Page 61 of Sporting Goods

She was so withdrawn yet had it all figured out.

Her laughter, Jax’s laughter, they were like the dressing to my open wounds. I hadn’t stopped bleeding since my accident.

“I’m not sure how to feel about the way you’re looking at me now,” she said earnestly.

“I can’t help it. You’re Beautiful,” I whispered, lifting her hair, and moving it behind her shoulder. “I want to kiss you, Rayne.”

“You already have.”

“This time we’re alone. This time there will be no surprises. And this time, Rayne, there will be no apologies afterwards.”

I leaned in and felt her breath hitch as it brushed across my face. I press my lips to hers. Same soft lips. Same sweet taste. But so incredibly different.

I could have kissed her for hours. Her lips were the sweetest I ever tasted. Taking her face in my hands, the velvety outline of her jaw is something that I could never tire of. Especially if she kept up the faint moans the way she was.

Moving my hand from her face, I lifted some of her hair and traced kisses along her neck and shoulder and breathed in the shivers she released in response. My cock pulsed, aching for more of what we were getting into. God so much more.

But not tonight, I reminded myself.

Not a night where I was less than emotionally stable. Even if I knew I wanted this more than anything regardless what day of the year it was. I wouldn’t want her to have any doubts that she had me. Fully had me.

Knowing I was letting her go soon, I deepened the kiss, pressing myself against her. And she welcomed it. Meeting me stroke for stroke.

Come to think of it, there was nothing I had done that she didn’t come along for.

And that made this even harder.

I was going to hate myself for this later. Probably all night.

“Babe,” I said riskily against her lips. Her eyes fluttered open. “Tonight…tonight’s not the night.”

Her eyes were wide. “Of course,” she looked flustered and then looked up at me with a beautiful smile. “But since I’m not allowed to apologize, I’m going to say thank you. And,” her eyes washed over me, “raincheck.”

21

The following Sunday,I took Rayne and Jax to lunch out by Deer’s Lake. A spot I found when I needed to get out of town once I’d become a permanent resident in Hamilton. The place was over a half hour outside of the small city.

I insisted she bring Jax since it had been two weeks since our last session and I wanted to know how practice had been going with his new team.

Part of me mostly wanted to know if anyone was giving him any shit for being new to the sport. I checked the list with Marty. Everyone on that team had been in their second year at least.

Marty assured me he’d been keeping a close eye even without my asking. And so far, nothing but good sportsmanship all around.

My leg still shook thinking about him out there. Both Travis and I got hurt…one of us worse than the other, playing a sport that Rayne tried to keep him protected from.

I started to panic one night. If I’d made the right decision or if hell if I had just taught the kid to play baseball a little better instead.

“Boring sport.” In my view, and in Travis’s, you really hadn’t lived until you’d glided across the ice in swift smooth motions, handling a flat ball and nailing it across the icy air into the net.

But Jax wasn’t mine to fuss over. He wasn’t mine to steer to or from anything.

His mother though. She was something I wanted to make my business. I wanted her and I was tired of keeping that little fact to myself. It was hard enough keeping my hands off her after that first day she kissed me in the parking lot.

Hell since the day I laid eyes on her, she’d been all I thought about.

“So how’s it going buddy, did I teach you enough or have I totally lost my game?”

“Are you kidding? They all need to catch up tomenow. I’m so ahead. Like a lot of them don’t even know how to pass the right way.”

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