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I stand and stare in amazement at the scene playing out in front of me.

Ellie is chatting with a little girl who is rocking a Bobcats jersey with “Montgomery” on the back.

Ellie has no idea just how special she truly is.

I’m not going to lie, I’m a little jealous of the jersey.

I kind of want a Montgomery jersey of my own.

I’ll see what I can do to make that happen.

But first, I have a win to celebrate with the gorgeous blonde walking my way.

Hunter and Ellie follow me into the locker room for a postgame speech.

I don’t have much to say except how fucking proud I am of this team.

Our team has a tradition after every game.

Win or lose, one player is given the “Bobcat Belt” which signifies that they worked their ass off and are the MVP of the game.

Picture a WWE Heavyweight Champion belt, but with our Bobcat logo on the front.

The person who received it the previous game is the person to hand it out next, and so on.

Jefferson was the one to win it last game, so he makes his way to the center of the room to hand it off to the next guy.

“I know I always have a lot of jokes and smartass comments to say…” Everyone starts chuckling and giving him shit and he puts his finger to his lips to shush them.

“ But I’ve never been so proud to be a hockey player before. This team is something special, and as a rookie, I am so glad I have you all to look up to. But there’s one person in particular who always encourages me and helps me discover a little bit more of my talent each game and practice. Today this person showed yet again how valuable they are to this team.”

The entire locker room is quiet as the guys nod their heads at Jefferson’s words.

We all wait on pins and needles as he dramatically spins and pauses on people before stopping and staring at us coaches.

“Coach Montgomery, you are a total fucking badass and we wouldn’t be where we are today, at the top of the standings, without you. You get the belt today.”

And the crowd—well, the locker room crowd—goes wild.

Literally.

The guys all jump up, screaming and cheering for the incredible woman beside me.

Hunter and I join in on the excitement by clapping as loud as we can.

Someone, somewhere in the room, starts chanting, “ Ell-ie! Ell-ie! ” and it's not too long before the walls are shaking with the pounding and chanting happening inside the room.

Ellie takes a step forward and takes the belt from Jefferson and they exchange a high five.

A chorus of “Speech! Speech!” breaks out within the room. Ellie looks over to us, absolutely mortified, but Hunter and I just laugh and join in on the heckling.

She walks to the center of the room, appearing to be lost in thought. Looking down at the belt in her hands, she finally finds her voice.

“There aren’t words in the English dictionary that can truly express how grateful I am for each and every one of you in this room. Even you, Jefferson. ”

The small jab gets a good laugh out of the group before she continues.

“My entire life I’ve been doubted. I still am. I used to question if I really had what it takes to make it onto a bench in the NHL. But here, in this room, and standing behind that bench with all of you in front of me, I know I’m exactly where I should be. So thanks for this. But you guys make it easy to do this job. Next stop, New York!”

Ellie turns to make her way back to us but not before Jefferson hollers out to her. “Put it on, Coach!”

Instead of being mortified like she was before the speech, Ellie owns the moment. She takes a few steps back to the center of the locker room and lifts the belt in the air. The guys absolutely lose it and start the “Ellie” chant again. She fastens the belt around her waist and the guys jump out of their stalls and bombard her in a group hug as they jump up and down chanting her name.

Somehow, Ellie manages to escape, beaming ear to ear with a smile that could light up the night sky. She rushes for the door to make her exit and we follow behind. Hunter is grabbed by our PR person to do the postgame interview, and Ellie turns to make her way to the training rooms. Before she can get too far, I grab her by the elbow to stop her.

“When you come over tonight bring the belt.”

I let go of her arm and turn and walk away before she can say a word. Just as I’m about to head into the media room to watch Hunter’s interview, I look over my shoulder and see Ellie standing frozen where I left her. Her mouth is agape and she’s staring after me.

With one hand on the door handle, I shoot her a wink and slink into the media room.

Tonight should be fun.

I’ve just poured two glasses of wine when I hear a small knock on my door. The excitement that rises in me rivals the excitement of a kid on Christmas morning. Even though I knew she was coming, the fact that I get to spend the next few hours naked with Ellie has my body buzzing.

I open the door and there’s an angel standing on my porch. With my lamp post lit up behind her, Ellie is illuminated as if she’s just walked through the gates of heaven. Her hair is down now, opposite of the high ponytail she always wears on the bench, and she’s wearing a long red trench coat with red heels. My mouth dries and I am thirsty for everything that is Ellie Montgomery.

“You gonna stand here all night staring or are you gonna let me in?”

I can’t wait to shut that smart mouth up.

My eyes trail up and down her one more time, just to make her wait a bit longer, and then I’m moving aside so she can come in.

Instead of hanging her coat on the rack, she leaves it on and makes her way into the kitchen.

Interesting.

She picks up a glass of red wine and takes a slow slip. I’m mesmerized by her throat as she swallows the burgundy liquid down. Images of my cock replacing the wine immediately play in my mind, and I’m two seconds away from ripping that coat off her myself.

I make my way to her, with every intention of skipping the wine and heading straight to my bedroom. Ellie puts one finger up, halting my movements, and takes another sip of wine before setting it down on the table.

With one hand on her hip and the other twirling her hair around one finger, she makes her way toward me. “Is there something you’d like to tell me, Coach Scott?”

What the fuck is she talking about ?

My instincts kick in and I’m convinced I’m about to be in trouble. I have no idea what she’s talking about, but my feet start walking backward to the living room. Fight or flight is a real thing and apparently my body is telling me to run.

Trying to save myself, I answer her question with the first thing that comes to mind. “Um, you looking fucking beautiful tonight?”

A wicked smile stretches across her face and I know that that’s not the right answer.

“I do, don’t I? But nope. That’s not it. One more chance, Lincoln. Anything you want to tell me?”

My legs hit the back of the couch as I tumble over the armrest. I scramble my body backward until my back hits the other end of the couch. Replaying everything that has happened today, I try to think of what it is Ellie could be talking about. Did I forget to send her my postgame notes? No, she wouldn’t be pissed about that. I literally have no idea what this woman is talking about, and I’m both terrified and turned on by the devilish gleam in her eye.

She stalks her way toward me, but stops about a foot away from me next to the couch. “I had a nice little chat with Niko after the game tonight.”

Oh, fuck .

Terror and dread fill my heart but I do my best not to let it show. “Oh yeah? What did our captain have to say?”

I already know where this is going, but I’ll continue to pretend I have no idea what’s going on like a coward until my very last breath.

Why, you ask?

Because I’m a glutton for punishment.

The world begins to move in slow motion as Ellie slowly unties the belt of her trench coat. She drops the belt to the floor before moving to the buttons of her coat.

“Niko wanted me to know that he knows about us, because he’d rather be transparent with me than hide the fact. Isn’t that mature of him? To tell me the truth like that?”

I am a dead man gawking. Because that’s exactly what I’m doing. I am gawking at this goddess standing before me as she slowly unbuttons her trench coach.

My brain finally computes that she asked me a question and I quickly nod to her. “Yep. Real mature. Great captain, that Niko.”

Before Ellie gets to the last button and reveals what’s hiding beneath the coat, she stops abruptly. “Is there a reason you didn’t want to tell me that Niko found out about us, Lincoln? Because I can’t imagine why you’d keep something like that from me.”

Man up, Scott.

I sit up and turn so my feet are off the couch. In this position she’s now standing between my knees, and my hands find her legs. I rub them up and down before pleading my case.

“Is there a good reason? I’m not sure you'd agree with me on what a good reason is. Maybe I’m an idiot. No, I’m definitely an idiot for keeping it from you. I just thought you’d bail, and the selfish part of me wasn’t ready for that. But also, you’re so much more relaxed and I’ve never seen you smile as much as you do now since we started this thing. I’d like to think this is good for both of us, and I was trying to protect what’s mine.”

Ellie’s eyebrow quirks at the word “mine.”

Shit. She is not mine.

Scrambling to save myself I continue. “I was trying to protect what’s ours. This thing”—I gesture between the two of us—“I don’t know what it is, but I do know it’s good. It’s real good. I didn’t want to lose it. I couldn’t lose it. I’m sorry.”

Ellie takes a step back and I’m prepared to get on my knees to beg. If she leaves right now I will shamelessly apologize and beg for her forgiveness until I’m blue in the face.

Her hands move to the last button on her jacket and she slowly undoes it. She holds the jacket closed, not revealing even a tiny piece of what’s hidden underneath. “I forgive you, Lincoln. Under one condition.”

I bring my elbows up to my knees and bring my hands together as if I’m praying for a miracle. My chin rests on my thumbs and I vigorously nod letting her know I’m at her mercy.

“Anything. I’ll do anything.”

God, I’m pathetic and I don’t even care.

She opens the trench slowly and, like the belt, drops it to the ground.

The world stops and everything else fades away but Ellie. I can hear my heart pounding in my ears and feel myself growing below my belt.

Ellie stands before me, wearing nothing but that fucking Bobcats Belt. Her perfect tits are on full display and her nipples are pebbled, begging for me to bite them. The belt sits just on top of her defined hips, her firm, sculpted frame on full display. This woman radiates athletic elegance and I am the luckiest bastard alive to have her standing before me.

I lick my lips, planning where to taste her first.

She slowly makes her way toward me again, those high heels clicking against the floor and showing off her long, toned legs. I can’t wait to have those beauties wrapped around me. Ellie pushes me back onto the couch and straddles my lap. The oversized belt is blocking my view of her perfect pussy and I fight every instinct in me to remove it.

“What do you want, Ellie? Tell me what you want and it’s yours.”

Biting her lip, mischief clear in her eyes, she removes my tie from my neck. Turning it over in her hands, she gives it a long stroke. I’ve never been jealous of a tie before.

She slides the tie back around my neck and pulls me to her for a kiss. It’s slow and sensual and I know if she’d ask me to bring her the moon, I’d find a way to do it .

When she finally breaks our kiss she gives me that evil smirk I love so much. “Tonight, I’m the boss, Lincoln. Now lean forward so I can tie this around your eyes. No peeking and no touching. If you touch, I’ll tie those up too.”

Oh. My. God.