Chapter Seventeen
Sophia
“Shit, Sophia. You’ve got to tap that,” Jia said as Leo zoomed by us on the ice. We were seated behind the away goalie, which meant Leo was in front of us a lot, shooting on goal. He’d already made two goals and there was still most of the third period left.
“Leave her alone, Jia,” Alyssa said from my right. “Soph is more of a relationship girl than a casual sex girl. Don’t pressure her.”
“Actually,” I said, swallowing the lump in my throat, deciding to come clean. “I already did.”
“What?” they exclaimed, their heads whipping in my direction.
“Calm down.” I chuckled. “I slept with him last week. We have a casual arrangement, so it probably won’t be the last time.
” I’d already gotten an earful from my sister on the scheduled one-night stand that turned into a research operation.
If a fifteen-year-old could see how ridiculous I was, I wasn’t about to give these two that information just yet.
Leo came rushing toward our end of the rink again, dribbling the puck with a precision and speed that seemed unmatched by anyone else in the game.
It was hard for me to know if that was true or just my biased interpretation since I’d only learned that passing the puck back and forth between your stick was called dribbling an hour ago.
I’d forced Jia to look it up because dribbling didn’t really seem like the right word, but apparently it was.
I looked between Jia and Alyssa who were both staring at me with their mouths wide open.
“Oh, knock it off,” I said waving a hand at them and rubbing my arms. Even with my peacoat on it was cold in here, and yet my friends stood in light sweaters and looked perfectly comfortable.
“I am beyond impressed, Sophia,” Jia said.
“I’m not surprised you feel that way,” I said with a chuckle, watching the game. “It was amazing. I’m not saying anything else about it.”
They looked at each other and turned back to the game. They knew me well enough to know I didn’t like talking about my hookups and I wasn’t about to start now—even if it was with someone they very much wanted details about.
It was a good thing they’d agreed to come to this game with me because it was both exciting and boring.
The way the guys glided around the ice like they were literally floating through the air was beyond impressive, and the stickhandling was clearly a very technical skill, with some players—namely Leo—being far more impressive than others.
Seriously, what the hell is number fifty-six doing? No wonder I don’t know his name.
Other than that, they did an awful lot of passing the puck around without a lot of scoring. I’d have to ask Leo why that was. The crowd seemed far too invested for a sport that had such low scores.
By the time the game ended in a shutout with BU winning 2–0, I was really looking forward to meeting up with Leo. Watching him play for the last couple hours had made me realize just how much I wanted to spend more time with him—sexually, of course.
“I’m going to hang out by the locker room,” I said earnings a pair of “oohs” from the girls. “Oh, shut up, it’s for the paper. Are you going to an after-party?”
Jia held up her phone. “Yep, Devon’s hosting one at his townhouse.” Most of the hockey parties happened at Devon’s. Not that I’d been to many. But Jia went to enough of them that I’d learned this information over the years.
“Are you coming tonight?” Alyssa asked with a delighted grin. “Now that you’re apparently banging the team captain?”
“I doubt it,” I said. Based on my conversations with Leo thus far, it seemed clear that he rarely went to those parties, and if he did, it was usually a short-lived experience to show his face. I was pretty sure if the two of us were hanging out, it would be somewhere more private.
The girls and I said our goodbyes and parted ways as I made my way down to the locker room. I could hear the guys cheering and laughing inside, clearly excited about their win.
Leo was the first one out of the locker room and I felt a thrill wash over me at the sight of him.
His hair was wet, and he wore gray sweatpants and a tight, black T-shirt.
I had no control over my eyes as they roamed over his visible abs and took in the view of his sweatpants sitting low on his hips.
He approached me with a grin and his duffel tossed over his shoulder.
He definitely didn’t look like he was going anywhere but home.
Maybe he forgot about our plans.
“Hey,” he said, his eyes locked on me as he leaned in to kiss my cheek. My heart pounded at the proximity and casual familiarity in his greeting. “How’d you like the game?”
“Honestly?” I asked, scrunching up my nose. “It’s kind of boring. Why isn’t there more scoring?”
He chuckled, a slow eyebrow raise transforming his entire face into a smirk. “I’m sorry, were my two goals not enough to impress you?”
“Oh, you were very impressive, but what were all those other guys doing? You were the only one who scored at all!”
Leo laughed and adjusted his bag on his shoulder. “Hockey is a low-scoring game, Hawaii.”
“I’ve noticed. It’s on my list of things to ask you about.”
“You brought a list?”
“Of course, I did.” I held up my notebook. “It’s kind of the whole point of me being around here, isn’t it?”
He plucked it out of my hands. “No notebook. I like to think you’re here for me. It’s ruining the fantasy.” He leaned in and spoke directly into my ear. “I have been thinking about seeing you again for days. You can ask your questions after you appropriately scream my name.”
Blood rushed to my cheeks and my knees nearly buckled but I held my ground. I was nothing if not a determined a woman. “Answer the question about the scoring and I’ll agree to put the rest on hold for an hour.”
Leo smiled and whispered, his lips brushing mine. “Because the goalies are good at what they do. Not to mention huge.”
A wave of uncertainty hit me at the heat in his gaze. “How exactly does this arrangement between us work?” I asked.
“You have research to conduct and I’m at your service, Hawaii. You know how to find me better than just about anyone else at this point.”
This was probably true, given I had direct access to his hockey schedule and new, super-secret phone number. “I can just use you for sex, whenever I want?”
He chuckled. “I’m hoping you’ll use me frequently and aggressively.”
I frowned in disbelief. “Why do you not feel like this is awkward? What am I supposed to do? Just call you when I get horny? Or do we establish a schedule? Or just hook up when the timing is convenient? And what do I say? Hey, Leo, wanna take me back to your room for some more sex, please?”
“First, of all, no schedules, Hawaii.” He stepped toward me and put his hand under my ear, his thumb rubbing my cheekbone and sending shivers down my spine. “It’s not awkward for me because there is nothing forced about my desire for you.”
I felt suddenly choked for air and I was sure he noticed because his lips curved upward.
“Do you want it to feel more organic, Sophia?”
“Yes,” I said. “I know we’re basically agreeing to be fuck buddies, but I don’t know how something like that works. Are we supposed to try to hide this from your teammates?”
“No, they don’t care and it’s none of their business.
” He pressed his chest against mine and I could smell the fresh rain scent of his body wash combined with sweat.
I was pretty sure hockey players had passed by as they funneled out of the locker room, but I’d been too focused on him to be sure.
“I’m going to kiss you now. Assuming that’s okay with you? ”
I nodded and tipped my chin toward him. He gently pressed his lips to mine and his hand slid behind the base of my head, pulling me closer to him.
My body became limp in his hands and I let myself go.
His kisses consumed every part of my brain.
It was like I couldn’t think, I couldn’t doubt, I could just feel him and his confidence in what we were doing—not to mention the heat he ignited deep in my belly.
I pulled back, taking in a big gulp of air. “How do you do that? How do you quiet my mind so easily?”
He smirked and ran both hands over my shoulders. “I’ve been told I’m a remarkably good kisser.”
“Well, I can see why people say that.”
“I don’t care what they say. I care what you think,” he said, his blue-gray eyes locking on mine with a sincerity that surprised me.
“I think your kisses wash away all my insecurities,” I said, surprised as the confession slipped out of me. “When you kiss me, I feel…free of my thoughts.”
He grinned. “Then let me kiss you again.”
He did just that, shutting my brain off and reminding me that whatever arrangement it was that led us to this moment, didn’t change the fact that I didn’t want to do anything except kiss him right now.
This is organic enough for me.
“Do you want to come back to my room tonight?” he whispered against my lips.
“Yes,” I said.
“Okay, then.” He took my hand and started walking toward the door. I walked along beside him, pausing as he opened the door for me. I shivered as the cool night air hit hard.
“What if people think I’m your girlfriend when they see us like this?” I asked, looking down at our joined hands.
He dropped my hand and tossed his arm over my shoulders, pulling me against his side. “Let ‘em think whatever they want, I don’t give a shit.”
“Don’t you have a very single-boy persona on this campus?”
“I do want I want, Sophia. Right now, I want to help keep you warm. Unless you’ve got a problem with that, I’m going to do it.”
I laughed. “I like your confidence, Leo. It’s one of the many sexy things about you.”
He smirked and nuzzled my neck, nibbling at me as we walked. “You called it confidence, not arrogance this time. That feels like progress.”
I laughed and shoved him off. “Yeah, well, don’t push it.”