Page 60 of Against The Boards

I gave him a sour look.

“I love your come face. It’s the hottest thing I’ve ever seen.”

I shook my head at him but was grinning as I shooed him out of the bathroom. “Get out of here!”

He walked back into the main room, and I heard the TV turn on. I surveyed myself in the mirror. My hair was a bit of a wreck, so I had to brush it out again to get all the tangles out. At least he didn’t pull my hair this time. It could have been worse.

I flicked on the hairdryer and ran it through my hair until it was dry enough. I then hung up our dirty towels on the hook and padded into the main room. I went to my bag, where I produced clean clothes to sleep in. It was cold in the room, and I had only brought a tank top and shorts to sleep in. I ran my hands down my arms.

Benny sat on the bed against the headboard with his long legs stretched out in front of him. He wore a pair of black sweatpants and a Bulldogs t-shirt. I was silently thanking the hockey gods for that because if he was shirtless, oh boy, I might have made some poor decisions. We’d had sex four times tonight. How did I still want to jump his bones?

He arched a dark eyebrow at me. “You cold?” he asked.

I nodded and got into bed next to him. He hefted himself off the bed and dug around in his bag. When he returned, he handed me a Bulldogs sweatshirt. I thanked him and put it on, surprising myself by thinking that it smelled like him, and that comforted me.

Wait, what?

He climbed back into the bed, but instead of next to me, he slid in behind me and shifted my body so I was sitting in-between his legs with my back against his front. His arms came up behind me to hug me around the waist. I leaned my head back against his chest and watched the game while I settled into his arms. This was weird, but I liked that he was such a cuddly guy.

It was a little late, so the St. Louis Walleyes and the Winnipeg Whitecaps game was about to start the third period.

“Who you got?” I asked while listening to the intermission report.

“St. Louis.”

I glanced up at him. “Really? Caps all the way.”

He chucked, and I felt the rumble in his chest on my back. “What? Is that like Canadian law or something?”

“Yup!”

He wrapped his arms around my middle again, and I couldn’t help the smile break out on my face. This gigantic man was such a cuddly teddy bear, and I didn’t hate it. I leaned back into his chest, loving the feeling of his body pressed up against mine. I felt oddly safe in his arms. He was chipping away at my armor and had unraveled me completely.

“Oh, wow, you aren’t glaring at me. I need to take a picture because I know that won’t last,” he joked.

I jabbed him in the ribs with my elbow, but I smiled when he picked up his phone and took a selfie of us. I smiled at the camera when at the last second, he kissed my temple. I angled my head up towards his face, and he ducked his head down to meet me in a kiss. I reached my hand up into his hair, and I smiled into the kiss when I heard the click of his camera again.

“Send those to me?” I asked when we parted.

He nuzzled my neck and gave me feather-light kisses. Even though his short stubble was still scratchy, I loved the feeling of it across my smooth skin. “Of course.”

“Benny?”

“Hmm?”

“What’s happening between us right now?”

He paused for a moment, and then he lifted my wrist to his mouth and kissed my tattoo. I swear he was obsessed with that spot, but I liked the sweet gesture. “Whatever you want.”

I chewed my lip but didn’t have an answer for him because I didn’t know what I wanted. I liked being in his arms and him holding me close as we watched the sport we loved. He was so strong, and his enormous arms made me feel so safe that I didn’t want to let go of the cocoon of his embrace. His kisses made me feel alive. They were like him, aggressive yet kind, and I didn’t want them to stop.

He squeezed me around my middle and kissed my cheek. “Do you still hate me?” he whispered into my hair.

“Hmm. I don’t know…” I trailed off until he tickled me, and I giggled uncontrollably.

He pushed me onto my back again and held my face in both of his hands while he hovered over me. “Say it!” he teased.

“Fine, stop!” I laughed. “I guess I don’t hate you anymore.”