Page 60 of Ice Block

He nods his head, pursing his lips before he speaks, “It has been fun. A near-death experience, but yes. Perhaps fun is the best way to describe it.”

I roll my eyes, unable to help the smile and warmth filling my chest at his admission. “Perhaps?I think we need to work on your words.”

He furrows his brows, pouting his lips with playful irritation. “What’s wrong with my words?”

“You’re so…stiff. So formal. We need to loosen you up a bit.”

“Stiff is an accurate word for my current situation,” he says, pulling me down with a bit of force onto his lap.

“You know what I meant.” I playfully smack his chest.Though, I’m certainly not mad feeling how he responds to me.“I just meant…I like seeing this side of you. Out here in the real world. You’re kinda…fun.”

“Kindafun? You use the wordkindatoo often. You do know it’s ‘kind of’, right? I think we need to work onyourwords,lisichka.”

“Sorry for being trendy, Wolfie. You’re alwaysso serious with your words,” I grumble in my best, but horribly imitated, Russian accent as he rolls his eyes. “You’re usually so closed off. But today’s been New Vladi Day. Maybe we should make this a national holiday?” I jump, rubbing against Vladi’s length. “Ohhh! We could have a party and celebrate this every year like St. Patty’s Day. Oh my God, St.Vladi’sDay! I bet the Riders PR department would have a field day with that.”

His eyes widen, his grip on me tightening with panic. “Donotmake that a thing. I swear, if you tell Bougie…”

I burst into a fit of laughter knowing the shitstorm Bougie would cause planning a parade for Vladi. “Just this once, I’ll keep it from Bougie. But, trust me, Milwaukee would flood the streets for that. You know you’re kind of a big deal, right? You hold a shit ton of records. You sell more jerseys and tickets than anyone else on the team. Do you ever stop and celebrate everything you’ve accomplished? You won a fucking Stanley Cup before you came to Milwaukee!” I tilt my head. “What did you do on your day with it? You got a day, right?”

He shrugs his shoulders. “I did. I relaxed at home with The Cup sitting on my coffee table while I read a book.”

My heart sinks, wondering why this man wouldn’t do something amazing with his day. Then again, at his core, that’s who he is. But I see little flecks of fun peeking out from behind his dark exterior and I know, deep down, he’s so much more than what he lets on. “Thatis what you did with The Cup? You didn’t drink vodka from it or eat cereal out of it?”

He cracks his neck, another one of his nervous tics I’ve noticed. “No. Nothing like that. My dad was still alive, so he was able to see it, which I was thankful for. I had a chef prepare us a nice dinner. But that was it.”

I blink, not at all surprised, but still a little sad that was all Vladi did. “Well, if, no…whenthe Riders win the Stanley Cup, you have to do something more fun than reading. I mean, reading’s great, but youhaveto do something crazy with it! God, I have so many ideas.”

A wide grin cracks across his face as he pulls me in tighter, his lips just a breath away from mine. “You’ll have to help me plan the day then, when we bring The Cup to Milwaukee.”

I swallow hard as my pulse races. Biting the inside of my cheek, I realize he just implied a future. For the first time, I’m starting to feel like maybe that could happen. I lean into his chest, hiding the smile creeping across my cheeks. For once, Melissa Joan Heart is not going bonkers in my chest, she’s just…calm. Every day this week, she’s been beating faster and faster with hope. Hope at the way this man irritates me, the way he turns me on, how he takes care of me, and now…talking about something in the future involvingus. I love seeing this side of him. I want more of this, more of him, and I finally feel like it’s time to give Melissa a little credit and let her take over.Melissa, you were right. Let him in. Justdon’tfuck this shit up.

38

vladi

Apparently, weddings require rehearsing. Larsy and Olivia are already married, they already had a wedding, yet here we are, running through it.Again.On the sand. In the heat. Directly in sight of the setting sun. There is only one bright spot, and that is the woman standing on the other side of the bride I get to escort down the aisle after the fake ceremony is over. The warmth on my skin is nothing compared to the warmth flooding my chest, my body, when she’s near. I’ve longed for her for months on end, but this week has only made my longing grow worse.Or is it better?

After we returned to the hotel this afternoon, we tried to nap. Tried to rest after the insanity of Magdalina’s driving. Not even five minutes of lying next to one another, and we couldn’t keep our hands to ourselves. The hunger I have for her—for every damn piece of her—is insatiable. That tightness I carry seems to lessen with every moment spent with her, as if her mere presence soothes a piece of my soul that’s long been broken.

We did, however, shower separately this afternoon as Maggie said she wanted it clear that her hair was sufficiently dry by thetime we all met up again. When she emerged from the bathroom, all the breath left my lungs. And now, standing here with the minister walking the happy couple through their vows, all I see isher. Seeing her makes me forget about the heat blazing down on me. I only feel the heat between my eyes and hers. Her cranberry red dress, if you can even call it that, only covers one shoulder, leaving the other bare, exposing her sun-kissed skin. Remembering my lips there hours ago has me wanting to throw her over my shoulder and march her back up to our room. Her long chocolate hair, its strands floating in the breeze off the water, reminds me of holding it back as she took me so deep in her mouth I touched the back of her throat. My cock swells in my shorts, and once again, my inner caveman is having a hard time not ravishing her on this beach in front of everyone. But more than that, I crave holding her in my arms. Lying in bed with her, even in the quiet of our hotel room, just being with her is comforting to me. My chest tightens, my pulse races.What is happening to me?I want her. Physically, absolutely always. But…I want more than that. I wanther.All of her. Every piece of her.I want her like Larsy has Olivia, like Zach has Kara. I’ve opened up to her. I’ve shared things I never have before. And yet…something has me too frightened to fully embrace the woman who helps me feel safe, feel…feel anything. It’s making me feel like maybe, just maybe, I could have her.

The minister tells Larsy this is the part where he will kiss his bride tomorrow, and of course, he doesn’t miss the opportunity to do just that in front of everyone before they recess down the aisle. Which means now I get to escort the woman of my dreams down the beach and straight to dinner.

Olivia walks around after dinner handing little gift bags to all the ladies. They all squeal and hug her as they open them, and I see Maggie wiping happy tears from her lashes. Larsy comes over and sits next to me, handing me a box.

“What’s this?”

“It’s your best man gift. Open it.”

My brow furrows, panic bubbling within me. “I didn’t get you anything. Is this customary?”

He laughs, patting me on the back. “You didn’t need to get me anything, Vladi. This gift is a thank you for being here. For being my best man. For being my best friend. For being like a brother to me. I know a whole week on the beach isn’t your thing, and I want you to know I appreciate you coming and doing this for me.

I didn’t expect a gift, and his words punch me in the gut. “I may not like the heat, but you know I would do anything for you, brother.”

“I know you would. And same here.”

I open it to find a bottle of vodka, my eyes going wide and my mouth dropping open as I examine it. It’s not just any bottle. It’s a bottle of New Russo-Baltique Vodka. I blink furiously, looking back and forth between Larsy and the gift.

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