Icebound: Chapter 29

“

’m so glad you’re here,” Nina slurs from the passenger seat as we drive back to her apartment. “I’m so glad you came. Really, I am. I miss coming. I miss you. Do you miss me?”

“I think we’ve established that I definitely miss you.”

“You know what we should do?” she rambles. “Have sex. I miss you. I miss the sex. The sex was so good. It was the best I’ve ever had.”

“I know. Me too.” I tighten my fingers around the steering wheel as blood rushes to my dick at the idea of her lying naked beneath me, but I want more. “The only thing you’re getting tonight is a goodnight kiss. On the forehead.”

The street light glints off her nose piercing as I stare at her the same way everyone else was during her speech. She drew everyone in with her passionate words.

I’ve been around a lot of confident and intelligent women, but sometimes, it can feel like they’re saying things because they’re trying to be someone they think I want and not the person they actually are, but it’s never felt that way with Nina.

“Rhode!” she shouts .

The light turns red, and on instinct, I punch the brake, reaching out to push her chest back into the seat so she doesn’t slam forward. We come to a stop at the light, both panting.

“Sorry,” I say. “That turned red fast.”

“You shouldn’t be looking at me while you drive.”

Nina grins. That smile hits me in my soul, waking me up and knocking me out all at once. It happens then, in this quiet moment that should be insignificant over the span of my life, but it’s not. It’s a big moment.

A really big moment.

I think I might love her.

No, I don’t think—I know.

I thought love would be this big moment, but it stacked up from all these little things.

The way she always buys Chicken treats. Every time she stood up for me. All the moments we made each other laugh, whether it was from a broken headboard or a joke about a naked yoga class. Our late-night deep conversations about having kids.

There are so many ways to have a family now, and yeah, age plays a factor, but I don’t want to have kids just because people around me are popping them out. I want to have them because I’m so madly in love with someone that I want to create a life with them. When I used to imagine that future, that person used to be faceless.

Now, all I see is Nina.

She snuck up on me, this girl who I thought was all wrong, but maybe that’s the fun part of falling in love, not knowing where you’re going to find it or when it’s right around the corner. Finding someone who makes the dull moments spectacular, who turns grocery shopping into an adventure, and then, you choose to spend all your boring moments together because they don’t feel that way around them.

We stare at each other until the light turns green. That red light was too damn short. I rip my eyes away, looking back to the road because it’s hard to look at her.

I don’t want to say goodbye when she leaves for Argentina. I want more of her smiles, her laughs, her thoughts—more of her. I grip the steering wheel hard enough to break it, wincing when pain lances through my shoulder.

“Rhode? You okay?” she asks.

“Yeah, fine.”

“You sound mad. Are you mad? Don’t be mad at me.”

“I’m not mad at you, Nina.”

“But you sound really mad.”

“I’m not. Promise. Just thinking.”

What do I do? I didn’t think I’d realize I loved this girl while I was driving home. I can’t tell her tonight. Not when I still have my own shit to figure out with the League.

I’m still reeling when I park the car and walk into Nina’s apartment. Gwen’s pacing the living room, and her eyes pop when she spots us walking through the door.

“Nina?” She rushes over. “How’d the speech go?”

“It went amazing. I’m amazing.” Nina spins around the living room, almost knocking into a fern. I steady her and then the plant.

Gwen’s brows pinch. “What’s wrong with you?”

“The bartender gave me the wrong mojito, and I’m a wee bit tipsy. This is what I get for not drinking for over a year.” Nina spins around again, catching herself on the wall before I get to her. “But the good thing is I’m not mad at you for kissing Rhode anymore. No, I’m not.”

I tense, snapping my head to Gwen. “You told her?”

“I had to.”

Is this why she ended things? No. Nina might pull away sometimes, but she would’ve talked to me if it bothered her.

My breathing quickens, and I grip Nina’s hands, looking into her half-lidded eyes. “Nina, listen to me. You know that meant nothing, right? It was before I met you. Please tell me that’s not why you ended things.”

She gives me a sleepy smile, patting my cheek. “No, I’m not mad at you, well, I mean a teeny bit because I want you to kiss me, but I ended things because I didn’t want to be a WAG. No wagging for me. I’d tell you if I was mad. I’ll tell you lots of things. Like I want your dick in my mouth tonight.”

A laugh bursts out of me. My girl’s such a mess, but she’s mine. “Not tonight. We’re sleeping tonight.”

She taps my nose. “Yes, tonight.”

Gwen points over her shoulder. “Think I’ll go to bed. You got this?”

“Yeah, I’ll always take care of her.” I keep my eyes on Nina’s lopsided smile, tracing the corners of her lips with my thumb.

“Come on. Let’s go.” Nina leads me into her bedroom down the hall. The cross-stitch I made hangs on the wall, and pride flares in my chest. It’s right there in the center above her bed. She takes off her shoes, throws them across the room, and looks me dead in the eye.

“Okay, I lied. I might be a little mad about the kiss because Gwen always sparkles and gets everything. I want to sparkle, but no one sees me. I’m like… a glimmer. You have to look hard to find me.”

“I found you, and now, you’re the only thing I see.”

Her mouth falls open in shock, and a second later, my girl launches herself across her bedroom to attack my face. Her fingers tangle in my hair and her soft lips meet mine.

There’s nothing I want more than to coax her mouth open with my tongue, but I muster all my restraint and gently push her back. “Wait. Not like this, Nina.”

Her neck turns splotchy, but she lifts her chin, which I’ve learned is her signature move when she’s trying to challenge someone or hide her feelings. “Do you not want me anymore? Because if you don’t, just tell me. I can handle it.”

I scoff. Ridiculous question.

She’s getting a ridiculous answer for that one. “I want you on your knees, ass up, with your pussy gripping my cock as I take you from behind, and then, I want to wake up next to you every morning, but we don’t always get what we want, now, do we?”

Her chest heaves in short, shallow huffs as she seems to debate something. With a deep breath, and a devious look in her eyes, she strips her bra right off.

I go rigid. “What’re you doing?” I might be in love with her, but the only thing she’s getting is tucked into bed.

She shrugs. “Fine, don’t kiss me, but I want to have sex, and you’re here.”

Alright, that really pisses me off.

“Nina,” I warn. “I’m not having sex with you just because I’m here. Get in bed. We’ll talk in the morning.”

“Or we could not talk now.” She cups her breasts, circling her nipples, but I lock my gaze on her face. “In fact, I could think of a lot of things we could do that don’t involve talking.”

Crossing my arms, I lean against her door frame. “Me too. Like sleeping.”

“What?” She lifts her chin. “Are you worried I can’t handle this? Because trust me, I can handle you, Rhode.”

“I know you can.” I let my eyes drop to her perfect tits. “You take me so good.”

Her lips part at that, but she stares me down with fire in her eyes. I’m not worried about getting burned by her because I’d gladly walk into the flames for this woman. I can’t tell if she’s trying to prove a point or if something else is going on in her head, but either way, nothing’s happening because I’m here.

“I’m not touching you tonight, Nina. Don’t push me on this.

I’m not letting you treat me like any other man when I know this means more to both of us.”

The fire in her eyes extinguishes a bit, but her jaw grits. “Okay, fine.”

“Good girl. Now, get in bed.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“I’m tempted to call you a good girl for the rest of my life just so you’ll keep snapping at me like that.”

We hold each other’s gazes in a standoff, but then, a look of determination crosses her face. My brows come together.

What’s she thinking?

She stumbles to her nightstand, yanks open the drawer, and pulls out a goddamn vibrator. Heat races to my groin.

No. She won’t do it.

“Nina,” I say in my most commanding voice. “Don’t. Not like this.”

“What? I’m getting in bed,” she says, innocently. “Stay or leave. I don’t care.”

The little devil.

I love her so much.

She flicks her golden hair over her shoulder, yanks down her panties, and spreads her legs out on the bed, showcasing herself like she’s on display in a museum built only for me. I gulp down the dryness in my throat.

This girl’s going to kill me.

She turns on the vibrator, letting the soft hum fill the room, and places it right over her clit.

I actually fall to my knees. “Fuck, you’re going to make me pass out from watching you play with yourself, aren’t you?”

“Well, you’re not playing with me, so that’s your fault.”

She throws her head back into the pillows and starts moaning loudly. Her tits bounce with the movement, and it’s the best sound in the world, but then she gets louder .

Really loud.

A little obnoxious, if I’m honest. My eyes turn to slits when I realize that she’s putting on a show for me.

It’s laughable that she thinks I can’t tell the difference between her fake noises and real ones. I know exactly what she sounds like when she comes because I’ve been replaying those sounds in my head right alongside her laughter.

Standing, I cross the room until I’m towering over her writhing on the mattress, trying to look unaffected even though my dick is pointing right at her mouth.

I imagine jerking off and coming all over her pretty face as punishment for faking these noises. “Does that feel good, or are you wishing it was my cock?”

She moans louder. Presses harder. “This feels amazing. So good. I don’t need you.”

“You’re going to be in so much trouble for this,” I growl, loosening my tie.

“Told you I wasn’t a good girl.”

I grip the edge of the mattress, arms shaking from trying to hold onto my last fragment of self-control when all I want is to be inside her. “I bet it’d feel even better if I were filling you up. You could have my cock and your little toy. You know what? We’ll play with that next time because I don’t care how you come as long as you’re thinking of me when you do.”

Her breaths quicken, and I know the second her moans turn from fake to real when her back arches. It takes less than a minute before she’s screaming my name.

I’m sweating as I watch her cheeks flush, and even though I’m irritated with her for trying to fake this, it takes trust to be this vulnerable with someone, and that’s something real.

We’re something real.

I know it.

My eyes drift over her naked body as she comes down from her high, smug and satisfied. Damn, she’s glowing. I lift up the sheets to tuck her into bed, but then, everything stops.

Blood rushes to my ears at the sight of the small outline of a turtle etched on her hip bone. That’s new.

When did she get that?

I stroke my thumb over the mark. “You got a tattoo of a turtle?”

She yanks up the covers to hide herself, letting the vibrator clatter to the floor. “No.”

“Liar. Why did you get a tattoo of a turtle?” I ask, needing her answer more than oxygen.

Her face turns the color of her flushed body. “It doesn’t matter.”

“It does to me.” I swallow, something burning in my chest as I stare at the turtle that’s the same shape as mine. “Did you get this for me?”

That sassy tilt to her lips falls away, and her hazels shine. She pulls up the blankets as high as they’ll go, so she’s covered up. “Fine. Yes. I got a turtle tattoo for you, but we don’t need to talk about it because it’s embarrassing.”

All the heat from moments ago evaporates, and a new one takes over. It feels like I’m under the stadium lights with thousands of people screaming my name. I think she’s looking at me like I’m the lucky bastard she’s in love with, and I hope I’m not imagining that glint in her eyes.

She’s got me wrapped around her tattooed finger, and I don’t know how to unravel myself. I don’t want to, but I need to figure out what I want after the League. I’m starting to think I don’t care what my future looks like as long as it includes Nina.

I undo the buttons on my shirt, revealing the four-leaf clover that matches the one on her neck—the one that’s now etched into the skin right over my heart. Her eyes pop when she sees my new ink .

“That looks like mine,” she whispers.

“I know. It looks exactly like yours.”

“Why did you get that?” She reaches out to stroke my skin like she needs to be closer. Goosebumps pop up under her touch.

I brush her hair back from her face. “Because the day I met you was the luckiest day of my life.”