Page 14

COLE

COLE: Enjoying the game?

M y knee jogged up and down, my impatience zinging through my limbs and making me want to jump out of my skin.

First period down, and Noah and his enchanted pipes, his words not mine, had kept the score to two to zip. Sweat dripped down my face as I waited for Eden to respond.

Hunter entered the locker room, toweling his hair and wearing only his pants. “Nice period, LeCav.”

Noah flexed, hitting the playlist from earlier and starting it from the beginning.

A haunting song by Halestorm played, and fuck if I wasn’t transported back to the smoke filled haunted house.

I stood, impatient and trying to not think about chasing her. The way the pulse at her neck throbbed. How she said yes after I told her exactly what would happen when I caught her.

Noah’s voice broke into my thoughts. “Romeo, text incoming. ”

I snatched my phone.

EDEN: Surprisingly, yes You’re really good.

It still amazed me that she’d never been to a game. Then again, she grew up with my father, and he wasn’t exactly a fan.

I reread the message.

COLE: Just wait. Next one’s for you.

Right after I hit send, I cursed myself. I quickly added…

COLE: And Izzy.

Coach came into the room, and I quickly put my phone back up on the shelf.

Just wait, Bunny. You haven't seen anything yet.

The next period was a little more of a competition, and Chicago nearly scored and held us at two until the last fifteen seconds when Theo sent a saucer my way and Killian, our center, spun and faked. Their goalie’s head tracked him, but when I deeked at the last minute and sent it sailing he moved too late. The puck missed his glove and went into the net.

The guys celebrated, and as I made my way to the bench to hit gloves, I stopped in front of Izzy and Eden high fiving and pointed at them both. My girl jumped up and down and screamed my name. Her cheeks were rosy and her green sparkled. My father and her mom cheered, but I only had eyes for Eden.

Third period flew by, because every time i hit the ice, I could feel her eyes on me. Watching. Breaking down my resolve. But then, just as the buzzer sounded, I looked over and saw my dad hugging her and Izzy.

I ducked out before Zoe or Lanie could corral me into the media room. Let Theo and Jaxon do their captain and alternate duties game one. There was a girl waiting for me to take her home.

No, not just any girl. My girl.

The happy noises coming from the family waiting area grew louder and louder as I neared, but when I walked through the door, everyone disappeared except for Eden. Her pink hair stood out in the crowd, but even if she hid it under a hat, I’d know where she was. Just like I knew where she ran from me that night. Fuck, now I was getting a hard-on.

“That was a great game, Cole.”

And six words made all that disappear in an instant.

I turned to see my father standing with Izzy and Eden’s mom. Eden caught my eye from across the room where she stood with Noah and Zoe. The goalie wore a huge grin on his face, which was well deserved. A shut out on opening night was fucking awesome. I glanced around, thinking Walker would want to celebrate with his sister, but he was nowhere to be found. Zoe didn’t look bothered but Eden’s eyes softened as she waved.

The sweatshirt I had Lanie find for Eden fit her just the way I had imagined. When she got up from the couch at home earlier, all i wanted to do was tear off the jeans that fit her body like second skin and tell her to run after kissing her senseless.

“That was even better in person,” Izzy gushed. I broke the stare, and returned my little sister’s hug. “And I can’t believe how fast it looks in person. Or the way the ice smells. ”

I chuckled. “That’s actually one of my favorite things. The smell. But just the ice, not the locker room. You won’t want to smell that, Izz.”

“Guys only smell great after a shower,” Zoe teased as she and Eden joined us. “Trust me. And their equipment is…well, let’s just say I feel for the equipment staff. It was so nice to meet you all tonight. Just let Eden or Cole know if you’d like to come to another game. The players have tickets available for most games, and if the seats aren't available, you could also watch the game from the suite.”

The world faded away as Izzy prattled on about the game, trying to get our father and I into a conversation, but after a few minutes, I interrupted. “Eden looks tired, I’d better take her home. Thank you for coming,” I added, hugging Izzy and nodding at everyone else. Hand at her back, I guided Eden through the crowd and down the hall. We walked in silence, but every once in a while, she’d smile and glance at me.

When we went outside into the chilly air, I asked, “Why are you smiling?”

She stood next to me as I opened the door and helped her in my SUV. “Because I had fun. For the first time in a long time, I didn’t have to pretend.”

Her admission stole my breath for a second, and when I leaned in to buckle her seatbelt as she rolled her eyes with more mirth than brattiness. I lingered longer, then said as I stood with my arm on the door. “I’m glad.”

The drive home tortured my fucking dick because all it did was argue that I was being fucking stupid. And I reminded myself of the shit my dad would put her through, and how people would look at her because we were related, if only by marriage.

Traffic was heavier than usual because of the game, but the further away from the arena I drove, the lighter It was. I checked the heat. Eden rarely wore a jacket, and she refused to ask me to turn up the heat so I alway made sure she was warm. Or that there was music playing after I noticed that she always had something playing in the background.

Stars twinkled in the night sky and when I pulled into the garage, I glanced over at Eden. A soft snore left her lips and she curled up in her seat. Fuck, she was beautiful. I carefully and quietly got out and went to her side. Slowly, and maybe because I wanted to enjoy her body against mine, I unbuckled her and took her in my arms. She snuggled into my neck with an adorable noise.

Thank fuck I showered after the game, though the day was catching up to me. Thank God our next game wasn’t tomorrow. And since we had a great game, Coach made the morning skate optional. So, just a workout in the afternoon. Our next two games were away, first in Seattle then in Vegas. Talk about a temperature shift. I still hadn’t figured out how to tell Eden she was coming with me. Or how the logistics were going to work. At least in Seattle, I knew Zoe would be there, and maybe even for Vegas. But spending one night, not to mention two to three, away from Eden wasn’t something I wanted to do.

With a little creative finagling, I manage to get inside without dropping or waking Eden. Once we were upstairs, I glanced down the hallway. Her door was shut, but mine was ajar.

Shit.

I glanced at both doors again. Weighing my options, and talking myself out of taking her into my room or somehow opening her door without waking her up. Eden was a usually light sleeper, and almost every night I heard her in the hallway, making her way downstairs at two in the morning.

Her breath, soft and sweet against my neck, was steady. The feel of her sleeping in my arms made my dick rock hard, and not just because I wanted to be inside her. But because she felt safe enough to be vulnerable with me.

Fuck it.

I walked past her door, and pushed open my door with my foot. I made my way into the room, each footstep so fucking loud, I thought for sure she would wake up. On the last step, I gently placed her on my bed and pulled my arm out from under her sweet body. Fuck she looked absolutely perfect lying there. On the navy comforter, her bright hair splayed out around her. I glanced at the number 17 on the bottom of the sweatshirt. It nearly reached her mid thigh, and my mouth watered at the thought of her creamy skin in contrast to the Triumph colors, wearing only the thing I bought for her.

With great care, I slid her shoes off, one by one. Eden stirred when I unbuttoned her jeans, shifting when I peeled them down her legs.

“You don’t have to-” she murmured, trying to sit up

I gently made her lie back. “I will be the perfect gentleman, Eden. I promise. Lie down.” She did, and just when I thought she fell asleep she sighed and opened her eyes, then shut them again.

“Maybe I don’t want you to be,” she mumbled, still more than half asleep. My dick made itself known, tenting my dress pants. Thank fuck she couldn’t see what having her in my bed did. Her scent mingled with mine on the bed sheets. Fuck. Temptation right in front of me.

“Shh, Bunny. Under the covers,” I whispered. There was something about her sleeping in the shirt I bought her that lit a fire in me I didn’t trust. She turned to the side and snuggled into my pillow and buried her nose in it.

I went to stand when she grabbed my hand. “Stay. Please? Just for tonight. It's been such a good day. I don’t want…” Green eyes filled with a mixture of happiness and sadness that I’d recognized more often than she knew.

“I’ll stay.” I shucked off my shoes, and took off my shirt and pants then slipped on a pair of gray sweats. I started to lay on top of the bed, but Eden grumbled as she fell back asleep.

“Don’t be silly, Cole.”

Fuck it. Blanket be damned. I slipped under, careful not to touch her no matter how badly I wanted to. I could have this, sharing my bed with her and not touching her or crossing a line I shouldn’t.

Just for one night.

Mmm. If this was a dream, I never wanted to wake up. Eden’s soft, warm body touching mine, Her scent enveloping me. Her soft sighs lingering in my ear. I’d do just about anything to stay asleep longer. Skip the alarm. Pretend that I could still have her here, and make her mine. The way I wanted. Craved. Needed.

Before that fucking text. Be inside her sweet body anytime I wanted and fuck her or take her so slowly she’d beg me to make her come. Every damn day.

“Cole.”

One word. Whispered. And I was thrust out of my dream. I didn’t want to, and I waited but then I opened my eyes.

There she was. The girl I couldn’t have. In my bed. Face to face. Closer than I’d let myself get. Her thighs entwined in mine. My erection and her, with only fabric between us. Breathing the same air, teasing, tempting and fuck, I couldn’t think of a good reason not to kiss her.

Except that she wasn’t my Bunny. She was my step sister

“Do you miss her?’

“Her?’ I asked, my voice sleep ridden.

“Izzy.”

I swallowed. Good. This, I could concentrate on. “Yes.”

“Why didn’t you…”

The dark stretched between us. “It’s complicated.”

She closed her eyes. “Cole?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you.”

The two words ripped a hole in my heart, and she was there. All the hurt and pain I had seen in her eyes, the way she hid things. But I had to know. Hear her say it. “For what?”

Green eyes. Soft lips. “For not letting me be alone. And making me not be scared anymore.” Tears welled up in her eyes, and I couldn’t not hold her. Just for tonight.

“Oh, Bunny,” I whispered and opened my arms. “Come here.”

“Are you sure?”

I nodded. “Tonight, I’m sure. I’ll still be a gentleman.”

“For tonight,” she whispered, cuddling into my arms. I held her in the dark as I listened to the sound of her breathing growing more and more steady. Each breath a little further apart. Until she fell asleep. As much as I didn’t want it, I fought sleep, until, just like my girl, it took me. And I dreamed of her, the life I wanted that was no more.

I crawled out of bed, not wanting to wake her or have her apologize or feel awkward, and took a shower down the hall in the second floor guest bathroom. A cup of coffee and a run later, I made a trip to the cafe she loved and picked up her pink drink then headed back home. As I pulled out of the parking lot, I called the security company that installed the system before I moved in.

“I need to activate all the cameras, inside and on the property, including along the fences.”

The night she moved in, I’d shown Eden how to set and disarm the alarm. But the truth was, most of it was operated solely through my phone or my SUV. When I left or came home, there was a biometric sensor on my phone and the touchscreen that did more than the code. Eden had the manual code, but after practice yesterday, I’d checked her old phone like I had been doing. And for the first time in a few days, her stalker had messaged her.

UNKNOWN NUMBER: Where are you, Eden? Hiding? You haven’t found my notes in over a week.

UNKNOWN NUMBER: It’s not nice to ignore someone who cares about you.

UNKNOWN NUMBER: Ah, there you are. Beautiful. You look good in those colors. But you know you should be mine after all I’ve done to make sure you're safe. It’s ok. We’ll find a way.

I’d nearly trashed the fucking workout room. Noah had been the only guy still in the locker room when I came back, snarling and ready to fucking punch something. Luckily for him, I’d calmed down just enough to show him the messages.

“We have to show Brett. And Gus.” The head of security was a former Navy Seal and the guys teased him about special ops missions. He was imposing but also one of the nicest guys I’d met at the Triumph. “Gus knows people.”

Gus was also the one who hooked me up with the security company. They were based in North Carolina, but the owner was also former Navy and had a Marine and a few other former military on his team along with guys I was pretty sure knew how to more than just change a grade or two.

Telling Coach was a no brainer, and not just because he was Noah’s big brother or our Coach. Zoe was his girlfriend, and this creep knew where Eden used to live. And where Zoe and Brett now lived.

And, the owner of the team, Marc Laurent knew, too, because Brett insisted as did Gus. Laurent hired Gus because he knew of his special talents, and had no problem putting them to use.

Eden didn’t know it, but there were no less than three sets of eyes on her at all times while she was in the arena. And the security company recommended a freelance team that would keep an eye on the house when I couldn’t be there. Courtesy of the Triumph. They weren’t kidding when they said they took care of family. Eden was family in more ways than one.

“The cameras can be adjusted, and aren't in areas that are sensitive. I’ve set them to your biometrics, which means you can control which ones are in use at any time, either from the control unit in the panic room or your phone.”

Unbeknownst to me, the house had a panic room that the previous owner installed but hadn’t disclosed when he sold the house because he hadn’t used it once. When the team sent out someone to oversee the installation, the Marine vet and It guy found it on the grid for the house and accessed it. I stepped into the room only once when they'd set the system up for me.

“Can you add Eden’s biometrics to access the room, too?”

“Yep. Give me a few seconds. I am swiping it off her phone now…and…done. You and Eden are the only ones with access to the room.”

I turned into the driveway, passed the black sedan parked in the street. Subtle. “I appreciate it.”

When I went inside, Eden was in the main living room doing yoga. The lines and curves of her body mesmerizing. My eyes refused to look away.

I watched for a few minutes, until she sank down, and ended her practice, sitting with her knees crossed, hands in front of her heart, head bowed. When she opened her eyes and saw me standing there, her cheeks heated, but she didn’t look away. “Where’d you run off to?”

I held out the cup. Her mossy green eyes widened. “How did you?”

“You left the cup on the counter yesterday. It had your order on it. Good guess? ”

She took a sip and nodded, eyes closed as her throat worked as she drank. “Perfect guess.”

“The game in Seattle, and Kas and the rest of the guys-”

“I am already going. Group text, remember? I wouldn't miss it for the world. Especially now.” She stood and walked up the entryway stairs. Halfway up, she stopped and threw a glance over her shoulder at me, pink hair piled on the top of her head. “Cole? Thank you again.”