Page 77 of Playoff
I huffed a breath. “Unfortunately.”
“You haven’t been able to stop cold turkey”
“No.”
She shrugged. “Then maybe your best bet is to sex him up enough that you get tired of each other. Do you think you can do that without getting caught?”
“I don’t know. Justin knows I have a sex life and doesn’t want any details. If I’m out, and don’t bring the guy around, he’ll assume it’s a hockey fan. I told you what happened with that.”
She shook her head. “Still cannot believe a guy would do that. Though one of my students did want me to get his jersey signed when he heard I knew Ducky.”
“Once the season is over, Alek’s contract is up and he’ll be in California.”
“He doesn’t want to stay around?”
Did he? He’d seemed to be getting along in Toronto, but in Canada he was more likely to be recognized for his parents’ crime. “He doesn’t really have a home, but in LA he still has his place, and his car. And no one down there cares much about what his parents did.”
“He wouldn’t stay for you?”
I shook my head. That was… I hadn’t even thought of that. But that wasn’t what we were. There had never been any chance that Alek and I had a future, and he’d never hinted that he wanted that. We had a surprising amount in common and the sex was great, but I couldn’t abandon Justin. Imagining how my parents would react to Alek? Not pretty. So why did even thinking it make me feel so bad?
Katie took another sip of her coffee and I did the same.
She frowned, forehead furrowed. “What do you want to do? Avoid him, or enjoy what time you have?”
I froze, coffee cup in my hands, eyes wide. What did I want? I hadn’t dared to look at the question that way.
“Jess?”
I set the cup down carefully. Taking out the history between our families, and the debt I owed Justin… “I want all the orgasms I can get while I can get them.” I looked at her, wary of judgment.
“If JJ doesn’t find out, then will everything be okay?”
“JJ and my parents. Or anyone on the team. Other than Fitch.” There was no way this wasn’t getting out if we continued indefinitely. We weren’t careful enough. But…
Just a few more weeks. That was all I could have. With the team’s travel schedule, that meant like…three weeks tops of time we’d have together before the playoffs? And if the team didn’t make it, that would be the end.
I looked up at my friend. “I guess I need to be very sneaky.” Excitement fizzed through my body. This was what I wanted, and the risk added spice to my anticipation. After, I could be responsible, careful Jessica again. Just a few weeks of fun couldn’t hurt, could they?
Katie and I spent the rest of the visit discussing how her schooling was going, and what she and Josh wanted to do in the offseason. Justin and I would spend what time we could with Grandma. Maybe we’d finally get around to sorting through the things at her home. We’d been putting it off, mostly because it was so final and we hated the thought of losing her.
After lunch, Josh came back and I made my way home. Justin was at the condo, and we went out for dinner with Cooper and Callie. Ordinary things I’d become used to doing.
But once we were at the condo again and I was in my room, I sent a message to Alek.
Me: Should we take Fitch’s advice?
Chapter 32
Are you playing tonight?
Alek
* * *
I’d been on edge with the imminent trade deadline, and more relieved than I wanted to admit when the Blaze didn’t make any moves. The team was playing well, and I shouldn’t have had a care in the world. I’d known, once Fitch caught us, that Jess and I were done. She’d freaked when I told her he knew, so him seeing us? That was it.
Still, I wished we could have kept it up. Jess was fun. Sneaking around was something new and gave more spice to the hookups. Seeing the person she was in the bedroom—or storage room—that she hid from other people was a real turn-on. I hadn’t been in a relationship, and this wasn’t any kind of dating, but knowing my partner outside of sex added something.
