Page 51 of The Wingman

“Today we’re playing by my rules,” she says and settles on my chest, yawning. My heart pounds hard against her cheek as I try to come back from that mind-blowing climax. I brush her hair from her face, ready to put my mouth between her legs, but she sighs softly and closes her eyes. “Still tired?” I ask.

“I am.”

“We were up late.”

“Yeah,” she says softly, dreamily, like she’s remembering all the things I did to put her to sleep.

“Do you want to sleep?”

“For a little bit,” she murmurs.

“Okay, you rest, and I’ll make us something to eat.”

“You don’t have to do that,” she says quietly. “I can cook after a quick nap.”

“It’s okay. I’m awake. I can’t stay long anyway. I have practice this afternoon.”

“Oh, okay,” she says quietly, a hint of disappointment in her voice. I lean down and place a soft kiss onto her forehead, and she smiles up at me. It produces a tightening in my chest, right around the vicinity of my heart.

“Sleep,” I whisper, and she rolls to the side. I stay put, until I hear her soft breathing sounds. Once she’s asleep, I quietly climb from the bed, and make my way to the bathroom. I splash water onto my face, and snatch my clothes off the floor. I dress and Peaches curls around my legs when I exit the bathroom.

“Oh, nice to me now, are you?” I whisper. “Only because you’re looking for food.”

She curls around my legs, and I grip the rail before I tumble down the stairs. Maybe that’s her plan after all. “Just so you know. I outed myself to Jules. You no longer have anything over my head.” Christ, when did I start talking to cats? I follow her and she’s all sweet peaches until I fill her bowl. No longer needing me, she offers her tail and saunters away. “Yeah, that’s what I thought,” I say.

I spend the next few minutes making coffee and whipping up some eggs. I swallow half the brew in my cup, giving Jules time to rest, and as the caffeine works its way through my body, I feel much more alive. I have practice this afternoon, which means I should have been in my own bed, getting a good night’s sleep. But no, I couldn’t keep my hands off Jules. The woman is an addiction I can’t quite quit.

I take her plate of eggs, and coffee and head upstairs, but she’s still fast asleep when I enter her room. I gaze at her for a moment, all warm soft and adorable twisted in the sheets. I don’t have the heart to wake her, so I fix the bedding around her, and leave her to sleep the day away. As hard as it is to walk away, I make my way back downstairs put the scrambled eggs in the fridge, and pull my cell from my pocket and send Jules a text.

* * *

Rider: Eggs are in the fridge. You were sound asleep and I didn’t want to wake you. I’ll catch up with you later.

* * *

I hit send, tuck my phone back in, and with the key she’d given me last night, head outside and lock up behind myself. The laughter of kids playing at a nearby park reach my ears and my stomach knots. Jules moved into an up-and-coming neighborhood with young families. No matter what she says, she wants this. She wants the white picket fence, the kids, and all the animals.

So, what’s holding her back? I revisit last night’s conversation.

I couldn’t save him.

I don’t have to be Einstein to understand someone very important in her life, someone she loved dearly, had died, and it left her feeling helpless, and vulnerable—a big gaping hole in her heart. But life is fucking short, and she can’t remain in hiding forever. She needs to experience more instead of just going through the motions. She needs to feel the thrill of living again. I’m not sure why

that’s so important to me, I only know that it is. But with her, baby steps are required, so baby steps is what I’ll give her.

I stop at home, shower quickly and grab my gear. An hour later, I’m at the rink and the guys are all pouring in. We have an out of town game Wednesday and I need to get my mind on that, and off Jules. I also need to finalize Kane’s birthday party Saturday night. I tighten the laces on my skates and glide out to Kane as he takes a shot on the net.

“Hey,” he says, his gaze moves over my face. “You don’t seem as keyed up as you were yesterday.”

“Got a good night’s sleep,” I say, and steal the puck from him after the goaltender Alek, aka the Puck Charmer, shoots it back to us.

“Oh, is that what you got last night,” he teases.

I check him with my shoulder. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I spent the night with Lindsay. Jules is her best friend, remember?”

“Yeah, I remember.”

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