Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 90257 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 451(@200wpm)___ 361(@250wpm)___ 301(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90257 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 451(@200wpm)___ 361(@250wpm)___ 301(@300wpm)
It still is to this day.
He’d much rather be on the ice than stuck in a classroom.
Ever since Maverick was old enough to skate, Dad would flood part of the backyard during the winter months to make a small rink where he could go and practice after finishing up his homework. It was the perfect incentive.
Sometimes our parents would lace up their own skates and we’d all fool around before heading indoors to sit by the fireplace and sip mugs of hot cocoa. Those memories of our childhood are some of the most cherished ones I have.
Mav would have pickup hockey games with kids from the neighborhood. Maybe Ryder and I weren’t friends back then, but he was always there, part of my life.
Mom reaches out and lays a hand over mine. “You’ve been awfully quiet. Is there something on your mind?”
I force a smile, unwilling to admit the truth about my relationship with Ryder. “I was just thinking about how we would have pickup games in the backyard.”
Her expression turns wistful as she squeezes my fingers. “Oh, I miss that.”
“Me, too.”
Dad and Mav continue talking about the season and the Wildcats’ upcoming schedule as my mind once again turns to the blond hockey player.
And what I need to do.
CHAPTER 33
RYDER
I spot her dark head from twenty yards away as she moves through the flow of student traffic and pick up my pace. I’d know Juliette anywhere. For as long as I can remember, I’ve been attuned to her presence. Almost like she was already a piece of me. Fighting my desire for her has always been a losing battle.
I have no idea how I lasted this long without laying hands on her.
Thank fuck I don’t have to keep my distance anymore.
Her dark hair has been pulled up into a messy bun at the top of her head, leaving the nape of her neck bare. My fingers itch to pull the elastic from her hair so that it falls around her shoulders and down her back in a thick curtain. I love wrapping the silky length around my fist until it becomes necessary to arch her spine when I’m fucking her from behind. The thought of being inside her tight heat is enough to have me popping wood.
Even when I’m buried deep inside her body, all I can think about is the next time I’ll be able to do it. When we’re joined together, the world around me falls away and it’s just the two of us. I don’t have to think about school or hockey. I can just focus on Juliette. She eclipses everything else in my life.
I almost stumble as that thought circles in my head, because it’s one hundred percent true. Nothing matters more than she does.
Not even hockey.
And that’s a frightening prospect. Nothing and no one has ever mattered more than my chosen sport.
It’s my reason for living.
For breathing.
Who am I without it?
I have no idea.
What I do know is that Juliette sees more than just hockey when she looks at me. She sees all the possibilities that I’m unable to. Because of that, the future doesn’t seem quite so scary with her by my side.
It only takes a handful of seconds before I eat up the distance between us. People call out my name as I jog past, but I don’t pay them any attention. How can I when she’s in the vicinity?
As I pull alongside her, my fingers fasten around her smaller ones as I tug her close. I just want to bury my face in the delicate hollow of her neck and breathe her in. I want to take her mouth and not come up for air for hours. The need I feel for her is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before.
A gasp escapes from Juliette as I haul her into my arms, and she quickly glances around. One palm settles on my chest as she gives me a slight shove. “Ryder, we’re in the middle of campus. Anyone could see us.”
I shrug. “Why do we have to hide our relationship? Maybe we should bite the bullet and tell our families. Do you really think they’d have a problem with it?”
Then I could touch her any damn time I wanted, and people would realize that she belonged to me. The first order of business is to get her a jersey with my name on it so she can start wearing it.
That would get the word out quickly.
I make a mental note to pick one up at the campus bookstore before the next game.
Her eyes widen as surprise morphs across her features.
“In fact,” I say, warming to the idea, “we could all go out after Thursday’s game. We’ll spring it on everyone then. What do you think? Does that sound like a plan?”
She sucks her lower lip into her mouth and chews it as we continue moving along the wide path that cuts through campus.