Chapter Nineteen
CARTER
The lake is beautiful tonight. After we ditched The Elysian Table and came back to Ivy Glen, we picked up a couple of to-go orders from Sal’s, took the truck to Ivy Glen Lake, and backed the truck in so the bed is facing the water. I’m glad I had the foresight to put some blankets in the storage container in the back of the truck because this April night is a little chilly. Now, we both have blankets wrapped around our shoulders, and one spread out in the bed. Our feet are dangling off the tailgate, and we’re eating the best damn burgers in Massachusetts.
“So… what’s it like?” she asks, continuing the conversation we’re having, “playing hockey professionally. It was your dream.”
I watch the reflection of the moon in the lake as I think about the question.
How do I tell her that the first few years are a blur because Dad was always threatening Mom and up in my ass about money? How the stress of it overrode any good memories I have?
“It… I’m not going to lie. Once the thrill of joining the NHL wore off, it quickly turned into… a job. It should have been more than that, it should have been everything, you know? Dad, well he… he had turned it into something so toxic, I forgot to love the sport. It was always about the next payday for him, the threat to Mom was always there, and I never got the chance to just… enjoy my reality.”
She shifts a little closer to me so our thighs are pressed together and my heart rate picks up. “Now it’s your choice. Do you know what team you want to sign with yet? I’m sure you have your pick.” She turns her head to face me, her eyes shining with warmth.
“I don’t know yet. Jake and I have talked about trying to get on the same team, and that might limit our options. In the end, I’ll be happy just to get to play with him again, no matter what team we’re on.”
Just like that, I can see the walls building back up behind her eyes. She’s telling herself to not get attached. Reminding herself that I’ll be leaving as soon as hockey season starts. Shit. I have to slide in there and remind her that it doesn’t have to end when the season starts. That we could make something work.
“What I do know, though…” my hand slides over hers, intertwining our fingers, “is that I will do everything I can to stay close to home.” The words are quiet, but I hope she can tell how much I mean them. At this point, is hockey worth a life without her in it?
Her hand, while calloused from all her hard work, is soft compared to mine. Holding it brings me back to the days when she knew exactly how much she meant to me, before I fucked everything up. I hope she’ll let me make it right again.
She smiles at the water before facing me again. “Yeah?”
My smile grows to match hers. “Yeah.”
We say nothing, staring into each other's eyes. I could get lost in those pools of honey forever. Her cheeks tinge pink before she looks back out over the water, breaking our stare.
When her head tilts slightly and rests against my shoulder, it’s like… shit. It’s almost like I have her again. Like there’s been a knot in my chest and this one act of vulnerability from her loosens it just a little.
There’s still so much I don’t know about her, though. I want… no, I need to know everything I missed when it comes to Sophie Hartwell.
“Soph?” I ask quietly, not wanting her to move from her spot on my shoulder.
“Yeah, Cart?”
“Tell me about you. I used to know you so well, and not knowing what you’ve been doing the last nine years feels like… like I’m missing a part of myself somehow.”
She sighs against me. “Well, you know I help take care of Jordan. And that I help with the flower shop and manage the Twin Rinks…”
“Yeah, okay, but….” I take a deep breath and turn to face her, making her move her head from my shoulder as much as I want to stay just like that. Forever. “Is there anything you really enjoy doing? Like, if your parent’s flower shop ran perfectly and business was booming, and the rec center was saved and everyone was taken care of… what would you want to do?”
She runs her teeth over her bottom lip and shrugs. “I like helping. Taking care of people in the town. It makes me happy.”
I can see in her eyes that she means it. She wants to take care of everyone else, but what about her? There’s nobody here to take care of Sophie while she runs herself into the ground, worrying about everyone else.
And it’s my fault. I should have been with her. But maybe… maybe I can make it right—at least for tonight. She needs to get out of her own head. To not have room for anything else in that brilliant brain of hers except for the pleasure I can bring her.
“You’re looking after the ones you love… will you let me take care of you, Angel?” I murmur, unable to help myself as I reach and tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.
Her sharp intake of breath and glance down to my mouth is all the invitation I need. My lips brush hers gently, and she melts into my touch.
A small moan escapes her when my hand cups the back of her neck as I deepen the kiss.
Our lips move sensuously as she fists the front of my shirt, trying to pull me closer. Her teeth nip at my lower lip, turning me borderline feral. I grip the back of her neck tighter, plundering her mouth and earning a soft whimper in response..
Her. All I need is her. Her sounds, and her taste, the feel of her body against me.
Breathing hard, I pull away, keeping my hand on the back of her neck and pressing our foreheads together. “Will you trust me to give you what you need?”
“Yes.” Her voice is low and so fucking sexy.
“Good girl.” I give her a single, slow kiss. “Get on your back.”
She nods, and moves to lay further up the truck bed.
Crawling over, I can’t help but revel in how goddamn gorgeous she looks with the moonlight illuminating her pale skin, her hair spread out underneath her head and her eyes looking at me, full of want.
My lips capture hers again, and I settle against her, kissing her breathless. Trailing down her neck, her dress moves easily when I pull it down, exposing her breasts.
My Angel went braless tonight. I smile against her skin as my lips move down to capture her nipple. She writhes against me as my tongue laves and sucks at the sensitive skin, and I reach one hand up to remove her underwear from beneath her dress.
“Ah, Carter,” she cries out, her hands twinning in my hair to bring me closer to her delicious tits. Her legs move to help me remove her panties, and my hand immediately palms her pussy, causing a shaky moan to leave her at the pressure.
“More, please,” she pants as I grind the heel of my hand against her clit.
“Shhh, Angel,” I murmur, detaching my lips from her nipple. “You’ll get what you need, I promise.”
With one hand, I take both her wrists and move them above her head. “These stay here until you come, okay? You move your hands, I stop.”
When she nods, I remove my hand from her wrists and settle between her legs, pushing her dress up to her waist. My tongue runs through her folds and she shudders, but when I look up, her hands are still in place.
“Good girl,” I say against her pussy lips before devouring her. My tongue wreaks havoc on her clit, tracing circles around it before biting it gently. A sharp cry leaves her as her back arches, and her hands shoot to my hair.
Immediately, I lift my head, raising my brow. “Only good girls get to come, Angel.” I nip at the soft, milky flesh of her inner thigh. “And good girls do what they’re told.”
Pouting, she puts her hands back above her head, wiggling her hips closer to my face. “Don’t be a brat, or I’ll get the handcuffs next time.” I growl, and she shivers at my words before I dive back in.
Fuck. I love how she tastes. Before long, her legs are shaking, she’s panting my name, as she falls over the edge and into bliss. After her release, her arms come down, stroking my neck and hair.
“Fuck, your pussy is heaven. If I could only eat one meal for the rest of my life, my permanent seat would be on the floor with my head between your legs.”
Her eyes blaze at my words, and I sit back on my knees, undoing my belt and shimmying my pants and boxers down so my dick is out.
“Spread your legs wider for me, Angel.” I command, and she complies, allowing me to slide forward until my hard cock pushes against her pussy lips. “Are we still safe?” I ask, glancing down between us. The thought of another man even just touching her makes my blood boil, but I’m not trying to be presumptuous and scare her away by acting like she owes me anything.
“I am, are you?” She props herself up with her elbows and looks at me with enough attitude that I want to spank her until her perfect ass glows pink.
We can do that another time, though.
“There is only you,” I murmur in her ear before sliding my cock all the way inside her in one thrust. She keens, dropping down on her back again, and I pull away, then snap my hips forward again. “Only ever you, Sophie.”
“Yes, yes,” she chants, her hands running over my shoulders and biceps. I angle my thrusts upwards, hitting her g-spot and her panting grows harder.
I’m fucking her so hard into the bed of the truck I’m sure she’ll have bruises.
Without removing myself from her, I flip us over so I’m laying on my back. She sits up to ride me, and I grip her hips firmly, setting the pace as she slides up and down my cock.
Using my heels as leverage, I thrust up from beneath her, and I can feel the way her body shudders against mine. “Touch yourself,” I order her quietly. “Touch yourself while I fuck up into you.”
“I—What?” She blinks at me, her cheeks pink, then shakes her head. “I’ve never done that in front of anyone before…”
“Fucking touch yourself, Angel. I want to see your fingers slide across that pretty pink clit while I make you fall apart.” I say with more force, taking one of my hands and wrapping it around her neck. I squeeze gently, not enough to hurt, but enough to remind her who’s in charge here. To ground her.
Her cheeks become even more pink before she bites her lip, tentatively moving her hand down to her pussy. “Good fucking girl,” I growl, and her pupils blow at my words, lust evident as she stares at me, rubbing her clit in firm, short strokes. Watching her come undone by her own hand almost has me blowing my load before she comes, but soon her channel clenches around my cock, sending me over the edge as well.
My head falls back against the floor of the truck bed, and my chest rises and falls as I try to catch my breath. Her body collapses on top of mine, and we hold each other, both of our chests heaving.
Sophie is everything I’ve been missing. Her warmth, her touch, her beautiful heart. This moment… her in my arms, both of us half-naked, the stars in the sky, is one that will live in my mind for the rest of my life.
We lay together in silence for a bit, before she speaks.
“You’re good at it too, you know,” she says quietly.
“At what?” A yawn escapes me.
“Taking care of people.”
Her words have me bringing her closer to my chest, pressing a kiss into her hair. Before long, her breathing turns shallow, and when I tilt my head to look at her, she’s fast asleep.
I’ll let myself rest for a few moments, and then I’ll take her back to my hotel room so she can get some real sleep.
She doesn’t stir when I fix her dress, covering her beautiful breasts once again. Nor when I lift her from the bed of the truck, tucking her into the passenger seat before making the short drive back. A small whimper escapes her when I carry her into my hotel room and place her in my bed.
“Carter?” she whispers, her eyes half closed as I shimmy her dress down her body, before replacing it with one of my shirts.
“Shhh, Angel. I’ll take care of you.” Getting up, I head to the bathroom and wet two washcloths, then bring them back to her. The first one I use to wipe her face, getting under her eyes where her makeup smudged and capture her lips in a swift kiss. The second one, I run between her legs, cleaning up the mess we made.
With that taken care of, I pull us both under the covers and she snuggles close to me.
Having her in my arms, thoroughly satisfied and boneless, is better than anything I could have dreamed. It’s the missing piece of my life I’ve been chasing since Dad forced me away from Ivy Glen.
Now that I have her again, I’m never letting her go.