Chapter 25
Robbie
December
The past two weeks have been torture. Olivia and I have texted and called every single day, but we haven’t talked about our feelings or what that kiss meant for the both of us. I’m taking Elias’ advice and laying it all on the line. If she wants to be in a relationship with me, I won’t let that affect her career.
I’ve given the situation a lot of thought. While there are no clear rules about fraternization between a player and an official, I can’t imagine the AHL would react positively if we disclosed our relationship. Out of the remaining 50 games in the regular season, Olivia is scheduled to officiate 20 of them that involve my team. That means there will be plenty of opportunities for us to see each other over the next four months.
We could keep it a secret and not let anyone know, which may not be the most ethical thing to do, but Olivia would not make calls in my favor during a game. I know this with certainty because she’s honest down to her core and she wouldn’t jeopardize her career over something like that.
We could disclose our relationship and hope for the best. While I have made my peace with retiring, I wouldn’t do that in the middle of the season and leave the team to scramble without a captain. I would have to see the season through, but there are ways for me to sit out a few games by getting a healthy scratch designation—which I’ve gotten a few of this season due to us having more than 20 people on the roster.
The issue would be if the AHL deemed it to remove Olivia from all the Manticore’s games and reassign her to others. Then she wouldn’t be in the same cities as me at the same time.
After two weeks of small talk and flirting over the phone, I am ready to see Olivia in person and have these lengthy conversations together. We are back in Vermont for a series of back to back games against the Vortices, our least favorite team to play. We played the first game last night, which of course got heated by the end. While Ash managed to stay out of fights against Mitchell, Jordan didn’t.
At some point during the third period,the game tied 2-2, Mitchell managed to check me hard into the boards. My back was turned to him as I had possession of the puck, and as soon as I passed it across to Jordan, Mitchell flattened me against the boards. The whistle went off and a penalty was called. While I was getting my bearings, Jordan decided to pick a fight against Mitchell for his hit. That got us a penalty as well and ultimately we lost the game when Mitchell came out of the box and scored a goal. We’re all dreading playing against them again tonight, but after a 3 game loss streak, we badly need a win.
Spirits were down at morning skate, but at least I have some time to myself before the game tonight, and Olivia just texted me to let me know she’s on the way to the hotel. While she couldn’t get an earlier flight, we still have a few hours to spend together before we have to show up at the arena. I also made plans to hang out together after the game and tomorrow before both of us need to leave.
I invited her back to Grand Marquee for Christmas and offered to help with her transportation, but she said she needs to spend it with Grams. She also has other games to officiate around that time, so she wouldn’t be available for as long as she was during Thanksgiving. So after tomorrow, the next time I get to see her is New Years when we are playing a home game. She extended that trip already to spend a couple of extra days with me.
All of these thoughts are heavy on my mind as I slowly pace around the hotel lobby. I don’t hear her calling my name until I turn and see her walking towards me, her equipment bag rolling behind her and a backpack dangling off one shoulder. The smile she gives me is pure happiness.
I walk over to her and grab her face with both hands, giving her a lingering kiss. She’s startled for a moment but she kisses me right back. It’s so reminiscent of our airport kiss, that I become dizzy for a moment. God, that kiss. I’ve thought about it every night since then. How perfect we fit together, how she melted in my arms at first and then gripped me hard and pulled me in, like she never wanted to let me go.
We’ve learned our lesson about making out in public though, so I keep this kiss short and sweet. At least until we get somewhere more private. “Want some help with that bag?” I ask with a smile.
“Sure. I just need to check in first before we head up.”
Thankfully there is no line at the check-in desk and Olivia is able to quickly get her key card. On the way up to her room I ask, “How was your flight? How is Grams?”
“The flight was good, I listened to the playlist you sent me, by the way. I expected you to be more of an ‘80s music fan, not modern pop.”
“I like all music, there are few genres I don’t listen to,” I respond.
“And Grams is fine, she says hi,” Olivia says as we arrive at her door. She turns to look at me and assesses me for a moment.
“Do you want to come in?” she asks a little nervously.
I swallow hard. Of course I do. I’ve wanted nothing more than to be alone with her for two weeks. “I don’t know if that is wise,” I say hesitantly. “I think we should talk, before we take things further.” Her eyes widen a bit and I realize how I’ve made it sound.
So I quickly add, “Not that anything more than what has happened needs to happen. Not right now, anyway. I just—” Shit, I’m rambling. “I just mean—if I go in right now, I’m going to want to keep kissing you and for the first time in my life I might not want to leave and play hockey.”
She’s looking at me with a smile on her face and I’m blushing like a fucking teenager. “Well, I definitely won’t let us miss the game if that’s what you’re worried about. And if we need to talk, shouldn’t we do that somewhere private?”
I nod and follow her inside, mind still spinning at all the possibilities of the two of us alone in a hotel room.
Keep your hands to yourself, Robbie.
Olivia drops her backpack somewhere on a chair and I leave her equipment bag by the door and we both take a seat at the edge of the bed.
“So,” Olivia says, nervously twirling one of the rings on her right hand. I gently grab it and interlace our fingers together.
“So,” I lamely add. What is wrong with me? I’ve been thinking about this conversation for weeks, but now that we’re here, I’m speechless?
I squeeze her fingers and turn my body towards her, bringing my knee up to rest by her thigh. “Olive, I, um, wanted to talk about us.”
“Okay. That’s a good idea,” she says softly, her thumb brushing mine back and forth. “Can I say something first, though?”
I nod and she continues, “I’ve had feelings for you for a while now, even though we basically only met two months ago. To be honest, I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone like you. I admire you so much—your patience and loyalty and kindness. You’re amazing, Robbie,” she says tenderly and my heart soars hearing those things.
“I know I’m not the easiest person to be around sometimes?—”
I interrupt her, “That’s not true.”
“It is, but you seem to like me despite that. You’ve gotten to know me really well, better than most people, actually. It’s not easy for me to trust people, but I trust you, Robbie. Completely.” She watches my face and lingers a bit on my mouth before saying, “So, full disclosure, I’ve never been into casual dating or sex. If we decide to be together, I’m all in.”
Fuck, that’s exactly what I’ve wanted to hear. I let out a relieved breath and reach up to cup Olivia’s face with my free hand. “Oh love, I want nothing more than to be all in with you. I just want you to be sure. Because we have some decisions to make when it comes to our jobs, and the last thing I want is to pressure you into anything you don’t want to do.”
She nods and says, “I’ve thought about that too. As much as I don’t like it, we’d probably want to keep our relationship a secret for a bit, until the end of the season. I can ask to be transferred to a different region next season.”
“No,” I say quickly. “Remember how I told you I was considering retiring? I think I’m ready to do that after this season. I would even do it now if it didn’t hurt the team.”
Olivia is quiet for a beat then quietly says, “I don’t want you to retire for me. What if you end up resenting that decision? Resenting me?”
“Olive, I could never resent you. I already told you I want to try something different. I would have made this choice whether or not you were in the picture. And I really want you in the picture, for the record,” I say, giving her a grin.
She smiles back and rests her head on my shoulder. “If you’re sure about this, then I am too. We can keep it under wraps until the end of the season.”
“Sounds like a plan. But now that I’m officially your boyfriend, you need to let me help you with stuff. Like plane tickets, so you can visit me more often.”
She laughs and says, “We’ll see about that. Both our schedules are going to be so crazy, we’ll be lucky to get any time together outside of the game we’re both at.”
I run my fingers through her hair as I continue holding her to me. “There is the All-Star break. We could go somewhere the whole week. My friends and I usually go to my parents’ cabin up north for a few days and snowboard. Do you snowboard or ski?”
She shakes her head but says, “I’ve only snowboarded a couple of times. I’m pretty bad at it.”
“I could teach you if you wanted. Or we can skip the cabin and just stay at my house the whole week. Just you, me, and the cats. And my meddling family, of course,” I say with a laugh, thinking of all the times Alice walked in on our moments.
“I like your meddling family a lot.” She pulls back and gives me a smile. “We’re really going to do this? Messy, long distance relationship and all? Are you sure you don’t want someone who will greet you at home after every game with a homemade meal? I can’t even cook.” She frowns and I know this is just her insecurities and past experiences speaking, but it still breaks my heart that she would believe I wanted anyone other than her.
“The whole housewife thing is not my style, love. Besides, I prefer to do the cooking myself,” I give her a smirk. “I know you didn’t have the best support in the past, especially from the one person who should have been there for you. I would never make you put your dreams on hold or ask you to make sacrifices for my sake.”
A tear falls on her cheek and I gently swipe it with my thumb and kiss the spot. “As for the long distance, if anyone can make it work, it’s us.” I press our foreheads together and after a beat of silence, Olivia nods. Decision made. We’re doing this.
I tilt her head up to me with the hand that is still cupping her face and swipe my thumb across her jaw before leaning in for a sweet kiss. Olivia’s lips are soft and I take my time kissing them, licking at the seam until she lets me in. Soon, our kisses turn from sweet and exploring to fervent. She runs one hand to the back of my neck, gripping the hair there.
She takes control of the kiss and I can’t even fucking think straight anymore. When Olivia bites my lip and soothes the sting with a lick I have to fist the comforter because of how painfully hard it makes me. I need to slow this down otherwise we’ll be late to the game, but Olivia has other plans. In one swift move, she swings her leg over my hip, straddling me. Without taking her mouth off of mine, she pushes me down so I’m pinned to the bed.
Without thinking, I move both of my hands to the back of her thighs, close to her magnificent ass, and pull her closer to me. It’s only when she freezes mid kiss that I realize how thin the materials of my joggers and her leggings are, and that she probably feels how hard and throbbing I am against her.
When she pulls back to look at me, I can see the desire written all over her face. I’m breathing harder than I would after a game and focus all my will power into holding still, letting her take what she needs. She slowly pulls back more, one hand trailing down my chest and resting on my abdomen, until she’s straddling me, her back straight. My hands move from the back of her thighs to the front, rubbing circles on her leggings.
Eyes locked with mine, Olivia circles her hips and shifts her weight on top of me. My eyes close and my hips snap up of their own volition, fingers digging into her legs. Olivia continues to circle her hips on top of me all while moving her hand under my sweatshirt, finding all the hard ridges of my stomach.
Her fingers are slightly cold on my skin and it makes me shiver and clench my muscles in pleasure. I’m so fucking close I might embarrass myself during our first make out session. I try to slow her down by bringing one hand to her back and holding her to me, but all that does is make her more eager. She leaves a trail of kisses from my jaw to my neck, to my collarbone where she softly bites. I groan out a husky “Fuck,” which only makes Olivia move more.
I use both my arms to hold her tightly to me then flip us both around so I can be on top. The move surprises her and she lets out a little squeak and a laugh. I pull back and smile down at her. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but maybe we should slow down. We do have to leave shortly.”
She looks over at the clock on the nightstand and shakes her head. “We have half an hour.”
“That’s not enough time for all the things I want to do to you,” I say in a low voice, licking my lips as I glance down at our joint bodies. My right hand is braced above her head, the other holding tightly to her leg that’s hiked around my waist. My cock is perfectly lined up with her pussy and I can’t help the groan I let out just seeing us in this position.
Olivia brings both her hands to my face and pulls me in for an eager kiss. Only when we break apart for air does she say, “I don’t think we should go to work when we’re both so sexually pent up.”
“Are you asking me to play hooky?” I smile into her neck.
“I’m asking you to make me come,” she says, breathlessly.
Fuck. What have I done to deserve this girl?
I gently bite down on her ear lobe and can’t help but revel in the shiver she gives me. “How do you want to come?” I whisper low in her ear. That gets me a small whine and a thrust upwards. “You gotta use your words, love. Tell me what you need.”
She groans as I continue leaving a trail of kisses from behind her ear to her throat. Her fingers grip my sweatshirt tightly and she’s panting against my mouth as I lean in for another kiss. “Tell me,” I whisper against her lips.
“I want?—“
“What do you want?”
“I want your fingers inside me.” Her admission surprises me since I didn’t expect her to be so blunt about it. But fuck if it doesn’t turn me on more.
I slowly back away and unhook her leg from my waist before reaching back down and hooking my fingers around the waistband of her leggings. Olivia’s breathing is hard and she throws her head back, eyes closed in anticipation. I can’t have that, so I say, “Eyes on me, Olive.”
Her eyes immediately lock with mine and I hold her gaze while I slowly pull down her leggings and underwear. Instead of asking her to lift her hips, I reach around and pull the materials down over her perfectly round ass myself, taking my time. Only when she pants in frustration, do I finally finish pulling her pants down all the way and throw them across the room.
I finally look down at her and swear at how perfect and glistening she is for me. I lean back down and hover over her, propped up on my left elbow while my right hand leaves a trail of caresses from her calf all the way to her hip. I kiss her senseless while running my knuckles over her hip bone, the neatly trimmed hair, and down to her clit. As soon as my knuckle flicks it, she arches up and moans against my lips.
Fuck. She’s so wet and perfect and I want to take my time and keep her in this hotel room for days while I explore every inch of her skin. But we need to leave in twenty minutes, so I stop teasing her and slowly pump my middle finger inside her. I groan at how tight she feels with just one finger and she sucks in a gasp as I continue moving in and out. One of her hands moves to grip my shoulder while the other circles my neck and she brings me closer, her kisses becoming more erratic. “More,” she whispers.
I add a second finger and curl them both inside, which makes her moan and squeeze me harder as she starts grinding her hips against my hand. I move my thumb over her clit and she shudders, but doesn’t come yet. I can tell she’s close by how tightly she’s holding me and how heavy her breathing becomes.
I wonder if talking dirty to her would put her over the edge or if she’d prefer praise. I decide to go with praise as I move my fingers faster inside her and continue to rub her clit with my thumb. “Fuck, you’re taking my fingers so well.” I lean in and whisper in her ear, “Such a good girl.”
She immediately starts clenching against my fingers and her leg starts shaking. The way she moans my name is almost pornographic and enough to bring me close as well. I keep my fingers still inside her but continue to slowly move my thumb until she puts her hand on top of mine to stop me. I pull them out and give her a lingering kiss, trying to keep my erection away from her so I don’t just burst.
“Fuck, that was so intense,” she pants out and kisses me some more, her hand trailing down to my cock. I gently stop her before she can touch me but the look she gives me is almost wounded. “You don’t want me to touch you?”
I choke on a laugh, “Of course I do, but fucking hell, I need to last more than five seconds here.”
“I don’t care about that, I just want to make you feel good,” she says, moving her hand out from under mine and palming me through my joggers. When my body almost collapses on top of her from one touch, she smiles and pushes me down on my back. With the same precision as me, she pulls my layers down to my thighs. My cock bobs against my stomach and Olivia reaches up and takes my sweatshirt off.
She bends down and leaves trails of kisses from my neck to my collarbone and down my abdomen, all the while swiping at my head and spreading the wetness around. Her touch feels so good I have to fist the sheets and control myself. She reaches over and takes one of my hands, bringing it to my cock as she says, “Show me how you like it.”
God, the desire on her face makes me want to never leave this room, but we’re on a schedule and I need to stop stalling. So I cover her hand with mine and guide her, showing her how much pressure to apply and how hard to squeeze. “I’m close,” I manage to say before going back to fisting the sheets and throwing my head back. She continues to pump me at a fast pace, twisting at the head just how I like it, even as she moves a bit higher up my body and brings her other hand to my throat, not really squeezing but applying a bit of pressure.
Never thought I would be into that, but seeing the wild look in her eyes as she fucks me with her hand and keeps that possessive hand on my throat is enough to tip me over the edge. As soon as she feels me coming, she spreads it around her fingers and continues to stroke me, making my own body shake. Her hand at my throat lets up and she kisses me hard as I come down from the high. Holy fuck, I’ve never come so hard in my life.