Page 47 of A Scoring Chance
“This isn’t about me, Beauty. This is for you and only for you.”
“But you—” I begin, but he nips softly at the flesh of my skin before sucking my clit into his mouth a second time, biting down softly on it before soothing the sting with his tongue.
“Can wait. Besides, if you touch me now…” Cooper groans against my pussy lips, his hips rising off the bed as I slide my hand back into his sweats. “I need… I need…”
“Tell me what you need and I’ll give it to you.” I lean forward, my mouth dragging across the bulge in his pants, following the path of my hand.
“Beauty, if you don’t stop, I’m going to embarrass myself.”
“That’s the idea.” I almost forget how to breathe as my orgasm rises, bubbling to the surface, before the wave of pleasure crashes over me. I moan his name loudly, pressing my chest to his legs and rocking my hips back and forth over his mouth, wanting to prolong the pleasure.
“Fuck me,” he grunts, the side of my face dampening as he comes in his pants.
I smile against the skin of his stomach as I drag my teeth along his waistband, turning around and tucking myself into his side. We are both a mixture of sweat and cum, my skin itching with the need to get up and shower, but I don’t move a muscle. I want to stay here forever. Cooper says nothing. The only hint that he’s awake is the rise and fall of his chest. The silence is unnerving, and my mind instantly goes to the worst-case scenario. I haven’t known him for long, and one-night stands aren’t my thing. But what about him? He’s a star athlete with a busy schedule. I doubt he’s wanting for partners. My mind continues to race, trying to figure out the perfect escape plan that will keep my dignity intact.
“Beauty.” He whispers my name in reverence, and my heart swells.
“Yes?” I’m not 100 percent sure I’m responding to him saying my name or asking a question. I send up a silent prayer that he isn’t about to brush me off and send me off into the night with an ‘I’ll call you later.’ Please, dear God, let this mean something to him because if it was just a passing fling, I’d be devastated.
He rests his pointer finger under my chin, forcing me to look at him. The room is still dark, but the moonlight casts an ethereal glow across his face, somehow making him even more gorgeous than before. “This means something.”
“What do you mean?” I’m pretty sure I know, but I need to be sure.
“What I mean is, nothing between us will ever be casual, Beauty.” Cooper leans down and brushes one of my locs from my face. “You’ll never be just someone I picked up at The Chill Zone or a fan that’d love nothing more than for her to tell all her friends she spent one night with Cooper Hendrix.”
I press my lips to his chest before sliding up his body and cupping his face between both my hands. “I haven’t done this in a while, Cooper. I don’t know how to be with a hockey star. Plus, your life is here in Portland, and I can’t leave Redwood Falls. I have Darius, Ma, and Alise. My entire life is there.”
His eyes lock on mine, waiting for me to tell him differently. “Ramona King, you are the only person in the entire world who has the potential to ruin me.”
“I’m scared, I whisper, dropping my forehead to his because that’s what all of this boils down to. Everything else I said a few moments ago is an excuse. A reason I’ve used for years to keep everyone at bay. But I can’t silence that little voice in the back of my head that tells me I don’t deserve any of this. A chance at happiness. Someone to call my own, to help me fight the darkness that sometimes is almost too much for me to bear alone.
Cooper could do that for me. Hell, he did that for most of today and has no idea. Can I really take that leap of faith and hope he’s there to catch me before I fall?
As if he can sense the questions in my mind, he whispers. “Are you willing to take that chance with me, Beauty?”
I don’t wait long before I give him the only answer I can bear. “Yes.”
Cooper pulls me tightly against him, his head buried in my chest. The last thing I hear before my eyes drift closed is his whisper, “Good, because I’m never letting you go.”
When I wake up a few hours later, the room is aglow with the sunlight filtering through the open curtains, and I’m alone. Fear grips my chest, wondering where the hell Cooper could’ve gone as the door bangs open and he walks through.
His hair is damp, probably from taking a shower, and he’s wearing a pair of gym shorts and a Portland Timberwolves shirt.He looks delicious, as usual, but my eyes are focused on the tray piled high with the food he’s carrying.
“Aww, you showered without me,” I whine as he comes closer, only half meaning it.
There’s no doubt in my mind that naked Cooper is a million times hotter than clothed Cooper, but there’s no way in hell I want to be naked anywhere near him right now. I barely resisted demanding that he take me right here on the bed after he made me come with his mouth. I know I wouldn’t be able to stop myself if we were naked at the same time.
“Sorry, Beauty, but I doubt you wanted me to still be wearing my sweaty workout clothes.”
“You’ve already left the house and worked out?” I question as he places the tray across my lap.
Cooper chuckles in response. “Yeah. I’m usually out of the house before six a.m. to be in the gym by six-thirty. I spend most of my morning there between meetings and practice, but I just went for a run this morning. I liked the idea of you sleeping in my bed a little too much to be gone longer than an hour.”
I smile up at him, motioning toward the full tray in front of me. “You really need to understand that I don’t eat that much.”
“Again, I didn’t know what you liked, so I got a bit of everything.” He kisses the top of my head before turning to head back out of the room. “I have to go back to the kitchen for your coffee and orange juice.”
He spins on his heels and disappears out the door before I can tell him to come back. My eyes scan the tray, looking for a place to even start eating this mountain of food. The thing is so covered with food I can’t even see the plate beneath it. Eggs, bacon, sausage, and waffles cover the plate, with a small bowl of fruit sitting in the corner. There is another small plate with mini muffins, a croissant, and what looks like a bear claw sitting on top of it. However, the best part of the whole thing is thesmall white vase with two of my favorite flowers, daisies, resting inside.
