Page 76 of Heat It Up (Off the Ice)
Back at Muumu’s apartment, I walk into the kitchen to check on her. She’s sitting at the kitchen table, studying her old photo album again. The album she showed me with pictures of her and my grandfather, back when she was my age. I kiss the top of her head and check if she needs anything. Then I return to my room, turn on my laptop, and download the pictures from this afternoon’s photo shoot. I flip through the images, marking down my favorites. It’s not until I’m almost finished going through them that I discover Maija was busy while I was playing hockey. Like when we were on Suomenlinna, she shot a bunch of pictures of me and Kyle together. Some of them are funny with me attempting to play the game. Others are of the intimate moments between us after I scored the goal. The pictures leave me breathless and give me an idea.
I grab my phone and dial Joni’s number.
“Hei,” I say after he answers. “Where can I get photos developed in Vantaa?”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Kyle
Fully clothed, I pull open the door to the men’s sauna and the dry heat blasts against my body. Sofia is bent over, her sexy ass in the air, as she scrubs the top bench. Who knew an ugly brown uniform and rubber boots could look so hot?
She hums a familiar song that’s a little off tune. It’s another of those things I love about her. She doesn’t care that the song isn’t quite right, as long as she’s entertained while doing her job.
I step behind her. “Christ, you’re hot,” I say, placing my hand on her hip, the heel of it touching her ass.
She shrieks, and in one swift move, spins around and sprays me with the hose. Cold water hits my face with its stinging touch, and drenches my t-shirt and shorts.
I remove my glasses and attempt to find a dry piece of t-shirt to dry them with.
“Oh, God,” she says and aims the hose in the opposite direction. “I’m so sorry.” Her gaze sweeps over me and her teeth press into her lower lip. But she’s not doing it because she’s uncertain. She’s trying not to laugh.
“You know, you have a really bad habit of doing that.”
The corners of her mouth twitch up and the battle to keep a straight face is lost. She turns off the water and drops the hose onto the lower bench. Once she’s no longer armed and dangerous, I pull her against my wet body, and my hand skims down her back and cups her ass. The tip of her tongue runs along her lower lip.
“If this weren’t such a public place,” I say, voice low so no one walking pass can hear me, “I’d bend you over that bench and see if we can go for an electric potential to rival that of a lightning storm.”
She laughs, the sweet sound doing all kinds of crazy things to me. “Oooh, I love it when you talk all sexy like that.”
“And I love talking sexy to you.” At the sound of my husky tone, Sofia’s eyes darken. Any other girl would have given me that standard God-you’re-such-a-nerd look. Not Sofia. She has a way of making me feel like none of that matters.
I kiss her. “I’ll meet you outside.”
“But you’re all wet.”
“So I’ve noticed. Don’t worry, I’ll figure something out.” It’s not like she’s much better, thanks to my wet clothes pressed against hers.
When I meet up with her again, I’m wearing the dry t-shirt and basketball shorts I bought at the front desk. Since she’s leaving tomorrow to attend the wedding with Joni, I’ve planned a quiet evening, just the two of us. Nik has other plans for tonight, which fortunately don’t involve the apartment.
After we wander around the Helsinki marketplace, to pick up groceries for dinner, we make our way back to my place. Once there, Sofia peels and slices the carrots while I sauté the thinly cut chicken strips. She tells me about her day and I tell her about mine. Even though this is the first time we’ve cooked together, not counting at the cottage when we grilled sausages over the fire pit, we work together perfectly side by side.
I pour her a glass of white wine.
“I’ve got something for you.” She leaves the kitchen and returns with a small book, which she hands to me. “I made this for you.”
“For me? Why?”
“Open it.” She worries her lip, her gaze on the book in my hand.
I flip the cover open. It’s a photo album. The first picture is of me at the arena. The boys are standing around me, listening to me explain the physics behind hitting the puck into the net. I turn the pages. More photos of me coaching.
Sofia points to one picture. “This is one of the things I love about you. You’re great with these boys. Even though they don’t always understand you, they worship everything you say. And I can tell you care as much about them as they do about you.”
I don’t say anything, the words immobilized at the back of my throat.This is one of the things I love about you.She said it so casually, as if she didn’t realize what she had said. Does she love me, like I’m starting to fall for her? Or did I misunderstand what she said?
Afraid of discovering the truth and finding out it’s not what I’d hoped, I turn the page. The next couple of pages are covered with pictures of me and of us when we were at the cottage and when we were on Suomenlinna. We look happy. We look like a couple.
I flip the page to find another picture of her in my arms. We’re looking at each other like nothing else exists. Which is exactly how I’d felt at that moment.
