Page 14

CHAPTER 14

ELI

The last time I saw Edin was eight days ago, during our couch scene. I laid with him for more than an hour. He didn’t meet my eyes after, but he pulled me into the shower with him. We kissed. I held him. I washed him and even got him to laugh when I cleaned out his abused hole.

The blush on his cheeks was sexy as fuck. I’ll never forget the way he wrapped himself in my arms once I was finished cleaning him and just… hugged me. I held him with everything in me, wanting to glue myself to him so I’d never be without him.

Edin made the move to kiss me, and we kissed for several minutes under the spray of the water. It ended the same way most of our meetings do. He had to pick up his kid.

We didn’t say anything after that. We dressed in silence. He hadn’t even pulled his phone or wallet out of his pockets before we started the scene. We walked to the door together and something made him hesitate when taking his envelope of cash. He swallowed, his gaze sliding to mine for a second before he took it and shoved it into his pocket.

I pocketed mine too.

The silence continued as we headed upstairs and through the shrine of dicks. We didn’t even say anything as we parted ways. He met my eyes—which I felt was a big win—gave me an awkward wave, and then almost literally ran out the door.

I watched him go. Unsure what to say, but sure something happened between us. Something bigger than the orgasms we shared and the aftercare he needed.

I’ve been thinking about it since. That day, the shoot, and the moments after, have lived rent-free in my head, nonstop for the past eight fucking days.

I haven’t sought him out. That’s creepy. I haven’t gone out of my way to be somewhere at a specific time where we would cross paths. I might have texted him if I’d had his number, but I don’t, so I haven’t texted him.

Would I text him? The thing is, these last few times we’ve talked, when he says he’s not interested, he’s been leaving off ‘in men.’ It’s a little thing, but I wonder if it means something. Like maybe he’s realizing he might be attracted to men, after all.

More than that, these last couple times we talked, he didn’t say it at all. Not once. Does that mean something? Or am I reading too much into it?

“Earth to Eli,” Bea calls, waving a hand in front of my face.

Glaring at her, I swat it away. “What?”

“Are you still fantasizing about him?” she asks.

I roll my eyes. We all know the answer to that question.

“To be fair,” Friday says, “that last scene you shot was hot as fuck. If I were you, I’d still be thinking about it, too.”

The entire table turns to look at him. “Which scene? No wait, you watched it?” I don’t know how I feel about it.

“The couch,” Friday clarifies. “And yes. I’ve always subscribed to the account, though you’re rarely on it, so why I do really has nothing to do with you.”

I frown. “You shouldn’t watch it. We’re friends. That’s weird.”

Friday shrugs. “Again, until recently, you weren’t one of their stars. It’s your fault. But I only clicked on it out of curiosity because of the still image that’s the placeholder. You’re smirking like someone just got on their knees for you. I was curious. Your chemistry is off the charts, Eli.”

Sighing, I drop my head back and close my eyes. I know it is. I feel it. My body aches for him, admonishing me for the eight-day dry streak when he was clearly so fucking into it last time.

Something shifted between us. I felt it immediately when he walked into the room. I knew it would be sexy as fuck as soon as he glared at me.

Glared at me with eyes that were entirely clear and not hesitant at all. Not wary. He knew what was coming. He was ready for it. He answered my hunger with his own. His orgasm was sexy as fuck as he flooded the couch where I had his dick lying, creating a damn pool of cum.

And then after. Yeah… after.

“Mmm, look who just walked in,” Courtney says.

My head snaps up, and sure enough, there’s Edin. He’s got his hockey bag in hand, which he sets by the door and continues to the line.

It’s three, so it’s not super busy, but the line is always present after about eleven. Sometimes it feels like the entire school eats in this one café and only between the hours of eleven and six. It’s crickets in here outside of those hours. Even in the morning when everyone wants coffee.

There are a handful of coffee trucks throughout campus. I think the school did that because everyone was late for classes when it was only the café with coffee.

But anyway, am I staring at Edin in line? Bet your fucking ass I am. He hasn’t seen me, but I think that’s more because the man rarely looks around at his surroundings. He doesn’t care who’s in the room. Doesn’t care who’s around.

Edin proves all the time that his life is as he said—he has no time for friendships. Therefore, there are no friends he’s looking around for.

Including me.

I try not to let it sting and remind myself that we fucking cuddled for over an hour. That means something whether he likes it or not.

It takes a feat of remarkable strength to keep myself sitting in my chair. I manage not to stare for the most part as he moves through the line and down to the other end while he waits for his meal.

I’m not going to be a stalker. That’s not how you convince someone to give you a chance. Obviously, we can get beyond the fact I have a dick. I think we’re compatible enough physically. If I were any more attracted to him, I’d burst into flames every time he walks by.

I’m proud of myself for keeping my ass in the chair right until some stupid girl gets up in his face. My hackles rise. Probably visibly. Still, I show remarkable restraint by remaining where I am. Until Edin makes several attempts at putting more space between them and creating some personal boundaries, and this girl ignores them entirely and gets too close to him.

I’m on my feet when she fucking touches him, laying a hand on his chest on which I can see he tenses from—even across the goddamn room.

I’m not at all subtle nor polite when I appear at his side and use my body to physically remove her from him. “Hey,” I say, giving Edin a bright smile.

He’s only a little startled to see me. Probably because I appeared out of the ether. He manages to recover quickly enough with an amused smile. “Hey.”

“I can’t wait for your game tomorrow,” I babble. “A bunch of us are trying to convince our captain to let us wear your jersey numbers on our uniforms. That would be cute, right?”

Edin chuckles. “Yes. What’s my number?”

I roll my eyes. “Forty-eight. I bought your jersey, cutie.”

There’s mirth in his eyes. Stunning brown-green eyes that are locked with mine. I’ve effectively made him forget the girl entirely as he stares at me. “You were wearing my jersey the other night?”

“Who else’s would I wear? Of course, Edin.”

He huffs and for a minute, I let that hang between us. It’s a comfortable quiet that hovers. My fingers itch to touch him. Is that crossing a line?

“Heading to practice?” I ask, dropping the bubbly cheerleader act since the girl slunk away.

Edin nods. “Yeah.” He glances at his gear bag. “Picking up my kid first, then going to practice.”

“She goes with you?”

Once again, he’s amused. “She and Coach have some strange agreement. I’m confident she’s going to be the assistant coach before the end of the season.”

“She knows hockey too, huh?”

Edin’s smile is fond and proud. “More than I thought, actually. She’d watch with me when she was younger. I guess I never realized how much she understood until she started yelling at the guys who’re fucking up on the ice and calling them on their shit… accurately.”

“That’s amazing,” I say, laughing.

“It is,” he agrees, a soft smile on his lips.

“Edin!”

I glare at the server who hands him his food. He turns back to me just as I school my face from giving away my irritation at him leaving.

“So…” he muses as he heads to the door, and I fall into step beside him. He’s the one keeping the conversation going, after all. Which must mean he wants my company; at least that’s what I’m going to tell myself. “You never told me whether you plan to go pro... Is that the appropriate term for cheerleaders? Going pro?”

I laugh at the way his eyebrows knit together in confusion. He’s fucking cute. “Yes, we can be picked up by a pro cheer squad attached to an athletic team, but that’s not what I want.”

“No?” he asks, surprised.

“Nah. I don’t care about cheer in so much as… cheer ing . I want to compete. That’s what gets my motor going. The reason we chose Longwood is because the squad is super competitive and they win.”

“‘We’ meaning you and your brother,” Edin checks.

My stomach flips because he remembers that detail. “Yeah.”

“Do your names rhyme like so many parents’ name their twins?”

“No,” I say, laughing. “Ezekiel. Zeke.”

“Ah. I like that. Keep you separate.”

Grinning, I nod as I hold the door for him and his big gear bag.

“What’re you going to do when you’re done with school?” he asks.

“I don’t know.” I sigh. “We’ll probably be finished next year. I’m not sure I can put it off any longer unless I re-enroll for another degree program. I think that’s going to start bordering on creepy when my age climbs and my peers remain in their early twenties.”

Edin studies me for a minute. “How old are you?”

“You can’t guess?”

He tries, I’ll give it to him. The way he stares at me for several minutes, taking in my face and then his gaze trailing down my body before meeting my eyes again. “I’d say twenty-one?”

“Nope, but I appreciate it. I’m twenty-three.”

“Huh,” he says and stops at the end of the sidewalk before it splits to the left and right. “I am too. I… started late.”

There’s something that flickers across his face when he offers me more than I asked. Probably anticipating a question coming following his age. “Cool, I’ve been attending three-quarters’ time to prolong my cheer life. But really, I don’t know what I want to do after. I could coach cheer, but I want to compete. Not watch others compete, you know?”

Edin sighs. “Yeah, I do. I want to play. Not watch people I’ve played with over the years living my dream.”

“Exactly!”

He smiles and I feel like maybe we have a very good understanding of each other. Logic tells me I need to say goodbye and wish him a good practice or whatever. Tell him I’ll see him later. But I don’t want another eight days to go by.

So I’m going to shoot my shot. “Practice is over at six? Six-thirty?”

Yep. His expression gets immediately wary. The openness we’d been sharing between us closes a little.

“Elijah—”

“All I’m asking is to study,” I promise, holding my hands up. “That’s it. Totally casual. No strings. No fucking. It isn’t code for something. Just studying.”

Edin stares at me. I’m hopeful when I see a war in his eyes. That means he wants to say yes. Right?

I nearly jump when he inclines his head. “Yeah. Okay.”

Somehow, I manage a cool, “Great. Then I’ll see you after practice.”

Edin nods. It’s hesitant, but I’m even rewarded with a timid smile. “Yeah. See you… later.” He turns and takes off in a jog down the sidewalk.

My heart hammers in my chest. He agreed. Holy fuck, he agreed!

I turn, keeping my excitement inside right until I’m standing on the other side of the café door, where I know he can’t see me. Then I let out a squeal and shake myself in a preening bird dance.

Quiet chuckles fill the café in response, but I’m grinning from ear to ear as I make my way back to my friends at our table. They’re giving me sly smirks as I take my seat, still smiling much too big.

“What just happened? He agree to fuck off camera?” Bea asks.

“Nope. He agreed to hang out off camera, though. That’s a fucking epic win and, in my opinion, much better than your idea.”

“Oh, yeah?” Courtney asks with skepticism.

“I already have his ass,” I explain. “I’ve monopolized him at Confessions. Officially and everything. I know it’s going to happen again. You saw that last one,” I say, looking at Friday. “Something’s changing there between us already. And now, I finally get a chance to get to know him outside of that for more than three minutes of conversation. Sex isn’t progress. This is progress.”

“That’s cool,” Bea says. “Eat up, then. You’re going to have to empty your dick before practice, since you won’t have time to tame it before meeting him later. It is later tonight, yeah?”

I nod. “Yep, and I’m way ahead of you. Already have a plan.”

I meant what I said. My only intention tonight is to study. To get to know him. To gain his trust. Trying to seduce him right off the bat isn’t going to get me what I want. What I want is Edin Levine.

Nope. What I need to do is show him he can trust me. That I want to spend time with him off camera. With him and his adorable daughter who doesn’t like me at all. That needs to change.

This is the first step. It’s going to go perfectly because I’m going to be the picture of calm and grace.

Now, what do I bring a child of indeterminate age to bribe her affections? At least initially. I’m confident I can win her love, too. Kids like me. But this kid is super important, so I need to fix the damage I somehow already caused in her opinion of me.

I’ll have to think about it.