Page 85 of Broken Ice
“Come on, Emilio. You need to take care of me, come on, I need it, I need you—” Beau’s voice broke as Emilio slammed into him.
Beau tried to keep up, but Emilio set an unforgiving pace, bending Beau in half and getting in deep so he could barely move, could do nothing more than take it. Emilio’s hand disappeared from his neck, replaced by his mouth, teeth digging in like they’d never dared do before.
Beau gripped Emilio’s nape, drawing him closer, encouraging him to take. It wasn’t on his mating gland—that was on the other side of his throat—but it was good enough for now.
He moaned as Emilio bit down, moaned as Emilio’s knot swelled. The pressure built, bodies melded together. There was nothing between them this time. No hesitancy, no misunderstandings, no distance. Beau was shaking apart, feeling Emilio grind in, and in, and in, so thick Beau could feel him in his guts, overwhelming.
Beau keened through clenched teeth as he came, spilling on both of them, covering them in come.
Emilio was right there with him, growl rumbling the air, making everything tremble.
“Beau,” Emilio gasped and filled him up to the brim.
Beau closed his eyes and took it.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Telling Freddy that Beau hadn’t been aware that he’d been getting courted was one of the most painful conversations he’d ever had.
The way Freddy’s expression fell, eyes wide and hurt and disbelieving. The way his voice wavered as he said, “But…you accepted the last one.”
It wasn’t just that Beau was rejecting the courting. Freddy had thought they’d reached the final fucking stage. He’d thought it wasserious-serious, and it was gut-wrenching to inform him that Beau didn’t feel anything for him beyond friendship.
Beau didn’t say ‘You should have told me you were courting me.’ He was beginning to understand that everyone was so biased by their own point of view that they went through the world assuming people would see things similarly.
To Freddy, it’d been obvious. To Beau, nothing with an Alpha was a possibility unless they spelt it out with words.
The guilt over stringing Freddy along—however unknowingly—would take a while to fade.
“I mean,” Cleo said when he told her, “some of the responsibility lies with him. If he’s so ‘traditional’, he should have asked you formally. So. Maybe don’t fucking court people without explicitly asking their permission?”
Beau shrugged. He didn’t disagree, but it didn’t erase the fact that Freddy, in retrospect, had been so clear about his intentions that Beau really should have gotten a clue at literally any point.
Noah had just laughed for three minutes straight and then said, “If you have gotten your heart broken by Beau Lavoie’s obliviousness, you might be entitled to compensation.”
Beau had hung up on him on principle.
After Beau’s heat ended, he and Emilio agreed to keep using that stupid soap for a little while longer. In the heat of the moment—no pun intended—being immediately bitten and coming out as a couple was imperative.
With a little more consideration, it made sense to take some time to inform the team, the front office, their families. To prepare for the media headache it would cause—especially for Beau.
“I’m going to have to answer so many stupid questions,” Beau moaned in the locker room.
Pavel patted him on the shoulder. “Yeah, but we have your back.”
Beau smiled at his captain. The same things that made him seem a little boring—his steadiness, reliability, coolness in the face of pressure—were the same things that made him a great fucking leader. There was no guessing with Pavel. You always got the same thing, and that was extremely reassuring in times of uncertainty.
Apparently, Beau and Emilio getting together was less shocking and more ‘Jesus fucking Christ on a cracker,finally, I thought Emilio’s head was going to explode, and Beau, seriously, I love you, but how are you so dumb?’
Beau didnotappreciate being blamed for the situation. Emilio had been with him every step of the way and had been just as cowardly about admitting his feelings with words.
So. There.
“Emilio,” Beau whined. “Aren’t you going to defend me?”
“If someone says something that isn’t true, I’ll jump right in,” Emilio replied placidly.
Beau muttered to himself, “Stinky Alpha…useless, what even are you for…” as he got dressed for practice.
