Page 93 of Hot for the Hockey Player
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Gabrielle
Itwasnearlymidnightby the time I got home from Maverick’s.I couldn’t remember the last time I stayed out so late, let alone to have sex—that many times.
The man was the Energizer Bunny.He had maybe a twenty-minute recovery period, then he could go again.And his tongue didn’t seem to need any kind of recovery time.
Thank god he walked me to my car, because I wasn’t sure my legs would work properly if I attempted it myself.How I managed to make it from my vehicle to my front door, and from my front door to my bedroom, still boggled my mind.But I did.
I collapsed into bed after an expedited nighttime routine of washing my face and brushing my teeth.I fell asleep almost immediately—but not before turning off my alarm for the morning.I think I got enough of a workout with Maverick that I didn’t need Hadleigh and her double-zero waist telling me to “feel the burn” at five in the morning.
I woke to a poke.
And not the sexy kind of poke.
The poke in my shoulder from my kid, followed by an: “Are you dead?”
Prying one eye open, I glanced up at Laurel, who stared down at me with growing concern.“What?”
“It’s seven-thirty.Why are you still in bed?Are you sick?”
“No.I just … I got to bed late.So I turned off my alarm and decided to sleep in.”
“You never do that.What’s wrong?”I’d already shut my eyes again, but the dip in the mattress beside me and the back of her hand against my forehead said she didn’t decide to let me go back to my sexy, Maverick-filled dream.“You don’t have a fever.”
“Because I’m not sick.I just got to bed late.”
“Were you over at Bennett’s house the whole time?Damon says you weren’t home when he went to bed at ten-thirty.Why were you gone so long?”
“I … I was justout,” I grumbled, still not ready to open my eyes and start the day.“Can’t I sleep inoneday in my life?”
“You can.You just don’t.Is it cramps?You’re not due for another two weeks for your period.So … ovulation cramps, maybe?Is your endometriosis acting up?Do you need ibuprofen?”
Okay, that prompted me to open my eye again.Just one though.
She stared down at me with her alert, honey-colored eyes.“Don’t give me that look.You put a star on the fridge calendar when you get your period.And I know that it’s roughly two weeks between the menstruation phase and ovulation phase.So, statistically, you could be ovulating.”
“You’re too smart.It’s too early for your brains.Go have breakfast and turn the kettle on for me, please.”I was about to roll over and take another ten minutes, but her hand on my shoulder made me stop.
“What’s that on your neck?”
Well,nowI was awake.Both eyes flew open, and I bolted upright in bed.“What’s what on my neck?”I scrambled out of bed, nearly sending my second born tumbling to the ground, and acutely aware of the pleasant throb between my legs, reminding me of my calisthenic evening.I went to the full-length mirror on my wall and flicked on the overhead light to study what was on my neck.
I gasped before I could stop myself.
“Well, what is it?”Laurel asked, completely innocent.“It looks like a bruise.How’d you get a bruise on your neck?”
The longer I gaped at it, the more vivid the memory of receiving that particular mark came into view.It was more a bite than a hickey.I could make out Maverick’s teeth marks if I stared at it long enough.And of course, my nipples pebbled beneath my pajama top and my pussy began to throb.
Traitors.
Laurel got in really close beside me, her eyes narrowing.“Looks almost like … teeth marks.”
I stood back abruptly.“All right, let’s start the day, my curious little kitten.I’m up.I’m not dead, I’m not sick, and those are definitelynotteeth marks.”
“What aren’t teeth marks?”Damon asked, coming into my room as I went about making my bed while Laurel stood there watching me.
“Mom’s got a bite mark on her neck.Why would she have bite marks on her neck?”
