Chapter 44
A New Jersey
Olli
Idon’t know how long I sat in the locker room for. Maybe thirty minutes after everyone left, maybe longer.
It’s not like I needed the time to shower or anything. I barely broke a sweat for the whopping twenty minutes I was on the field.
But I was glued to this bench, frustration and anger weighing me down.
There’d been no injury, no high lead, or failed save.
Coach just subbed me for no fucking reason.
I clocked Christenson arguing with him, but Boyd gave him a stern look and dismissed him.
To his credit, Lunez looked apologetic. And I could see the frustration on his face fester as he let ball after ball in.
We lost the game because of this move. Not because of Lunez, though the kid did have a lot to learn. No, it was the morale that did us in. Nobody liked what was going on and nobody knew when they’d be the next to get subbed for no reason. Unnecessary nerves made for stiff players.
The mood in the locker room after the game wasn’t just bad, it was mournful. All of us coming to the realization that the team we knew was changing.
We’d all cope with it in our own ways. Mine was sitting in an empty locker room wallowing.
“Everybody decent?” Kodi shouted from the entrance, door cracked, but none of her visible.
“It’s just me,” I shouted back and the door opened to Kodi in her usual keeper jersey and those shorts with sparkly see-through fabric over them. And I guess I was in a pretty sorry state, because even her presence didn’t lift my mood.
“Oh damn, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you with a deeper frown.”
“Mmm. If you tell me it’ll freeze this way, I’ll kick you out.”
She rolled her eyes, the corner of her mouth tilting up just a smidge.
“I know it sucks,” she said, sitting next to me and wrapping an arm around my shoulders. “But because they lost after subbing you, it’s less likely to happen again.”
“He subbed me for no reason. No reason, Kodi. If he’s willing to do that, I might very well get traded. All because, what? I’m not trending? I —” I stopped when Kodi grabbed my hands and pulled them so I turned and face her.
“No worst case scenario-ing. The facts are the owners want to sell, so they’re testing out what might get buyer interest. And this tactic didn’t work.
Like at all. Folks were excited to see Carlos on the field for a minute, but that died the second y’all started losing.
Fans recognize the domino effect and no buyer will invest in a team that’s upsetting their fans. ”
“I just …” Sighing, I collapsed my head onto her shoulder. “I feel like so much of this is out of my control. And for the first time, I actually care about all this bullshit and staying with the team and you.”
“Aw.” She pressed a kiss to the top of my head, then teased, “You like me or something?”
I lifted my head and grabbed Kodi by the waist, pulling her onto my lap. She giggled, settling so her legs could hang from the other side of the bench.
“I do, Kodi. I really fucking like you and the idea of transferring to some other team scares the shit out of me.”
“It won’t come to that. And even if it does, we’ll make it work.”
“I guess that’s good to hear,” I murmured, sliding my hands under her shirt, pressing her closer. “I also think I’m friends with Brooker now, unfortunately. And it’d suck to leave him and everyone else behind.”
“Poor boy, finally made friends with his teammates after two years and now he’s all attached.”
“Don’t be mean,” I grumbled, squeezing her closer, finding comfort in having her weight on me.
“Hmm, do you want a distraction?” she asked, tracing shapes on my back. Never had the word distraction been a trigger for me, but coming from Kodi’s lips, it sent a shiver down my spine.
“What’re you thinking?”
“That you get that towel over there.” She pointed to my cubby behind me. “So I can cushion my knees while I cheer you up.”
“Kodi.” I tried to find an argument, tried to find the words to tell her it wasn’t necessary. But the wicked smile on her lips made my knees quake. And when she got off my lap and looked me up and down, licking her lips, the fight in me died.
“If you’re sure.” I reached over to my cubby, grabbing a couple of the clean towels. My eyes lingered on my jersey hanging on the hook, waiting for the launders to grab it tomorrow. It’d look a lot better on Kodi than hanging there.
“It’s rude to make a lady wait,” Kodi quipped, reaching over to snatch the towels from my hand. I turned back and she was already kneeling in front of me, reaching for my waistband as soon as I turned towards her.
“I know I said that thing about obligation, but know I only said that because I’ve been with assholes.”
“No,” I growled, grabbing her ponytail and tugging it so she looked at me rather than my cock. “No talking about other men when you’re on your knees for me.”
The smile Kodi gave me was sinful. That was the only way to describe it.
“Look at my back, baby.”
I scrambled to lean over her, grabbing at the jersey, pulling it until I could see the upside down text. Text that read my name.
“Graceful,” she said through a giggle, awkwardly bent over my lap from how I manhandled her shirt. I let it go so she could straighten up, staring down at her with so much warmth.
“You’re wearing my jersey.”
“Mm-hmm. I thought that might make you feel better. I figured I could alternate between my two favorite keepers. Wear Trevino whenever you’ve pissed me off, wear yours when I want a good dicking.” Her eyes dropped to my groin and her smile widened. “Glad that theory’s been proven true.”
Leaning over, I slammed my mouth to hers, kissing her with every messy feeling I had in me. The frustration, the want, the warmth, all of it. And when I finally pulled away, she was breathless and dazed and the most beautiful thing to ever exist.
It was easy to realize I loved her when she was on her knees for me, easy to see it when she came in to support and comfort me, but it was more than that. It was the way she smiled, the way she teased, the way she listened, the effort she put into her career.
But now was probably the worst time to tell her that, so I went in the opposite direction.
“Then why don’t you get that dick nice and wet so you can climb on it sooner,” I told her as I yanked my waistband down just enough to pull out my erection.
“You don’t have to tell me twice.” Kodi leaned forward, wrapping one hand around the base of my cock before pressing her lips to my head.
She twisted her tongue around and hummed before sinking down, a slow descent that had me seeing stars.
And when she hit her limit, I looked down at her, eyes teary, my name on her back, and shivered.
She took that reaction as encouragement and swirled her tongue on the underside of my shaft as she pulled back.
The cold air in the locker room almost stung in comparison to the warmth of her mouth.
But I wasn’t left wanting for long; she immediately dipped her head, taking me to the back of her throat.
“Fuck,” I hissed, grabbing her ponytail again and pulling her off me. My cock fell out of her mouth with a wet pop and her bottom lip pouted.
“Olli,” she whined.
“You feel too good,” I groaned, nearly blacking out when she stuck her tongue out to tease my head. This time I didn’t pull her away, couldn’t pull her away.
“Let me make you feel better.” Her breath fanned over my cock and it twitched, desperate for more.
I eased my grip on her hair and her mouth was immediately back on me. It was heaven and as she sucked and bobbed and swirled her tongue around me, I thought I might actually come in mere seconds.
But then I saw her hand slide between her legs and I found my determination.
That pussy needed some love and I’d be damned if I didn’t return the favor and fill her up.
Leaning back and engaging my core, I grabbed the athletic tape from my cubby and crunched back up.
As I moved around, Kodi didn’t let my cock leave her mouth, moving with and groaning around me, the vibrations going to my head.
“Kodi,” I growled, straightening up. “Hands off your pussy.”
She moaned, making me see stars, but took her hand out of her shorts.
I reached down and grabbed both her arms, holding them over her head, her wrists pinned together.
She hummed, quickening her pace. When I pulled a strand of the tape off and ripped it free, Kodi gasped, finally slowing so she could look up.
“This good?” I asked, smoothing one small bit of tape over her wrist. She nodded eagerly, thighs rubbing together. I wrapped the tape around both her wrists, binding them together. “Still good?”
Kodi let her arms relax, folded up and behind her head. She shifted around, testing the binding, and nodded. All while treating my dick to a tantalizing swirl of her tongue.
“God, Kodi,” I moaned. “I can’t take any more. Get up and on my cock.”
Kodi slowly pulled away, flattening her tongue against my shaft to drag over every inch as she went.
“Do you have a condom?” she asked, finally letting my cock free. She stood and rested her arms on my shoulders, her tied hands behind my head.
“Fuck.” I looked around the room, debating which of my teammates was most likely to have a stash of condoms here. “Brooker might —”
“Or,” she interrupted, “do you wanna buy me the pill afterwards?”
“Fuck,” I repeated. “Are you sure? Like absolutely sure?”
“Uh-huh. You’ll have to buy two, though, because it’s weight based, so —”
I yanked her shorts and underwear down in one go, pushing them as far down her legs as I could. Kodi giggled and kicked one leg free. Before she could get the other foot out, I took her by the waist to get her on my lap.
“I will buy you anything you ask for the privilege of coming in this pussy while you’re wearing my jersey.”
“Anything?” she repeated, an eyebrow raised. She shuffled her legs around so her feet were braced on the bench