Page 14 of Heartbreak Hockey

Ari smirked. “You should get that cough checked, kid.”

“Yeah, I’ll remember that. Now, yah mind fucking off? We were in the middle of something,” he said.

It was my turn to laugh my ass off.

“You’re just gonna let him talk to me like that, Merc?” Ari complained.

“Sure am. In fact, I encourage it.”

Jack winked and waved at my brother. He was a cocky little shit and I had to be careful with those. They’re kinda my favorite candy.

Ari huffed. “Fine. See ya later, Merc, and see you never again, punk.”

Jack responded by blowing him a kiss and Ari stormed off. I laughed on the inside—hard—but only showed my approval with a smoldering smile. I was going to dine on the best meat possible for me that night: Brat a la carte.

“Okay, trouble. You game?” He was facing me now, having spun on his bar stool during the debacle with my brother. I stepped between his thick legs and pushed the hair off his face. Vulnerability screamed from every cell of him, and I wanted it.

I wanted to keep him safe.

“I’m game, but I should be transparent about something,” he said never taking his gaze from my lips.

I gave him what he was begging for, sinking my fingers into his floppy locks and going in for the kill. I don’t know if he moaned or if I did. Maybe it was both of us. I know that I forgot about the rest of the world for a minute and enjoyed the fuck out of his mouth. He let my tongue in and heat ignited a fire that left me breathless and him panting when I pulled away.

We stared without speaking,again. Was that going to keep happening? Then he bit his fucking lip. “Careful, or I won’t wait to get you to my place.” Assuming we were going to my place. “You need to call a friend and give them my address?”

I spewed that without thought. Jack was triggering the caretaker in me big time. I didn’t exercise nearly that much forethought with other conquests.

He gave me all the smugness I deserved for that one.

“Hey, stranger danger, Jack,” I said, remembering what I’d taught everyone in my brood and hoping someone taught him the same.

“Dude, my dad was in the Navy. By the time I was eight, I could take down guys your size with a few well-placed maneuvers.”

Cocky.I frowned at him and squeezed his cheeks with one hand until his lips puckered like a fish. “Name’s Mercy, use it. Donotcall me dude.”

I kissed his lips again because I couldn’t resist and that bothered me. I should have taken that as a warning sign to turn around and leave him on that bar stool. I was too fucking entranced by him to give it another thought.

When I released him, he laughed enough that I saw a hit of the sunshine I suspected him of having. “Make me.”

“With pleasure.” I grabbed the lapels of his jacket.

“Wait,” he said, gripping my wrists and when he did, I got a taste of physical strength and the intelligence of that strength he claimed to have under his father’s tutelage. “My caveat.”

“Right.” I had to check myself. I’d gotten carried away. Things were just working between us. Flowing in a way I’d never had. We had fucking spark and I’d run with it. It was still important to listen. “What’s the caveat?”

“Just tonight.”

That was my caveat too. One I would have already made clear by that point in a pickup, but when I thought about it later, I realized I hadn’t thought about when I was going to bring that up.

Would I have?

I nodded slowly with my gut telling me I was holding fire in my arms, but my dick told me to ignore my stupid gut because it needed to be inside him.

Jack wasn’t just strong and smart and fucking hilarious; he was intuitive too. “If I’m just gonna break your heart, let’s not. I’m not into that, hurting people. I just want super-hot fucks and some fun.”

I glared. I’m not a romantic sap like Ari. I take pride in my man whore status. “I don’t have a heart to break, kid.”

“Okay. So long as that’s clear. I keep telling guys that and they keep falling in love with me.” He rolled his eyes.