Chapter 14
It felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I had been hiding the truth from Beck since the second I had sex with him, but now it was all out there and he couldn’t have responded better. I couldn’t even have responded to myself better. He had a way with words that I just didn’t and it was moments like this that made me grateful for him.
Beck had tried to sleep on his couch after he gave me one of his T-shirt’s and a pair of joggers, but after a long argument about the seriousness of my injury, he finally digressed and agreed to sleep in his bed with me. I wasn’t about to kick him out of his own bed because Sebastian had banned me
From the house.
It wasn’t until 2am that I calmed down from my frantic events from the night, finally slowing my tears until my cheeks dried and my heart rate to slowed. Beck’s apartment was a large bachelor pad with modern furnishings. He had a glass top desk and coffee table, a black leather couch with decorative black and white pillows, and a white and pristine kitchen with stainless steel appliances; it wasn’t cheap but I had a feeling his father had picked it out. Freshman year I had lived in an apartment like this until Sebastian and I became best friends and decided to room together in a new apartment the following year. Finn was ready to pay rent for both of us, but I forced him to back off and let us get a cheaper apartment, even if he was paying my part of the rent. I felt guilty, but Finn and Sylvia’s father’s had payed for their apartment in college too. There was no way we could have jobs while being NCAA athletes, so we
Just had to accept the help.
The television was on as Beck laid next to me in bed. Despite the joggers most likely fitting me due to my larger behind and in spite of my short height, I forgoed them, deciding not to inflame my hip any more. I wasn’t sure how people managed to sleep flat on their backs, but I guess I was about to find out. “I’d like to point out the lack of sexual jokes since entering your apartment,” I teased Beck while playing with his hand, tangling his fingers in my own. “I’m disappointed. Your wit has let me down.”
“Excuse me if it seemed like the wrong time to hit on you,” Beck scoffed without sounding too serious. I was glad because what I was really doing was testing the water. If he acted oddly then I would know he thought about our time together differently after learning the truth. I was just glad he didn’t. It would only make my life more complicated. “But if you’re truly
That devastated by my lack of sexual innuendos then maybe I should sleep in the other room for my own safety.”
I couldn’t help but laugh lightly at Beck as he used his thumb try and pin my own thumb down against our intertwined hands. This is what happens when we hung out together for too long; everything because a competition.
Sadly, it was a thumb wrestle I would lose.
I grin broke out on my lips and Beck’s own smile tugged at the corners of his lips, my arm muscles trying a lot harder to win than Beck had to. When he pinned my finger down against my hand, I saw the intense claw marks on his right arm. I wasn’t into guys with bulging veins, but the one or two visible on Beck’s muscular forearms were a huge turn on. The red tinted crescents were slightly raised on Beck’s darker medium skin tone in what must
Have been incredibly irritating and sore bumps. I had noticed the marks in the locker room, but I didn’t realize they were that bad. “Oh my God, Beck. I am so sorry,” I apologized while raising his arm up with our intertwined hands, putting his arm on display.
“Eh,” he brushed it off. “It’s kind of hot, to be honest. It looks like I got laid,” Beck joked. I can’t explain the relief I felt to hear him joke with me like nothing had happened. Maybe for some people they wouldn’t want to hear it after something like tonight, but it was my personality and the world I surrounded myself in. This was normal and it felt good.
“Though you should have seen the marks on my back after we had sex,” his smooth laugh filled the air, vibrating his bare chest against my arm. “It looked like I lost a fight with my imaginary pet cat.”
“Does your imaginary cat have a
Name?” I teased.
“Not yet,” Beck replied. “I feel like it should be something ridiculous though. Like those people that name their kids after fruits or their dogs ‘kitty’.”
“You’re cats name is Buster now,” I answered in a dead serious tone without hesitation.
“Perfect,” he laughed.
“And for the record,” I interjected, “You can not talk about leaving marks. You scatter hickeys like bird seed and you like to leave hand prints too.”
“Mhm,” Beck agreed, untangling our hands to run his fingers up my bare arm teasingly. “Such a shame you had to put a stop to that.” He brought his lips to me ear, whispering as his hot breath fanned my skin. “I don’t know how much you recall, but I remember exactly how you moan when someone finds that sweat spot on your right hip.”
I remember exactly how that felt, especially when Beck was the one with his lips pressed against a small white birthmark. It felt as if I was transported back to that night, my body bent over with Beck behind me. I almost bit my lip at the thought of the way he made my body feel. It was pure euphoria.
Regardless of my growing arousal, I pushed his head aside playfully to attempt to brush off my embarrassment. “Oh fuck off, Sampson,” a laugh bubbled from my lips as a playful smile spread on Beck’s teasing face.
“You were thinking hard about that one weren’t you,” Beck mocked causing me to punch the side of his arm. “Hey, no need for abuse. I’m just stating the facts.”
“I’m just stating the facts,” I mimicked with a stupid voice. “If we’re stating facts then you have a serious control
Fetish.”
“Says the most submissive woman I’ve ever slept with.” I couldn’t help but feel the burning heat in my neck spread to my ears which were probably tipped bright red. “Tell me I’m wrong,” Beck teased with an undertone of seriousness.
I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at him. “You’re not wrong, but that doesn’t make you less incorrigible.”
“Whatever you say, Danny.” He paused looking up at the ceiling with me fore a moment. “There is no way in fucking hell I’m going to a 5am practice in two and a half hours.” Beck announced upon feeling out his level of exhaustion finally setting in now that his adrenaline had dropped back to normal. Apparently my health was stressful.
“Someone’s running a lot of laps at the next practice they actually show
Up to,” I taunted him, knowing Coach would make Beck run a legitimate half marathon. “I’m calling it; he’s going to make you run thirteen miles in an hour and a half and then if you don’t finish, which let’s be real; no one does, he’ll make you run another five miles.”
“I know. They did the same thing at St. Could but they didn’t even give the illusion of hope. It was thirteen miles in an hour if not add four more miles. Bradley’s making you think maybe you have a chance then crushing you with five more,” Beck groaned. “But that’s a problem for Sunday. Right now, my problem is not going to a 5am Saturday practice and passing out due to exhaustion half way through.”
“I should give tips. I’m an expert at passing out on the ice.”
Beck rolled his head so his vision went from the ceiling to the side as he look at me with narrowed eyes. “Not funny. Carrying your limp body while on
Skates was not how I expected to walk to the locker room from inside the tunnel.”
“Suck it up, Buttercup. I had a wonderful time. I don’t remember anything. It was lovely,” I drawled.
“It was not lovely,” Beck protested. I could feel his glare on the side of my face. “I could have sworn I was going to end up carrying you to an ambulance. Next time a little warning would be nice.”
“I’ll remember to tell you next time I can barely keep my eyes open. I know your feelings are top priority.”
“You’re very sassy after near death experiences,” Beck’s deep voice sarcastically filled the air.
“Near death? Even I’m not that dramatic.” I couldn’t help but yawn at the end of my sentence, the weight behind my eyes giving way from a
At the end of my sentence, the weight behind my eyes giving way from a headache to pure tiredness.
“Go to sleep, Danny. You’ve had an eventful day,” my captain suggested softly, his own attention span probably depleting with exhaustion from the stress of today. I would have been passed out if I were him.
Maybe it’s too early for that metaphor.
“Goodnight, Beckett,” I murmured, closing my eyes, relief flooding through the body I could barely keep awake anymore. It’s crazy how fast you go from alert to desperately needing sleep.
“Goodnight, Danny.”
His husky voice and his skin against my arm was the last thing I remember before welcoming the comfort of rest.