“You don’t have to answer that … ”
“He always had a head for numbers. Mix that with poor impulse control, and you get a world-class gambling addict. Twelve-step programs for Madden were more like thirty-six steps. But supposedly, he did it — quit. I knew Vegas would be bad for him. He ran up a huge debt with a loan shark. To a normal person, the answer to debt isn’t more gambling. To an addict … ”
“I get the picture. He keeps making it worse.”
“He’s not a bad kid. He has a good heart. But I think we’ll have to sell the house. I was going to anyway, eventually. It feels more like a Hollywood set than a home. We’ll pay his debt, and then I’ll make sure he — ”
“Jacey, stop.” Carter stilled and gave her no choice. She faced him, her expression curious, and it broke his heart a little. “You didn’t ask for any of this, did you? You probably had some job lined up with a Fortune 500 company. Then your father passes and leaves you with a basically new hockey team to run all by yourself. The way you talk, I can tell this isn’t the first time you’ve assumed responsibility for your brother. Why do you do it?”
“What else would I do? My father is the reason I had the chance at the best education, made the best contacts. This team was his soul, and he left it to me. I can’t walk away from that. I won’t. And Madden … he’s the only family I have left. Yes, he’s a screw-up, but I’m not giving up on him. He needs me; I’m there. It’s who I am.”
The passion in her voice and the certainty in her eyes touched him. What would it be like to have someone feel that way about him? Shock set in as he realized he wanted to be on the receiving end of that devotion. It was a scary thought and one he immediately questioned, but the answer remained the same. Any man would be lucky to have Jacey on his side.
He stepped forward. When she didn’t back away, he cupped her jaw and kissed her. It started out soft, but when she didn’t protest, he deepened it. A few seconds went by before she returned it, tentative. He pulled back just enough to rest his forehead against hers and looked into her half-lidded eyes.
“What was that for?”
“Being you.”
She smiled and leaned up to kiss him this time. He slid his free arm around her waist and hauled her closer. It elicited a surprised purr from the angelic devil woman, and the sound stole his last scrap of reason. “Your street’s one block over. Mine’s around the corner, and it’s still relatively early. Do you want to come over for a while?”
He fully expected her to say no. Jacey, the list-maker, the pro/con weigher, the only person who could define Type A better than he could would never agree to it — especially on a work night. He could see the mental war on her face, and every silent second made his heart beat harder. Had he gone too far? They’d more or less obliterated the boss-employee professional boundary tonight. But if she said yes, they were likely to do something they couldn’t take back or laugh off.
“Okay.”
“Okay?”
“I don’t know what this is. I know professionally that I shouldn’t, but tonight, as crazy as it was, I relaxed for the first time in a really long time. I like being with you, God help me.”
The last part sounded so resigned that he had to laugh. “Gee, thanks.”
“You know what I mean.”
He brushed a light kiss to her lips, the corner of her mouth, then the base of her ear. “I like being with you too. Let’s go work on that relaxation some more.”
Monday, October 31st: After Hours
“Are you sure you live here?” Because it didn’t look like anyone did. As soon as Carter flicked on the lights, the sparseness struck her. Nothing in the small foyer where they stood. Hardwood floor, curving staircase, barren rooms to her right and left.
“No time to decorate. TV and couch in the den, that’s about it. I do have a bed … ” He shot her a grin, leaned her pitchfork against the front door then reached for her hand. Stopped. His smile remained, but he didn’t move. “Are you sure … ”
She didn’t let him finish the question. If she had to think about it, her body would be very unhappy, and she was tired of being unhappy. Jacey took her mask off and kissed him.
Apparently, that was all the answer he needed. He cupped the base of her neck and pulled her closer while his free arm curled around her waist. Her pulse pounded. She went dizzy from the feel of his firm chest pressed to hers, his heart beating hard beneath it. Her purse slid down her arm. She let it fall to the floor. To hell with responsible. She held his face in her hands and went up on tiptoe. He smiled against her lips and bent backward just enough to pull her feet off the ground.
She linked her arms around his neck, trying to get closer. When his tongue begged entrance to her mouth, every nerve ending in her body fired off blissful little shocks. His hand on her back moved down under her thigh, and she slid her legs around his waist. She’d never behaved this way with anyone before. And she didn’t care.
Carter groaned and pressed her back against the door like a full body check. He felt hard and ready. A thrill shot through her knowing she had that power, she could affect him this way. He kissed a path along her jaw to her ear and down her neck. She arched against him and gasped. Her hands trembled as she untied his bow tie then unbuttoned his shirt. He repaid the favor, his calloused hands skimming her shoulders to slide down the straps of her dress. She reached for his zipper, and a low rumble rose in his throat.
His hands slid up her thighs, raising her hemline, and then he went still. He leaned his temple against hers and panted in her ear. “Shit.”
Oh, God, had he changed his mind? “What? What is it?”
He released a slow breath and kissed her nose. “I don’t have any condoms.”
It took a second to process that, but then she grinned. “Seriously?”
Carter frowned, and narrowed his eyes. “Is that so hard to believe? What kind of slut do you think I am?”
She laughed and tried to slow her breathing. “A poorly planned one.”
He tickled her sides, and she squealed and unhooked her legs from his waist. Before she could wiggle away, he hauled her close and set his chin atop her head. “You don’t really think I sleep around that much, do you?”
“
Do
you?”
“I haven’t been with a woman since … ”
And then it hit her.
Since he met me.
She leaned back and met his eyes. The intensity there mixed with something else. Uncertainty? Anxiety?
“Does that make you uncomfortable?”
“I just … wasn’t expecting it.” The hope balloon in her chest got a little bigger, limiting the air capacity in her lungs. She swayed a bit and braced herself against the door.
“That makes two of us.”
She searched for the right response when something else popped into her brain. “Halloween Howie.”
“The costume guy? Are you telling me I have competition?”
The confusion in his dark hazel eyes made her laugh, and she shook her head. “I’m telling you we have a condom.”
“Connect the dots in the next five seconds, or Halloween Howie’s gonna have a hole in his face.”
Jacey grinned and retrieved the foil packet from her purse. “He threw it in with the costume. He said if I was going to be a devil, I should sin responsibly. I would have thrown it back at him, but I was so embarrassed, I just wanted out of there.”
“I take it back. The man’s a saint.” Carter took the condom, claimed her in another kiss.
His excitement evident against her thigh nearly did her in right there, but a flash of sanity reminded her of the drape-less windows. She pushed against his biceps and fought for control of her ragged breathing. “You … said something about a bed?”
He grunted and stilled for a minute. His pained expression told her how tempted he was to take her right there.
“I don’t know if your neighbors have digital cameras, but I’d rather not risk giving them a show.”
He laughed, held out his hand, and angled toward the stairs. “This way.”
She curled her fingers into his extended palm and followed him to his room. Dark hardwood floor, one dresser, and an open walk-in closet with all his game-day suits lined up. As promised, a king size bed with a plush, white comforter. It was made — not neatly — but impressively enough for a man with a schedule like his.
While he slid out of his button-down and undershirt, she took off her boots and set the glowing horn headband on his nightstand. In another second he stood before her in nothing but boxers. Her face warmed as she took in his gloriously muscled body. She backed up until her thighs touched the bed. He closed the distance, but his touch was feather-light as his fingertips traced her from shoulders to elbows. He kissed her softly, but his tongue teased her bottom lip.
She gasped and waited for him to take the invitation, but he hesitated and met her eyes. His voice barely made it above a whisper as he smoothed the short, black hair of the wig. “Take this off. I want it to be you.”
The sentiment pierced the last of her emotional armor, and she turned them around then pushed him to sit on the edge of the bed. His intent gaze didn’t help her weak knees, but she unpinned the wig one clip at a time, tossing them to the floor. When the last fell free, she shook out her curls, and his entranced look coiled heat low in her belly. She unzipped the dress, taking her time. With a twist of her hips, the sequined material pooled around her ankles, and she held her breath while he took her in.
• • •
Carter’s erection strained painfully, but for those first few seconds he could only stare. Most of the women he dated were fake in some way or another. Jacey owned her body, and in that moment, her body owned him. Soft and slender, modest curves that begged for his touch. He pulled her hips closer and pressed a light kiss to her flat stomach. The muscles beneath flinched at the intimate contact, and he smiled at her shyness. Could she really not know how gorgeous she was?
He pulled her to straddle him and slid his hands over the silky skin of her thighs as he took a hardened nipple in his mouth. Her head tilted back, and at her deep sigh, he knew he wouldn’t last long. Jacey the professional morphed into Jacey the woman before his eyes, and he liked what he saw. When she rocked against him, he couldn’t take it anymore. Carter laid her down in the middle of the bed and balanced his weight on his forearms as he settled between her legs.
The sensation of her bare breasts against his chest went through him like a jolt. Carter groaned and pressed his hips into hers. Jacey’s hands slid down his back to the top of his boxers, and her fingers curled into the elastic but didn’t pull. He smiled. Most of his dates couldn’t wait to get him naked, and he usually liked it that way. Not this time. Not with Jacey. When she looked at him, it felt like she saw
into
him in a way no one else ever had. He knew he wasn’t just a warm body to her. It woke something in him he hadn’t even known was there. Carter brushed a soft kiss against her cheek then took his boxers off and threw them aside.
She looked down between them and smiled as her eyes focused on the size and readiness of him. He covered her mouth with his and dipped his fingers into the lace band of her panties. She lifted her hips to help him. Hovering above her, his skin just barely touched hers, but the head of his hard length brushed against her. Carter balanced on one hand and took the foil packet from the nightstand. The muscles of his arm and stomach strained and quivered at the effort. He opened it then held it out to her.
Jacey looked surprised and a little unsure, but she took it as he rolled onto his side and faced her. Anticipation nearly killed him as she rolled the condom down. Her touch was tentative, gentle, exploring. He sucked air through his teeth and closed his eyes. When she stroked him, his last fragment of restraint shattered. He settled over her once more and stared into her eyes as he eased into her. He saw shock, pleasure, and surrender. Her fingertips traced his jaw before she kissed him deeply, raising her hips to meet his and guiding him the rest of the way inside. They both moaned at the sensation, and he went still as the first wave of ecstasy rolled through him.
• • •
As Carter pulled back then pushed forward in an unhurried rhythm, Jacey slid her hands over the strong muscles in his shoulders, down his sinewy back, and became acutely aware of the
power
in his body. He primed it to perfection, and it didn’t just pay off on the ice. Emboldened by the need in his eyes, she linked her legs with his and held onto his hips, encouraging his movement and pulling him deeper on each down stroke. He made a strangled sound and quickened his pace. She felt like she was floating, the pleasure an out-of-body experience.
He kissed a path down her neck, thrust harder, faster, and she felt his control slipping. She was seconds from falling over the edge herself. His excitement only heightened hers. One hand cradled his head to her neck while the other dug desperately into his back. It was hard to even manage a whisper. “Car-ter. Yes.”
Carter gave in to abandon, and as his breath caught, his body tensed. He cried out as he pulsed and throbbed inside her, and it was all she needed. Blinding pleasure spiraled through her, and she clung to him, gasping as he thrust one last time.
As they caught their breath, he allowed the majority of his weight to rest on her, and it was a pleasant feeling. It anchored her back down to Earth. She stroked his back and closed her eyes, focusing on his warm, uneven breath against her neck. He shifted and smiled down at her, a little bit of awe in his eyes. “That was amazing.”
She grinned and her cheeks heated. “I have to agree. Though, I think I left fingernail marks on your back … ”
“Worth it.” He smoothed curls away from her face, his gaze thoughtful. A long, tender kiss warmed her from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. He seemed reluctant as he leaned back and withdrew from her. She shivered in his absence and bit her lip as he disposed of the condom. When he crawled onto the bed and gathered her close to him, his heartbeat under her cheek brought reason back from vacation, and the nagging inner voices returned. How could she have done that? What kind of owner sleeps with the captain of her team? The horrible kind. It couldn’t go anywhere. And it hurt her more than anything to admit it.