Chapter Six #3
Outside, I hear the faint thump of holiday music, the clatter of dishes, and the shouts of kids in the hallway. Inside, it's just Trent—heat, pressure, and the low growl of his voice in my ear.
"You feel so fucking good," he groans, fucking into me harder now. Every time he slams into me, I feel him in my soul, possessing it. Laying waste to any defenses I ever had. "God, you were made for me, Dani."
I arch, digging my nails into his back, desperate for more. I want everything he has, over and over again. He gives it to me, pounding harder, rougher, until the headboard rattles against the wall .
He bites my shoulder, not gentle, but not mean, either. "Goddamn, Dani baby," he groans. "I could fuck you like this forever."
"Trent," I whimper in response, the sound muffled by his hand.
He slows, then stops, buried deep inside me.
"Tell me you want me to make you come on my cock," he whispers.
"I want you," I pant, half delirious.
"Say it all, Sunshine."
He doesn't play fair, but right now, I don't even care.
"I want you to make me come on your cock," I gasp. "I want it so damn badly it hurts." I nearly choke on the truth. "I've wanted you all over me for months."
He groans, then pulls almost all the way out before slamming back in.
I come instantly, the orgasm crashing through me so hard I nearly black out. It feels so good, pure ecstasy rushing through my veins in a torrent of sound and sensation.
He follows with a groan, his hips jerking, and his arms locked tight around my waist. He bites my neck again as he spills into me, marking me, making sure I know I'm his.
Afterwards, we collapse onto the bed, panting, sweating, a tangle of wrinkled clothes and clinging limbs.
He props himself on one elbow, looking down at me with a softness in his eyes that nearly undoes me.
"You're the only thing I've ever wanted," he says, brushing sweaty hair off my forehead.
I almost say it—I almost blurt out the three words that have been building since the first moment I saw him. But I catch myself just in time, biting my tongue.
"Enough to threaten your teammates, apparently," I say instead.
"I couldn't let one of them convince you to give them a chance before I convinced you that you belong with me." He grins, completely unrepentant, and then rolls onto his back, hauling me with him so I'm sprawled across his chest.
"You're a menace," I say, but I'm smiling.
His soft laugh vibrates through me.
We lay there for a while, the silence punctuated by our breathing and the distant chaos of the party outside. It's perfect.
Eventually, he glances at the clock and sighs. "We should probably rejoin civilization."
"Or we could just stay here forever," I mumble, nuzzling into his shoulder.
"Tempting," he admits, "but if we don't reappear, someone will probably come looking. I'd hate to kill one of my teammates for seeing your ass."
The possibility of any of his teammates seeing my ass is enough to get me moving. Some indignities are simply too unbearable.
I groan, rolling off him. "My tights are ruined. "
He surveys the damage, then shrugs. "You look better without them."
I glare, but the effect is ruined by the smile that won't leave my face. I fix my dress as best I can, and Trent zips up, tucking his shirt back in with the efficiency of a man used to changing on a tight deadline.
He catches my hand before we leave the room, pulling me close for one last kiss.
"Thanks for coming with me tonight," he murmurs, the words so genuine they make my chest ache.
And I want to say those three little words all over again. I don't say them. Not yet. But I kind of think maybe he already knows that's why I'm here right now. Not because he guilted me, but because there's nothing I wouldn't do for him.
"Thanks for not letting me die of embarrassment," I reply instead of telling him that I'm wild about him, only half joking.
"Only one of us is allowed to have a near-death experience this week, and I've already met the quota." He grins before pulling me out into the hallway like we're a couple of teenagers sneaking out.
We're barely three steps down the hall when we almost collide with Ryan. He's leaning against the wall, arms folded, face split in a smirk so wide I'm surprised it hasn't been banned for unsportsmanlike conduct.
I freeze, panic clawing up my throat. I know what I look like—cheeks flushed, hair wild, one sleeve of my dress twisted so far around my arm it's basically a tourniquet, my tights missing in action.
Trent, the traitor, is even worse off, with his jacket wrinkled, his Santa hat in his hands, and an actual bite mark on his throat.
It's readily apparent that we've been up to no good.
"Well, well, well." Ryan grins, his eyebrows climbing into his hairline. "Where have the two of you been?"
Kill me now. Seriously. Just get it over with right now.
Trent just smirks at Ryan, completely unbothered that we've been busted by the one man on the team who cannot stay quiet to save his life.
Seriously. If his life depended on his silence, he'd die in seconds.
They can't even mic him up for games anymore because he cannot be trusted not to tell everyone's business. "Needed a minute."
Ryan bursts into laughter, practically doubling over. "About goddamn time you finally got your head out of your ass and stopped stalking her schedule, man. We were taking bets on how long it'd take for you to snap."
"Stalking my schedule?"
Trent doesn't miss a beat. He also doesn't deny it. "You think I was on it first thing most days by chance?"
"He paid us to switch spots with him," Ryan supplies.
When I glare at Trent, he just shrugs, completely shameless, and I have absolutely nothing to say to that .
Ryan glances at me, his expression weirdly kind for a man whose hobby is giving me a hard time all day, every day. "He hasn't shut up about you for months. We wanted to kill him."
I blush so hard I'm worried I currently match the hat in Trent's hands.
Ryan just winks and shoves off the wall. "Merry Christmas, you degenerates." He heads back toward the noise of the party, leaving us alone in the empty hallway.
For a second, we just stand there. Trent's hand finds mine, lacing our fingers together, as if he needs the connection as much as I do.
"How pissed are you right now, Sunshine?" he asks, his voice oddly tense as he stares after Ryan.
I study his profile, the sharp lines and strong angles, trying to understand the shift in his mood when he glances over at me. There's a vulnerability in his eyes I've never seen before, not on the ice, not even yesterday in the ER.
Realization hits like a hammer blow—he's risking just as much as I am here, and he's just as terrified as I am.
If this all goes to hell, it's not just my job or my reputation on the line. It's his, too. His standing with the team, his future, and his heart.
He's in love with me. That's never been as obvious as it is right now.
I reach up and touch his cheek, my thumb brushing his beard.
"I'm not mad at all," I whisper. How can I be? Even before I knew there was an us, he was fighting for us, for me.
He exhales a soft, relieved breath, hauling me up against his chest as if he's afraid I'll vanish if he lets me go. "I meant what I said," he murmurs, his forehead pressed to mine. "I want you, Dani. I want this. So fucking badly it's terrifying."
I believe him. I really, truly do. And, for the first time, I let myself imagine what it might look like if I stop running and just let him catch me.
If this is what's at stake, maybe my career is worth risking. Maybe everything is.
I squeeze his hand, trying to decide what happens next. I don't have any answers, though, at least not tonight. This isn't the place for them.
"Come on," I say. "If we don't get back soon, they're going to send a search party."
He laughs, the sound genuine, as he tugs me even closer. "We can't have that."
We walk back into the party together. The music is louder, the lights are brighter, and the crowd is rowdier than before. But with Trent's hand in mine, none of it feels overwhelming anymore. It feels…hopeful.
I catch Ryan's eye across the room. He gives me a thumbs up and mouths, "Good luck," before a pair of kids tackle his legs .
Trent tugs me closer, and I lean into him, letting myself be seen. Letting everyone see us.
It's terrifying.
And absolutely, completely worth it.