Page 25 of Defensive Zone (Chicago Thunder #3)

Chapter Twenty-Four

Carter

As I expected, Coach Harris put Zach as a game-time decision. With only a handful of games left in the regular season, he prefers Zach gets some rest to be ready for the playoffs. So, while he missed the game against Toronto, and the one after that, he returned to the ice last night. There are only three games left before the postseason begins, where they will face St. Louis in round one, and Chris and Joe have started trying a few different targeted relief methods such as acupuncture and acupressure. Zach says they seem to be helping, so I’m keeping my hopes up that this is the beginning of the end for these headaches.

Plus, we do our own kind of relief method when he’s home.

“Fuck, do that again,” Zach moans, his back arching off the couch.

I do as I’m told. I look up at him from where I’m lying between his parted legs as I swirl my tongue around the swollen head of his cock and pump him with my fist. He has one foot planted on the floor, the other on the cushion, his knee bent for stability.

I wrap my lips around him and suck him into my mouth, holding the base of his erection as I continue my torment. It’s safe to say that, since his trip to New York and our phone sex session, we’ve dipped our toes into edging. Something I’ve enjoyed immensely.

Zach, though? I’ve been sucking on his cock for nearly thirty minutes now, bringing him to the brink of release before pulling off. And the death grip he has on my hair right now tells me I’m not going to get away with it for much longer unless I want to go bald.

His hold halts my movements as he begins to buck his hips, tunneling his cock in and out of my mouth. His body trembles, letting me know he’s close before he can say the words.

“Carter. Ngh, fuck, I’m gonna come. I wanna fill your mouth with my come. Don’t you fucking dare stop me.”

Smiling around his thick shaft, I relax my jaw, allowing him to hit the back of my throat with each thrust. I swallow around him, and he lets out a roar as he comes so hard, some of his release seeps from the corner of my mouth. I use my thumb to catch it and suck it into my mouth.

“Shit, why is that so hot?” he says as he pants, gasping for breath.

“Who knew you had such a hot, dirty mouth?” I smirk before mimicking his moan, rolling my eyes to the back of my head. “I wanna fill your mouth with my come.”

“Fuck off. You make me lose my brain.” He snickers and shoves my shoulder. “Anyway, you love it.”

“Yeah.” I nip the soft skin at the juncture of his thigh. “I do.”

Zach’s boneless body melts into the couch with a satisfied sigh, and I push myself up, adjusting my erection that’s currently trying to punch a hole through my sweatpants.

Patience, padawan, I tell my eager dick.

I head into the kitchen to grab two bottles of water from the fridge and hand one over to Zach as I sit back down.

“What time is Hayden getting in again?” he asks, taking a quick swig before pulling his sweatpants back up and sprawling back onto the couch.

I look down at my watch. “His flight lands any minute now.”

Placing my water down on the coffee table, I move to settle between his parted legs, and he lets out a satisfied noise. I curl my arms under his arms, my fingers threading through the long strands of his hair. I nuzzle my face into the crook of his neck and pepper kisses along the thick column of his throat.

“Mmm, I suppose I better get changed,” he murmurs.

“Or we’ll wait until he’s downstairs and do this a little longer.” I roll my hips, eliciting a delicious moan from his throat.

“We don’t have time for that.”

Lifting my head, I glance down at him under hooded eyes and suck his bottom lip into my mouth. “But we have time for me to grind myself on you and make out.”

Thankfully, he doesn’t argue with me on that. His tongue pushes into my mouth, tangling and exploring as I lose myself in the feel of his lips. I lose track of time and place as I grind my hips against his and his hands massage my ass cheeks beneath the waistband of my sweatpants. I’m so close when the sound of the door buzzer makes me jump.

Startled, I look down at Zach in confusion. “That can’t be him already?”

Zach huffs out a breath, shifting beneath me and adjusting his erection in his sweatpants. “I doubt it, but I wouldn’t put it past Hayden. I swear that guy has some magical skills. I wouldn’t be surprised if he could teleport.”

Chuckling, I make my way to the intercom as it buzzes again.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Mr. Lockwood, I have Mr. and Miss Wilde here to see Mr. Reid,” Steve, the doorman, says.

“Okay, uh, send them up. Oh, and Steve? When Hayden Cassidy arrives, send him straight up. He should be here soon.”

“No problem, Mr. Lockwood.”

I hang up and turn to Zach, who hasn’t moved an inch. “Jackson’s here with Isabela.”

His brows furrow before he widens his eyes in realization. He looks down at his lap then jumps off the couch so fast, he’s a blur as he runs into the bedroom.

I tip my head back and laugh before I walk over to the freezer and open the door, allowing the cold air and mundane thoughts to deflate my cock.

Zach returns wearing jeans and a sheepish expression as there’s a knock on the door.

“That was close.” He lets out a relieved sigh and sits down on the couch.

I head toward the door, opening it to greet Jackson and his daughter Isabela on the other side. She’s bouncing on her toes, wearing a bright smile on her face as she clutches a piece of paper in her hands.

“Hey, I’m sorry for dropping by unannounced. Iz drew a picture for Zach at school and wanted to hand-deliver it herself,” Jackson says, stroking his hand over her head. “She didn’t want to wait until tomorrow.”

“Hey, no worries at all. Come in.” I open the door wider to let them in, and Isabela dashes inside, dumping her backpack on the floor before launching herself on the couch next to Zach in a fit of giggles.

“Isabela, this isn’t your home. You need to be more mindful of—” Jackson’s words cut off with a sigh as Isabela’s sneakers land haphazardly on the floor as she kicks them off. He leans down to pick up her backpack and her sneakers before sending an apologetic look our way. “I’m sorry. It seems I’ve created a monster.”

Laughing, I wave it off. “It’s no problem. Can I get you a drink?”

“Coffee, please,” he pleads.

“No Ryan today?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “No, he’s gone over to his friend’s for dinner, so we’re having a daddy and daughter dinner, which I’m pretty sure will consist of hot dogs and fries.”

I snort. “Sounds like a great time.”

“This is for you.” Isabela grins up at Zach as she hands over the artwork.

My heart practically bursts from my chest at his gentle excitement toward her.

“Wow, Isabela, this is amazing! You really did this?”

She nods enthusiastically, a beaming smile on her face.

“Wow! You did such a good job. What’s this?” Zach asks her, pointing to something on the drawing.

“Daddy said you had a head boo-boo.” She stands up on the couch cushion and places her small hands on his head. “So, I made you into Mr. Bump.”

I hand Jackson his coffee and look over Zach’s shoulder at the drawing as I sit down next to him. It’s Zach dressed in his hockey gear, but instead of a helmet, he’s got bandages around his head and a speech bubble that reads “Ouch.”

“This is so awesome.” I chuckle. “We’ll have to hang it up.”

Isabela lets out an excited whoop, then climbs off the couch and runs to the floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook the lake.

“So, how’s your head today?” Jackson asks.

“It’s good. Saw Joe this morning for another round of acupuncture. I don’t know why I didn’t try it before, but it seems to be helping,” Zach replies, resting his hand on my thigh. “We’re meeting Hayden shortly to talk about what’s happening next season.”

I notice a quick flash of something I can’t decipher in Jackson’s eyes, but it disappears before I can get a read on it.

“Oh yeah? How do you feel about it?” Jackson asks me. “Think you’ll be heading back to Denver?”

“Yeah, I think so. I’ve got a year left on my contract, so I’m going to play this season, then see if I can get signed by Chicago.”

“And what happens if you don’t?”

“Then I’ll be taking an early retirement.”

I’m assuming Hayden’s coming to tell me that the rumors aren’t true and I’m staying in Denver, but I’m not worried about it like I was before. I have complete trust and faith in our relationship, and I know we will be perfectly fine seeing through the five months we’ll be apart. We’ve talked about our expectations if we do need to do long distance, and once we get his schedule in the summer, hopefully we won’t have any away games when we’re in each other’s city, but if we do, we have a plan.

We have a new pact now. One that we made while eating donuts after having the most mind-blowing sex.

I think that’s why the last one didn’t work out in the end. We didn’t seal the deal with orgasms and fried dough.

Jackson fills us in on how Ryan’s under-8’s hockey program is going when there’s a knock on the door. Now this is more likely to be Hayden.

I open the door, and he’s standing there, full of swagger with his pressed dress pants, a turtleneck sweater, and wool overcoat. He knows he’s a good-looking guy.

Glancing at my watch, I arch a brow. “What time do you call this?”

“What is it with O’Hare and delays?” He grunts with a roll of his eyes. “I could probably walk here by the time it takes to get through that airport.”

He steps inside, and I give him a fist bump before leading him into the living area.

“Where is the—” His words cut off as he almost stumbles over his feet. His eyes widen at the sight of Jackson, who is looking equally caught off guard. I cast a confused glance to Zach, who looks as puzzled as I am.

I know Hayden and Jackson used to be teammates back in Boston. The media even called Hayden a formidable power forward before an ACL injury led to his early retirement. But I didn’t hear anything about there being any bad blood between the two of them when Jackson was traded to Los Angeles. Then again, it was a fair few years ago.

“Hayden, you know Jackson Wilde, right?” I ask, motioning to the guy sitting next to my man. “And this is his daughter, Isabela.”

The little blonde chaos gremlin in question comes running over to her dad, throwing her arms around his neck as she suddenly goes shy.

“Y-yeah, I know Jackson.” Hayden clears his throat a few times and gives a stilted nod. “You’re looking really well, Wilde.”

“You’re looking good too, Cassidy,” Jackson says, then stands up with Isabela on his arm. “I’ll leave you guys to it, I’ve gotta get this one fed.” He picks up her backpack and shoes, then turns to Zach. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

“See you tomorrow, and thanks for my artwork, Isabela.” Zach waves, and she waves back over Jackson’s shoulder.

“Good to see you, Cassidy.” Jackson gives Hayden a clipped nod before heading out of the door.

The three of us stand there in awkward silence as the door clicks closed. I’m not quite sure what to do or say. It’s like the awkwardness when I’m doing an interview with the press, and I don’t know what to do with my hands. But luckily, Hayden breaks the silence by clapping his hands and heading back toward the door.

“You boys feeding me or what?” He sounds like he’s trying to be cheery, but it’s clear his confidence has wavered slightly.

We both follow, and as we’re slipping on our shoes, I look over to Zach and mouth, “What the hell happened there?”

Twenty minutes later, we’re sitting opposite Hayden in our favorite Italian restaurant. He seems to have shaken off whatever came over him and is back to being his charming self.

“How’s the vibe heading into the postseason?” he asks Zach, tearing off a piece of bread to dip into the small dish of oil.

“Good. We’re focused and working hard every day. I just hope my migraines don’t make another appearance.”

“Yeah, that’s tough. I’ve played through migraines before, not to the same extent but it’s not something I would recommend. The Thunder are supporting you with treatment, right?”

“Yeah, we have daily sessions now, and I have follow-ups with my neurologist.”

Hayden nods approvingly, taking a bite of his bread before turning his attention to me. “And what about you, Lockwood? How do you feel about next season?”

“You tell me, Cassidy.” I shrug and give him a lazy smile. “I was hoping you were here to bring me some news.”

His eyes twinkle behind his dark-framed glasses as he chuckles. “I had a feeling you’d say that.”

“Come on then, spit it out.”

“Okay, okay. So, Denver is keeping you through to the end of your contract,” Hayden announces.

I hold my breath as his words confirm what I have been expecting. Since there was no news for Palmer or me, I’m not surprised that the whole trade rumor mill was just that. A rumor.

I glance over to Zach and catch him looking at me with a small smile.

We’ve got this, his eyes tell me. And I believe him.

It might be the hardest, longest five months of our lives, but we can do this. We’ve come a long way in the last few months, and once we get past this time apart, we will have the rest of our lives together.

“Okay.” I nod slowly, drawing on the table with my finger. “And?”

“They’re also offering a two-year extension.”

I immediately shake my head. “I don’t want it.”

If Hayden’s surprised by my quick rejection, he doesn’t show it. “Okay… So, do you have a plan of what you’ll do once your contract expires?”

“Well, kinda. Like I said before, if Chicago sends me an offer, I’ll take it, but if I don’t hear from them, then I’ll be retiring.”

“Retiring?” He gapes at me, and I can’t help but laugh.

“With what happened with the concussion and the development in our relationship, I don’t believe I’ll be able to play at my highest standard if I’m away from Zach. I know it’ll come as a shock to some people, especially since I’m going to be turning thirty next week and there’s still a few years left in me, but my heart is here in Chicago, and I can’t ignore that.”

“Are you sure about this?” Zach asks, but I know it isn’t from insecurity. I know he will support me in whatever decision I make.

“I haven’t been surer of anything in my life,” I echo the words I said to him after our first kiss.

Hayden whistles under his breath and raises his glass. “You guys, I can’t tell you how long I’ve been championing you two getting together, and I can’t deny, I fucking love it.”

We both lift our glasses and clink them against Hayden’s.

“I’ll let Denver know your decision, then once the season’s ended, I’ll work on Chicago.”

Under the table, Zach places his hand on my thigh and squeezes, and when I turn to face him, his eyes are filled with pride. I know Zach had his doubts at the beginning, and they were completely valid. If I were in his shoes, I would most likely feel the same, but I would give up everything for Zach Reid. That includes a decade’s worth of hard work to get me to where I am today in the NFL.

He’s fucking worth it.