Page 16 of Puck to the Heart
She didn’t answer, still listening to her phone.
A few more seconds, and she lowered the hand holding her phone. In my hand, her grip went slack, but I didn’t let go.
“Olivia?”
“It’s my dad.” Her eyes went wide, unblinking. The rise and fall of her chest grew too fast, and it grew faster as more people pressed in around us to get past our seats at the end of the aisle. “He—he’s in the hospital. Un—” she paused for air, but her breaths sounded too shallow— “unconscious.”
Some latent protective gene snapped into place inside me, some need to get her out of this, to make sure she wouldn’t get sick or hurt. There was a crisis, and somehow, I would handle it. “It’s going to be okay. We’re going to get out of here, and then we’ll figure it out.” There was too much noise to be sure, but from the expression on her face, and the movement of her lips, Olivia let out a whimper. “Olivia.” This time, I said her name as more of a command, drawing her attention away from her anxiety, or trying to, but it didn’t work—her chest still rose and fell too quickly, and if her breathing didn’t slow, she’d pass out.
“I’m going to touch you.” I leaned down to speak slowly in her ear, needing to be sure she heard me. “If that’s not okay, shake your head.” A few seconds passed with no reaction but a blink. “I’m going to put my hands on your arms and turn you around to face me. Is this okay?” Again, no response, but she didn’t resist as I moved her closer. “I’m going to… sort of… hug you, I guess? You can hide in my jacket if that helps.”
As slowly as I could move while inching toward the exit, I drew Olivia closer, pressing her face against my chest and wrapping my arms tightly around her, hoping the pressure comforted her. Thundering heartbeats thrummed against my skin. This attack nearly paralyzed her. The jerking heaves of her breaths still came in gasping pants, but her fingers gripped the fabric of my shirt at my sides.
Unbidden, my hand slid up her back, cradling the back of her head, slipping into the soft locks of her hair.
And maybe… maybe it shouldn’t have. It became too intimate. The touch of a lover rather than someone who barely knew her. But her body noticeably relaxed at the touch, and if she weren’t freaking out to the point of passing out, I would’ve made a joke about getting her close to me. She would’vehatedit enough to yell again, but with her trembling in my arms like a startled rabbit, I couldn’t do it. Even bringing it up to needle her later would be wrong.
Hoping I helped somehow, I held her, praying my strength would keep her from shattering, offering her an anchor instead of setting her adrift. Comfort wasn’t inmycomfort zone—pun intended—but it was nice, holding her. Touching someone who wasn’t grabbing or demanding.
It must have helped; after a few more minutes of walking her backward through the slow-moving crowd, Olivia let out a shuddering exhale and squirmed, her hands releasing my shirt.
But she didn’t push me away, so I didn’t let go as she fumbled to cover her ears. Every movement turned to slow motion; the brush of her chin against my sternum as she tipped her head down, the shape of her hands as she covered her ears. But I didn’t let myself think any more about how it felt to hold her, how the top of her head tucked neatly beneath my chin or the citrusy scent of her shampoo.
Reluctance kept my arms in place, and for all her irritation with me before, she still kept me close as she could without wrapping around me. But I didn’t mind. All the curves of her body were heavenly soft and giving beneath my tight grip.
If the protective instinct from earlier was unexpected, suddenly having this intense rush of…wantingwas worse.
Instinct was one thing; I could work with instinct. But… this… I didn’t know what to do with it, other than keep her safe.
I held her tighter, keeping her inside the protective bubble of my arms. No matter how much I’d enjoyed teasing her, drawing out her reactions,thiswas better. Deeper. But I didn’t know how to draw her out and still distract her from the mess of Ash Wilder.
And then I realized Ilikedthis girl. Wanted to protect her in a way I never thought I’d experience. This was new and wonderful and terrifying.
It sent shocks of ice and heat simultaneously coursing through me.
Ignoring the revelation, I debated barreling through the people blocking our way until I had her out in the cold, fresh air and she could breathe again. Feeling her trembling body ignited something I never considered myself capable of.
Aggression? Sure. It was my job to be aggressive on the ice. Creative and calculating? Absolutely. I had to find pockets to move the puck while avoiding taking a beating. Or taking a beating so someone else could score.
But protective? Gentle?Caring?
I was known fornotcaring.
Distract, deflect. Pretend you have the puck when in reality you shot it across the ice a second earlier.
Another whimper, felt more than heard, slipped out of her mouth.
“Ah, shit, Barnes.” I didn’t realize how frightened she still was, so I lowered my voice, leaning down closer to her ear. “We’re going to get out.”
We’d cleared the inner door, and the added space allowed the crowd to thin out. But I figured it was probably best to get her fully outside into the open air, so I kept her in the circle of my arms.
“But what if we don’t?” Panic-tinged and high-pitched, her panic constricted her voice to a small sound. “What if we’re trampled? Or the floor collapses from all the people, or there’s a fire, or?—”
“Well, the good news is there’s no fire.”
“That’s not helpful.”
“How about this—” I shoved open a glass door, letting cold air rush around us, instantly chilling all the places Olivia wasn’t touching. When I leaned down to whisper in her ear this time, I let every seduction I’d ever performed into my words, heating them to a smolder as I said, “We’re outside.”
