Game Changer by Kelly Jamieson Page 0,45

all.” I smile. “My family freakin’ loves you. And I just told you I had fun too. We’ll have fun in the boreal forest.”

Her forehead furrows. “Forest? For real? I’m kind of a city girl.”

I chuckle. “I’m kidding. There’s lots of forest if we want to go hiking, but my grandparents’ cottage has all the amenities.”

She falls silent again, seemingly contemplating this.

“It’ll just be me at the cottage, mostly,” I continue. “My grandparents and my mom are coming for a few days later in July. Maybe my dad. So you’re not imposing.” I pause. “You can even have your own bedroom.”

“Oh, well then, why didn’t you say that?” She laughs softly. “Really, Jax?”

“Yes, really. You don’t have to stay the whole summer, like I am. I mean, I’ll be back in Chicago mid-August to start skating and working out. But you could come back whenever you want.”

“I suppose. School doesn’t start again until after Labor Day.” She blinks a few times. “I know I have to talk to Steve, but he won’t be back until July 5, I think.”

“You can fly back to Chicago after that, if you want.”

“I know I have to deal with things.”

“Yeah.”

Her smile deepens. “Okay. I’ll come with you.” Then her eyes close, her long eyelashes sweeping her cheeks, and her mouth relaxes. I watch her face for a long time in the dark, as her breathing grows deeper, until I fall asleep, too.

Holding her hand.

In the morning, I awaken to find Molly snuggled up against me and my arm over her hip. For a few seconds, I enjoy it, reveling in the feel of a soft, warm woman against me, her silky hair so close to me, her scent in my nose. Then reality bites me in the ass.

Jesus! Did I do this?

She wakes up too. Slowly. Then her eyes fly open and she jerks back.

Our eyes meet.

The room is still dark, the curtains drawn over the window and sliding door.

My body goes electric, heat burning over my skin. “God. I’m sorry, Molly.” I release her and shift myself away.

“It’s okay.” She blinks, pushing back too.

The pillows are amassed at the foot of the bed. “I don’t know how that happened. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay,” she says again. “I don’t feel violated.”

Her attempt at humor lightens the air in the room. A little. My morning wood is throbbing and it’s all I can do to stop myself from reaching for her and rolling her under me.

“Good,” I manage to say. “Me either.”

She chuckles. “We were asleep. It was just…”

Okay, I don’t know if it was me or her who shoved the pillows out of the way. I don’t know if she rolled into me, or I pulled her over. What I do know is, I wanted that, and somehow in my sleep it happened and it was probably my fault.

“Yeah.” I roll out of bed, keeping my back to her, because the stiffy in my boxers is enormous. “It just happened. I’m gonna jump in the shower.”

And whack one out.

It feels so damn good, leaning against the tiled wall, water streaming down on me, my hand gripping my cock and tugging rapidly until the pressure builds and builds, and my groan as I come is lost in the spray of water.

I stay like that in the cloud of steam for a moment, catching my breath, my thighs quivering.

When I played in Philly, one of the players was screwing around with another player’s wife for months. Everyone else knew about it but him. Until they day he found out. The two of them got in an actual fight during practice. They both ended up in trouble, and it affected the atmosphere in the room for months. We lost game after game, and I still think that was part of it. Things only got better when they traded Baxter away.

I don’t want to cause something like that in Chicago. I can’t cause something like that. I don’t even have a contract signed yet, for Chrissake. There’s no way I can even think about touching Molly.

Okay, it’s not like anything actually happened. We were just snuggled up together. Two people wanting…connection.

Bullshit. But I’ll keep telling myself that.

“You’re sure he’s away?”

“Yeah.” She frowns. “That’s what Grace said.”

“I don’t want to come in there and run into him.”

We’re at Chucky’s place so Molly can pick up some things, including her car and apartment keys. We just flew in, and it’s late Tuesday.

“You can wait here if you want,” she says.