Kara shouts, practically leaping out of her chair, racing over to sit on the end of Liv’s, her attention fully on me.

I half-ass glare at her.I don’t know if her eyes could be any wider.“You want some popcorn while I tell this story, Kara?”

“Girl, I sit around watching Miss Rachel with my kids all day. No matter what happened, it’s got to be better than her asking me where my ears are. Now, tell us what the hell happened!”

I groan, trying to figure out where to start. “I woke up in the middle of the night and, sort of, walked in on him while he was, you know, tuning up his Russian missile—” Both of their eyes slowly expand like a balloon about to burst out. “-with a pair of my underwear around his wrist.”

“WHAT?!” they scream in unison.

I just nod and lean back in my chair to enjoy the breeze blowing in off the beach, my nonchalant attitude doing a stellar job of hiding the hurricane tearing through my chest.

“Maggie! Oh my holylord,” Kara screeches. “What did you do?”

I keep my eyes on the water, my suit suddenly damp. “I told him to finish.”

They both let out an audible gasp. “Holy shit, Mags!” Olivia screams. “Wait. Did he…” Olivia pauses, obviously embarrassed to be talking about this, “…didhe…” She clears her throat, “finish?”

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