Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
JAMIE
After sleeping in the morning after the Carolina game, my phone starts blowing up with text messages around lunch.
yo we celebrating tonight or what?
Mac 12:36 PM
after that OT? fuck yes
is anyone else even alive?
quick
plan it before they wake up
Alexei 12:40 PM
oh please
we all know hailey would plan it
Mac 12:43 PM
i mean, yeah
fair
Sutter 12:44 PM
so tired of the downtown sports bars
Matty 12:45 PM
if i wanted to spend time with children, I'd have stayed in Des Moines
Gagnon 12:47 PM
sick burn
Sutter 12:49 PM
north loop?
that should be close enough for most of us
After my conversation with Ethan about the whole Josh situation, I had scheduled an appointment with my therapist. I had first started seeing him during the fallout from that situation, during a time when my mom was intensely worried for my mental health.
He’d helped me see that it didn’t have to define me, and I fully credit him for helping me make a Plan B.
Still, our conversation had dragged up a lot of those old feelings, and some new feelings, too.
I knew Ethan and I were only hooking up because it was convenient, but I couldn’t help but enjoy his company.
For the first time, I had someone to talk to who really understood – and I couldn’t help but think he felt the same way.
That night, my Uber drops me off in front of the upscale hotel the guys finally settled on. Apparently it has an amazing rooftop bar in the summer. Tonight, though, we're sticking with the swanky lounge on the mezzanine floor.
As I walk in, Mac spots me and waves me to the booths in the back of the bar, where the boys are set up with pitchers of beer.
There's a spot next to him in a booth with Sutter, Kovalenko, and Tremblay.
I'm pleasantly surprised to see that Ethan has opted for one of his new outfits, the green sweater making his eyes pop.
“Nice outfit, Cap.”
He starts to blush and I worry for a second that I've pushed too far. Before I can apologize, Alexei starts laughing.
“Jamie, my friend, we owe you. Ethan finally looks like the captain of this team.”
“Couldn't have done it without you, big guy.” I say, smiling.
Ethan's eyes widen across the table. “I knew you were in on it!”
Suddenly, they're both giggling, the laughter spreading around the table. Over the course of the next few hours, we debrief the season so far and look at the games ahead. Kovy orders two rounds of shots for the team before Ethan cuts him off with a reminder about the New York game in two days.
The noise level increases after the alcohol, and the boys start to split up. One group starts a game of darts, appearing to follow very dubious rules. Alexei and Sutter are over at the pool table having a surprisingly close game.
Under the table, I feel a foot brush against mine. At first, I think it’s an incidental touch. Then, I look up and see Ethan looking at me. He’s loose and relaxed, a small smile touching his lips.
I quirk an eyebrow at him, surprised for him to be so daring in public. Matthews is still at the table with us, though he seems to be scrolling through a hookup app at the moment. Can't say I blame him.
Ethan yawns, stretching his arms above his head. The hem of his sweater rides up, showing just a bit of his abs.
“Welp, this old man is ready to turn in for the night.”
“Dude, it’s like ten o’clock!” Matty looks up from his phone.
“Which means I’ve already spent too much time with you. Hey, Carter — I’m gonna walk. You’re in that direction, right?”
Is he…is he inviting me to come with him?
“You’re, uh, downtown?”
I already know the answer to this, but I’m trying to keep up the facade.
“Yeah, near Hotel Ivy.”
“Oh, yeah, I’m just a bit further than that.”
He holds my gaze.
“Would you, uh, mind if I walk with you? I’m still getting the lay of the land.”
He looks relieved. Matty, on the other hand, is shocked.
“Carter, it is ten o'fucking clock at night. You are twenty-three years old. Why the fuck are you going home?”
I pull up an app on my phone and wave it at him.
“Look, man, I love you, but I’m gonna get my dick wet. Think I deserve it after yesterday, don’t you?”
He blushes.
“Oh. Yeah, dude. No problem.”
I wave at the rest of the team and head with Ethan to the coat check. Soon, we’re walking down the street, heading south toward the high rises of downtown.
“So, uh, you’ve got a hookup lined up?” Suddenly Ethan doesn’t seem as relaxed as he was at the bar.
“Oh. Uh, no. I just didn't want to deal with Matty’s bullshit.”
If I'm not mistaken, Ethan smiles. “Oh. Good.”
“Good?”
“I mean, uh, not good, I mean sex is healthy and, um...I'm not sure what I'm saying.”
I laugh at his honesty.
“Healthy, huh?”
He looks at me and bites his lip.
“I like to think so, yeah.”
“Hm. As my captain, don't you think it's your duty to help keep me as healthy as possible?”
It's a risk, and I know it. But I also know how he was looking at me in that bar and I figure it's worth it. Sure enough, he smiles – not the quirk of a lip I've gotten used to, but an honest-to-God smile.
“You know, I think you're right. And I've really been slacking on that, haven't I?”
Now it's my turn to smile.
“You certainly have. In fact, my health has really taken a turn for the worse since I moved into my new apartment.”
It's not that I've been intentionally avoiding the apps – at least, no more than usual. But between our schedule and the memories of that wall in the kitchen, I just...haven't.
“Yeah, uh, mine too.”
Is he saying what I think he's saying?
“So, your place or mine?”
The wrinkle between his eyebrows appears and for a moment I think he'll back out.
“I've got a doorman. It's probably not a good idea.”
I wish I could tell him he's being paranoid, but the fact is he's probably right. The right question from The Neutral Zone, a little money passing hands, and suddenly he'd have a real problem on his hands.
“But, uh, your place is close, too. And you have a private entrance.”
“You're not worried about someone seeing us walking together?”
“It's eight degrees. What idiot would be out in this weather?”
I resist pointing out that we are the idiots in question.
“Besides, that's easy enough to deal with – I'm just a good captain, making sure my rookie gets home safe after a night of celebrating.”
Thankfully, the walk is over quickly.
“Do you want something to drink? Water? Something warm?”
“No, I have a better idea.”
He comes up behind me at the fridge, slipping his hands under the hem of my shirt. The cold sensation against my skin should feel unpleasant, but instead all I can focus on are his rough callouses as they snag on my skin.
I shut the door and spin in his arms, trapping myself between him and the fridge. I meet his eyes and slowly rise up to meet his lips.
At first, his lips are still as I press mine to them. But before long, they open to me, his tongue tangling with mine as he presses me into the stainless steel of the refrigerator door.
“What are you, uh, in to?” he asks as he sucks at the skin underneath my ear.
“I'm up for pretty much anything. You?”
“Can I fuck you? Would that be ok?”
I'm not particularly surprised to find that Ethan would prefer to top me. The more I get to know him, the more I understand how his sexuality is tied into the macho bullshit he's been fed his entire life, and I suspect it's showing here, too.
“You don't...”
“I don’t. If you don’t want to, we can just swap blowjobs.”
“No, that's fine. We should go upstairs, though.”
As much as I like the thought of him fucking me up against this stainless steel, I suspect the act is better in theory than reality.
Up in the loft, I head to the bedside table while he eyes the bed. As I pull out the drawer to grab a condom and some lube, he comes up behind me and looks over my shoulder.
“Hmm, some of those look familiar,” he says, noting the toys in the drawer.
I feel the tips of my ears heat as a blush steals across my face. I slam the door shut.
“That is not a topic for our first hookup.”
“Isn't it really our third?”
I look questioningly at him.
“Sexting. Housewarming. Now.” He counts on his fingers.
“I don't think we can really say sexting is a hookup.”
“No? It was one of the best orgasms I've had all year.”
I meet his eyes, cheeks still tinged with red.
“I'm, uh, all clear as of last month and on PrEP.”
“I was good at the beginning of the season, but I'm not on PrEP. We should, uh, probably still use a condom.”
“Yeah, probably.”
When we'd walked upstairs, I'd been raring and ready to go. But now, talking about the details, I'm having a little performance anxiety.
“You know, I thought you'd lost interest.”
He raises his eyebrows, looking surprised.
“After I told you about Josh. I thought you might not want to anymore.”
He takes a step closer to me, then another.
“Why would you think that?”
“I mean, I cried all over you in a hotel room about my ex. It wasn't exactly my most attractive moment.”
He lifts his hand to my face and brushes my hair behind my ear.
“Agree to disagree.”
With that, his lips are on mine again. His hand grips my hair as he walks me back toward
the bed. As I feel the bed hit the back of my knees, I reach for the bottom of his sweater and lift it over his head. I rub my hands over his abs, remembering the peek I got of them at the bar.
He takes another step into my space, pulling off my own t-shirt and pushing me back on the bed. Looking up at his athlete's body in the glow of the lamp, I can't help but think how lucky I am.
He joins me on the bed, knees on either side of my hips.
I crane my neck up to kiss him again, moaning in the back of my throat as his chest hair rubs against my pecs.
Before long, he lowers his pelvis to mine, rubbing his denim-clad dick against my own.
I try to thrust up against him, but his weight has me pinned to the bed.
He lifts his head and I'm not sure what hits me harder – his pink, swollen lips or the wild smile on them. Then he starts to slide down my body and I'm not thinking at all. Those lips are on my nipples and his hands are tracing down my stomach, playing with the line where my skin meets my pants.
As his fingers work at my fly, I prop myself up on my elbows. His eyes meet mine, the look in them hungry. He pushes the fabric down frantically, getting my pants and underwear down my thighs and over my ankles. Before I know it, they're flying behind him as his gaze catches on my dick.
He leans forwards, sticking his nose into the seam where my thigh and groin meet, inhaling deeply.
“You're such a fucking tease.” I feel his laughter more than hear it, the puffs of air making the skin on my balls tighten. Just when I think I can't take it anymore, he pulls his head back and, looking into my eyes, takes my dick in his mouth.
Oh, fuck.
His tongue runs up the underside of my dick and I know he's tasting the precum leaking from me. As he takes me deep, I hear the click of the lube. Soon, his fingers are circling my hole while his mouth keeps working me.
I'm not sure why, but I sort of assumed the prep would fall to me tonight. Clearly, Ethan has other ideas as one finger enters me, sending a shiver up my spine. I moan, reaching a hand down to tangle in his hair. He hums around me, working the finger in and out as he bobs on my dick.
Soon, a second finger is entering me, the stretch reminding me of how long it's been. But then, Ethan crooks his fingers inside me and the pressure on my prostate reminds me of how much I've missed this. My dick swells even more and I realize I'm closer than I thought.
“Ethan, if you don't fuck me soon, this is gonna be over with.”
“Aw, c'mon. You're twenty-three. You don't have a second round in you?” I should hate the sardonic grin on his face, but I definitely don't.
“After this dry spell? I mean, probably. But I really want to come on your dick.”
The hunger is back in his eyes as he undoes his own pants, pushing them down and grabbing the condom wrapper from the nightstand. While he does that, I flip myself over, kneeling on the edge of the bed. I feel his hand grab my ass, his thumb stroking at my rim.
I push backward and feel the thumb begin to enter me. Ethan hums, gripping the base of his dick with his other hand. He fucks me with his thumb, pulling at the rim and opening me up.
“Tremblay, if you don't fuck me soon, I'm gonna pull out one of those toys and do it myself.”
His chuckle is low and raspy, mixing with the sound of him slicking his dick with the lube. Soon, I feel the blunt tip against my hole and the pressure as he pushes in slowly. His girth stretches me even more and I breathe into the pressure. He fucks into me slowly, a few inches at a time.
Before long, he's fully seated inside me. I push my chest down onto the bed and the new angle drags his dick along my prostate.
“Oh, fuck, Ethan.”
He brings one leg up onto the bed and brings a hand to the middle of my back, exerting a gentle pressure to keep me down. His pace begins to pick up, bringing me closer and closer to the brink.
“Ethan, I'm so close. Please. Please.”
Without warning, one of his strong arms wraps around my chest, his other hand flying on my own dick.
“C'mon, Jamie. Come for me.”
His words, whispered just behind my ear, push me over the edge.
I come, the ropes coating his hand. Behind me, I hear his throaty groans as he finishes into the condom.
I fall forward onto the bed again as he tries to pull out gently.
The heat of his body disappears as he removes the condom, tying it off and throwing it in the garbage can.
For a few moments, I drift, halfway expecting to hear the front door closing. Instead, I feel the dip of the bed next to me and a hand on my lower back.
“Ok if I clean you up a bit?” His voice is dark and a little hoarse.
I crack an eye open and see Ethan sitting there, looking...soft?
“I can do that.”
“I'm not sure you're actually capable of moving your limbs at the moment.”
I'd like to say he's wrong, but even keeping my eyelid open feels like hard work right now.
As it drifts shut again, I feel him gently run a warm washcloth along my back, then down to my ass, washing away the traces of lube where his hands held me.
He rests a hand to one side of my hole, gently opening me to his gaze.
I expect to feel the washcloth here, too, but instead I feel a finger running over the swollen flesh.
“Still a tease, huh?”
He chuckles, and now I feel the terrycloth dragging across my opening, clearing away the lube and soothing the skin.
“Hey, Jamie?”
I hum, quickly losing my grasp of consciousness.
“Thanks.” I open my eyes and meet his, the green flecks floating in the warm brown.
I smile as he puts a gentle kiss on my temple and sink back into sleep.