Page 47 of Just my Puck (Love & Laughter #1)

LUCY

W hen I see Jason saunter into the library, looking hot as shit in what appears to be his regular black tee and combat pants, even though it’s boiling hot outside, I nearly swoon.

All eyes swivel on stalks to him, but he is looking for me.

His eyes light up when he sees me, and my heart leaps with joy, but I manage to remain composed, somehow.

My lips tug into a smile as I lower my head and look away, deliberately playing coy for some unknown reason.

He strolls up to me, and it feels like my whole world has stopped.

He looks down at me with an intense gaze, his eyes roving over my body as if he’s trying to memorize every detail. Flushing under the scrutiny, I’m sure he can see my heart beating wildly through my shirt. I’m almost too afraid to move for fear of breaking the perfect moment.

“What are you doing here?” I finally manage to get out, my voice a whisper.

“I couldn’t stay away,” he smiles, grabbing my hand and pulling me to him, leading me to the back of the library, and soon we’re hidden away behind the stacks, out of sight of my boss.

He presses me against one of the shelves, our lips meeting in a passionate kiss.

Everything suddenly feels like a dream. Allowing myself to get lost in it, his hand moves up my waist, his hard body pushing against mine.

His cock is erect, and I wish I had the courage to take him right here, but I’m too scared of someone walking in on us.

At the sound of hushed voices, I’m jerked back to reality and manage to push him away, my hands trembling and my heart racing.

He grunts as my hand connects with his shoulder, his hand going up to it briefly.

“We can’t do this here,” I whisper, my voice barely audible.

He steps back, his face full of disappointment. “I know, but a guy has to try,” he says, that trademark smirk adorning his gorgeous face, before he drops the mask, and I see the flash of pain in his eyes.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, my voice filled with concern.

He shakes his head, trying to brush it off. “Nothing.”

My worry grows as I know he’s holding something back.

“It’s not nothing,” I say, my voice firm.

He looks away, his body tense. “I’m fine. Honest. Had an appointment near here, so I stopped by. Is that okay?”

I can tell he’s not telling me the whole truth, and it concerns me. But I know I can’t push him too hard now. I’m scared he will back all the way out of my life.

“Of course,” I say, my voice soft. “I just didn’t expect you. What appointment?”

The words are out of my mouth before I can stop them.

He looks down at me thoughtfully. “Just a routine check-up. I’m actually running a bit late, and it’s around the back of here. Is there a back entrance?”

Nodding, I indicate the lesser-used back entrance, which leads to the street behind the main road the library sits on.

He cups my face and drops his mouth to mine again quickly. “Thanks,” he murmurs. “I’ll see you later, yeah?”

Nodding, I reply, “I’ll be there.”

He waves and disappears out of the back, pulling a baseball cap out of his back pocket to shove on his head, drawing it low over his eyes.

“Weird,” I mutter. He was acting really shady. I wonder what is really going on.

“You going to the game tonight?” Patty asks, making me jump a mile as I didn’t hear her approach, so lost in my thoughts about how strange Jason is acting.

“Uhm, yeah.”

“Mind if I join you?”

“No, of course not. I was hoping you would. You’re my confidence.”

She returns my smile. “Good. Steve is out of town, so we can use his seats. I feel we have a camaraderie going on there.”

Giggling, I agree. “Totally. I’ll miss those guys when Steve wants his seats back.”

“Meet you at the usual?”

“Yeah, thanks, Patty. You’re the best friend a girl can have.”

“Aww, shucks,” she says, scuffing her shoes in an exaggerated gesture. “But same to you.”

Wringing my hands, I blurt out, “You know I’m always here for you, right?”

She frowns. “I know. Where did that come from?”

“I’m just aware of how we always end up doing my stuff and talking about my life. I don’t want that to be our friendship.”

“Look, Luce. The way I see it, friendship is swings and roundabouts. You’re going through a lot right now, and I’m here for you, whatever you need. The tables will turn at some point, and I know that when I have drama, you’ll be there for me.”

“I will. One hundred percent.”

“There you go then. I mean, my life is fucking boring as all shit without you in it to regale me with tales of donkey-dicks and lots of them all pointed at you.” She laughs. “It’s a blast.”

Laughing too, I nod. “Well, I’m happy to entertain. Hopefully, it will all settle down soon.”

Still giggling, she waves and goes back to work while I look over my shoulder at the door Jason disappeared through.

Chewing my lip, I wonder if I should be worried but push it aside when Maple calls me over to help the school kids that have filed in, and the rest of my day gets eaten up with no time to think.

* * *

Running down the steps at closing time, I’m in a hurry to get home, shower and change and meet Patty for the game tonight. I’m surprised to see Jason outside, leaning against his Range Rover parked up at the curb, his arms folded and his baseball cap on.

“Hey, princess,” he says, straightening up as I rush over to him for a kiss.

He is eager to explore my mouth with this tongue, which he does for a few moments before pulling away.

“Sorry about today.”

“Why, what did you do?”

He opens the passenger door for me. “Get in.”

Climbing in, I wait for him to join me on the driver’s side, and when he does, his face is serious. My anxiety levels skyrocket, and I barely breathe as I wait for him to speak again.

“My appointment today was for my shoulder. It’s been giving me a bit of pain, so I saw a doctor about it.”

“Okay, so why didn’t you just tell me that before?”

“Because no one knows I came here. It was an unsanctioned visit.”

His blue eyes meet mine, clouded with worry and something else.

“So if this was something you weren’t supposed to do, why are you telling me?”

“I knew you were worried, but you don’t need to be,” he says steadily, almost as if he is trying to convince himself, not me.

My heart plummets. “How bad is it?”

“It’s not that bad. A pain that just comes and goes.”

“Then why is it a big secret?”

“Because,” he hisses, turning back to face the road before he slams the car into gear and sets off.

“I don’t understand this, Jason. If you need medical attention...”

“I don’t. Drop it now, okay? It’s sorted.”

“How?”

“Lucy, it’s fine.”

Closing my mouth as I don’t want to fight with him, I wonder if I have no choice but to push this issue or let it go. He trusted me enough to tell me. It would be a massive betrayal if I say anything to anyone. “Do Steele and Carter know?” I whisper.

“No. And you won’t tell them, okay, Lucy? This is nothing, and I need you to drop it and forget you ever saw me today.”

“What? Why did you come into the library then? Why not just go straight to your dodgy appointment?”

My temper has fired up with him being a bit of a dick about this. I didn’t ask to be burdened with this secret. Blinking back the tears when he doesn’t answer, only frowns grimly and hunches down in his seat, it becomes clear.

“You used me.”

“It’s not like that.”

“It is. You didn’t want anyone to capture your visit to the doctor on camera, so you came to see me and slipped out the back. Dammit, Jason, that fucking hurts.”

“I know. I’m sorry, Lucy. I’m a first-class dick, but it has to be this way.” He pulls up outside my apartment building and takes my hand. “Please don’t tell anyone. I’m trusting you, Lucy.”

“Fuck off,” I grit out, so angry and upset with him. “You used me to do something dangerous. That makes me feel like trash.”

“No!” he grits out. “I just needed a cortisone injection to be able to get through tonight’s game, that’s all. It’s not dangerous.”

“But you don’t want anyone to know.”

“I have taken a big risk telling you. I trust you. Do you trust me?”

“Of course,” I say, my shoulders sagging.

“Just please don’t tell anyone, okay?”

Seeing the desperation in his eyes and reading it in his tight body language has me letting him pull me into his arms. Pressing my face into his chest and giving myself a moment to calm down, I realize that he has taken two giant risks now - one by telling me where he was going today and then telling me tonight just how much pain he is in, in not so many words.

“Okay,” I say quietly, looking up at him. “I won’t tell, Jason. I trust you to know what you’re doing.”

His relief floods his features, and he kisses me softly. “Thank you. I’ll see you later.”

Nodding, I pull away from him and climb out of the car, disappearing into my building as he takes off from the curb like a bat out of hell.