30. Wren
30
WREN
It’s been three days since Stefan turned up for the game drunk, meaning it’s been three days, seventeen hours, and twelve minutes since he kissed me senseless. Since he fucked my mouth with his tongue and left me lightheaded. Every spare second since I walked away from him has been spent replaying said kiss.
His tongue in my mouth.
His hands caressing my ass.
His hard dick pressing into me.
Sometimes it would morph into what would have happened if I didn’t have my “never date a client” rule—I would have pushed him to his back, freed his cock, and wrapped my lips around his thick shaft, sucking him into my mouth with the tip hitting the back of my throat. My eyes watering as he choked me with his dick and just before he was about to come, he’d do that sexy book boyfriend move where he’d pick me up, flip me onto my back, and thrust his cock into me then fuck me into next week.
“Ugh,” I groan, snapping myself back to the present and away from Dirtyville. “I really need to get laid,” I mumble, and I don’t mean by Stefan because I cannot do that with a client, again. Plus, it’s Stefan. No matter what Fern—or my subconscious— thinks, I do not like him like that. I do not want him to fuck the life out of me. Liar liar, pants on fire. Hell, even my inner whore knows I’m full of shit. Shaking away all thoughts of Stefan—kissing or fucking—I grab the remote and turn the television on. As soon as I see what’s on the screen, my eyes widen and all the dirty kinky thoughts about Stefan evaporate into dreamland.
“Stefan,” I call out. “Come here.”
“What’s up?” he singsongs, walking into the living room in nothing but gray sweatpants, every girl’s kryptonite. Once again, I’m back in Dirtyville and I’m too busy checking him out to speak, so I mutely point at the TV screen.
The moment we’ve all been waiting for is here, Margaret from WtB is reporting, well gossiping, about what happened with Stefan, Alicia, and the baby. But what’s shocking is she’s Team Stefan.
“…the baby, unfortunately, didn’t make it, but my sources confirm Stefan wasn’t the father. Why women try to trap men like this is disgusting, and it explains his recent unravelling. Condolences to the parents who lost their baby and, Stefan, we’re all thinking of you during this trying time.”
“What the fuck?” he mumbles as we both stare at the television screen, both our eyes wide and confusion marring our faces. “Did she…”
“Yep,” I agree, letting the ‘p’ pop. “Margaret seems to be Team Stefan.”
“Pinch me,” he says. No doubt it’s rhetorical but just in case it’s not, I lift my hand to his chest and grab hold of his nipple, squeezing and twisting. “The fuck,” he hisses. “Did you just nipple cripple me?”
“You said pinch me, so I did.”
“No, you nipple crippled me and that’s just mean.”
“Please,” I refute. “There’s so much muscle there”—I circle my finger toward his chest—“you didn’t feel shit.”
“Then why is my nipple sore?”
Shrugging, I focus back on the TV because the Margaret we all know and love, I mean hate, springs back to life. “Baby drama aside, you might wanna buckle up, buddy, ’cause word on the ice is that LA is looking for a new left defensemen when your contract is up at the end of this season.”
“What the fuck? Is she right? Where does—” But his rant is cut off when a knock raps on the front door. He walks over to answer it, and I continue to listen to Margaret tear into Stefan.
Shaking my head, I stare at the screen as she talks crap about another celebrity. “You good?” a deep voice asks, and when I turn my head, I see Leif, Tania, and Maverick ‘Rick’ McQueen standing beside me. Every time I see Maverick McQueen, my mouth goes dry and my panties become soaked. He was a gun on the ice back in the day. Now he’s killing it as the assistant coach for the Crushers and, at forty, he’s still mighty fine on the eyes.
“What are you guys doing here?” I ask in lieu of a hello.
The three of them turn their attention to Stefan. “What did I do?” he hisses, and all four of us raise our eyebrows.
“Maybe it’s in relation to that”—Rick points to the television—“and what happened a few days ago.”
“I’m fine,” he huffs, and again, all four of us raise our eyebrows at him. “Okay, well, I’m not fine fine, but I’m getting there fine.”
“Why should we believe you?” Leif growls. “You turned up drunk to a game, Stefan. You’ve missed every practice since this happened, and according to your bestie, Margaret, you’ve been out every night drinking up a storm and causing shit.” He shakes his head. “You’ve done some reckless stuff before, Stefan, but what you did last week was unacceptable on so many levels. You’re lucky that I don’t bench your ass for the rest of the season.”
“I—”
“No,” Leif interrupts him, and I have never seen him angry like this before. “I don’t want excuses because no doubt it’ll just be bullshit that dribbles from your mouth. Stefan, you’re an amazing player but you’re pissing it away. This is your final chance to prove to us that you aren’t a lost cause. In three days the team flies to Dallas, and if you’re not on that plane, you can say goodbye to your career. Yes, what you’ve been through is shit, but you’re a grown-ass man. Start acting like it.”
With nothing else to say, Leif turns on his heel and walks out, leaving us with Tania and Rick.
“What he said,” Tania says, breaking the silence. “Stefan, we believe in you, but you’re seriously your own worst enemy. You have so many people on your side.” I go to open my mouth and defend him but she Aretha’s me and raises her hand to stop me. “Let us help you through this shitty time. Hell, Rick left his kids with the nanny to come here and try to talk some sense into you. And I’m aware it’s shitty to refer to his kids considering what happened to you and your non-kid, but enough is enough. This is a business, my business, and you’re tarnishing the brand that myself and so many others have worked hard to build and maintain. I will not let some skank and a pretty boy ruin it. Pick up your act, or you’re fired and the contract renewal I’ve been working on with Jaxson, like you, it’ll be gone too.” She looks to me and she means business. “And you better make sure he’s on that plane or you’re fired too.”
Without another word, she walks out.
“You wanna have a go at me too?” Stefan snaps at Rick and I shake my head, clearly he has learned nothing from the lectures he just got from Leif and Tania.
“Why bother because from where I’m standing, you won’t listen.” He pauses. “But I will say, if you let some lying woman be the downfall of your career, you aren’t the person I thought you were. All respect I had for you in the past will be gone. Be the man I know you can be, Stefan, and prove to everyone that you’re worth it.”
Without saying anything, Stefan walks past Rick and me and heads upstairs … on a positive note, he didn’t stop at the fridge to grab a beer.