33. Maddox
Maddox
Two Months Later
K illian: Babe, the guys are coming over! Sorry it’s so last minute! They said we’re finally going to do that housewarming party! Do we have any beer?
Me: We’re all out. Pick some up on your way back?
Killian: It’s cool. Just invited Isaac and he said he’s got us covered.
So, we’re having a housewarming… apparently. It’s been almost two weeks since we moved in, but everyone’s been busy, and I guess this is the only time everyone’s schedules lined up.
Looking around, I frown at how I’ve got books scattered over almost every surface in the living room.
I wanted a head start on my first year of doctoral studies, so I’ve been cooped up for days.
The place is a mess, and while Killian has never complained, I suppose this is a good time to finally tidy up.
Besides, I’m guessing these hockey players are going to need a place to set their drinks down.
We loved this two-bedroom apartment the moment we stepped in, and the owner’s actually a professor at Camrose who’s retiring and moving back to his hometown.
He said he just wants someone to take good care of the place, and when he found out I’m a graduate student at the university, he was more than thrilled to lease it out to us.
Something about how academics need to stick together .
Killian and I moved in a week after.
The place was already semi-furnished, so we had little work to do, and we converted the second bedroom to a study that overlooks the street outside.
Killian said it’d be perfect for me to do my work, though I end up doing my thing in the living room instead—because he’s often hanging out there, and having him nearby makes it easier for me to focus.
He gets annoyed when I ignore him for too long, though. Just last night, I attempted to block him out—it was futile, with him slipping his hand down my pants and me ending up bent over the couch.
So much for trying to get a head start on my research, because we spend more time fooling around than anything else. Killian’s a distraction I welcome, though. Besides, he’s about to be away for weeks for his summer camp job, so we need to make up for all that time we’ll be spending apart.
Also, despite him being a huge distraction, he’s also the reason I was able to pass my thesis defense with ease.
Sitting on his dick while he read possible questions at me had helped. Immensely. I’m planning to utilize that technique for many years to come.
I put away my laptop and all my books in the study, momentarily getting distracted by the blue flowers on my desk.
Ever since we moved in, Killian’s made it a habit to buy a new kind every few days.
I swear he’s trying to go through every type of blue flower that exists, and I wonder when he’s going to run out.
I’d tell him it’s okay to stop, that he doesn’t need to keep doing this, but the way he beams when he brings them home makes me happier than it should.
Smiling, I head back to the living room.
Killian didn’t mention who was coming over, but I’m guessing it’s the usual guys.
I know Caleb and Nick just came back from the Buffalo training camp, so I’m sure they’ll be here.
With Caleb blowing up my phone all day and asking what I’m up to, it’ll be a miracle if he doesn’t show up.
All right.
Time to be domesticated and get the place ready for my boyfriend and his friends.
And my friends, I guess? I think we’re friends by association.
Me, Maddox Roussel, hanging out with jocks and living with one…
who would have thought? Smirking, I pull out my phone to search for food.
Neither Killian nor I enjoy cooking so we order out a lot, a fact that his mom found scandalous.
His brothers helped us move in, and his parents came a few hours later with a box of pots and pans.
Warren was mostly quiet, though I could tell he was watching everyone.
He even gave Killian an awkward hug while they were talking in the kitchen, and I tried not to smile at how Killian’s mom seemed amused at the entire scene.
She rolled her eyes at me, a fond smile on her face, and said, “They’ll be okay. ”
I had stared at her, shifting between my feet, unsure of what to make of all this.
She then shooed them to the side so she could put away the pots and pans for us. Killian’s mom—a soft-spoken tiny woman named Beatrice—reminded Killian that it was time he learned to make proper meals. Then she apologized to me for never teaching him.
“I don’t know how to cook either,” I had told her.
Beatrice laughed, patted my arm, and said that Killian and I can learn to do it together.
We promised her that we’d learn to cook, though two weeks since then, we haven’t even tried.
So for now, I order pizzas.
I’m coming up with a mental checklist of what else I need to do to get ready for this impromptu party when there are loud knocks on the door. When I open it, it’s Caleb, Nick, and Rhys.
“Hello,” I greet.
“Hey, Madd!” Caleb says, too loudly. His voice echoes through the hall, and I step aside to let them all in before any of our neighbors complain. Nick gives me his usual kind smile and follows his boyfriend in, and Rhys drags his feet behind them.
I hold back a wince at how Rhys looks. He’s lost weight, and there are dark circles under his eyes.
He ended up having to get surgery for his shoulder last month, and I heard he hasn’t been cleared to go back to the ice yet.
Killian told me he hasn’t been himself since the injury, and honestly, it seems as if it’s not only his physical state that needs some conditioning.
“You all right, Rhys?” I ask. “You look… tired.”
“Peachy.” He gives me a grim smile. “I’m fine. Just not in the best mood, but Nick forced me to come.”
“You need to get out of the house,” Nick says. “Your mom’s been texting me all week about it.”
“Jesus…”
I force a smile at Rhys. Poor guy, really—but he has to find some way to pick himself up.
While Nick and Rhys sit by the kitchen bar and catch up, Caleb makes me show him around as he tells me all about the training camp he and Nick just came back from.
“That’s amazing, Caleb,” I say, even if I didn’t catch half the things he said. There was a lot of hockey lingo in there I still don’t know much about.
“You still don’t get hockey? How are you going to stand a guy who lives and breathes it, then?”
“I survived you long enough.”
He smirks. “Good point.”
An odd silence passes through us, and I don’t miss the way Caleb studies me. It makes me shift between my feet.
“You happy, Madd?” he asks.
“Yes,” I say without hesitation. “Very much so.”
My best friend grins at me. “Good.”
Like I’ve already admitted to myself, being with Killian makes me feel… happy. And safe. I don’t think I’ve ever been in such a state before, and it’s not only because his little stunt drove my harasser away.
In everything else, I’m not scared anymore. I have a boyfriend who will protect me no matter what. Whatever comes along, he’s going to be there the same way I know I’m going to be there for him.
I truly feel as if that part of my life is over. Finally.
Before Caleb can say anything else, the door bangs open, and Killian’s loud voice resounds throughout the apartment. “Maddox! ”
I don’t even have time to brace myself. By the time I turn around, he’s already taking quick strides toward me. Killian envelops me in a tight hug.
“Ew,” Caleb grumbles, immediately stepping away from us and heading to the kitchen.
“How was the preliminary meeting for the camp?” I ask, absently flattening out the front of his wrinkled shirt. Killian preens and catches my wrist, kissing my palm.
“It was cool! There’s going to be two coaches for every dozen kids. The management’s stressed, though, because we’re still short a few coaches.”
“But camp’s starting in a week.”
“Yeah.” Killian shrugs. “Probably why Isaac’s so pushy with recruiting people for the camp? I think he really wants to make a good impression on the director… that, and he cares about the kids a lot.”
I stand on my toes to kiss him, and feel him grin against my mouth. “Sounds like you,” I say.
Again, he preens. Killian grasps my face and kisses me. He’s becoming more insatiable as the camp approaches, as if he won’t be just a few hours away. It takes Caleb’s loud voice to remind us we’re not alone, and that we’ve got a small party to attend to.
“Let’s go,” Killian says, tugging my hand.
When we get to the open kitchen, Caleb’s going through our fridge and asking nobody in particular where the beer is.
I glance around our apartment. Rhys is sitting by the counter and Nick’s on our couch with his head thrown back and his eyes shut.
I think Nick’s asleep? Training must have been rougher than Caleb described.
“Caleb,” Rhys scolds. “Stop going through their things.”
“You’re no longer the captain of me, Morgan.”
“As if you ever listened to me, even when I was.”
Caleb smirks at him and lifts his chin. “Yes, love that you’re aware.”
“I ordered pizza,” I tell them. “And Isaac’s bringing beer. ”
I don’t miss the way Rhys instantly freezes at the mention of Isaac’s name, and, as if right on cue, somebody knocks on our door. Killian happily opens the door to let Isaac in, who has packs of beer in his arms.
“Nice! Thank you!” Killian says, helping him set it down.
Isaac brushes his dark hair back and looks around the place. “You need music in here or something. It’s way too gloomy for a housewarming party.”
“It’s Morgan’s fault.” Caleb points an accusing finger at Rhys. “He’s been sulking all day. I swear, this whole woe-is-me thing is getting old.”
Rhys glowers at him. “Can you shut the fuck up?”
Of course, Caleb doesn’t back down. “Cheer up, will you? Your shoulder’s going to be fine.”