Page 19

Chapter 19

MICAH

“ B est behavior, boys,” I said just before I opened the door to Tipsy.

“Of course. We need you in fighting shape. Can’t have Josie’s brother beating you up when we have games to win,” Sin teased.

I glared at him.

Tally smacked the back of Sin’s head. “Don’t be a dick.”

Sin rubbed his head. “I prefer slaps on my ass, not my head.”

“Definitely didn’t need to know that,” Tally replied.

“Come on. It’ll be fine,” Dom said, pushing me through the door.

“Yeah, Harper already texted that it’s all good in there so far,” Timmy said.

“Thanks again for letting Josie crash at your place.” Even if I hated that she thought staying there was her best option right now.

“Any time.” Then I swore he muttered something about earplugs as we entered the bar, but I couldn’t ask because everyone was cheering us for winning the game.

I loved coming to Tipsy after a game. Win or lose, the fans and regulars that came here always welcomed us and never gave us a ton of grief if we played like shit. Nor did they hound us for autographs or selfies. It was the perfect spot for our team hangout.

“There he is,” my best friend said as he walked toward me.

I pulled him in for a quick hug, and we slapped each other on the back.

“Good to see you, man. Settling in okay?” I asked.

“Yeah. Nice place. Josie showed me around. I’m glad she has you around.”

I stepped back. “What?”

“Nearby, I mean. If she needs anything. Sweet game, by the way. How’s the hand?”

My heart was racing. Damn. I’d hoped that maybe she’d caved and outed us. I looked over Ray’s shoulder to see her standing against the bar with some of my teammates’ partners near her, but her eyes were locked on mine.

Fuck. I’d give anything to kiss her right now.

“Is she driving you crazy?” Ray asked, his face turned in the direction of his sister.

“What? No. It’s fine. She’s fine,” I muttered, looking at Ray again. “Glad you’re here.”

“Same. So, the hand?”

I held it out, twisting it. “Not bad. PT looked at it. Nothing’s broken or anything. I just iced it and popped a few painkillers. Should be fine. Not sure about Bruzzy’s face, though. Might be an improvement,” I said sardonically.

“Josie was bloodthirsty out there. Yelling at you to get him.” He chuckled. “I swear, she was on her feet as soon as you started circling each other. She always did love watching you play.”

Warmth spread through my entire body. Yeah, I knew Josie liked watching my games, but I loved that she’d been a fan for a long time. That she loved something that was so important to me.

I tried not to think about how fired up Josie got after my last fight. Fuck. It was going to be a long week. And then I felt like a dick because I truly was glad that my best friend was here. I missed hanging out with him during the season.

“Come on, let me get you a drink,” Ray said. “I’d buy a round for the team, but you know. Teacher’s salary.”

I laughed. “You’re not buying shit while you’re here. I got this one.”

“Yes. I’ll take a martini, thank you. Top shelf,” Sin said, walking up behind me.

“Get your own drink, ass,” I fired back.

I did quick intros between Ray and my teammates as we walked deeper into the bar. He’d met a few of the guys over the years, like Tally, since I’d previously played with them, but he hadn’t come out to Denver during last season since he’d spent his spring break with his now ex-girlfriend, Madison.

“What are we having?” Simone called out. “And great game, boys.”

But I only had eyes for Josie. She was tucking a strand of purple hair behind her ear, a move that I’d come to realize was one of the ways she fidgeted.

“Hey, Micah. Great game,” she said, her voice steady.

I wondered if she’d shiver under my fingers if I touched her.

Fucking hell.

Stop .

But as soon as Ray turned to answer one of my teammates’ questions, I moved in close to Josie and smiled at her widening eyes as I dragged my hand along the small of her back.

“Micah,” she admonished.

“Did you enjoy the game?” I asked calmly, still touching her.

Thank fuck for dim bar lighting.

I traced a finger down the outside of her hip, my cock already hardening as I tortured both of us.

“It was great. Nice fight,” she rasped. Then her tongue darted out, licking the corner of her lip, and I bit back a groan.

“Thanks for the win.”

“What are you two talking about?” Ray’s voice cut through my lust-filled brain, and my head shot up.

His eyes were narrowed as he looked between us, and I took a small step back, my hand leaving her body. Not that he could’ve seen me touching her.

“What? Oh, nothing. Micah was just thanking me for tonight’s win,” Josie said.

“What?” Ray asked.

“Oh, Micah thinks Josie’s a good luck charm. We always win when she shows up at home games,” Timmy said, his statement ending with an oof as Harper not so subtly elbowed him in the side.

“Wait? Are you going to a lot of games?” Ray asked his sister. “I didn’t realize you two were seeing so much of each other.”

I swear I heard someone—probably Sin—whisper, you have no idea , but luckily, his voice was low, and Ray didn’t hear him.

That man was a fucking pain in the ass.

“Oh, yeah, I guess it didn’t really come up,” Josie said, her voice sounding slightly off.

“I texted her after you said she was in Denver to tell her if she ever needed tickets, they’d be at will-call for her,” I said.

“I dragged her to a bunch of games, too,” Harper interjected, and I wanted to kiss that woman. It was clear she would always have Josie’s back, and I was grateful for that. Josie needed more friends in her corner.

“And they kept winning. You know how superstitious these players are.” Josie shrugged. “And I don’t mind going if I’m not working. I love watching the games.”

She straightened her back and took a sip of the beer Simone had just put in front of her.

“Cool. I’d go to all the games I could if I was out here, too,” Ray said, and I swore we all breathed a sigh of relief.

Fucking hell.

***

“I hate knowing that you aren’t coming home with me tonight,” I murmured into Josie’s ear an hour later as Ray chatted with some of the guys. I knew I should keep my distance or at least stand a few feet away from her, but I couldn’t resist being close to her. I’d been inside of her earlier this afternoon, and I was not looking forward to missing that for the next few days.

But it wasn’t just sex. I just wanted her with me, driving me crazy and making me laugh. Fuck. I loved this woman.

“You’re going to get us caught,” she whispered. She kept her eyes off of me, but I didn’t miss her head tilt as she exposed her neck my way.

I’d give anything to lean in and taste her.

“There’s an office back there, right?”

“Micah,” she breathed out.

My hand skated over her hip.

“Just head back, and I’ll meet you.”

She turned into me. “You know we can’t do that.”

I groaned low. “I know. I’m just teasing you. You definitely haven’t worked here long enough for us to sneak back there, but dammit, Hurricane. I need you.”

Her lips parted, and it was like the entire bar disappeared.

“So, Ray, what are your plans tomorrow? It’s sweet that the guys have a two-day break while you’re here. Perfect timing.” Harper’s voice was overly loud, and Josie took a quick step back, her gaze darting toward her brother.

I didn’t miss the slight smirk on Harper’s lips, and once again, I was glad she was in our corner.

Ray turned his attention to me. “Got big plans for us tomorrow?”

“Maybe we’ll do a hike or something. Nothing crazy, but you brought your winter hiking boots, right?”

Ray groaned. “I’m not doing endless miles, man. A small hike and then beers. This is my vacation, after all. Josie, want to join us?”

“Um, I have to work tomorrow. Maybe you can hike in the morning, and I’ll meet you guys for lunch or something?”

“No strenuous hiking. You get injured, and Millsy will have your ass,” Tally reminded me.

“Yeah, yeah. We’ll take it easy,” I said.

Ray chuckled. “Remind me to thank Millsy.”

“Come on. You like hiking.”

He quirked his brow. “Yeah. Hiking. Not running up a mountain.”

“Whatever.”

“We’re heading out. Josie, you coming or you riding back with your brother?” Harper asked.

Dammit. I wasn’t ready to say good night to Josie yet.

“I’m going to head home with Harper. I have an early morning of dog walking. Enjoy your hike, boys,” she said, giving her brother a hug.

As Ray turned to say goodbye to a few of my teammates who were also heading out, I subtly tugged Josie close to me and leaned in.

“It’s killing me not to kiss you good night, but I’m going to find a way to satisfy both of us before your brother leaves. Five days with you in my building and not having you is not an option.”

I felt her shudder against me, and my dick hardened. Blue balls tonight would be a bitch, but I wanted her as much on edge as I continually was with her around.

“Micah,” she murmured, biting down on her lower lip.

“Good night, Hurricane. Dream about all the things I can do to you because I sure as fuck will be.” Then I skated my hand down her spine and palmed her ass one last time.

“Ready to go?” Harper asked Josie.

“Um, yeah. Good night, everyone.” Josie’s voice was breathless.

It was going to be a long fucking night.

JOSIE

“Morning, Josie,” Harper said, eyeing me over her coffee cup the next morning. “How’d you sleep?”

“Fine,” I said. Waking up without Micah next to me, when I knew he was in the same building, just plain sucked. “Totally comfortable bed and all.”

“But you missed your man. I get it.”

I sighed. “I’m not trying to sound ungrateful or anything.”

She laughed softly. “Please. I know you aren’t.”

“I do appreciate you letting me stay here. And for leaving that set of earplugs on the nightstand. Nice touch,” I teased.

She grinned. “You’re welcome. Connor’s a screamer.”

“Seriously, Harps,” said screamer exclaimed as he walked into the kitchen, his cheeks red.

I tried to stifle my laughter. She loved torturing this man as much as I enjoyed doing the same to Micah.

Harper walked over to her boyfriend and planted a big kiss on his lips, probably to embarrass him a bit more. “She said she wouldn’t cramp our style, so I gave her earplugs just in case. We all know hockey players are full of adrenaline after a game, especially with a sweet win like last night’s.”

“Micah actually gets fired up in a completely different and amazing way after a loss, too.” I tamped down a shudder. “Shit. Don’t tell him I told you that.”

Harper burst out laughing.

“I didn’t need to know that,” Connor muttered, the tips of his ears pink.

Harper ran her fingers over his jaw. “You’re cute when you blush.”

Connor grabbed her hand. “And you’re pure trouble.” Then he leaned in and kissed the hell out of her.

Now, I really missed Micah. Lunch couldn’t come fast enough. I was meeting them after I got some work done, and I was both nervous and excited.

“What are you thinking about over there?” Harper asked.

“Nothing,” I said, noticing that Conner was heading for the door.

“Getting in a quick run on the track upstairs. And I promise I won’t say a word to any of the guys, but maybe don’t tell me anything else about my teammate, okay, Josie?” He grimaced slightly, and I laughed.

“Will do. And thanks again for letting me stay here.”

“Of course. Whatever you need,” he said, and then the door shut behind him.

“Isn’t he the best?” Harper grinned.

I loved what a ballbuster she was. Reminded me of myself.

“So, what’s the plan today? You survived last night. Oh, and you’re welcome for distracting Ray when Micah looked like he was about to kiss the hell out of you. More than once.” Harper smirked. “But seriously, how long are you going to let this go?”

“Ugh, I have no idea. Why am I such a chickenshit about this?”

Harper poured me a cup of coffee and pushed it toward me across the island before she took a seat next to me.

“Why are you?”

I squared my shoulders and took a fortifying sip of delicious Nutella-laced coffee. “Shit, this is good. I need to pick up some Nutella.”

“Stop stalling.”

I glared at Harper. “Fine. So, remember how I told you Micah wants Ray to know the truth, and he’s letting me decide when that happens? I swear, my heart squeezed tight when he told me that he’d fallen for me the other night. I mean, he said, falling, but I think it’s more. And I know it’s more for me. And I know me dragging my feet on this is killing him. I’m being an idiot, aren’t I?”

“A little. Seriously, who cares what Ray thinks? Who cares what your family thinks? All that matters is that you and Micah are having fun, that you’re happy with each other and with yourselves.”

I took another sip and nodded. She was right. One hundred percent.

So why couldn’t I just say the words to my brother?

***

“Fuck. I hated not having you in bed with me,” Micah rumbled as soon as he opened his door. “Why didn’t you use your key?”

“And why would I have a key to your place?” I arched a brow. “Where’s my brother?”

“In the shower. Let’s hope he stays in there for a while.” And then Micah was tugging me into the entryway and into his arms.

I fell against his chest, my hands immediately curling into his shirt to anchor myself. A soft moan left my lips, and then I was lifted into the air and pressed against the narrow wall that led into the kitchen.

Micah’s mouth was on mine before I could utter another word. Not that I had anything left to say when all my body wanted was to lean in and kiss this man until we were both breathless. His tongue swiped against mine, and desire flooded me.

I hitched one of my legs up and wrapped it around one of his as we rocked against each other, his hard cock pressed where I wanted him most.

“Fuck, Hurricane. I’m desperate to feel you. All of you. Fuck,” he gritted out when he broke the kiss.

Our foreheads pressed against each other, and our labored breaths intermingled.

He cupped my face, making me meet his gaze. “I really don’t want to pressure you, but we could tell him now?”

“I just don’t know. I’m sorry, Micah. I really am.” I paused. “Maybe we can tell him before he leaves? I just…” I trailed off.

He tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear. “It’s okay. We’ll figure it out. Just kiss me again and hope that your brother has stomach issues or something, so we don’t have to stop anytime soon.”

I laughed softly. “Mean, but also super gross to talk about bathroom issues when you’re trying to kiss me.”

He chuckled. “There’s not any trying about this.”

Then he was kissing me again, and I linked my hands behind the back of his neck and gave in.

“Hey, did I hear Josie come in?” Ray’s voice carried down the too-short hall, and I jumped away from Micah, sucking in a breath.

Shit. I hadn’t even heard the toilet flush or faucet go on, something to warn us.

“Yep, I’m here.” I slid into the kitchen and hoped my brother didn’t hear how loudly my heart was beating.

“Just need to grab my coat, and we can go,” Micah called out. How husky did his voice sound, or was I imagining it?

“You okay?” Ray asked, his head tilted in question at me, much like all the dogs I walked when they wanted a treat. I squelched a nervous laugh.

“What? Yep. Never better. Just needed some water. I left my water bottle at Harper’s. So, did you guys go hiking this morning?”

Totally normal. I could be totally normal.

“Oh-kay. And no, we stayed at the bar for a while after you left last night, then came back here and hung out. I refused to go hiking without an acceptable amount of sleep,” Ray said.

I chuckled. My brother was not a fan of long hikes, especially when it was cold as hell out.

“We might hit up Red Rocks Park this afternoon. Nothing too much for Ray, of course,” Micah said with a grin.

“Hey, I just don’t enjoy long hikes. Doesn’t mean I can’t keep up with you, Micahtron. Except when you decided to run them, of course. And by the way, I noticed some of the guys called you that last night. How’d they get that one out of you?”

“Um, that was my fault. I might’ve called him that the first time I saw him,” I said, smiling at the memory.

“Oh shit. I’m sure he appreciated that.”

“It’s fine. Annoying, but fine.” He paused. “So, lunch?”

“Josie took me to a great sandwich place yesterday, and they had so many options. Pickles Deli, I think. But I’m good with going there again, or whatever.”

I breathed in a sigh of relief at not being outed again.

“Works for me,” Micah said. “I heard the Gobbler there is good.”

My gaze spun to him, and I wanted to swat that tiny smirk off his lips. I never should’ve told him about Harper’s joke.

Freaking hell, this man.

“Works for me.” Did I sound squeaky?

“Oh, dude, meant to ask. You start drawing or something?” Ray asked, his attention on Micah, who had moved to stand next to him at the kitchen island.

“What? No.”

“Collecting dirty pics, then?” He pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket. “Found this tucked under that book on the coffee table.”

“Uh, definitely not,” Micah said, reaching for it.

“Bet Josie could do something this good. Not that she’s drawing nudie pics or something,” Ray said. I choked as he held it out of Micah’s reach.

Crap. It was one of mine.

“That’s mine,” I muttered.

Ray froze and then tossed it toward me. “What? Why is it here? Like, did you buy it, or…” He trailed off, looking horrified.

I couldn’t help but laugh softly. “It’s part of the illustrations I’ve been drawing for authors. I started just doing branding and avatars, but these images are really popular, so I wanted to add them to my options for my authors. I like to hand draw them before doing the final image on my tablet. Feel the pencil against the paper, you know. Uh, it must’ve fallen out of my bag or something.”

“Oh, okay. Yeah, that’s great. You always were great at drawing people. Yeah, here you go.” He handed it to me like it was going to attack him, and this time my laugh spilled out.

“It’s not that funny. Wait, but how did it end up on Micah’s coffee table?” He eyed me suspiciously.

I darted a look at Micah, but he wasn’t saying a word.

Punk.

“Uh, I was working on it before I left to get you from the airport. Must’ve dropped it when I picked up Micah’s keys. Not sure how it got under a book. Anyway, thanks for finding it. Let’s go get some lunch.”

I snatched the picture from Ray’s hand and headed toward the door. “Coming?” I threw out behind me.

Hopefully, I could make it through lunch without any other issues.