Chapter 31
Teddy
The room was still dark, the hour suspended, and I knew my body clock would drag me awake at five, as usual, whether I wanted it to or not.
I lay there anyway, weighing the pull to stay against the instinct to get up.
This was unfamiliar territory for me—this in-between space where nothing demanded immediate action.
It was a Friday, which meant I needed to be at the stadium within the hour.
And today was the Knights’ first game. But the awareness of him there, and the fact that once I moved, the moment would be gone, made me stay.
I didn’t want this to disappear, to change, to become complicated. I liked that it was as easy as inviting him up here last night. I might’ve rambled my way through it, but last night was fun. The most fun I’ve had with a guy in… well, ever.
Connor shifted slightly, his nose brushing my hair, an exhale following, closer than before. “I know you’re awake,” he murmured, voice rough with sleep, words meant just for me.
I smiled into the dark. “Do you?”
The rumble of him answering without words rippled through his front to my back. “Your breathing changed.” He said it so simply, as though it wasn’t a big deal that he was paying enough attention to notice when my breathing changed. “And you pushed your ass into my dick.”
Oh.
Laughter fluttered out of me before I could stop it, my shoulders shaking as I buried my face into the pillow. “That is absolutely not what happened.”
His chest vibrated behind me, a soft laugh answering mine. “Mm,” he said, clearly unconvinced. “I think that’s exactly what happened.”
“You’re delusional,” I informed him, still smiling. “That was purely accidental.”
“Sure,” he murmured as his arm tightened at my waist like he was settling in for an argument he intended to win. “I’m not complaining, mind you.”
I tried to roll away, mostly on principle, but he followed the movement easily, keeping me tucked close. His mouth hovered near my ear again, warm, familiar now in a way that made my chest feel strange.
“I don’t want to get up,” he whispered.
I managed to stop the laughter, but my cheeks still ached. “That’s a problem.”
“For future me,” he said quietly. “Present me is very comfortable.”
I let the moment stretch a little longer than it should have. Outside of this bed, the day was already lining itself up—responsibilities, expectations, noise.
But right here, with him pressed into my back and the dark still surrounding us, it felt easy to pretend none of that existed.
And then his phone rang, loud and persistent, a strumming guitar blaring somewhere in the room.
“Ughhh, that’s my official get-the-feck-out-of-bed alarm.” He peeled away to sit with a huff, leaving my body bereft and cold.
“Big day today,” I said as I sat up myself. “You guys looked strong in training.”
“Teddy, are you complimenting me?”
“I was complimenting your team.”
“I choose to believe you were only talking about me, since it’s my arse you watch out there.”
I swatted the expanse of bare skin beside me, chuckling at the rolling ‘r’ when he said “arse.” Connor was already halfway out of bed, rubbing a hand over his face as he fumbled for his phone, completely unconcerned with the fact he was, very clearly, naked.
My brain stalled for a second. His dick was right in my periphery.
I might’ve brushed up against it this morning, I might’ve ridden it like a cowgirl on her fourth shot of tequila, but I hadn’t actually looked at it.
When he returned from the shower last night, he kept the towel around him until he climbed into bed.
Sure, I felt it, but now it was right fucking there.
I looked away fast, heat rushing up my neck, turning me the color of my pink pajamas.
Last night had been dark and tangled and forgiving.
Morning was not. Morning was clarity and consequences and the very real reminder that this was a man I’d shared orgasms with and very much enjoyed.
Connor was moving around my bedroom like this was entirely normal and not something my body was wildly unprepared to process.
He caught my reaction anyway. Of course he did.
“What?” he asked, glancing back at me, already smirking.
“Nothing,” I said too quickly. “Just—Wow. You’re very… awake.”
Hard, he was hard, and I already knew he was big based on last night. What I didn’t expect was to see silver bars glistening on either side of the head of his dick. Oh, fuck. Drool pooled in my mouth as my eyes remained fixated on him.
I had to stop before I became one of those cartoon Looney Tunes with bulging eyes.
I snapped my gaze away like I’d been burned, dragging a hand down my face and willing my brain to reboot. This was not the time. Or the place. Or the headspace for whatever my body thought it was doing right now.
Connor chuckled behind me, unmistakably pleased. “I’ve woken up with the taste of a beautiful woman on my tongue and the memory of her screaming my name, of course I’m hard, sunshine.”
“I’m choosing to plead the fifth,” I muttered, swinging my legs out of bed and standing, only to bump straight into him as he moved in front of me. “You should really consider some kind of warning label.”
“For what?” he asked, still far too relaxed, ignoring my cognitive collapse.
“For ambushing people before sunrise,” I shot back, heat still clinging to my cheeks. “That,” I squeaked, pointing at his dick, “should be illegal.”
He stepped closer again, the scent of soap and sleep and something unmistakably him following. “I’d like to ambush you again,” he said easily. “I’d also like to wake up with you again.”
Damn. I’d forgotten how smooth he was. The words slid over me like honey, warm and dangerous. “I’d like that, too.”
His answering grin was wide, beautiful and warmed every part of me, as he pushed a stray strand of hair behind my ear. “Yeah?”
I nodded, feeling embarrassingly like a schoolgirl with a crush.
Slowly, he leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to my temple. “I really do have to go now, though,” he said, not convincingly. “If I’m late, Coach will have me running laps until I regret every life choice that led me here.”
“I’d hate to be responsible for that,” I said, even though the idea of him staying tugged harder than it should have.
He reached for his pants, pulling them on with a quiet mutter. “Worth noting,” he added, “this is happening without underwear.”
I blinked. “Connor.”
“What?” He shrugged, fastening the button. “You made me come in my underwear last night, so I have no options.” He was grinning again, his whole face brightened with his amusement.
I laughed, shaking my head as I grabbed his shirt and tossed it at him. “Do you have spare underwear at the stadium, at least?”
“I do, but the idea of going commando all day because of you feels like a secret between us.”
“Right, until you do any kind of tackling on the pitch today, in which case I’d imagine you’d be out of action for a while after that.”
He laughed, a deep rumble in his chest, and stepped forward to brush his knuckles against my hip. “I’ll be careful. For you.”
I rolled my eyes, but it didn’t quite stick. “You should go. Before you’re actually late.”
He hesitated, just a beat, like he was weighing something. Then he nodded once, more decisively, and reached for his shoes.
“I’ll see you there,” he said, and the hopeful lilt of his voice made me weak.
“You’ll see me there,” I repeated.
He opened the bedroom door, then glanced back over his shoulder, eyes promising more later. “And don’t think I didn’t notice you staring,” he added. “I know you’re intrigued by my dick. You can take a closer inspection next time.”
Before I came up with a response that didn’t incriminate me, he was gone, leaving the room quieter than it had any right to be.
I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face.
Yeah. This was definitely going to be complicated.