“You’re amazing at PR. Look what you’ve done for the team in such a short time. You could work for an NHL team and really rake in the money doing this.”
“It’s not just the money. I love everything about the job and creating an online presence, but I don’t think my father would ever support me if he knew that’s what I wanted,” she says.
“You can’t go about putting your father first all the time. You have to put your needs first, and do what’s good for you too. Your dad should respect whatever makes you happy,” I advise her.
“Westfall is costing an arm and a leg. I messed up when I dropped out of Boston. Papa was so disappointed, but now he believes I’m back on track. I can’t let him down now,” she declares.
“Lili, you said it yourself. Your father barely has time for you here. He’s focused on his job and his successes. I respect him as a coach. He knows what he’s doing, and he’s been doing it a long time. I want the NHL and I know he and Coach Darren will help me get there, but you can’t live your life in fear of disappointing him. That’s not living.”
“Do you know what he would do if he caught us right now? How disappointed he would be? He wanted me to marry a suit like Tristan. A guy from a wealthy family who was going to Harvard. He would flip the hell out. . .”
“If he knew you were with a jock,” I say, dryly finishing the sentence for her.
She nods. “What we’re doing is risky. You need to focus on the draft,” she warns.
“It’s no secret I’ve been into you since the moment I saw you,” I remind her.
“I’m scared,” she admits. I take her and hold her in my arms. She places her head on my shoulder.
“I’m scared too. I didn’t have parents as an example at all growing up, but what I know is I can’t let my past define my future. I’ve got a bank of bad memories and enough scars to make me run in the other direction, but I want you so much, I can’t let that shit rule over me anymore. I spent too much of my life terrified of feeling anything and now, for better or worse, I’m putting my heart on the line. I can’t imagine not seeing where this can go between us because I think we could be something great, Lili,” I admit. She pulls back and looks me in the eyes and then she kisses the air out of my lungs. Her hands move frantically over my face as if she can’t touch me enough, and I kiss her back with the same amount of fervor. I would have liked to hear she is all in with me, but I know after everything she’s been through baby steps are necessary, and her reaction and admission about being scared was huge. She lies on her back and I slide my cock inside her. I move slowly as she looks in my eyes and continues to trace her fingers over my cheekbones then my lips. There is something extremely intimate about what we are doing. All the other times we had sex it was explosive chemistry, but this feels like two souls connecting. It’s intense and real, and when she comes apart with her eyes watching me and her mouth opening as moans escape her, I follow, filling her with everything I got. I fall limp on her side and kiss her temple and we just hold on to each other like we are each other’s lifeline, and maybe we are. Lily was a mess when we met but I was no better. I spent my time dedicated to work and school because I was terrified of feeling anything at all. Now I feel like I’m diving headfirst into a pool. I just hope when I land it’s filled with water to soften the blow.
THIRTY-SIX
Liliana
“Oh crap. Damn.” A loud voice pulls me from sleep, and I open my eyes with a startle. Logan begins shifting beside me. I look at the door to see Noah coming toward the bed. “You need to get out of here,” he whispers. Then he turns back to the door because someone is knocking.
Logan flies out of bed and begins to get dressed.
“Would you hold your horses, I need to take a dump,” Noah shouts at the door. He has his back to us as I scramble to pick up my clothes and run to the bathroom. Then I hear him and Logan whispering.
“Are you insane?” he asks Logan.
“We need to get her out of here,” Logan replies.
“All the guys are hanging out in the hallway. She isn’t going anywhere,” Noah says. “If this gets back to Coach, you can say goodbye to coming with us to Hockey East,” he says, referring to the tournament.
“Shit. We fell asleep. It wasn’t on purpose,” Logan defends.
I put my pj’s back on, then slip on the robe, and take out the green mud mask I put on when I came in here. I also flip my hair over and wrap one of the white hotel towels on my head.
I leave the bathroom.
“What the fuck?” Noah mumbles.
“She’s being inconspicuous,” Logan explains.
“Still don’t know how she’s getting out of here,” Noah says, his voice on edge. I can see he’s a good friend to Logan. Logan’s lucky to have someone who has his back.
More knocking comes on the door. “Russo, open up. Noah owes me ten bucks,” the guy says, pounding on the hotel room door. I can’t figure out who it is.
“I made a bet with Leo.” Noah shrugs.
“Tell him you’ll pay him tomorrow,” Logan whispers.
“What the hell is going on in there?” Leo asks, sounding suspicious.
I pace the room feeling like a caged animal. This little getup makes me feel a little crazy too.
“He’s taking a dump. Come back later,” Logan says and then he shrugs, giving Noah an impish smile.
I swoon when I look at Logan. This night was very unexpected. I figured when I came down here it would be another one of our hot hookups, but it was so much more. The first round of sex was hot but then we talked, like really talked about life. I’d never done that with Tristan. At least not exposing my fears while laying myself out there. Maybe I worried Tristan would never accept me if he knew I was gunning for Harvard because Papa pushed me to do it, and it wasn’t something I wanted. Logan, on the other hand, wasn’t judgmental. I can tell him anything and he’ll lend a supportive ear and push me to do what truly makes me happy. It’s all very confusing.
“Fuck no,” Leo says.
Then there are more voices by the door.
“What’s really going on in there?” one of the guys says. I realize how thin these walls are. Logan and I were quite loud when we were having sex. I’m glad no one was around.
“It’s fucking Easton,” Noah whispers.
Then more guys are banging on the door.
“Russo, what have you been up to in there?” one of them asks.
Sweat breaks on Logan’s forehead and he gives Noah a deer in the headlights look.
“Shit,” I say. “I’m so screwed.
“You don’t even look like yourself,” Noah whispers. “Maybe just leave the room with your head down.”
“She can’t risk it. What if Coach is around?” Logan whispers.
The guys pound the door some more.
“Dammit,” Logan says and then he whips the door open. My heart gets lodged in my throat, but he steps outside the room and Noah quickly locks the door. He looks back at me like he’s worried for his friend. I go up to the door and look through the peephole.