Caged (Gold Hockey #11) - Elise Faber Page 0,43
more than I probably should, considering I’ve been fantasizing about you longer than I’ve actually spoken to you.”
He heard her inhale.
“So, I’m going to drive you home where I’m going to make out with you on your front porch, and then I’m going to see your sweet ass in the morning, so I can buy you a breakfast I can drool over but can’t actually eat myself.” He glanced over, saw her lips quirk then looked back at the road. “I’ll choke down my oatmeal and fruit, my single allotted cup of coffee, and then I’ll drive us to the rink where we’ll get on a plane, and know what?”
“What?”
He winked at her. “I promise to save the seat next to me.”
She laughed.
“Now,” he said, getting onto the freeway and heading south. “Tell me, how far have you gotten through that stack of books from the library?”
Silence.
Then she laughed. “How far do you think?”
He met her eyes for a heartbeat before returning his focus in front of him. “Pretty damned far, I think.”
“You’d be right.”
Another glance. “Will you tell me about your favorite?”
“Favorite book? Or favorite from that stack?”
“What? Do I look stupid? Favorite from the stack,” he teased. “It’s impossible for a true bookworm to choose her favorite.”
“Spoken by a true bookworm?”
“My favorite that I’ve read recently was a list-topping thriller. Even though it was a bit formulaic, it was a nice reprieve from scientific papers.” A beat, another brief look toward her. “Now, show me yours.”
Laughter filled the car, and it was the best fucking thing he’d heard in a long time.
They talked about books as he drove.
Then he got his kiss. Well, kisses.
And then he went back to his place, jerked off because he had the erection to end all erections, and even as he slept, his mind was only on one thing.
Dani.
The taste of her. The feel of her. The sound of her laughter filling the air.
“And then Blue tried to steal Max’s figurines,” Dani said, “but Anna found out, and she thought it was stupid as hell and was really, really done with them pranking each other, so instead she stole Blue’s lucky socks.”
He scooped up a bite of his oatmeal. “Okay, so this is the part I’ve heard. Or at least the part that had Blue tearing apart the locker room looking for those damned socks.”
Dani laughed. “Poor guy.”
A shrug, his lips twitching. “He was in full meltdown mode. You don’t get between hockey players and their good luck charms.”
“Well, from what I heard, no harm was done, and Max and Blue figured it out.”
“They certainly did.” A beat, his lips twitching. “Eventually.”
Because with a little help from Angie, Anna had also stolen Max’s special lucky figurine he had to stroke before every game—which sounded grosser than it was in actuality—then had left a ransom note for both the socks and the figurine, forcing Max and Blue to work together to rescue those good luck charms.
“So, the socks and figurine were found,” Dani said, scooping up a bite of what looked to be a truly delicious waffle. “And the prank war was over.”
“And we all breathed a sigh of relief in the locker room.”
A giggle as she ate more of her waffle. “How long did it take for the dubious duo to find them?”
“Too close to game time, as far as Bernard was concerned.” Ethan chuckled. “Far too soon, as far as the guys in the room went.”
“That’s a shame.”
“Eh.” He scraped the last bit of his oatmeal up. “It was a fantastic prank on Anna and Angie’s parts.”
“Angie told me Max made her sleep on the couch.”
Ethan choked.
Dani giggled again. “But that she woke up in Max’s arms.”
Ethan set his spoon down, smiled. That sounded much more like his friend and teammate. “Those women keep their men on their toes.”
“Still want to date me?” Amber and russet eyes glimmered with mirth, but there was also a layer of insecurity beneath.
“I’m looking forward to tiptoeing all over the place.”
Her expression shifted, warmed. “Last chance.”
He reached across the table, took her hand. “Scared?”
“Fucking terrified.” Her shoulders rose and fell on an exhale. “But I’m also ready to finally live my life.”
His fingers twitched. “What should we do first?”
“First, we should pay the bill.” A smile. “Then we should get our butts to the rink so we don’t miss the bus.”
He glanced at his watch then reached to pull out his wallet. “I’m loving this whole dating thing already.”
“Then you’re going to love that I already