Page 25

Chapter 25

The final performance

Cooper

That had been…something.

I’d never given up control like that before. There were too many risks. I was the captain of the team, the face of several products, and I carefully managed my brand. People wanted things from me. A piece of my hair, my clothes, even my sperm. I had rules to protect myself and I was never too vulnerable.

I trusted Callie. She was about as far from a jersey chaser as I could get. She didn’t want photos, or stories about how she banged the hockey player. She didn’t want my possessions or my celebrity. All she wanted was golf lessons and orgasms.

I was relaxed in a way I couldn’t remember after I’d fucked someone. She’d taken over and I hadn’t been responsible for her pleasure. She’d focused on me, not so I’d want to fuck her again, but because she wanted to drive me crazy. All I’d had to do was lie back and take it…until it had become too much. Damn, I was surprised how much I liked it.

I also liked a lax and sated Callie lying flat on my bed after screaming, she’d come so hard. I wouldn’t tease her about that because my own throat was a little scratchy and I’d made some noises I wasn’t proud of. Would totally do it again though.

I turned to watch her. Callie’s eyes blinked open, staring blankly at the ceiling. “Did that work for you?” I asked.

A grin crossed her face, something softer and less guarded than I’d seen before. “It’ll do.”

I propped myself up on one elbow. “If you have any complaints, maybe you want to speak to the woman who was in charge.”

She looked up at me. “Someone else took over at the end there.”

Was she upset about that? “Sorry.” Her smile widened, something a little bit dirty in it. I was on board.

“I said I wanted you to lose control. And you did.” She shrugged and my eyes fell to those incredible tits.

I pulled my gaze back up to her face. She was still soft and open, a side few got to see, and it softened something in me. “I’ve never done that.”

That frown between her brows. “No?”

“I don’t trust a lot of people to not take advantage.”

Her eyes widened and then she nodded. “Something we have in common. People suck.”

I snorted. “Yeah, some of them do.”

I felt the tension returning to her body. She was putting her armor back on.

“Do you want to stay?” If that armor was coming on so she’d be ready for me to kick her out, I wanted her to know she didn’t need it yet.

“Are you sure?”

“Trust me, I don’t offer that often.” It had been a long time.

Her lips twitched as she considered. I stole another look at her body, still uncovered in the bed. She didn’t have any hang-ups about being nude. Freckles covered as much of her creamy skin as I could see, and her pussy was covered by red hair. I needed to get a lot more personal with that. I hadn’t tasted her yet.

I wanted her to stay.

“I’d like to have that delectable body close by for another round.”

Amusement flashed in her eyes. “You up for that?”

“I will be.”

She stayed the night. I’d thought it would be hard to sleep with someone sharing the bed again, but the sex must have worn me out because I slept like a baby.

I woke her up with my mouth on her pussy, and it was everything I’d hoped.

I was actually in a good mood when we left for the wedding.

* * *

This was the final performance. I stood at the front of the church, with my brother and some buddies of the groom’s, dressed up in tuxes while we waited for the bridal party to come down the aisle. I mostly ignored Pierce’s whispered comments. Much better to remember last night.

The church was packed. The huge stone building was filled with flowers, so that the air was thick with their scent. There was an arch of white blooms over the doorway where the bridal party would appear, and matching bouquets on the end of every pew, as well as almost filling the altar area around us. The white was a backdrop for the well-dressed people in the pews, highlighting the tuxes and vivid colors of the women’s dresses. I spotted Callie easily—that bright hair was a beacon where the sun fell through a window and lit her up.

She hadn’t been willing to wear a fascinator, which a lot of the women here were showing off, but her hair alone made her stand out. The dress was gorgeous and hugged her body just right. After the last two nights, it gave me ideas that I couldn’t do anything about, not with the eyes of several hundred people on me.

The music started, everyone stirred, and the bridal procession began. I kept the proper interested expression on my face but I wasn’t paying attention to the bridesmaids coming down the aisle. I focused on Callie. She was sitting on her own, but it didn’t seem to bother her. She watched the women walking oh so slowly down the aisle, but I’d bet my Ferrari that she wasn’t planning her own wedding. She was probably taking notes in case she was invited to something similar by someone in her firm.

Her glance swung forward and our eyes met. She rolled hers and I had to fight to keep from laughing.

Then came the bride, my father leading her to the front of the church. Dad was in an immaculate tux, and Tinsley looked breathtaking in her simple but perfectly fitting gown. She wasn’t wearing the traditional veil, so her face was visible. Both she and my father looked confident, pleased with themselves, and proud. I compared it to Faith and Seb’s wedding, when she’d looked like the world revolved around him. And though Hunts would deny it to his dying day, he’d had tears in his eyes.

If I ever— My smile dropped as I reined in those thoughts. I was never. Not getting married, not exposing some poor woman to a lifetime connection to my family, not giving my brother a weapon against me.

You can’t be cheated on if you don’t have someone who’s yours.

My eyes swung to Callie again. Yeah, she’d been exposed to enough this weekend. It was a good thing we had set up boundaries, because she was much too appealing.

* * *

The reception dragged on as well. I made polite talk to people I hadn’t seen since my parents’ anniversary party two years ago. They were all friends of my family or the groom’s. The more interesting friends I’d made on my own were not invited. Before the evening was turned over to the band, I was able to catch up with Callie for a couple of moments. We’d finished the dinner and the first dance with the couple and the parents and family. My responsibilities weren’t over yet, but I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.

“How are you surviving?” I asked.

She looked around the reception hall, flowers and candles on every surface, well-modulated voices filling the room. “Your family likes ceremony, don’t they?”

“They live on it.”

“I can see you fitting in here. I mean, obviously you do, but at the same time this doesn’t seem like you at all.”

“Not sure fitting in is much of a compliment.”

A smile crossed her face. “I meant that you know all the unwritten rules. You know how to dress and dance and how to use the utensils properly. Which wines are right, and how to talk to people.”

Callie placed a higher value on those things than I did, because she didn’t have them. “Are you having an okay time? Are people bothering you?”

She shrugged. “I’m all right. I’m quiet and following what everyone else does.”

“Have you danced?”

She shook her head. “I’ve been very carefully avoiding anyone who looks like they want to ask me.”

I’d never asked if Callie danced. “Not a dancer?”

“I don’t think what we did back in high school would be called dancing here.”

I held back a grin. “So, no cotillions?”

Her eyes widened. “That’s a real thing?”

I let my smile escape. “Real enough. Come on, dance with me before I have to take a turn with my mother’s friends.”

“What kind of dance?”

I held out my hand. “This is a slow one. I’ll take care of you.”

For once, that idea didn’t chase her away. She hesitated but put her hand in mine.

I knew her hand. It had touched every part of my body, and those memories sent goose bumps over my skin. I hid the effect she had on me by pulling her in close and moving to the music, leading her gently and covering any missteps.

There weren’t many. Whatever kind of dancing she’d done in the past, she was able to follow my lead. We didn’t speak. I noticed eyes watching us but I didn’t care. I spent less and less time with this family I’d been born into. I had a full, happy life in Toronto. Over the years, it had become obvious that no amount of success I had would be enough for my father and brother to admit they’d been wrong. This visit with Callie had made the contrast clear. She was the only one here worth a damn. And these people, with their focus on appearances, were not worth the bother.

The song wrapped up and something more up-tempo started. I wanted to end the dance with a kiss, but instead I pulled back. “I have about another hour of social obligations, then we can go back to the hotel.”

Her cheeks flushed. From the warmth of the room? The dancing? The promise of what we would do when we got away? Whatever—there was something about her tonight. But I didn’t want her to face any more of my family’s ire, so I stepped back and let her go.

My mother found me, asked me to dance with the groom’s grandmother. I put on the polite smile required and did my duty. After the grandmother, the wife of one of Pierce’s friends asked me to dance. I held out a hand, counting down the dances in my head till I could say my duty was done.

“So, you’re the hockey player.” She moved a little closer. “I’ve noticed your billboards.”

I saw where this was going. I made a little more room between us. “My sponsor will be happy to hear that.”

She wiggled closer again. “You know, I read that people get very horny at weddings.” She giggled.

“Family drama and an open bar—makes perfect sense.”

She giggled again. “This might be a little forward, but…” Some more squirming, and suddenly a hotel room card was in her hand. She felt her way down my chest and slid it into my jacket pocket. “Room 2241.”

“You’re wearing a wedding ring.”

She shrugged. “We understand each other.”

“That’s nice, but I don’t do wives.” Her cheeks flushed. Whether at the blunt response or the rejection, I wasn’t sure. “And I may model underwear, but I’m not actually a prostitute.”

Her body stiffened. “You don’t have to be crude.”

“And you don’t need to treat me like an idiot because I’m a professional athlete. I know Pierce and his friends have plans tonight, but they won’t understand their wives slumming.”

Her cheeks were bright red now. “Like anyone would take you seriously. We all know you couldn’t handle it so you left to do this hockey thing.”

“Intelligence isn’t measured by the university someone attends.”

Her nose moved up. “I think I’m done with this dance.”

I released my arms, relieved to do so. “Then please, let’s move off the floor.” I reached my hand into my front pocket and pulled out the key card. “You should take this back.”

I didn’t think her face could get redder, but she snatched the card, looking around the room in case someone was watching. Several people were. She turned and walked off, doing her best to look offended, as if I’d made a pass at her.

I had reached my limit. I looked around for Callie, ready to call this event done.