Page 32 of Just my Puck (Love & Laughter #1)

JASON

T he euphoria of winning the game is dulling the ache in my shoulder. Rolling it gently, I stay in the locker room longer than necessary, needing to walk out of here without wincing.

As I lift my head, I notice Coach Stevens walking towards me, his stern face now etched with a soft smile. He gives me a nod as he passes by, indicating that we need to have a talk. My heart skips a beat; this can only be bad.

Sensing my apprehension, he puts his hand on my good shoulder, “You know you played exceptionally well today, Jase. Go home now and rest up. Have to keep up this winning streak.”

“Yeah.” Lucy .

Lucky Lucy. She is our good luck charm. Thinking about her, I rise and head out of the locker room, finding her with Steele and Patty in the stands waiting for me to join them.

Lucy sees me and waves, her face smiling with excitement and pride as I approach her. Her light brown hair bounces around her face playfully as she jumps up.

“Great game, Jason!” she says, her eyes shining behind her glasses.

“All down to you.”

She shakes her head. “No, not me.”

The melancholy in her voice is heartbreaking. She really thinks she is cursed with bad luck. Well, not anymore. Twice now, we’ve won with her here. She is definitely our good luck charm.

“Are you coming back to our place?” I ask, seductively lowering my voice.

She nods shyly as Patty clears her throat. “Well, guess that’s my cue. Luce, we will talk tomorrow at work.”

“Yes,” she replies with a secretive smile.

We wait for Patty to go before leading Lucy through the stands.

“The press will be out in their droves after the win,” Steele mutters darkly.

“Stay close.” Taking her hand, I pull her to me, wishing I could kiss her, but we need to get into the car as soon as possible.

Steele isn’t wrong. We’re hounded as we step outside, and Lucy completely shuts down.

I can see the panic rising in her eyes as they converge, firing questions at us. They are relentless, their cameras clicking incessantly as they call out our names. Lucy takes a step back, her grip on my hand tightening.

Wrapping an arm around her, I guide her towards the car. “Just keep your head down and keep walking.” My fingers curl tighter around hers, trying to offer some comfort.

Finally, we reach the car, and Steele quickly ushers us inside.

Lucy slumps against me in relief, her head resting on my shoulder. “Sorry, I’m not used to this kind of attention.”

They’re shouting “Lucky Lucy” at her, which I can imagine is jarring for her. We’re used to it. It’s part of the package.

Stroking her hair gently, I murmur. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll deal with them from now on.”

She nods silently, and I can feel her relax into my touch.

As we pull up to the house, I help Lucy out of the car, grateful that Steele allows me this time with her. I guess that’s how it’s going to work. I’ll have to give him time and vice-versa. Throw Carter into it, and I wonder if I will ever have her alone.

As soon as we walk through the door, she collapses onto the couch, her shoulders slumping in exhaustion. Sitting down beside her, I pull her into my arms.

“Are you okay?”

She nods weakly. “I guess I didn’t expect it to be so intense.”

“Having second thoughts?” Rubbing soothing circles on her back, feeling a surge of protectiveness towards her, it’s clear that she is unhappy.

“What? No!” she exclaims to my relief and Steele’s as I glance up at him.

“Good,” I whisper, my lips brushing against her temple. “Because I couldn’t bear to lose you now. You’re our good luck charm, remember?”

A slight frown creases her brow as she looks up at me. “Do you really think that?”

“Yep,” I say again before leaning in and pressing my lips to hers.

The kiss is soft and sweet, but I can feel the hunger building between us. Pulling back slightly, I cup her cheek, gazing into her eyes. “I know I said I wanted to wait, but I’m not sure I can.”

Her breath hitches. With a low growl, I press my lips back to hers, deepening the kiss.

She moans into my mouth as my fingers find their way under her shirt, tracing circles over her skin. Steele’s soft groan as he sits on the coffee table in front of us draws her attention away.

“This is strange...kissing Jason in front of you,” she tells him.

“We will be doing more than that in time, little one. I want to watch you with him.”

“Oh?” she croaks, her cheeks going pink as she pulls away from me. “I’m not sure...we said we weren’t...I’m not ready.”

“That’s fine,” I murmur, wanting to let her off the hook that Steele placed her on. “We don’t have to do anything you aren’t ready for.”

Steele nods in agreement. “Jason’s right. We don’t want to push you into anything you’re not comfortable with.”

Lucy heaves a sigh of relief, and I pull her close again, kissing her temple. “We can take things slow, Lucy. No one is going to force you into anything.”

“I know,” she murmurs, snuggling into my embrace. “I just don’t want to disappoint you both.”

“You could never disappoint us,” Steele says firmly, his eyes locked on hers. “We care about you, Lucy. And we want what’s best for you.”

She looks up at him with gratitude shining in her eyes. “Thank you. That means a lot to me.”

I kiss the top of her head, feeling content and happy knowing that we can take our time with her. I’m not sure what the future holds for us, but right now, at this moment, I’m happy to be here with Lucy.

“Hot tub?”

“I don’t have a bathing suit. Again,” Lucy giggles, glad the heated moment is over.

“You have underwear, right?” I waggle my eyebrows suggestively.

“Uhm...”

“You do, I saw your tits earlier, remember.” Chuckling softly as her eyes go wide, I suddenly shut up. “Or are you going commando, princess?”

“Fuck,” Steele breathes. “That’s not fair.”

“Not commando,” she says, shaking her head.

“Here,” Carter says as he enters the room, all ready for the hot tub, carrying a pink shopping bag in his hand. “You were worried about it last time, so I got you one. Think it’ll fit. I’m pretty good at sizing.”

“You bought me a bathing suit?” she asks slowly.

“Uh-huh. Is that okay?” He appears worried that she is going to yell at him for being a perv or something. Steele and I exchange a glance of amusement as we wait.

“That’s really sweet. Thank you. I’ll try it on.” Lucy rises to take the bag from Carter with a shy smile.

He beams at her. “Anytime, Lucky Lucy.”

Again, I see the frown, and it registers with me that she isn’t happy with the nickname. Watching her head into the guest bathroom to change, I contemplate how the rest of this night is going to go if we don’t get to take her to bed. It’s going to be a struggle to keep my hands off her.

Racing to get changed ourselves, when we return moments later, Lucy emerges from the bathroom wearing the pink swimsuit, and my jaw drops. She looks stunning in it, her body perfectly accentuated by the tight fabric. She blushes under our stares, fidgeting with the straps.

“You look amazing,” I tell her, standing up and wrapping my arms around her waist.

Steele nods in agreement, his eyes devouring her hungrily.

“Okay, let’s go before I change my mind,” she says quickly, trying to diffuse the sexual tension in the air.

We make our way outside to the hot tub, where we submerge into the hot bubbly water, which I’m hoping will ease the burning ache in my shoulder.