It’s been weeks now; why can’t I stop hearing them?
They were dumb to even think.
Even dumber to say aloud.
And because of that I hurt Harper—but better for that small slice of hurt to happen now rather than later. Rather than when she wakes up one day and?—
“No?” I hear.
And blink, those tits coming back into focus.
“No, what?”
The woman’s mouth curves, her smile turning predatory. “No to me?” A beat. “No to no strings?”
And I make a decision.
I glance at the bartender, wait until he’s looking at me then nod to the side. “She needs another drink.”
Laughter from beside me. “That I do.”
The bartender smirks and starts pouring. “Another beer for you too?”
I shake my head. “Bourbon. Neat.”
I can’t wait to see you again.
Beer isn’t going to cut it.
“What’s your name?” she asks when her second drink is in hand and I’m reaching for my glass.
I drain it, silently ask for another. “Leo.”
A pause. Then another laugh. “You’re a quiet one, aren’t you?”
I wasn’t quiet with Harper.
Hell, we’d talked for hours, could have kept talking for hours more if we hadn’t fucked each other into exhaustion.
And the only reason I hadn’t woken her up the next morning and done it all over again was because I promised Sawyer and the other guys to meet them for some ice time. It’s the off-season, but we still need to practice, still need to stay in shape—especially since the guys coming up seem to get younger with each year that passes.
Or maybe it’s that I’m getting old for a hockey player.
Twenty-nine.
Yup. It’s all downhill from here.
At least in the world of professional sports.
“My name is Shannon,” she says, shifting so that her body is perpendicular to mine, legs crossed, skirt riding up. She rests her hand on my thigh, tits brushing against my arm. “Yummy. Muscles.” She leans closer, lips coming to my ear. “You know how to use them, big guy?”
I try to ignore how wrong it feels to have her close, how wrong her voice sounds.
Something that’s made a little easier when I down another bourbon.
Her voice softens. I can almost pretend she’s someone else.
And by the time I down the third one, I’m not thinking of another woman, another night.
