Chapter 32
brOOKE
Leaving the stadium wasn’t as easy as getting inside had been. Everyone was rushing out at once, and finding a cab was a nightmare.
In the end, we only arrived at the hotel about ten minutes before the team. The bar and restaurant area had been closed off. Only the team and their family and friends were allowed inside, which meant the celebration was a private affair.
Even so, quite a few of the other hotel guests were fans who’d attended the game and were now in the lobby, waiting with jerseys and hats ready to be signed.
Hailey and I went straight inside the restricted zone, waiting at the bar along with a few other friends and relatives of the players.
When the team finally came inside the private area, everyone clapped, then Jace made a beeline straight for me.
He took one look at my jersey before kissing me.
He tasted like Gatorade and mint, and by the way he pressed his hand on my lower back and the lazy strokes of his tongue, I could tell we wouldn’t linger at this party for long.
Jace’s kiss consumed me. I wasn’t aware of anything except him: his mouth exploring me with growing urgency, his hand pressing possessively at the small of my back.
Belatedly, I realized someone was clearing their throat.
“Hello, brother. I’m doing all right. Thanks for asking,” Hailey said. We pulled apart, chuckling. Jace kissed his sister’s forehead.
“Thanks for coming to the game, brat.”
“That’s my repayment? I come all the way here so you can call me brat? You were fabulous.”
The two of them went on to discuss some of the crucial moments of the game. I joined in, trying my best to hide my smile when Jace rested his hand at the small of my back, slipping the tip of his thumb in the waistband of my jeans.
“Let’s get out of here,” he whispered once Hailey moved away to speak with a guest.
“Jace! People want to see you at the celebration.”
He made a small, guttural sound at the back of his throat. His eyes were hard and determined, and I was ready to bet he’d just take my hand and lead me out of the room, but to my surprise, he didn’t insist.
His grip on me just grew a little more possessive. Especially after he left me alone for a few minutes to get some drinks and a guy started chatting me up. Upon his return, Jace glowered at the guy.
“Oh, my bad. Didn’t know she was taken,” the guy muttered before scurrying away.
“I leave you alone for a few minutes, and someone’s already replacing me.”
“No one can replace you, Jace. You’re one of a kind.”
He grinned. “I like what I’m hearing.”
“I was trying to find a polite way to work you in the conversation, but your way of bulldozing over him works too.”
Guess who didn’t appreciate Jace’s bulldozing manners? Hailey.
She lifted a brow when Jace cockblocked a guy offering to buy her a drink.
“Jace, I’m a grown-ass woman.”
“And that is Andrew’s cousin. I know for a fact he’s a man-whore.”
“Right. So, you would’ve reacted differently if, say, a guy from the team was hitting on me?”
Jace stared at her. “Hailey, these guys are not exactly saints.”
She rolled her eyes before glancing at me. “See what I have to put up with?”
“Yes. But not to worry, I’ll find a way to change this. Might take me some time, but I’m persistent.”
Jace blinked.
“Little brother, dial back that big brother attitude… or our deal is off.”
I looked between them, eager to know more.
“What deal?”
Jace shook his head. Whatever game they were playing, it was certainly one for Hailey and zero for Jace.
Jace
I only wanted one thing: to take my girl upstairs and show her just how happy I was that she’d flown here. I was happy about the win, of course, but all that was just background noise.
I’d planned to only stay at the party long enough not to be considered impolite, and according to my calculations, that period of grace expired now.
I pulled Brooke closer to me. Her breast pressed into my side.
When I began to lazily stroke the base of her spine with my thumb, she straightened up, licking her lips.
“Brooke, I want to be alone with you.”
She shuddered deliciously against me, giving me a small nod. I took her hand, leading her out of the restaurant, through the lobby, and into the elevator. I laced an arm around her shoulders once the door closed, pulling her mouth up to me, giving her a taste of what was about to come.
Brooke sighed into my mouth, clutching at my shirt. When the doors opened, I pulled back, smiling down at my girl, who pouted, tugging at my shirt to bring me closer again.
“This is our floor, babe.”
“Oh.”
We almost jogged to the room, and the second we were inside, I kissed the side of her neck, pulling the elastic band from her ponytail. Her hair spilled down her back, the strawberry scent of her shampoo wafting around me.
“Thanks for flying here. It means a lot to me.”
“I’m sorry if I gave you the impression I was regretting anything.
I wasn’t. I’m not. I just… well, I was afraid you’d begrudge me for what happened with the sponsors, that you’d be upset.
I’ve…well, I know from experience that when things go wrong professionally, that tension takes over the relationship, driving a wedge, so… ”
“Brooke. That would never happen. Ever. Do you understand?”
She nodded. “I’m sorry for lashing out at you. I was taking out my frustrations and fears on you, and it wasn’t fair.”
I whirled her around.
“You were right, though. I kept pushing.”
“Well, if you hadn’t, who knows where we’d be now. Maybe we’d still hang around as friends, having movie nights.”
“Babe, there’s no way I would’ve lasted that long without making a move on you.” She attempted to look down, but I cupped her face with both hands. “I’m sure we’re going to have ups and downs, but I’ll love you through all of that. All I ask is that you love me back.”
“I will. I do love you.”
“You’re everything I didn’t know I needed.”
Her breath caught, and she looked up at me with a dreamy expression.
Before Brooke entered my life, I hadn’t understood my brothers when they claimed that meeting their women had turned their worlds upside down. But now I did. I’d work hard to see that look in her eyes every single day.
I couldn’t stand not kissing and not touching her anymore.
After taking off her jersey, I kissed her collarbone, starting from the right shoulder, moving my lips slowly, enjoying her reactions to me: her breathing becoming more labored, the goose bumps popping up on her skin, the light flush on her neck.
All for me. When I cupped her bra, she rolled her hips, humming my name. I wanted to explore her for days.
I drew my hand slowly down her belly to the fly of her jeans.
She sucked in a breath when I opened it, and I slipped my fingers inside her panties, nearly bursting in my pants when I felt how ready she was.
I didn’t go slow after that. I yanked away her jeans while she worked at ridding me of my clothes too.
When we were naked, I kissed her long and deep until I felt her quiver lightly.
Then I cupped her ass with both hands, lifting her up.
I smiled against her mouth when she wrapped her legs around my middle.
Then she lowered herself just a little, so the tip of my cock was wedged between us, and a deep groan rumbled at the back of my throat.
I laid her on the bed but didn’t join her, despite her tugging at my hand.
“I want to look at you, Brooke. Lying here, waiting for me. Wanting me.”
I placed one knee on the mattress, dropping a kiss on her right ankle.
“I want to kiss every inch of you.”
“Jace,” she protested.
“And I will do it.”
I kissed up her right leg before focusing on the other one.
I could feel her becoming more impatient.
She was fisting the bedsheet, or my hair whenever I was in her reach.
Needing more access, I straddled her. She gripped my shoulders, bringing me down on her.
I skimmed the tip of my nose down her collarbone, tracing the same path up with my lips.
She swallowed, rolling her hips, gasping when the tip of my erection nudged her clit.
“Fuuuuck, Brooke.”
My muscles locked down as I pulled back to slide on protection before losing my head completely.
Then I entered her slowly, feeling her pulse around me. Her eyes flared wide, and her grip on my shoulders was crushing. She sensed this intense feeling of togetherness too. I moved slowly in and out. I wanted to be entwined with her so deeply that our connection could never be broken.
I kissed her feverishly until I slid both my hands under her ass to lift her up. Pushing my forehead into the pillow for leverage, I pressed my cheek to hers, wanting as much connection as possible.
On a gasp, Brooke clenched her thighs, making it almost impossible for me to move, and then I felt her unravel. I held back my own climax for as long as possible, but when she tipped her head between us, muffling her sounds of pleasure against my chest, I was a goner.
I was constructing a small plan at the back of my mind, but I kept it a secret for now, even though we didn’t sleep at all. We talked about everything, simply enjoying being with each other.