Page 26

Chapter seventeen

Cecilia

Sorry neighbors...

We make our way inside Madison Square Garden, grab a beer each and popcorn, then head to our seats, which happen to be right behind the glass. Morgan’s already seated and waves the moment she spots me.

“Hi, Sweetie! I’m so happy you’re here, the first games are always the best! You’ll see, the crowd will go wild, and our boys will get super excited,” she says in her sweet voice when she stands up and pulls me into a hug.

“Hi Morgan, it’s good to see you again. I’m excited to see them play, although I’ll most likely be clueless the whole time.” I laugh as we pull apart.

She keeps her hands on my arms while looking me over, or more so the jersey. Shaking her head and smiling, she says, “Oh, he’s really gone.”

“That’s exactly what I keep telling her,” Emma says from behind me.

Morgan looks around me as they exchange a knowing look. “She’s still in denial. It’s okay, I was the same with Clay when we first met. Hi, I’m Morgan Burkley.” She holds her hand out for Em to take. And she does, eagerly I might add.

“Hi! I’m Emma Mackenzie, this one’s best friend. I’m obsessed with your work. You did my condo, and I secretly love you,” Em rambles off as if she just met a worldwide celebrity.

I groan loudly. “Jesus, Em. I told you not to be weird.”

“What? I’m not being weird. I’m just telling her how much I love what she does.”

Morgan giggles. “It’s okay, really. I like knowing that people appreciate what I do.” She smiles genuinely at us, then turns to look at the screens above the rink where a countdown begins.

“Oh, look! It’s starting, we should sit down.” She folds back into her seat while I take the one next to her, Emma sitting on my other side.

It’s pretty dark in the arena with flashing lights going all over the place.

A video montage plays on the screen, as well as projects over the ice.

An announcer begins to speak, but I’m not paying attention, I’m too captivated with everything happening around us.

Soon he’s announcing all the players, one after the other, as they arrive on the ice.

Everyone is cheering, clapping, and yelling. Excitement buzzes through everyone’s veins, and it’s mesmerizing to watch. Suddenly, the cheers get louder, like whatever is about to happen is important.

I turn back to the ice, then to the big screen just as Morgan grips my thigh and gives it a little shake. “Here they come!” She’s radiating with pride, and it makes my grin widen.

“Alternate captain, number twenty-five. CLAY BURKLEY!” the announcer shouts. Morgan jumps up, clapping her hands and hollering, supporting her husband to the fullest. I want that.

“And finally, captain of the New York GRIFFINS, number nineteen. SILAS HAYES!!!”

The crowd goes wild as he skates out to join his team on the ice. Em and Morg are both screaming, forming a circle with their hands over their mouths for the sound to travel further. All I can do is stand there, a goofy smile on my face, my heart racing inside my chest as I watch him.

That’s my man. My man.

The other team, the Florida Black Bears, steps onto the ice just as the Griffins begin to do warmup drills, going in two opposite circles and shooting pucks into the net.

My eyes stay solely focused on Silas as he stops skating beside Clay and another player that I can’t see very well at this angle, only the number on his sleeve. Thirteen.

They’re chatting away when Silas’s gaze bores straight into mine as if he could sense me. A dazzling smile overtakes his features as he bumps his elbow into Clay and nods our way.

Clay and number thirteen face us as Clay lifts his gloved hand up in a wave, then winks at his wife, who basically melts into a puddle beside me.

Number thirteen stares at me in a strange way, I can feel his eyes as they assess me. He feels familiar, but I can’t get a good look at him no matter how much I narrow my eyes. He turns quickly and skates off to do warmups on his own. Weird.

Silas and Clay make their way to the glass partition in front of us, and Clay begins talking with Morgan about I don’t know what, I’m not really listening. My focus is still only on Silas.

He looks to my side first to greet my friend. “Hey, Emma,” he says loudly so we can hear him over all the noise, then his gaze falls on me. “Hey, Minnie.” He gives me a boyish grin that makes my heart flutter . Ugh, the things this man does to me .

“Hey, Big Guy,” I say back, my cheeks going rosy, and not from the cold.

Silas hits Clay once more as they exchange a look I can’t decipher, then they give us one last wink before turning around and skating a few feet away.

They drop simultaneously to the ice and lay their gloved hands to the ground, ending on all fours.

What the hell? They then start flexing their hips, and it all becomes clear.

I know what they’re doing, it’s some type of groin stretch. But holy shit, why is it so... hot.

I sit on the edge of my seat, completely enthralled by what is taking place before me. Morgan giggles, probably used to this performance, while Emma fans herself, looking like her greatest fantasy has come to life.

“I love hockey,” she sighs, causing Morgan and me to crack up.

A little over two hours later, we’re in the third period with two minutes left on the clock. I’m still completely lost at how the game works. Morgan has been trying to teach me as it plays out, naming everyone, their position, and what they do, as well as explaining the rules.

I try to listen as best as I can, but when I think I’ve finally gotten the hang of it, they start skating down the ice at lightning speed and I end up losing the puck, and I once again can’t tell what’s happening anymore.

I’m going to have to ask Silas to explain it to me again. Maybe they have some hockey 101 classes I could take that could help.

The game is currently tied at 3-3, but with the clock running out, they seem to get more intense, more violent. Hits are being made left and right, bodies being slammed against the board, making me jump out of my seat every time.

With forty-five seconds left, the crowd is really getting riled up now. Silas has the puck as he comes closer to the visiting team’s net. But their opponents are everywhere, there’s no way he can get a clean shot.

He passes the puck to number thirteen, who grabs it quickly and approaches the net. But there’s still no good opening. He flings it to number twenty-five, Clay, who quickly passes it back to Silas.

The whole thing happens so quickly that most of the opponents are still focused on Clay. Only five seconds are left, and when the puck gets to Silas, he doesn’t keep it. No, he sees his opening and takes it. The instant the puck is within reach of his stick, he hits it, sailing it through the air.

It feels like the whole arena holds their breath as these last seconds tick down. But then the horns blare, indicating a new goal, and the crowd roars. They won, 4 -3 for the Griffins.

I jump to my feet at the same time as everyone else around me does.

We’re screaming, clapping, and jumping on the spot, it’s phenomenal.

Silas practically gets tackled to the ground by his teammates for scoring the winning goal.

He looks so happy. I love all of Silas’s moments. But this one, this one is my favorite.

Silas texts me not long after they get off the ice, telling me to follow Morgan and that he’ll give Emma and I a lift home once the team is done with the press and team meeting. Good thing, because Em and I took a cab here. We get up from our seats and follow Morgan out of the arena.

Once we get to the meet-up spot, Emma begins asking thousands of questions about décor while waiting, and Morgan invites us to the team’s Halloween party she’s hosting at her place. We even make plans for a girls’ night this Saturday since the boys will be away until Sunday.

It’s been a little over an hour when we finally catch sight of a few players, Silas, and Clay not far behind them. It doesn’t take long for Silas to spot us, and when he does, he practically sprints our way. Dropping his duffle bag on the ground, he scoops me up in his arms and spins us around.

My legs wrap around his waist, and I laugh gleefully at his enthusiasm while I try desperately to hold on. Once he stops spinning us, my fingers come up to run through his still damp hair.

His hand grabs the back of my neck as he pulls me down for a kiss, fusing our lips together. Every cell in my body comes to life, like an electrical shock running through me that only Silas has the power to make happen. I saw him just this morning, and yet I missed him deeply.

“Minnie,” he says against my lips as we pull away. At first, the nickname bothered me, but now I love hearing him say it.

“You were amazing out there, Silas,” I tell him as I come back in for another kiss.

“All right, you two, keep the PDA to a minimum. Not all of us want to see that shit.” Silas puts me back down as Clay announces his arrival loud and clear.

I go to say hi, but he surprises me by taking me into a side hug and kissing the top of my head. “Hey, C. Glad you could make it.” And just as quickly, he releases me and heads over to his wife, showing us a bit of PDA himself.

I’m so baffled by his actions that I stand frozen in place, and when I glance over at Silas, he’s giving his friend an irritated glare.

I guess I’m not the only one who found that weird.

I only met Clay once, and he was a bit standoffish.

And from Silas’s expression, I can tell it’s not his normal style to greet people the way he did me.

Clay catches on that we’re all a little shell-shocked, except for Morgan, who’s holding back a laugh. “Seems you won this cold bear over already, Cecilia.” She points back to her husband, who stands behind her, arms around her neck.

Clay gives us a smirk, before outing his friend.

“What? This guy talks about you all the time, it almost feels like I’m the one dating you.

Hell, I’m pretty sure I even have a text telling me your shoe size.

” He starts laughing while I turn crimson and Silas groans.

Emma and Morgan, on the other hand, seem to find this fascinating as they look at Silas and me with fondness.

“Okay, I think it’s time to head out. Enough talking about things that are said in private,” Silas says in annoyance while glowering at Clay. Silas picks up his duffle bag and takes my hand, bringing the back of it to his lips. “Let’s go home.”

Once at the condo, I invite Silas over for the night. I really didn’t want to say goodnight, knowing that tomorrow he’ll be leaving for his first two away games and won’t be back until Sunday.

We could have gone back to his place, but since I need to get up early for work, I thought it would be more practical for us to stay here so that I can get ready in the morning while he stays in bed.

We’re currently lying in my bed watching a movie on my laptop. I think I’ll have to get a TV in here, watching on a tiny screen is no fun . There’s the TV in the living room, but we wanted some privacy.

Silas passes his fingers through my hair as he regards me. “I missed you today, that’s crazy, right? We were just together this morning, and the moment I left you here, I started aching for you.”

I lean my head back from his chest and look up into his beautiful green pools. “I guess that makes me crazy too then, because I missed you too.”

He lowers to capture my lips as I sigh with content. I love kissing this man. He moves the laptop away from us and turns me onto my back, coming to rest above me.

We begin a rocking motion, pushing against each other, desire building in the pit of my stomach. The only thing separating our connection is my panties, camisole, and his boxers.

I want them gone. I want to feel the heat of his body consuming mine.

“Are you sore, baby?” he whispers along my ear, before nipping my jaw.

“Yes... but I want you.”

“I’ll be gentle.” He gets on his knees and pulls me to sitting, removes my camisole, and leaves me naked from the waist up. He palms my breasts in each hand as if he’s weighing them, utterly captivated by them.

I giggle at his comment. “That’s what you said last night.”

He throws his head back, expelling a lusty laugh. I watch him, hypnotized by the sound, everything about him drawing me in. “Yeah well, I may have lost control a bit.” He comes back and lays me down on the bed, kissing first my mouth, then my neck.

Silas goes on to removing the rest of our clothing before resting between my legs. His hand comes down, caressing my wet flesh. “Mmm, always so wet for me. Aren’t you, Minnie?”

“Yes.”

A loud moan escapes me when he dips a finger inside of me, then two, then three. It stings at first, but the feeling quickly subsides with my arousal leaking all over. Once he deems me ready for him, he removes his hand and pushes into me.

It’s still a really tight fit, but it’s far from the pain of yesterday, my body quickly accepting his length. This time, he keeps his promise, there’s nothing rough or wild about this intimate moment, only soft and tender. He kisses me the whole way through, loving me as he thrusts slowly into me.

When the orgasm hits, I see stars as I come on a loud cry.

It’s different than yesterday, those were powerful, explosive.

This one takes you by surprise, starting out slow, but growing and growing until every part of you is feeling it.

An out-of-body experience. Silas follows me over the edge, my name a whisper on his lips.

We lay in each other’s arms, no words spoken, simply admiring one another until I fall asleep to the sound of his heartbeat. My dreams are filled with beautiful thoughts of Silas and me, of a future I didn’t know I wanted but now crave with him.

That is, until Silas wakes me from my deep sleep, stating he needs me too much and claims my body once more. This time not so gentle.

We definitely woke up the neighbors. Poor Em.