Icebound: Chapter 22

“

ine, okay. I’m leaving. You don’t have to give me murder eyes, old man. We were just talking.” Cruz backs out of the room. “I’ll snuggle with Patty-Daddy tonight. He actually likes me, unlike you.”

I’m more tense than a shootout at the end of a tied game. Cruz picks up his clothes, grabs his bag, and strides out into the hall.

What’s Nina doing here? With him?

She’s wearing a paint-splattered crewneck, and she looks so damn cute, but she’d look even cuter in my clothes. Seeing her on the bed next to him makes me want to throw Cruz out of the room—again.

How many other men has she been with since I last saw her? One? Two? Fuck, I don’t want to know. It’s been over two weeks since I saw her last, so it can’t be that many, right? I rub my face. I’m turning into a jealous prick.

“What’re you doing here, Nina?”

The question comes out more biting than I meant, since I’m still looking at Cruz’s ass print on the mattress.

Her shoulders fall, and she twists her thumbs on the bed. “

My sister had a conference, so Micah invited me to come to see you guys play, but we hit really bad traffic, and I missed the game, so now I’m here. I can uh, go if you’re busy.”

She stands, but I grab her hand, panicked at the thought of her leaving. I always seem to say the wrong thing around this girl. “No, don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to see you, just surprised.”

The corners of her lips turn up. “You are?”

“Yeah, I am.”

I sniff the air, getting a whiff of champagne, which has me wondering what the hell her and Cruz were doing. I check to see if her eyes are hazy. “Are you drunk? Because you smell like a wedding reception.”

“No, that was just a whole thing with Cruz. You can ask him about it. I don’t drink.”

I pinch my brows. “What do you mean you don’t drink?”

“That I don’t drink. I don’t like how it makes me feel.”

I tilt my head, somewhat shocked. “Ever?”

“Yeah.”

“But you’re twenty-two?”

She gives me a big eye roll. “Not all college students like getting wasted every weekend. I don’t care if people do, but that’s not me.”

“So, you don’t drink at all?”

“Nope. I mean, I won’t say that I’ll never have a drop of alcohol again, but for now, I like being sober.”

“What about at the ¡Vamos! event?”

“I was faking because people can be awkward about it. I ended up dumping most of the champagne in those plants all night.”

She’s not anything like how I was in my twenties. Now, I really feel like an asshole for judging her for so long, but there’s a sting of hurt because she didn’t say anything. It’s another commonality we share. There’s still so much I don’t know about her, and I want to be able to ace a class on Philomena Alstyne.

“How come you never told me?” I ask.

“Because it’s not that big of a deal, and I don’t want to make it into a whole thing, so let’s not talk about it.”

If she doesn’t want to make a big deal about this, I don’t want to make her uncomfortable, so I go along with her. This girl could ask me to drive her back four hours to Nashville tonight, and I’d do it even though we’ve got a game this weekend.

She twirls her thumbs like she always does when she’s thinking hard about something, and then stands. The bed squeaks.

She stalks toward me with her hips swaying, and blood rushes to my dick because it feels like Nina breathes and I get hard. I start to pull back, but her fingers dig into my waistband. It takes everything in me not to shove her onto the bed and yank off her panties.

I should tell her to leave but seeing her makes this room feel less like a hotel and more like a home. She’s looking up at me with those big, mesmerizing eyes, making me feel weak in the best way. I don’t have to be strong for her like I do everyone else.

“Okay, I’m just going to come out and say it.” She sucks her lip into her mouth. “Have you thought about what happened in the office at all?”

Only every time I shower.

“Yeah, a bit.” She frowns at the words, and I backtrack. “Alright, a lot… A lot more than I should, but we want different things, and I’m trying not to lead you on, Nina. I don’t want to use you for sex.”

“I know exactly where you stand, so why don’t you let me decide what I want to be used for? Once might have been enough for you, but it wasn’t enough for me.

”

My eyes widen. Is that really what she thinks? “You think once was enough for me?”

Fuck. My voice sounds like crushed gravel.

“Wasn’t it?” she whispers.

I don’t want something casual, but she’s cracking my resolve. I’ve done casual before, maybe I can do it again. I have a feeling I’d do anything for this girl right now. This is only going to complicate things, but I don’t want to lie about how I’m feeling anymore.

I guide a strand of hair behind her pierced ears. “I could have you every day, and it still wouldn’t be enough.”

That seems to light up something inside her, and she sinks to the floor in front of me. Damn, she looks sexy as hell on her knees.

“Nina…” I groan.

“Rhode,” she breathes in front of my dick.

She slides her hands up my thighs, and my eyes almost roll back into my head. This is such a bad idea, but I’m exhausted after the game today. My body hurts, and she feels so good, and she came here for me. No one’s ever done something like that before.

I stare down at her glasses. “What’re you doing, Nina?”

She uses her teeth to tug the rim of my shirt up from my pants. “I think it’s pretty obvious, but tell me to stop, and I will.”

“Yeah, I’m not telling you to stop.”

“Good. Because I’ve been thinking about sucking you off ever since our phone call a few weeks ago. I want to taste you.”

“Holy fuck, hearing you say that is so damn hot.”

She unbuckles my belt, and that’s it, I’m done fighting this. I don’t think I’ve ever been this hard in my life. Nina pulls down my briefs and frees my cock so it springs in her face, but then her eyes drop to my thigh tattoo .

“Looks like you were wrong,” she says, all smug. “I do get to see this tattoo. I like the turtle. Very eclectic. Why a turtle?”

I’m finding it hard to focus on anything but her mouth. “It’s not anything deep. I had a pet turtle growing up. He died. Let’s not talk about Edgar when I’ve got my cock slapping your cheek.”

“Okay, we’re coming back to the Edgar name, but you’re right. There are other things I’d rather do with my mouth.”

She strokes me, and I’m at risk of coming before she even gets started. The image of her on her knees drains every other thought from my head. Fuck, I wish she weren’t leaving in two months.

Her lips form a perfect little O as she leans down, and right when I think she’s going to suck me, she swirls her tongue around the tip, licking off my pre-cum. She blows, and my body jerks. “Oh, fuck. Keep doing that and this is going to be the shortest blow job of my life.”

“How’s that feel?” she says, licking the tip. “I want to make this good for you, so tell me what you like.”

“Anything you do will feel good,” I groan. “Bite it off for all I care.”

Her teeth graze my skin, playfully squeezing. “I would never, then I’d have nothing to play with.”

She chuckles around my cock, and the vibration makes my balls tingle. She licks me from my base all the way up my shaft, swirls her tongue around the tip, and sucks.

Hard.

Her cheeks hollow out. This girl’s mouth is something else. I feel like I just won the Cup with Nina on her knees for me.

“Where’d you learn to do that?” I clutch onto the desk to steady myself because I’m at risk of blacking out. “Actually, I don’t want to know. Don’t tell me. I’m just gonna imagine that you’ve been deep-throating cucumbers your whole life.

”

She looks up at me from behind her glasses with watery hazel eyes as I fuck her mouth, thrusting my hips. Her nails dig into my ass cheeks, like she can’t get enough of my dick. I hit the back of her throat, and she gags.

Goddamn.

“I fucking love the sound of you choking on my cock, but tell me if it’s too much.”

She pulls back, swirling her hot tongue around the tip. “I can handle you.”

Nina’s wet mouth wraps around me again, and holy hell, she’s right. “Yeah, you can handle me anytime you want.”

My entire body is numb, and the only thing I feel is Nina’s warmth sucking me off like I’m her favorite flavor, and when she starts playing with my balls, I almost black out for real.

She moans when my dick hits the back of her throat, and like a champion, she takes it all. Sucks me as deep as she can until her mouth is full of my cock. Our eyes meet as her head bobs.

It’s sexy as sin and intimate as hell.

I twist my hands in her caramel hair, lifting it away from her face while thrusting between her wet lips. “You’re so good at that, Nina. So fucking good. I think that mouth is my favorite thing about you. You’re destroying me. Sucking my cock like it was made for your mouth.”

She groans, and her eyes start watering as I thrust deeper, but she pulls me closer. I swipe my thumbs under her eyes, wiping away the water as she digs her nails into my ass. I hope she leaves her mark. There’s no fucking way I can last.

She continues swirling and licking with that devilish mouth until my balls tighten, and vibrations travel down my spine. I knew I couldn’t last. “I can’t, Nina. I’m gonna…”

She makes this needy moan like she’s enjoying this more than me, taking me deeper, and yeah, this is over .

Heat shoots up my spine, and my body spasms as relief pours out of me. Nina captures everything, and I think she takes something from me too, but I don’t know what.

My chest is heaving when she pulls back, wipes her lips, and smiles at me like a proud student who just got an A on an exam. She deserves it too.

My dick is spent.

I’m lightheaded and can’t catch my breath, but I know one thing, I’m returning the favor.

I stalk toward her as she leans back on the bed. “Lay down and spread your legs for me. I want to see how wet sucking me off made you.” I kneel on the ground and hook my fingers around her shorts. “Hips up. Now.”

Her lips part. “So demanding.”

“When it comes to you? Yeah, I want it all, even if I can’t have you.”

“You can have all of me tonight.”

She arches her back, and I yank her underwear down to get a perfect view of her legs splayed open and then toss her red panties into outer space for all I care. This girl’s pussy drives me wild.

I press a quick kiss to her inner thigh, then lift my head to grab the hem of her shirt with my teeth. I could use my hands, but my way’s more fun. Biting the fabric, I tug it up over her head until she’s naked beneath me.

We were so rushed last time that I didn’t get to appreciate her, so I take my sweet time absorbing every detail, from the four-leaf clover on her neck to the freckles dotting the bridge of her nose.

“Have I told you I think you’re beautiful?” I climb over her, forcing her to lean back into the sheets with her hair splayed out. “Because you are. You’re beautiful because of the jokes that come out of your mouth and the thoughts in your head. I’m gonna be jealous as hell of whoever you end up with.”

Her eyes turn shiny, and she starts blinking, but then, every emotion on her face seems to shut down, like I said the wrong thing. “Let’s not talk about being with other people tonight.”

“Good call because the idea of you with another man makes me want to fuck you so hard that you’ll never forget what it feels like when I’m inside you.” I grip her throat, gently tightening my hands. Her eyes flare with need. “For tonight, you’re mine.”

“And you’re mine.”

She reaches for my Hugo Boss dress shirt, rips it open, and buttons ping on the walls like rain.

Holy shit.

Her eyes drink in my bare chest, but she doesn’t balk at the scars and cuts. If anything, she looks turned on, and that look alone is enough to stroke a man’s ego. With a smirk, I reach for the bucket of ice on the nightstand.

“What are you doing?” she whispers.

Instead of answering, I suck an ice cube into my mouth. Holding it between my lips, I lean down and press it over her peaked nipple while clasping her wrists above her in a tight grip because I could tell she liked that last time.

Her hips buck beneath me, so I take that as a good sign and draw it lower. I put the ice cube right over her swollen clit, letting it melt.

Her skin’s so flushed that it turns into a puddle in seconds. “Look at you. You’re so wet, and I’ve barely touched you. Is this all for me?”

“You look like a fallen angel on a protein-only diet. Who else do you think it’s for? Stop asking stupid questions and put that dirty mouth to work.”

I fight a laugh. This girl. I flick my tongue over her center again, and she writhes beneath me. “How’s that feel?

”

Goosebumps pebble her skin. “So good.”

“Just good?” I bite down, just hard enough to hear her moan my name, and damn if that isn’t the best sound in the world. “That’s not good enough for me. I need a better adjective.”

“Fine,” she huffs, pulling on my hair. “I’ll never look at an ice cube the same way again. Happy?”

“No. I’ll be happy when you come all over my face.”

I suck another ice cube between my lips and drag it down her stomach, leaving a wet pathway in its wake. I stop when I reach the spot right over her clit and swirl the ice over it a couple of times. Teasing her. Edging her closer. She whips her head down, fire igniting the gold flecks in her eyes.

“Rhode. Stop teasing me. I came here because I wanted you.”

“Look at you. So needy. I knew you’d only been fucked by boys, not men.”

I place the ice cube right over her sensitive skin, pressing down to add pressure as I circle her with my tongue. She holds the headboard behind her in a vice when I slide two fingers inside her, pumping. She keeps getting wetter and wetter.

She’s deep and warm and so wet. I’m already getting hard again.

The ice cube melts on the mattress as she thrusts against my face. Nina reaches back and tugs the headboard so hard I wouldn’t be surprised if she ripped the damn thing off the wall.

“I’m so close,” she moans, legs clenching my face so my stubble leaves a red mark on her thighs. “I think I’m in love with your tongue.”

I love eating her out, but something about how she says the word love has me slowing my strokes. I groan, and her legs tighten around my head. Every sound that escapes her mouth makes me feel like a smug bastard. Curling my fingers inside her, I suck her clit harder.

Once. Twice. Three times .

She’s loud. Louder. Screaming my name.

Leaning back, I rub my thumb over her as she rides out the remnants of her orgasm. “That’s it. Be as loud as you want. I want this entire hotel to hear what I do to you.”

A thunderous split cracks through the room.

I snap my head up to see the headboard about to fall on top of Nina’s head. Shit. Adrenaline jolts through my body.

“Watch out!” I yell, pitching forward to catch the flimsy wood. I slam it back against the wall, panting over her body as I lift it to keep it from falling on her. This hotel really skimped on the headboards. What did they use? Plywood?

She blinks up at me, sated and dazed. “What just happened?”

A laugh falls out of my mouth, and I can’t help but kiss the tip of her nose. “I just made you come so hard that you ripped the headboard off the wall.”

“How the hell did I do that?”

“Looks like this hotel just glued a piece of cardboard to the wall.”

Realization dawns on her face, slowly, then all at once. She gasps, jerking her head up. “No, I didn’t. Wait, I did. I’m so sorry. You’re going to have to pay for that.”

Using my free hand, I grip her chin. “If you apologize for ripping off the headboard because you came so hard on my tongue, I’m spanking you again, and this time, I won’t be gentle about it.”

Her brow lifts in a challenge. “Is that a promise?”

I kiss the tip of her nose again, getting closer to her lips. “It’s more than a promise, it’s a vow.”

There’s a beat of silence, but then, she giggles. Her laugh makes me laugh, and the sound grows until we’re gasping for air. When we finally catch our breath, she wiggles her way out from under me. Damn, I was kind of hoping she’d let me spank her again.

“Okay, but I actually don’t feel like getting spanked tonight because I have to sit in a car for four hours tomorrow, so I should really go.”

I wince at the words because they’re exactly what I said to every woman in my twenties, and I don’t want to hear them coming out of Nina’s mouth, directed at me.

“Don’t,” I blurt without thinking, or maybe I’m finally thinking clearly. She drove all the way here, and I don’t want to wake up alone in an empty hotel bed like I’ve been doing for the past decade.

“What?” she says.

“Don’t go. Stay with me tonight.” I slide off the bed, and the flimsy headboard falls to the mattress. “We can move the mattress and pillows to the floor. Just don’t go yet. Please?”

“You want to make a pillow fort with me?”

“I’d build you a pillow castle.”

She rocks back on her heels, debating, but then she grabs the sheets. “Okay, you scoot the mattress off, and I’ll look for extra blankets and pillows. I bet they have some in the closet. Maybe we can steal some from Wyatt’s room too.”

“Doubt it. Patty needs at least ten pillows to sleep.”

We gather supplies, rearrange the furniture, and thirty minutes later, we’re spooning naked under a pillow fortress. I’m trying not to think about how good she feels in my arms and just enjoy how free I feel, for once.

There’s no lower back pain, no sponsorship meetings, no League breathing down my neck. It’s just me and her in our own little kingdom.

If only we could stay like this forever.

I kiss her temple. “Thank you for coming tonight. No one’s ever surprised me like this before, and it means a lot to me, especially since I know you don’t like being in new places.”

“Really? No one?”

“You’re the first.” I hold her tighter. “You’re making me break all my rules.”

She pauses, her fingers moving back and forth over my forearms as she seems to think hard about something. “I don’t want to change you, Rhode, or hold you back from your future, no matter how much fun we have giving each other orgasms. I know you want to get married, so if you meet someone else, just be honest and tell me if things change. I can’t promise that feelings won’t get involved, but let’s agree to talk.”

She’s right, and I don’t want to hold her back from her dreams in Argentina. The life as a partner of an NHL player is intense, but the thought of sleeping with anyone who’s not Nina makes me nauseous.

“I know I said I don’t want something casual, but how about we do this until you leave? Because I like you, Nina, and I want to spend more time with you.” I force out my next question. “Are you seeing other people?”

She hesitates. “Not right now, but I’ll tell you if that changes… Is that okay?”

A surge of jealousy rushes through me at the thought of another man’s hands on her. Is this what people in their twenties do now?

I’m not going to demand more than she’s willing to give. The next time we sleep together, I’ll make sure she gets at least five orgasms if I’m competing with other men.

No, ten. Twenty. We’ll go all night.

I force a neutral tone. “I won’t lie, I hate the idea of you with another man. I don’t fucking share, but for now, I’m happy right here, so I’ll take what I can get from you even though I’m supposed to be married with kids by now.

”

“What? Says who, Rhode? Who says you need to be married with kids by now?”

“I don’t know. People. My mom, who keeps asking me for grandkids. Pretty much everyone.”

“Well, you don’t,” she says in that passionate voice of hers. “You don’t need to have the perfect family just because everyone says so. If that’s really what you want, amazing. Go for it. But if you’re only doing it because you think that’s what your life should look like, those aren’t the right reasons.”

She’s got a point, but if I don’t have a family, and I don’t have hockey, then I have nothing. Yeah, the League is draining, and it’s getting more difficult to bounce back, but I’d rather have that than nothing.

I kiss her bare shoulder, letting my lips stay on her warm skin. I can’t seem to stop kissing her. “Sometimes, I think about retiring and not renewing my contract because all of this is exhausting, but if I’m not playing, and I don’t have a family, my life’s just empty. What would I do? Coach? I’m a skater.”

“Rhode Tremblay, look at me,” she commands, twisting in the bedsheets to face me. She takes my cheeks in her hands, and I feel small all of a sudden. “You’re a cross-stitching fiend who loves unloveable cats, cares about his friends, is a little overprotective, but we’ll overlook that because it’s cute sometimes, has an excellent sense of humor since you laugh at all my jokes, and loves his family. Your career is important, but you can build whatever life you want when it’s over.”

Her words tug at something deep inside me, something I didn’t know was buried there.

I’ve never given much thought to what I want outside of hockey. The League stole all the integral parts of my twenties—the exploring, growing, failing—leaving a watered-down version thanks to all the partying .

I knew what I wanted but didn’t know who I was, I still don’t, and now, I’m like an arrow that’s hit its mark.

Stuck.

I’ve only thought about what I should have. I should have a family because it’s what everyone else has, but the thought of going from chasing around rookies to chasing around toddlers sounds exhausting. It’d be nice to meet a woman and spend some time building a life—just the two of us.

I kiss her cheek, not her lips because of her rule I’m starting to hate, but part of me is grateful for that one boundary. “I wish I’d been as smart as you when I was in my twenties. Maybe then I would’ve found someone by now.”

Her smile disappears, and she’s looking at me like I might’ve said the wrong thing again. “But then you never would’ve met me.”

I stare at her, wondering about how this funny, smart, strong girl went from my driver to my fake date to sending me voice memos after every game, and now, to a woman I know has a birthmark shaped like Texas on her right shoulder. But when she gets on that plane to Argentina, all she’ll be is a memory.

I stroke my thumb over her bottom lip, gently tugging at the soft skin. “You’re right, and that would’ve been a damn shame.”

She climbs back on top of me like the little fox she is, and because I’m greedy for her, we go for round two, then three, then four.

I lose track after the fifth.