Page 20 of Branded (Breakers Hockey)
Twenty
Kailey
“Evil,” he murmured, prowling toward me.
Yeah prowling .
I shivered, but it was only in anticipation.
There wasn’t any fear, any anxiety, no ball of nerves in my belly spreading outward, slicing as it expanded.
Just heat prickling between my thighs, my nipples tingling as they remembered the treatment he’d given them the night before, my palms itching to touch, my pussy clenching and empty and… a little desperate.
But I was feeling…ballsy.
So damned ballsy.
And I wanted to tease, to give him back some of that teasing.
I lifted my hand, stroking it along the soft fur of the stuffed toy. “I’ve decided to name him, Herman.”
His beard twitched. “Herman?”
Right. Not the best name, but the only one I’d thought of on the spot. I might be finding a bit of myself, clawing out from beneath the tangled web of my insides, but I still wasn’t the best improviser.
Probably wouldn’t ever be.
But being comfortable with Smitty meant that I could lift my chin, could smile sweetly, and pat the stuffed wombat on its adorable little head. “Yes, Herman is his name, and he’s so cute that he’s going to be living here in my office.”
That beard twitched again, but I noticed that his gaze didn’t stray to Herman again, just stayed locked onto mine.
He stepped closer.
And…my heart started to beat a little faster.
Thud-thud. Thud-thud. Thud-thud.
A twining, writhing net, but not one that sent me spiraling into anxiety or fogging my brain—or at least, not one that fogged my brain in a way that wasn’t cramming me full of need and nearly sending me begging for him to press his mouth to mine again, to touch my breasts, to strip me naked and worship the rest of me.
No fear.
No worry of the words that may or may not cross my tongue.
Just…desire.
“You gonna climb me like a tree again, little bird?” he murmured, his voice rasping over me and raising goose bumps on my skin. “Or hold silent and still again while I take care of you?”
My pulse was fluttering…much like a little bird. Because I did want to climb him like that tree, wanted to cling to the branches of his arms and to feel the rustle of his breath on my skin. I wanted to hold still, and I wanted to move.
I wanted it all.
I was learning about myself.
And him.
And myself with him.
He liked to tease and joke and banter. I wanted to be the type of person who could do that with him. I wanted to be the type of person who could do that in general .
So…practice.
With a six-foot-plus hockey player and a stuffed wombat.
Oh, my life was so hard.
Woe was me.
“No,” I said, “I think I’ve held still enough.
” I smiled slyly. “Maybe I’ll make you hold still.
” A grin now. “Blindfold you and pretend that Herman is a feather or— ah!” My teasing ended with a squeak, and I couldn’t even be embarrassed because Smitty had me up in his arms, my legs automatically going around his waist, my back pressed to the wall, and his front…
oh good gravy, his front was pressed to mine.
I loved when we held each other like this.
Strong shoulders. Big pecs. Hard…stomach.
Another grin, but then I was wrapped up in the strength of him and it made me feel warm and secure and…very very turned on.
His breath puffed on my skin, raising goose bumps on my arms, my nape, my back.
“This going to become a thing?” he asked huskily.
My chin lifted, eyes hitting his, studying the deep brown of his irises, the dark russet and lighter oak weaving together to form something that was absolutely breathtaking.
“What? Me and you naked with Herman joining the fun?” I asked innocently.
He bent, nipped my bottom lip, and I was still processing the flash of movement, the bristle of his beard, the slight bite of pain when his mouth came down harder on mine, when he parted my mouth and slipped his tongue inside, dancing it along mine in a way that had my fingers diving into his hair, drawing him closer, tangling my tongue with his.
He kissed like fire.
And I was so beyond happy to embrace the flames.
Hell, I loved the feel of them licking down my spine, sinking into my arms, my legs, my pelvis. Burning through me, turning me to ash, reforming me into something magical and fresh and…comfortable in myself.
It was a gift.
It was the best gift that this man had given me.
He released my lips, and I sighed in pleasure, sucking in a breath when his mouth trailed along my jaw, nipping and kissing before dragging lower, tongue dipping down and in to trace along my collarbone.
“Okay, if it’s not Herman, what thing are you referring to?” I asked, still going for innocent, though my voice had gone husky. “Quality time in the locker room? Brainstorming in my office?”
His head shot up, eyes blazing. “Oh, the kissing you thing is definitely going to be a thing .” A beat. A kiss to my nose. “And the locker room thing, too, hopefully.” Another kiss to my jaw. “Definitely the brainstorming thing in your office. That’s going to be a thing—a fucking awesome thing. ”
“That’s a lot of things ,” I breathed.
He grinned, and I could feel the same stupid grin on my face.
Okay, his wasn’t stupid, just a bit dopey. Much like how my own felt, and okay , that wasn’t the point, but I had a lot of points floating around in my brain, not the least of which was me thinking that I really just wanted him to kiss me again because he was fucking good at it.
Oh, and also, I was closer to an orgasm from one of Smitty’s kisses, from him holding me, than I’d ever been with any of the men who’d been inside me.
Oh…and he also felt really great pressed up against me.
Oh…and…I was seriously considering desk sex.
We’d already done the locker room thing, maybe it was time for?—
He shifted, pressing into me a little harder, making my breath catch and a wave of need wobble through me. “But we’re going to do a lot of other things , too.”
“I thought we were just going to be friends.”
His hands—one cupping my ass, one threaded through my hair—tightened. “Oh, little bird,” he said with a smirk. “We’re going to be friends. Really good friends.” The hand on my ass slid down. In. “ Best friends who do lots and lots of things together.”
“Yeah?” I countered.
His head dipped, mouth coming closer, and my lips parted immediately. “Yeah?”
I couldn’t resist asking, “Do friends kiss?”
“ My best friend and I do,” he murmured huskily.
“Oh, I didn’t know that you and Raph kissed,” I said, going for breezy. “That’s hot.”
His lids, which had slowly been sinking closed—presumably giving in to the same desire that was relentlessly drawing me down—flew open, and those deep brown eyes locked onto mine, humor flickering across the depths. “You’re sassy, little bird.”
My head tilted to the side. “Not normally.”
A grin.
“You’re sassy with me.” He seemed proud of that fact.
I bit my lip. “Yeah,” I agreed.
His mouth curved, that beard twitching. “Fuck,” he said, confirming my thoughts. “I really love that you’re sassy with me, little bird.”
“You don’t want me quiet and compliant?” It was said jokingly, but my relationship with my dad meant that a small part of me did wonder if men wanted that.
“God, no.” He shuddered. “Give me the sass and the fire. Give me everything, little bird.”
“You keep calling me that,” I murmured. “Why?”
“Why little bird?”
A nod.
“That’s for me to know and not you.”
My lips pressed flat. “What if I peck your eyes out?” I asked tartly. “Would you like it then?”
His mouth turned up, just at the edges. “Depends.”
“On what?” I asked, genuinely curious.
“On whether or not you’re touching my dick when you do that.”
Laughter bubbled up in my throat, burst forth, his husky chuckles joining in and drifting over me like the softest velvet.
Then he kissed me again.
Kissed me until there was a loud knock at the door, until Raph’s voice echoed through the panel, calling out that Smitty better move his ass or else he was going to be late to practice.
A sigh as he released me, slowly allowing my feet to hit the floor.
He crouched slightly. “Dinner tonight?”
I sucked in a breath, suddenly felt perched on a precipice, unsure of which side to topple.
But that only lasted a moment.
Because I knew exactly which side I wanted to fall.