AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Oh, who the heck am I kidding? That muscle between my legs tugged because Hudson is scorching, sinfully hot. It’s just a fact. No use denying it.
My phone vibrates in my pocket. When I take it out, I find that Hudson’s sent me a text.
Hudson
Found a table on the second floor.
A smile curls around my lips. I can’t resist teasing him just a little.
Feel free to start the interviews before I get there. I know how eager you are to talk to people.
I follow that up with a winking emoji.
Bubbles pop up on his side of the screen indicating he’s typing something. Then they stop. Then they start to bounce again. Finally, his response comes through.
Hudson
Ha. Ha.
A laugh sputters out of me. Not a haha, but a Ha. Ha. The sarcasm is as blunt as a rubber mallet.
I wonder if he scowled when he read my message, or if it drew just the slightest twitch from his lips.
Above the fluttering in my stomach, an excitement swells in my chest as I walk up the library stairway to the second floor where the grumpy goalie waits for me.
I’m sure it’s just because I’m excited to interview students about books that made them feel something. It’s always fun to get to know new people and talk about things that matter to them.
My breath catches when my eyes fall on Hudson sitting at the desk he claimed for us. He’s wearing a white t-shirt that looks downright obscene on him. It clings to every peak and valley of his muscles. The white fabric is so thin that I can see the dark coloring from his tattoos beneath it, revealing that his torso is just as densely inked as his muscular arms.
His torso.
I’m suddenly imagining what Hudson’s hulking body looks like underneath that shirt, lush with tattoo designs and jagged with rippling muscle. I swallow thickly; my throat has to work to make it happen because my mouth went dry at the images my mind is summoning up.
I force myself out of my stupor and approach the table. Hudson is hunched over, his eyes glued to his phone.
An uninvited thought furrows into my consciousness: I wonder how many girls he has saved in his contacts?
I have no idea why a bitter taste rises to my mouth. It’s none of my business, and totally irrelevant. I make an effort to push the question out of my mind as I pull out the chair across from him.
“Hey, partner,” I say, sitting down.
His lifts his head, locking his grey-blue eyes on me. It seems like something flashes in them, but it only lasts a moment. “Hey, Summer.”
A tingling feeling ripples over me. It’s the first time he’s called me by my name.
Sheesh, Summer, get a grip. Feeling all tingly because some guy called you by your name? Maybe I really do need to start dating again. I’ve been a bit of a shut-in since breaking up with Sean.
“Excited to start interviewing students?” I ask, knowing the answer.
“Thrilled,” Hudson says, the word practically a grunt, and dripping with so much sarcasm that I feel like I should look around for a yellow wet floor sign.
I have to tense my cheek muscles to keep myself from smiling too broadly. There’s something endearing about Hudson’s grumpiness.
“So, before we ask other people this question, let’s talk about it ourselves,” I begin. “What’s a book that made you feel something?”
“Hm. Well.” Hudson muses, his eyes darting around like he’s ransacking his brain. “A couple months ago I read Montreal goalie Ken Dryden’s book about playing in the seventies. It was interesting to learn how the game’s changed.”
“Okay, but how did it make you feel?” I prod.
