Page 52 of Play Dirty

I shed my hoodie, and let the amazing warmth wrap itself around me like a blanket of pure awesomeness. I closed my eyes. Took a long, deep, cedar-scented breath…

“Couldn’t sleep?”

The sudden voice sent my heart leaping into my throat! My eyes flew open, and there he was:

Ares.

His voice was rough and low, like he’d been there for a while.

“Freezing,” I said.

He shifted a little on his wooden seat, and regarded me curiously.

“Yeah.”

That was it. No comment. No jab. Nothing but simple agreement.

I moved further in, stepping out of my slippers. I peeled off my socks and sat down, as the heat was already starting to build against my skin.

“Thought this place was player only,” I joked nervously.

“It is.”

“Funny,” I shrugged. “I must’ve slipped past the bouncer.”

He glanced up again, and for a moment our eyes met. Sweat dripped from the hair hanging over his face.

“Lucky you.”

Ares lowered his face again, his broad back flexing in a great ‘V’ as he pulled a small towel over his head. He wore a similar towel like a belt; one that barely made it around his waist, and only came down to the tops of his thick, powerful thighs.

Other than that, he wore nothing.

“You don’t belong here.”

He said it flatly, without emphasis. I didn’t flinch.

“Here?” I pointed downward. “Or in the house?”

The defenseman gave a slow shrug of his boulder-like shoulders.

“Does it matter?”

I sat down, as if to cement my place in both. The wood felt hot against my legs, even through my clothes. I fucking loved it.

“You got a problem with me — fine, say it,” I told him plainly. “It’s not as if I haven’t been useful.”

Ares let out a loud hiss. He reached down and gripped the bench tightly with both hands, his arms flexing wildly, as if holding something back.

“You think one win fixes what happened to Trees?”

“I don’t think you actually know what happened to Trees.”

That stopped him. Just for a second.

“You were there,” he said. “Tell me.”

“No. I wasn’t.”