Chapter 17

Shit.As much as I liked to joke around with Aurora, the last thing I wanted to do was get her in trouble. Yet here I was, messing with her within earshot of the guys.

"I'm just giving her a hard time." I hopped off the table and turned toward Aurora but kept my distance. "You get everything Miller wanted you to look at?"

She nodded, her cheeks pink and her gaze averted. "Uh…did you need me to check your neck?" she asked Bosco.

"No, I grabbed a heat pack from Doc." He thumbed over his shoulder. "I'll do that after I shower."

Perfect. I needed to do the same, so this would give me a good excuse to herd Bosco out of here. "I'm going that way too." I headed for the door, but as I stepped into the hall, I spun back to Aurora. "How about I check in before the game tomorrow so you can look at the inflammation and tape my shoulder?"

She nodded awkwardly but didn't speak, so I left it at that and hurried out of the room.

Bosco paused next to me. "Maybe I was wrong about her hating you, huh?"

I tamped down my frustration and gave him an easy shrug. My teammates would be cool about it if they knew. We'd all known about Chris and Avery long before Coach and management found out. But I didn't have the same faith in the training staff or the coaches, and I'd be damned if I said anything that put Aurora's job at risk.

"I probably need to stop giving her shit."

Kyle scoffed. "That'll be the day."

With a long breath out, I forced the tension in my shoulders to ease. That was true. That's who I was, and if I didn't at least mess with her a bit, then it'd be obvious something was up.

I shot her a text so she'd have my room number, then I hopped in the shower. The short message didn't warrant a response, but regardless, I was disappointed not to see one when I got out.

"Coming out to the bar?" Emerson asked as I pulled a Revs T-shirt over my head.

"Nah, my shoulder's bothering me," I said, rolling it out.

It wasn't any worse than any injury in the past, but I was frustrated about the way Miller was giving Aurora a hard time about it. He worried about everything, and I wasn't sure she realized that. Regardless of the severity, Miller would be all over her about my shoulder. That was a fact. The man couldn't help but stress.

He was also observant as fuck. And since he already had us in his sights, we had to be extra careful around him. But until last year, he'd been my teammate, and he was the guy Dragon had gone to when he fell in love with Avery but had been told by her father that she was off-limits. And Miller had helped him out.

"Bothering ya, huh? Need to go back to Rory?" Bosco chuckled and cocked one brow. "Didn't you just tell her it was good?"

"It is. I mean it was." I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Look, I have a headache. Leave me alone."

"Uh-huh. Rory gonna help with that too?"

I dropped my hands to my sides and balled them into fists, homing in on Bosch. "Leave her alone."

Instead of clapping back, he stood there, his eyes running over me. He crossed his arms and rocked back on his heels, finally looking away.

"Fuck, you're almost as moody as Damiano now." Martinez shook his head, and the rest of the guys chuckled.

"I hate you all," Damiano mumbled. "I'm not going out either. Going back to the room and calling Avery."

"Then I'm definitely going out," Asher said. "I have no interest in sticking around for that I love you more, no I love you more shit."

"Keep Avery out of whatever this is." Damiano shot Asher a glare.

Coach Wilson strode by then, letting out a long sigh, and headed straight for the exit. He did his best to stay out of anything between Dragon and Avery. The man hated drama.

Despite the moodiness Martinez had commented on, I couldn't help but laugh. I really did like these guys. Though Bosco was all of a sudden watching me a bit too knowingly. Like he might be just as clued in as I was beginning to think Miller was.

Dragon spent all of last season winning Avery over. He'd never kept his efforts a secret from us, so although we razzed him about it endlessly, we had his back and kept what we knew from Coach.

But this was different. The concern here wasn't that hooking up with Aurora would piss off Coach Wilson. No. The risk was to her job. So I had to be more diligent about keeping this under wraps. Even the guys couldn't know. Regardless of how much I trusted them, the more people who knew, the bigger the chance that someone would let a detail slip, and that would be it. If we could make it through the season without being discovered, then we'd figure out our next steps. But the one thing that was certain was that I wouldn't let her go.

By the time we got back to the hotel and I got Emerson out of the room, I was crawling out of my skin. Now she was almost half an hour late, and I was sitting on the edge of my mattress, my knee bouncing, holding my phone in my hand, telling myself not to send yet another text. When the knock finally echoed around the room, I sprang off the bed like a kangaroo and darted for the door.

"You're late." I tugged her into the room. As the door slammed, I pinned her against the wall and ran my nose up her neck, inhaling her scent. "Thought you might've changed your mind." Now that she was in my arms, the tension that had coiled so tight inside me eased. The sneaking around should be hot and fun, but keeping our relationship a secret was stressing me out. I constantly felt like I was on the edge of losing her.

She shook her head, raking her nails up my back. "Sorry, I had to go out to dinner with Anderson, Miller, and Langfield. They needed assurances, again, that you're okay."

With my face buried in the crook of her neck, I cupped her ass and lifted her.

"Although," she chuckled, "if they could see you now, then they would know the shoulder is fine."

I pressed my lips against hers, savoring the taste of her on my tongue, then carried her to the bed.

"Someone's in a hurry." She arched back and wiggled from side to side in my arms.

I pulled her close again. I hadn't had nearly enough of her, and I needed to feel her body pressed to mine. Heat consumed me as her soft breasts met the hard plane of my chest. I skated my lips down the soft skin of her neck, lost in her scent and her warmth, and when I pressed them into the hollow behind her ear, she shivered.

"You wouldn't see me last night." I nipped gently at her flesh. Fuck, I'd missed her. Being without her had left me with this itchy need to prove to myself that she was still mine.

"We're not going to be able to see each other every night."

I pulled away and scoffed. "Why not?" My heart hammered in my chest, and not just because I was turned on. No, suddenly, trepidation and frustration were threatening to take over. Was this not what she wanted? Because being with her, totally, completely, was sure as shit what I was working toward.

"It's not realistic." She lowered her chin, letting her hair hide her face. "We either spend forever hiding this or one of us has to leave the Revs. And if that happens, there's a good chance one of us will have to move, and that scenario will come with its own set of problems."

My heart lurched as I took in the gorgeous woman below me. Fuck. Were those our only choices? To hide or to spend our days apart? No. There had to be a better solution, and one we could come up with soon.

"How about, for now, we put those thoughts aside and enjoy the moment?" she suggested, slipping her hands under my T-shirt.

I helped her pull the shirt over my head, then captured her lips again. "Hell, yes. I'll enjoy every moment I have with you. Nothing makes me happier than hearing you moan my name."

I cuffed the back of her neck and lowered my face to hers. I had no issue getting to be the one who gave her pleasure.

Soft, plush lips pressed against mine briefly before I ran my tongue along her bottom lip, coaxing her to open for me.

She opened her mouth, and with a groan, I sank into the kiss. But simply owning her mouth wasn't enough. I needed to dominate her. To prove that she was mine. That I could make her feel more than anyone else ever could. The slight moan that echoed deep in her chest only encouraged me.

My pulse pounded with anticipation as I skimmed a hand down the soft skin of her neck. My dick throbbed against my zipper, begging for her.

She arched off the mattress into me. Full, round breasts pushed into my chest. God, I loved her tits. My hand skimmed the satin skin of her neck and shoulder, then drifted lower until I found the hem of her shirt. I needed less between us. I cupped her breast, her nipple hardening beneath the lace of her bra. One brush of my thumb over it, and she rewarded me with a breathy moan, causing a deep, hard ache in my cock. With a flick, I released the center clasp of her bra, freeing her tits.

I thrust against her, and her answering whimper vibrated through me. She might not see yet that this was meant to be, but with every touch, every breath, every smile, every whimpering moan, I was more certain this woman was my forever. I shifted slightly to lift her shirt over her head and tossed it to the side before I removed her black pants.

She lay against the white bedding in just a thin black thong, her tan skin smooth and inviting. Her big tits with dark pink nipples begged for my touch. She pressed her teeth into her bottom lip as her eyes begged for more. She was fucking stunning. She was fucking mine.

And she was going to realize that.

Her brown eyes scanned my face. "Mason?" she whispered.

"You. Are. Mine," I commanded. And although I meant it as a statement, she nodded as she slowly wet her lips.

"I'm yours, Mason, so touch me. Take me. Make us both feel good," she begged, arching up, trying to close the distance between us. I leaned down and ran my lips against the curve of her breast, and in response, goose bumps erupted along her skin.

Damn, I needed to feel her against me.

I yanked my shirt over my head, then dove in again and claimed her lips. Her soft skin rubbed against the plains of my chest as she wrapped her legs around my waist. With one hand, I jerked down my sweats, then I kicked them off.

She thrust up. "Mason."

The damp fabric of her thong rubbed rough against my boxers. My cock surged, desperate to break free and slam into her tight pussy. She rocked again. Fuck. She felt like heaven. She was wet and ready, but I wanted her begging for me.

The idea of the sweet plea leaving her mouth rocked through me. Slowly, I worked my way down her body until my lips ghosted over the thin lace of her thong.

"Damn, you're so wet." I groaned, inhaling the scent of her arousal.

"Yes, I need your mouth on me. I need you to touch me," she answered.

That desperate plea was music to my ears, and I rewarded her with a long, slow lap over her pussy. Her moan was all the encouragement I needed to continue.

Having her writhing under me was everything. Something I needed every day.

I sank two fingers deep inside her and curled them upward, searching for the spot that would leave her legs shaking. That would have her crying my name.

"Yes, right there." She moaned, writhing on the bed.

I flicked my tongue over her clit in rapid strokes until her pussy gripped me as she came, calling my name. My chest tightened and the feel of her pleasure coating my tongue. I needed more. I wanted to suck out every drop and then fill her back up with mine.

"Mine," I commanded.

Her blond hair was fanned out on the white sheet behind her head as she looked back at me. "Yes, I want to be yours. Make me yours, and you'll be mine," she whispered.

Her words settled deep inside me.

"I'll always be yours." With a long exhale, I guided myself inside her hot body. So wet and ready, she took every inch of me like she was made for it. I watched her body stretch to take me inside. Seeing us linked together made me burn with the need for more.

"Look at how we fit." I glanced back up and got lost in her deep brown eyes. As if she was looking into my soul and leaving her mark there. I'd never felt like this before.

"Please Mason. Move. I need you to move," she begged.

I held her there for the briefest moment, then pulled back and thrust hard. Her tits bounced below me with each thrust as she pushed against me, pulling me deeper. My lips sealed over hers, connecting us more as I rutted against her. Something inside me snapped, like a floodgate opening, and my emotions rushed over me. This was more than sex. This was more than pleasure. Her responding moans only spurred me on. Every pound was driving her higher. With every stroke, her pussy gripped my cock tighter.

"Come with me, baby," I demanded. "Let me feel that pussy gripping my cock. Let me own your pleasure, like you own me."

"Yes," she moaned, rocking harder against me.

My stomach tightened, and I thrust hard into her, losing control.

She clenched around me as her pussy milked my cock. My hips slammed forward faster and harder until I exploded.

"Mine," I growled. "Mine. Always."

Her eyes weren't open, but she looked blissed out, perfectly glowing below me. I leaned down and gently kissed her lips. I held her for one long second before I pulled myself out of her tight heat.

She sighed, and I helped her roll off the bed, knowing she needed the bathroom.

She stood beside the bed, her hair a mess in that just-fucked way and beard burn on her thighs that clearly marked her as mine, and headed for the bathroom.

My chest ached as I watched her go, the pain one I'd never experienced before. It was longing and need and fear and love all wrapped up together, and it only reinforced my need to find a solution to our issue.

I loved my team, and the game, and the fans. I liked the show of it. But none of it made me as happy as being with Aurora did. She needed to know that. Soon. In a few weeks, I'd have to make a move one way or another. And I needed her to be sure of me before I did something that could tear us apart.