After a one-night stand flips a grumpy hockey goalie's bad luck, he pursues his team's new dental assistant to rebound his abysmal season.
Trapped in a small town, my life has been planned, controlled, and boring. After my sister and I failed to kee...
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As I pushed the stubborn ass into the bathroom, he laughed. Not a genuine laugh, but his amused chuckle increased the invisible steam pouring from my ears.
"What the fuck are you doing?" I glared at Connor. "Following me? Showing up—"
"Accepting your sister's invitation for dinner." He propped his ass on the counters and widened his feet. "She's more hospitable than you, Freckles."
"Ugh-ahh." An unrecognizable sound strangled itself in my throat. This guy was so...so... Close.
My mistake in shoving him in here – full honesty, he let me – was as obvious as the insulin cartridge pyramid stacked on the counter behind him. Reaching around him, I swept them into the top drawer, brushing my chest against his. Within the tight space, he held my hips and removed the gap between us. Fed by the tension crackling between us, the nudge of temptation he pressed into my stomach was maddening.
What was he doing here? Proving he was difficult? His face showed nothing but stubborn determination, while my reflection behind him showed a wild panic in my eyes.
Having him here for dinner raised questions. Showing up raised questions, and us enclosed in the bathroom definitely raised questions.
The security of his arms wasn't enough to quell the urge to punch him, but he leaned over and kissed my cheek. I blushed from the heat of his breath fanning down my neck.
"You're right." Clenching his jaw, he wasn't happy admitting this. "You need something to gain here."
'Here' meaning our arrangement, spoken like we'd already agreed on it.
A knock pounded on the door.
"If you need more hand-washing time," Paige said. "I'll take Brody for a walk."
"I'm not a dog," his voice muffled, and she shushed him.
"Behave," I warned Connor and pointed at his nose.
His laugh made me scowl, which continued as he immersed himself in helping. Getting glasses of water, passing out napkins, engaging in several 'How can I help?' prompts, making the salad... Had an alien touched down and invaded his body?
There was something about watching a man cook with confidence, flexing his impressive biceps while chopping raw vegetables and plating food, that twisted my stomach. Every movement was relaxed, as if we were in his kitchen. His small smile was enough for my traitorous pulse to quicken.
"Do you like to cook, Connor?" Paige sent me an impressed look, but Brody reserved his opinions with guarded pleasantness.
"I like eating." Captain Obvious smirked at me. "Sweet things."
The yellow glow of light from the dining room table contrasted with his usual standoffishness. Alien-Connor looked...approachable, although closer inspection showed his smile was forced.
