Page 49

Forty-Nine

SUNNY

Ellie pouts in between Scottie and me while we wait for Rhodes to be finished with his post-game interview.

“I’d wait here,” Scottie says. “Sometimes during the interviews, they’ll swing the camera around, and then Ellie will end up on TV.”

I internally freak out. I’ve been jumpy since the text, and the very last thing I need right now is to end up in the media.

“That’s okay.” I drop to Ellie’s level. “We can entertain ourselves, right?”

“Or...” Scottie bends down and whispers in Ellie’s ear loud enough for me to hear. “Go ask grumpy Emory if he’ll take us for ice cream to celebrate the win. ”

Ellie beams and runs over to Emory. She taps him on the leg. and he looks down at her with a look of annoyance that we all know isn’t real. That’s their bit. He acts annoyed with her, and she softens him. It’s cute. “Will you take us for ice cream to celebrate the win?”

“Do the lip thing!” Scottie shouts from beside me.

Emory flicks his gaze to his wife, and she smiles.

Sure enough, Ellie plops her bottom lip out, and Emory rolls his eyes. “You think you deserve ice cream?” he asks her.

She thinks for a second.

Despite her father being a millionaire, she isn’t spoiled like some of the children I’ve met over the few years of nannying.

“No,” she says. “But I think you deserve it.”

Emory smiles, which is sort of rare. Just like it is with her dad.

“How can you say no to that?!” Scottie exclaims.

I laugh.

Emory shakes his head. “I can’t.” He looks at me. “Ice cream?”

I look at Rhodes's truck keys in my hands. How do I get these to him and let him know that we’re going for ice cream without passing by the cameras?

“Do you want to take her since I have Rhodes’s keys?” I ask. “I drove his truck, and he wanted us to wait for him after the game. I’m sure he’s fine with you taking Ellie for ice cream, and then by the time you are done, we should be back at the house?”

He nods. “Solid plan.”

“Are you okay with that?” I ask Ellie, making sure she’s comfortable with going with Scottie and Emory without me. I’m certain she is, since she’s pretty comfortable with them.

She nods excitedly, and I place a quick kiss on her head.

“Let’s go through the back, munchkin.” Emory kneels, and Ellie climbs onto his back for a piggyback ride.

I turn to Scottie. “Do you need a booster seat?”

A smile overtakes her face, and she shakes her head. “Emory bought one for Ellie a while back. It stays in his car.”

“That’s…so cute.” And surprising.

These grumpy hockey players have a hidden soft spot, and it goes by the name of Ellie.

Scottie’s cheeks ripen with a blush. “It is cute.” She leans in and gives me a quick hug. “I’ll see you in a few! If you go through those doors, they should let you wait for Rhodes.”

I follow her instructions but still plan to steer clear so I don’t end up front and center on the sports channel by accident. I could go out to Rhodes’s truck and wait, but I’m on edge. The thought of being alone in a dark parking lot makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

The security guard lets me through, recognizing me right away. I follow the sounds of reporters and the clicking of cameras. As soon as I hear his voice, my stomach fills with butterflies.

Great .

That's a terrible sign.

“Tell us about your driven focus lately. You’ve been noted to be quicker, more alert, and more precise with your passing and scoring.” The woman reporter pauses with a giggle. “Obviously.”

My face scrunches when they come into view. Her hand is on his shoulder, and annoyance cuts right through me. Since when do they touch the players?

Since when do I get jealous?

Rhodes glances to her hand, and she quickly removes it.

He clears his throat. “Yeah, well I’ve straightened out some of my priorities, and it’s helped me tighten my skills and focus on the ice. We’ve been running some new plays, and I think with each win, our momentum gets stronger.”

“You guys definitely have some momentum,” she says. “Especially you with that hat trick.”

I suck in my cheeks. I teased him earlier and egged him on to score, and sure enough, he did.

Times three.

I slip backward, afraid of the camera swinging toward me, and wait until they finish the interview. Not wanting to make an appearance and cause rumors to swirl, I press against the tiled wall near the locker room and twirl Rhodes’s keys in my fingers. I practice acting cool and unfazed by this three-goal game.

With the shuffling of feet and low murmurs, my pulse starts to race. Any second now, I’ll come face to face with him, and I’ll have to act like our entire text exchange never happened.

As soon as he rounds the corner, every one of my senses sharpens.

He spots me right away, and his eyebrow rises. “Are you hiding from me?” he asks.

I scoff. “Why would I hide from you?” As if I didn’t tempt him to score goals and punish me earlier.

His hand disappears into his sweaty hair as he brushes it off his forehead. “Should I bring up our texts?”

Please don’t. “I was just trying to steer clear from the cameras,” I admit. “Not you.”

Concern burrows in between his eyebrows. “Oh, right.” He quickly glances around, and I know he’s looking for Ellie.

“Emory and Scottie took her for ice cream to celebrate the win.”

His tense jaw loosens.

“That’s okay, right? I said she could go with them, and by the time we get home, they should be bringing her back.”

He presses on the locker room door with his large hand. “Yeah, that’s fine. You didn’t want ice cream?”

I scrunch my nose. “Well, I have your keys, and I didn’t think you’d be okay with me making you walk home.”

Rhodes snorts. “That’d definitely call for a punishment.”

That’s twice he’s brought it up in the last thirty seconds, and I have no one to blame but myself. It’s easy to flirt through texting, but now I’m having to face the repercussions, and it’s really hard to act normal.

“You can wait in here.” Rhodes pushes the locker room door open farther and inches his chin for me to follow.

“In there?” I squeak. “I can’t go in there.”

He laughs under his breath. “The team has cleared out. It’s just me.”

That sounds like an awfully dangerous invitation.

One that I will willingly take.

“Okay.” I slip through the crack in the door and wait until Rhodes directs me where to sit.

Only, he doesn’t.

I stand near the door and stare into the vast locker room. Their team colors cover the walls, and to my surprise, it doesn't smell musty or like sweaty hockey gear. Instead, it has a scent of masculinity and cologne.

“You can sit, you know.”

I flick my gaze to Rhodes. He stands in front of his locker and sits to take his gear off. I squint when I catch sight of a colorful picture hanging up inside it. I find myself walking toward it with a smile on my face.

A rainbow is arched above what I think is an ice rink with three stick figures. One has insanely long legs and is holding a hockey stick, and the other is a little bit smaller with a big smile on her face. Then, in between them, is an even smaller figure with a big blue bow in her hair.

“She drew that shortly after you started as her nanny.”

I glance at him. He has the audacity to sit on the bench with nothing but the lower half of his body covered. His pads and jersey are on the floor near the bench beside his pile of hats from the fans. I can’t stop staring at his rippling back muscles as he continues to undress.

I should’ve waited outside.

When I pull my attention to his face again, he’s staring at me. He swallows loudly, and I hear nothing but my heart racing.

“That’s…” I clear my throat and look back to the picture. “That’s adorable.”

He sighs. “She’s your biggest fan.”

I make a noise of satisfaction.

“Besides me.”

I shoot him a look and laugh sarcastically. “You hated me when I first started.”

A cheeky grin appears. “I hate everyone at first.” He glances at my mouth. “It usually stays that way.”

“Don’t tell me,” I tease. “I’m just too sunshiny to hate.”

I expect him to chuckle and say some witty remark, but he suddenly turns grave. His dark brows lower, and he squints those green eyes, surveying my face. “Pretty much, Sunshine.”

My smile slips.

The locker room is too quiet. He’s bound to hear my racing heart soon if I don’t put space between us.

Panicking, I step backward, but the bench is there. A rushed breath flies from my lungs as I prepare to fall, but naturally, Rhodes and his hockey-like reflexes work their magic, and he’s there to catch me.

“I swear that was not planned,” I quickly admit.

I land in his lap, and all I feel are his strong thighs beneath me. My hand grips his arm resting against my stomach. He stares down at me with a wildly excited look in his eye that does nothing but send my stomach into a frenzy.

I scramble to get away, but his arm tightens.

Instead of it sending a line of fear into my blood, it sends an ache in between my legs.

“What are you doing?” I whisper.

“Making sure you’re okay.” He keeps a hold of me, and I make no move to escape.

A breath falls from my lips. “I’m fine.”

He eyes me with skepticism. “Are you? You’ve been awfully clumsy lately. A little jumpy too.”

I hate that he’s noticed I’m jumpy.

Rhodes drags his hand across my lower stomach. I resist the urge to shiver.

“Want to tell me why?”

No.

My lips part when he grabs my hips. Suddenly, I’m flung upright and straddling his lap. I place my palms onto his bare shoulders, and thoughts from last night flood me.

I scan every inch of his face. He’s perfectly imperfect and so damn hot. It’s hard to ignore his sharp jaw and sexy mouth hiding that teasing tongue.

“You make me scattered,” I admit.

His forehead wrinkles. The grip on my hips becomes steadier, like he’s trusting that I’m going to stay put. “Scattered?”

I slowly nod and spill the truth. “When we’re this close, it’s hard for me to think rationally.” He scoots me closer, and my entire body flushes with heat. His bare chest presses against the jersey he bought me, and he tenses his jaw. “Last night was supposed to be a one-time thing,” I say.

I swear he can touch me with his gaze alone.

“But then you had to go off and tempt me to score some goals to punish you,” he chides.

My heart stops with the flick of his feverish glare.

“Do you remember how many times I scored?”

Of course I do. I start to shake my head but stop when he opens his mouth.

“Don’t do it,” he warns, digging his fingers into my sides. “Don’t lie to me.”

My mouth slowly opens, and my answer falls in between us. “Three.”

“You know what that means?” His voice is throaty and hot, like he’s trying to hold himself back.

“What?” I’m breathless.

“I score three times…”—he dips his head—“ you score three times.”

My breasts grow heavy. To settle myself, I press my fingernails into his bare shoulders slightly. “That doesn’t sound like a punishment.”

The look on his face darkens, and I’m pretty sure the thoughts in his head are just as filthy as mine. He sighs. “You’re supposed to tell me no, Sunshine, not tempt me further.”

I shift over him, and he grits his teeth. His forehead falls to my chest, and my lungs beg for air.

“Your heart is racing.” His voice is muffled, strained even.

“That’s what you do to me when you touch me,” I admit quietly.

I have never been like this with someone before. The way he touches me does something to my body. It’s addictive, and I don’t know if it’s because he’s the first person I’ve let touch me in a very long time, or if it’s just Rhodes himself.

He stares at me.

I suck in a breath.

“That’s what you do to me when I think about you, Sunny.”

Neither of us say anything for a few seconds. He shifts his eyes back and forth between mine, and I can't help it. I break.

My heart skips a beat when I press my mouth to his.

It surprises him, but as soon as I slip my tongue inside, his hand cups the side of my cheek, and he pulls my face closer.

I kiss him with an urgency I can’t control, and he kisses me back just the same. Our mouths are glued. Not even a breath can pass through. I whimper when he moves me against him, bringing our bodies closer.

God , it feels so good to be possessed by him. He calls the shots without even speaking. My tongue mimics his, my body doing whatever he makes it do. We kiss until we get our fill of each other, and when he pulls apart, we’re both out of breath.

I don’t feel like myself, and I think that may be a good thing.

“It still means nothing,” he presses. “This is just me helping you get over those fears you have of men, okay?”

His nostrils flare, and I nod quickly.

Both of us know this is just an excuse to touch, but I don’t think either of us care.

“You said you like being tied up, right?”

Anticipation fuels me to answer. “I used to, but?—”

He interrupts me. “I know, Sunshine. He ruined that for you.” His tongue slips out of his mouth and wets his lips. “Don’t worry, I’ll fix what he broke.”

My body weakens, like it’s willingly handing over the power to Rhodes.

While keeping me on his lap, he leans to the side and swoops something off the floor. My mouth twitches at the blue ribbon in his hand. The same blue ribbon I had in my hair before Ellie and I threw them to the ice after his hat trick.

“Thanks for the ribbon, baby.” Any trace of humor that was on his face is long gone and replaced with something much more dangerous. “Now get up and turn around.”