Page 58 of Blissful Hook

She scoffs harshly and green eyes buzz with excitement. "Why not? He loves you, doesn't he?"

"It's not that easy." Not with Tyler, at least.

"Make it that easy. You two are my ultimate ship."

I choke out a laugh and eye her curiously. "Did you just say ship?"

"Yes. What about it? That's what it's called, right?" she asks, clearly flustered and maybe even a little embarrassed. Ava has never been one to keep up with the social media lingo. It’s cute to see her try and be hip.

"You're adorable."

"And tired." She yawns right on cue, eyes watering when they meet mine again. "You okay if I go to bed? I still have to call your brother."

"Yeah." I nod to reassure her when she looks at me warily. "Go. I'll see you in the morning."

"Okay. Night night, Gray." She gives me a half-hug over the cream coloured armrest and starts walking towards Oakley's old room. She turns around a few steps away with a mischievous grin. "Call your man. I hear he's missing you." She turns back around and walks away without another word.

I move through the darkness with ease and make it to my room without so much as stubbing my toe. After Ava went to bed, I watched T.V until I knew Tyler would be back in his hotel room. It's now after ten and I want nothing more than to slip into one of his shirts, crawl under the pink bedding that still covers my double bed, and call him.

I don't bother to turn my bedroom light on. The barbie pink walls will no doubt burn my eyes if I do. I just strip from my baggy clothes and slide under the duvet, swarmed in a wave of nostalgia in an instant. A hint of laundry soap crawls up my nose when I pull it under my chin and close my eyes, wishing Mom were here with me and Ava tonight. Instead, she's held up in a hospital room alone again. I offered to stay with her, not wanting her to be alone, but she was adamant I not stay. Her dismissal burned me to the core, but I tried to remind myself that she didn't mean anything by it.

My mom has never been one to let others see her at anything but her best. Sometimes, though, I would be able to catch the hidden sniffles when she was sick with a cold or the grimace on her face when a knife would slip while cooking dinner. But I never said anything. I knew that she felt like she had to be strong for us. She didn't realize that by not giving up after the love of her life was taken from her, we already saw her as the strongest woman in the world. I have always wanted to be just like her. I just wish she would realize that. Especially if the end is as close as I fear it is.

I'm happy when my thoughts are interrupted by the ringing of my phone. The last thing I need to clog my mind tonight are questions I'm too scared to come up with answers to.

"You didn't call me when you got to your brothers." Tyler's gravelly voice makes my stomach flip flop

"Hello to you, too. Miss me already?"

He ignores me, grumbling, "You're doing okay?"

"I'm good, Ty. Relax." I laugh lightly. "How was practice?" Running a hand through thin strands of blonde hair, I scrunch my face in pain when I tug a little too hard a knot, ripping a clump of hair from my scalp.

"It was good," he hums, and I can almost see the light in his eyes that grows whenever he talks about playing hockey. His passion for the sport is one of the things I love most about him. "It's fun watching your brother taking orders from someone with half his skill."

"Yeah?" I snort. "Did he do that pulsing neck thing?"

"Course he did. I was worried his carotid was going to burst."

"Keep giving him a hard time for me, kay?"

"Wasn't planning on stopping, Gray." His chuckle is washed out by a loud rustling sound that irritates my eardrums before a low rasp tickles them instead. "I do miss you, by the way. The bed is cold."

My heart lurches at his words, nearly coming to a complete halt. Now that I think about it, we haven't spent a night apart since . . . I can't even remember when. Tonight will be different without him, that's for sure.

"How are you ever going to be able to sleep? Do you need me to sing to you?" I half-tease. I’m almost positive that I really would if he wanted me to.

"Depends on what kind of singing you had in mind." His voice is like silk, flowing through the phone, teasing me when tendrils of excitement slither up my spine.

"Singing, not shouting," I giggle, feeling my cheeks turn hot.

"Same thing, I'm not picky as long as it's my name I hear."

"You'll be home in a couple of days," I mutter, suddenly breathless. "Think you can survive that long?"

"No." His bluntness has me rubbing my thighs together, heat starting to pool between them. I've had plenty of sex in my life, but I'm unapologetically a phone sex virgin. There's something about not seeing the other person to gauge their reaction to what you say and what you're doing while you hide behind the phone that's always made me too nervous. But with Tyler, I think I would do just about anything. Nerves or no nerves.

"Fuck, I wish you were here. I want to be running my hands along your body and pulling you against me.”

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