Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
JONAH
S hit, that was close. After answering all Coach Finley’s questions about the status of my concussion, I walked through the hallway at the rink. The guys were starting to arrive for practice. It felt like a million years since I’d been on the damn ice. I hated the thought of not being out there with the team this weekend and especially not spending time with Ryan.
Archer strolled to me with his duffel in his hand, then ticked his head at me. “Hey, how’d the check up go? Will you be with us this weekend?”
“Naw, I’m benched.” I shifted on my feet. “I’m going to hit the weight room, though, and get some stretches and shit in.” I was going to be ready for our first game in the Frozen Four for sure.
“Shit, that sucks, man.” He patted my shoulder, then leaned in and whispered in my ear, “Guess you won’t be sneaking around the hotel room this weekend?” He let out a soft snort.
“Yeah, but you’ll have a new roomie.” I smirked at him. “Who you gonna pick?” The rest of the squad members were already paired up.
“No fucking idea. Maybe I’ll get a room to myself for once.” With a chuckle, he walked away from me and waved behind him. “Later. Have a good workout.”
“Thanks.” Time to hit the gym.
By Wednesday, I’d gotten caught up on my assignments and was feeling pretty good, except for the occasional headache or fatigue. I’d parked at Ryan’s place and now stood at his door. We were eating dinner in tonight. I knocked.
The door swung open, and Ryan beamed at me. “Jonah.” He threw his arms around my neck and dragged me inside, planting kisses on my cheeks and lips. “God, I missed you.”
With a soft chuckle, I said, “I see that.” I pushed the door shut behind me and threaded my fingers through his as he let me go.
“How are you feeling?” He led me past his kitchen and into the main room of his apartment.
“Much better.” I let him tow me along and pull me down into the corner of his couch. “I heard from Archer you’ve been a real bear at practice.”
“Well, we need a win this weekend, and I’m trying to get the line to the next level.” He angled his legs toward me. “Have you heard anything from Finley on the Maple Leafs’ deal?” He lifted his brows.
“No, should I have?” I studied his face. Would he tell me even if he did know something?
“Don’t know. I was just curious.” He glanced at the television, then focused on me. “What do you want to eat?”
“Truthfully, how about a pizza from Spinelli’s?” I’d work it off in the gym tomorrow. It was cardio day and I planned on hitting it hard. I flung my arm over the back of the couch.
“Sure.” He plucked his phone from the coffee table and tapped on it. “Everything?”
“Absolutely.” I peeked into his kitchen. It probably still wasn’t a great idea for me to be drinking yet. “You have any Gatorade?”
“Of course. I’ve got blue and orange.” He hopped up and strolled into his kitchen.
“Orange.” Blue was okay, but orange was the gold standard as far as I was concerned. I gazed out his patio doors, the sky darkening over the mountains in the distance. The days were getting longer, and soon, I’d be graduating and summer would be here. At some point, we had to nail down our plans for the future. Of course, it would be best if I knew about the camp first.
He strode to the couch with two orange Gatorades and handed me one, then fell in next to me. “What are you thinking about?” He twisted off the cap on his.
“I’m wondering what’s going to happen this summer.” After opening my bottle, I drank from it. “If I don’t get an invitation to camp, then what?”
His smile waned. “There might be other prospects out there, Jonah.”
“Do you know something I don’t?” I gauged his reaction. It was sort of shitty to be putting him on the spot like this. “Stop, you don’t have to answer.”
“Thank you.” With a warm grin, he grabbed my hand and held it over his thigh. “No matter if you get an invitation to camp or not, I want you to come to Toronto with me this summer to meet my mom.”
My chest bloomed with warmth. “Yeah, I’d like that.” I sipped my Gatorade. “I want you to meet my family too. So, I guess we could stop off in Minnesota on our way up to Canada?”
“I’m sure we could do that.” He kissed the back of my hand. “I’ll be on some recruiting trips as well this summer. Maybe you could tag along with me?”
“Of course.” I’d follow him anywhere he wanted. My gaze dipped to his plump lips. Maybe we’d skip the movie part of the night and head off to bed after we ate .
His phone buzzed on the table. “Oh, that’s the pizza.” He jumped off the couch. “Be right back.” He left.
I relaxed into the couch cushions. No matter what happened, my life with him was going to require a lot of scheduling and travel. But I was up for it.
After polishing off the pizza while watching a short stand-up bit, I was spread out over Ryan on his couch, my back to his chest with his arm wrapped around me.
As the credits rolled on the television, he slid his hand down my abs and under my jeans to fondle my waking cock.
“Somebody want something?”
Nuzzling the side of my head, he rasped, “It’s been awhile.” He bit the shell of my ear.
A shiver tingled down my spine and my dick lengthened inside his stroking palm. “Damn right it has.” I groaned and angled my head as he nibbled down my neck, his hips rocking his solid cock against my ass.
“Goddamn it, Jonah, I want you.” His ragged breath tickled against my heated skin. “Should we take this into the bedroom?” He pulled his hand out of my jeans.
“Definitely.” I rolled off the couch and stood, then held my hand out to him while my gaze slipped to the generous bulge under his joggers. A flash of desire shuddered over me, and my mouth watered.
Taking my hand, he stood, then guided me into his bedroom and flicked on the nightstand lamps. “I want you to fuck me tonight. You up for that?” He dropped his joggers and underwear, then shucked off his shirt, his thick cock standing tall between his thighs.
“I am.” Stepping to him, I cupped his cheek and fisted his dick, slowly stroking it. “You’re so fucking gorgeous, Ryan.” Claiming his mouth in a heated kiss, I swallowed his moans and whimpers.
He unfastened my jeans and worked my cock out, then stroked me in time with my hand on him. “Jesus, fuck, Jonah,” he said in a husky voice against my cheek, his hips rocking and sliding his dick through my palm and fingers.
Sensation shivered over my skin and my cock pulsed, dribbling precum into his hand. With a gasp, I walked him backward to the edge of his bed. How did I want him? On his back. I wanted to see his face when he lost it. “Lie down on your back.”
With a quick nod, he climbed up, then flipped over on his back and lifted his knees, exposing his perfect hole to me.
“Yeah, that’s what I want.” I crawled over him, between his legs, and hovered on a straight arm, then gave his weeping cock a few more tugs.
His eyelids fluttered shut and his mouth dropped open. “Oh, God, feels so fucking good.”
“Yeah?” Maybe I’d play with him a little more. After waiting all this time, we deserved to draw this out. I dropped down and sucked a nipple into my mouth, then bit it softly while pinching the other.
He writhed under me and hissed, his fingers digging into my shoulders. “Jesus, fuck.”
Fluttering his tongue over his nipple, I swiped my thumb over the tip of his dick, spreading a bead of precum. He was so turned on. I loved seeing him this way. My own dick jerked, and my balls ached. I licked my way down his washboard abs to his groin and bit at the sensitive flesh around his cock. It twitched against my cheek.
“Jonah, take me in your mouth, please.” He arched his head back and wetted his lips, his breath coming in deep draws.
Cupping his cock with my hand, I nuzzled and lapped at his shaft, only giving him a fraction of what he wanted. I lowered my hips to the bed and rutted against the mattress, the pressure and friction releasing some of the tension wound tightly in my balls.
His thighs quivered and he slapped his hands to the back of my head. “Please, Jonah. No more teasing. Need you.” He rocked his hips as if fucking the air, his dick pulsing over his stomach, a string of precum threading from his slit.
Squeezing his shaft, I sucked a ball inside my mouth and swiped my tongue over it.
He shuddered and groaned. Arching his back off the bed, he rasped, “Oh, God, fuck.”
I had to do the other… With a soft smirk, I licked over his other ball and stroked him.
“Jonah? Jonah, shit, you’re killing me.” Lifting his head, he peeked down at me, his eyelids hooded over darkened eyes, his lips red and swollen.
“Good.” I fluttered my tongue over the tip of his dick, the salty taste of his precum flooding my mouth. God, he tasted like heaven. All at once, I fisted the base of his cock and devoured him to the back of my throat.
“Oh fuck!” He threw his head back and bucked his hips, his toes curling into his duvet.
I pumped him for a minute or so, his cock leaking over my tongue, ragged whimpers escaping him, then left him with a wet pop. It was my turn, and he was strung so tight I couldn’t wait to unwind him.
After grabbing the lube from his nightstand drawer, I slicked my fingers and hovered over him, propped on my elbow. As I slipped a finger inside him, I gazed deeply into his eyes, his pupils blown wide.
His lips parted and his brows tensed as his hole clenched around my finger. “More. Deeper.” He swallowed thickly.
“You’re so demanding tonight.” I placed a hard kiss on his lips. “I love it.” I nuzzled his cheek. “Love you.” I added a second finger, then rubbed over his prostate.
“Fuck yeah. Love you so much.” He squirmed under me, gasping. “Put it in, Jonah. Just do it.” He lifted his knees into his armpits, the head of his cock pooling precum across his stomach. “I’m ready.”
“You sure?” Holy fuck, was he going to be tight. I lubed my dick, taking a moment to enjoy the pleasure sparking up my spine as I stroked myself. I wasn’t going to argue with him too much. He knew his own body and certainly knew what he wanted.
“Yes. I want to feel it burn. Want to feel you stretch me and fill me up.” He panted, his gaze locked on mine.
As I nudged my cock into his hole, I claimed his mouth with harsh kisses, then slowly pushed inside him. The heat of his body enveloped my dick in a tight embrace. “Oh, fucking hell, Ryan.”
Grabbing the back of my head, he pressed his lips to mine and pushed his tongue inside, fluttering it over mine, whimpering into me, his other hand pulling on my lower back.
I buried myself inside him, my balls nestled against his ass. “You okay?” I asked, placing my forehead on his. I rocked deeper inside him, sensation tingling over my body.
“I’m fucking great.” Wrapping his ankles around my hips, he rolled his dick against my stomach, and it twitched. “Go, Jonah. I want it hard and fast tonight.” He gave me a harsh kiss.
“Yeah.” I pulled out, then pushed back in with quick thrusts, his greedy hole sucking me in. “Fuck, fuck, fuck…” I licked over the shell of his ear, pleasure swirling inside me.
Goosebumps rose on his neck and shoulder and his body trembled below me. “Faster,” he said inside a throaty groan.
I quickened my pace, thumping him into the mattress and against the pillows on his headboard. Sweet pulses of sensation rocketed through me. Through my panting breaths, I said, “You feel so fucking good, Ryan. So good.” I chased my release as it knotted low in my gut.
“Oh God, Jonah. I’m close, I’m…” He slipped his hand be tween us and pumped his slick cock, then cried out, his face tensing and head arching back. Hot cum spurted between us.
Burying my face in his neck, I tumbled over the edge, my sensitive dick swelling further and pulsing with each wave of my orgasm, spilling inside him. I gritted my teeth and gasped as the intense pleasure went on and on, pushing inside him. As it slowed, I fell over him in a heap, my head resting on his shoulder. I was totally spent. “Holy shit, that was good.” I fought to catch my breath, but fuck if I’d let him go right now. We’d shared so much and knowing he loved me made it all the better. I held tightly to him, my arms wrapping around his shoulders.
“Jonah.” He brushed his finger pads up and down my back, then lowered his legs.
My spent cock slipped out of his warmth. “Yeah?” I kissed his shoulder, then lifted my head to gaze into his eyes.
“Have you ever loved someone before?” His gaze darted between my eyes.
Shaking my head, I said, “No. Not like this.” I pressed my lips together. I can’t believe I never told him that. I supposed it was inferred when I said I’d never been in a relationship, though.
“I’ve never loved like this before, either.” He tilted his head over the pillow and skimmed his knuckles down my cheek.
I caught his hand and kissed it. “But what about Laurent?” He’d said he’d loved him, right?
“When he was here…” He swallowed hard. “I realized what I had with Laurent pales to what I have with you.” He chewed his lower lip for a beat. “It took a long time for me to develop feelings for him.” He shrugged a shoulder. “I’d always chalked it up to my injury and the mess my head was in. But when I met you, things just clicked. I fought against it, but the first time I saw you?—”
“You knew you had to have me?” A smile teased my lips. We’d felt the same way. “Because the first time I saw you in the locker room, I knew I had to have you .” My gaze searched his face. We’d talked some about his injury and the bad time that came after, but I didn’t feel like I knew the whole story. Sliding my knuckles down his cheek, I said, “Tell me more about that time. After you found out you couldn’t play hockey anymore.”
“Oh, well…” He huffed out a breath. “I was lost. My whole life had revolved around the game. I mean, my dad got me started in it.” He pursed his lips. “My dad played hockey all through college but never took it past his senior year. I guess he wasn’t good enough to keep going.” He turned his head and kissed my knuckles. “He ended up continuing his education in the physical therapy field. He’s the one who pushed me to play. Maybe he thought I could take it to a level he couldn’t.”
My heart ached for him. Here I was talking about going to medical school even though I was being scouted for the NHL. I was being given a chance neither he nor his father had. “Go on.” I studied him and the pain in his eyes.
“There was about a year where I didn’t give a shit if I lived or died. I couldn’t play hockey, my parents were fighting and talking about divorce, and my dad wasn’t happy about me being gay. So, I did a lot of drugs and almost drank myself to death.” He puffed out a breath and squirmed under me. “I can’t tell you how many times I woke up not knowing where I was or who I’d been with,” he said. “I woke up in vomit a few times. It’s a miracle I didn’t drown in it.”
I pressed a soft kiss to his lips. Jesus, it had been worse for him than I’d thought. “You’d never know it looking at you now.” I circled his shoulder with my fingers.
“In the middle of all that, I met Laurent at a gay bar. I was pissed out of my mind, and he took me home. He, uh, he’d seen me play hockey a few times. I was on a team with a friend of his.”
Nodding, I said, “And so you started seeing each other?” Laurent knew a side of Ryan I never would. No wonder they were still so close.
“Not at first. He became my friend. He got me help, therapy and shit. The guy can sell just about anything. And so, he sold me on going back to school to be a coach. He knew my reputation with the junior league was still intact and how much I loved the game.” He choked out a laugh. “Guess I have him to thank for where I am now.”
“Okay, so how long were you friends before you got together?” I’d had nothing to be jealous about with Laurent. I’d been so stupid and childish.
“I don’t know, maybe six months? He sort of grew on me.” He smirked, then it fell. “He was a little hurt when he found out I was already in love with you after just a few months.”
My heart bloomed with warmth. “You told him we were in love.” I kissed the tip of his nose.
A grin spread over his lips. “I told him I basically fell for you at first sight.”
The warmth in my chest grew. “Yeah? Well, it was mutual.” I curled a lock of his hair around my finger. “All my friends told me to stay away from you, that it was wrong to date a coach and all that shit. But I didn’t listen.”
“Yeah, Laurent and my mother were concerned. Well, Laurent thinks I could ruin my career.” He pressed his palm to my cheek and turned my gaze to his. “My mom is happy for me now, though. And I think Laurent is too.”
I gazed deeply into his eyes, the gray flecks inside the blue. No matter what happened, I’d never leave him, and we’d get through it all together. “It’s nobody’s business but ours.”
“Are you quoting Brokeback Mountain to me?” He quirked the corner of his mouth.
“Maybe.” I freed a soft snort. “I guess it seemed appropriate, given the way we have to hide our relationship.”
“Only for a few more weeks, depending on what happens at the Frozen Four.” His lips curled into a grin.
“Is it wrong to hope we lose our first game, so the season will be over faster?” I cocked a brow. I couldn’t wait for the day we could do something as simple as walk down Mill Avenue together, holding hands .
“Jonah, don’t even say that. Yes, it’s wrong. It’s wrong and selfish.” He slapped my shoulder. “Now, let’s clean up. I’m pretty messy down there.”
“Yeah, I came pretty hard.” I planted a quick kiss on his lips, then lifted off him, his sticky cum coating my chest.
After cleaning up and getting dressed, he walked me to his door. I wasn’t going to have time to see him until after the away game this weekend. “So, it sucks I won’t be traveling with the team this weekend.”
“Yes, but make sure to stream the game. I want a report from you when I get back on what you think we did well and where we made mistakes.” He grinned.
“Yeah, yeah. You’re not my coach, remember?” I set my hand on his doorknob. But what he was asking wasn’t a bad idea and maybe I could use it to my advantage when I got to play again.
“It’s a good idea anyway.” He wrapped his arm around my waist and hugged me into him. “Come here. One last kiss before you go.”
I faced him and, grabbing the back of his neck, placed a deep, lingering kiss on his lips, then freed him. “I’m going to miss you.”
“I’ll miss you more.” He primped my bangs. “Now, go home and rest.” He slapped my ass.
“Yes, sir.” With a salute, I popped the door open and made my way to the parking garage.
I spent the rest of the week focusing on my studies and a new workout routine to increase my flexibility and balance, compliments of Archer, who was studying exercise science and had come up with this shit for his final project .
The weekend had been weird being in the house all alone. In fact, it had never happened before. But I’d dutifully streamed the games and made notes on them as Ryan had suggested. It was different looking at our team from a coach’s perspective. We’d won the first game in overtime, then lost the second.
On Tuesday, I was met by Coach Finley in the training room. I was there between my classes and before practice was due to start. “Boehm, can you come with me?” He gave me a pointed look.
“Sure.” I scanned over his face. He looked…unhappy? I followed him out the door, then down the hallway into the facility. Why wasn’t he saying anything?
When we reached his office, he waved me inside. “You remember Shannon, don’t you?”
Mr. Shannon stood from an office chair across from Coach Finley’s desk and walked to me, hand outstretched, a smile on his face. “Boehm, nice to see you again.”
“Likewise.” I gave his hand a firm shake, taking in his tailored gray suit, my pulse kicking. There was only one reason he would be here. I’d have my answer on camp today.
Coach Finley remained at the door and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Have a seat.” Shannon waved to an empty chair next to the one he’d been sitting in.
I dropped in and took a hard swallow, my throat going dry. He must have known about my concussion already, right?
“Boehm, the coaches in my organization have really liked what they’ve seen.” He lifted his chin. “Even though you’ve been out for the last few games, they believe they’ve seen enough to extend an invitation for you to join our development camp this summer.” He glanced at Coach Finley, then back to me. “What do you say?”
“Uh, yes. Heck yeah.” All the discussions I’d had with Ryan about summer plans stormed through my head. We could be together this summer, but if I got a contract, what would happen come fall? My gut clenched. We’d work it out. We’d talked about this.
“Good.” With a grin at me, Mr. Shannon said, “I’ll send over the paperwork through your email address for e-sign. You’ll be meeting everyone when you get up there and it’ll be an intensive schedule, so don’t plan on any sightseeing.” He chuckled.
“Oh no, sir.” I shook my head and fought to breathe steadily. Holy shit, was this really happening?
“Any questions?” Setting his hands on his thighs, he looked me over.
“No. At least, not right now.” I snuck a peek at my coach, smirking at me.
“If he has any, we’ll be in touch.” Coach Finley uncrossed his arms and held out his hand to me. “Congratulations, Boehm.”
“Thank you,” I said roughly. Goddamn, I had to tell Ryan. I shook Coach’s hand, then left. This news needed to be shared in person.