8. Cassidy

We"rein the thick of happy hour when the door swings open and a shiver runs down my spine. I know it"s him without having to look.

Hayden Vaughn.

How the hell do I know that? Seriously, we"ve only met once and I know almost nothing about him, but my body reacts to his presence like he"s a magnet and I"m a piece of metal.

So much for swearing off hockey players. I flip myself off on the inside for being so fucking stupid.

He walks in like he owns the place, his eyes locked on me and the expression in them… it's like he wants to consume me until there's nothing left. And damn if that cocky smirk on his face doesn"t make me want to let him.

The tight black t-shirt he's wearing shows off his toned muscles and a pair of jeans that hug his thighs in a way that screams I can totally hold you up while I fuck you against the wall. He's got a hoop in his nose and one of his curls has fallen over his forehead. He"s hot as hell and definitely knows it.

I don"t know if I"m happy or pissed that he"s here right now.

Guess it depends on how much I want to lie to myself tonight.

He slides onto a stool at the end of the bar, giving me a smirk that makes my heart race and my panties wet. Ugh, he"s the kind of hot that I know means bad decisions.

I can already tell I'm about to do stupid, stupid things.

But he"s also an egotistical dick just like the rest of them. Just like Roman.

I walk over to him, ignoring the fluttering in my stomach as I ask, "What can I get you?" Yep, I'm just gonna pretend I don't know who he is.

He leans closer to me, breathing deep before saying, "You smell good," in that gravelly tone that makes my knees weak.

I wrinkle my nose. "That"s not creepy at all." Inside, my stomach is doing backflips and my nipples are harder than diamonds.

He laughs, and the sound is rich and deep, making me want to tilt even closer to him to hear better. "I"m just saying you smell nice. I'm not a pervert. Well, not all the time."

"Agree to disagree," I say, trying to act like I don"t care. "What do you want?"

He looks me up and down like he"s sizing me up for something. "Have dinner with me tonight."

I scoff and gesture around my packed bar. "In case you haven"t noticed, I"m working. What do you want to drink?"

He glances at Lila, ignoring my question. "Can"t she handle it?"

"By herself?" I shake my head. "It"s too busy."

Lila takes that opportunity to speak from right behind me, nearly making me jump out of my damn skin. "Actually, I"ve handled worse. Remember when you had food poisoning last year and had to hold a bucket while you—"

I slap a hand over her mouth, widening my eyes with a shut the hell up in front of the hottest guy on planet Earth look that I hope she interprets right. She nods and I let my hand drop back to my side as Hayden laughs.

"So?" he asks me, his dark eyes glinting with amusement. "Give me a chance to show you I don"t just play dirty on the ice."

I throw my head back and laugh. "That line can't seriously work for you, can it?"

Instead of getting offended like Roman would've, Hayden chuckles and shrugs. "I've never needed a line before. Usually I snap my fingers and they line up."

"Charming." I say, rolling my eyes. "But I don't date hockey players." The words come out even as every cell in my body screams that I'll make an exception for him. God, there must be something wrong with me. Something broken inside of me to have these assholes be the only guys I'm attracted to.

His gaze flicks to Roman, who managed to sneak back in here with the crowd and is currently sitting at a table with his teammates, giving me a glare that could strip paint off the wall. Hayden's eyes move back to me. "That's not what I've heard."

"I"m not going to fuck you," I blurt out. I"m such a liar, a slutty little liar, and based on the dirty smirk he gives me, we both know it.

He stands and leans over the bar, getting close enough to me that his lips are brushing against my ear and I can smell his cologne. Why does he have to smell so good?

A shiver runs through my entire body as he whispers, "We"ll see about that, Princess." He pulls back and smirks at me before sliding off his stool and walking away without another word, expecting me to follow.

And I just stand there with a puddle forming at my feet and a brain that's completely checked out.

I watch him go, and I realize that I"m in so much trouble.

Because as much as I try to deny it, Hayden Vaughn is exactly my type.

And if he keeps up his pursuit, I"m going to give in and let him have me any way he wants me. Every way he wants me.

Shit.

"Well? What are you waiting for?" Lila whispers, shoving me in the back. "If you don"t follow him, I"m going to."

"You're gay."

She raises an eyebrow. "And?"

"And Addison would kill you."

Her lips purse like she's considering. "Fair point."

I glare at her over my shoulder and she laughs—okay, cackles—as she heads back to the other end of the bar. "Go get some dick, girl!"

A few of the customers at the bar whistle, cheer, and laugh as I try not to die of embarrassment.

But as I walk out the front door and spot Hayden leaning against his car, waiting for me with a smirk on his face, I know this is quite possibly the worst idea I've ever had.

Selling porn online is no longer at the top of that list.

Honestly, what the fuck am I doing?

He"s trouble.

I'm pretty sure I can't handle whatever sort of ruination he's got planned for me.

And didn't I just swear off hockey players for good this afternoon?

He opens the passenger door of his expensive SUV for me and I slide inside, breathing in the hit of leather and his expensive cologne. And it's exactly this second I realize that I"m already in way too deep with him.

And I don"t know how to stop it.

He climbs into the driver"s seat and starts toward downtown. With every block, I can feel the tension between us thickening until it"s almost impossible to breathe. And when he reaches over and puts his hand on my thigh, I don"t stop him.

I don"t want to.

My skin tingles where his hand grips my thigh, the tips of his fingers indenting the skin, and the heat of his palm soaks into me even through my jeans.

"Where are we going?" I ask, trying to keep my voice from shaking as his fingers inch higher and higher up my leg.

He smirks at me and his face lights up for a fraction of a second as we pass under a streetlight. "You"ll see."

I bite back a moan as his fingers brush against my inner thigh, teasing me through my jeans with the promise of what"s to come.

Hayden Vaughn is the devil, no question. Not when he seems to have this power over me that's impossible to resist.

While he parallel parks, I drool over the way he controls the car, the way the veins pop out in his strong hands. And when his eyes meet mine, I pretend I'm not imagining those hands on my body, but the wicked grin he gives me leads me to wonder if he can read my mind.

We get out of the car and he leads me down the street, his hand on the small of my back. I'm starting to suspect that tonight is going to change everything.

Even though I should be running away screaming, all I want to do is let him rip my clothes off and destroy me for anyone else.

What the shit is that, anyway? I"ve never been the submissive type before. The type to just let a guy take control. On one hand, I want to fight Hayden. Challenge him and see how far I can push him before he snaps. And on the other hand, I want to fall to my knees, bow my head, and let him use me until we"re both wrecked.

I want to ruin him for anyone else, too.

He stops in front of a fancy restaurant and holds the door open for me, and I look down at my jeans and cropped The Sin Bin t-shirt. "Uh, I'm not exactly dressed for this place."

Hayden lets his eyes roam down the length of my body in a perusal so filled with heat, I shift from one foot to the other and try to press my thighs together in a subtle way I hope he doesn't notice.

But of course he does, and his gaze burns into me as I throw my shoulders back and think fuck it while I walk past him and into the dimly lit interior.

"Who gives a shit how you're dressed when you look like," he gestures his hand to my body. "That."

Then he grabs my hand and weaves our fingers together. I pretend I don't notice the way my skin tingles every place his fingers touch mine.

He gives his name to the hostess, and she leads us to a table in the back, away from the other patrons. Hayden pulls out a chair for me and I snort. "Since when are you a gentleman?"

"You know nothing about me," he says, but he does it with a grin so I know he's not upset. He sits down across from me and orders a bottle of French wine with perfect pronunciation like he"s done this a million times before.

"I know some things about you."

He raises an eyebrow, daring me to continue, but I clamp my mouth shut. Once the waiter pours the wine, I take a sip and it's smooth and fruity. I close my eyes and savor the taste of it on my tongue until Hayden's deep voice, a little rougher than before, interrupts me.

"And who are you?"

I tilt my head to the side, and now it's my turn to smirk. "Like you care." I figure he can't give less of a shit and only wants between my thighs.

He watches me, the flame from the candle on the table flickering in his eyes only making his stare that much more intense. "Why else would I be here?"

I shrug, taking another sip from my glass and trying to ignore the way his penetrating gaze hits me straight between the thighs. "Because you want to sleep with me."

"You think I have to take a girl to dinner to fuck her? That's cute." He chuckles. "Make no mistake, Princess. We will be fucking. But this dinner is about something else. You sent me that message. You wanted my attention. Now you've got it." His long fingers grasp the stem of his glass and he swirls the dark liquid, eyeing me over the rim. "There"s got to be more to you than the girl who slides into hockey players" DMs just to tell them they've got no talent. Consider me intrigued."

When I do nothing but stare at him instead of speaking, he pushes his glass away and laughs. He signals for the waiter and orders a whiskey. Surprise, surprise.

While he waits for his new drink, he leans back in his seat and gives me a look that makes my stomach flip. "You still think I"m an asshole?"

I nod. "Definitely. And a cliche."

"And yet you"re here with me," he says, smirking at me like he"s won something. "What does that say about you?"

I grab a breadstick and rip off a piece, tossing it in my mouth. "It says I"m desperate for a free meal and make horrible decisions."

He takes a sip of his whiskey and runs his tongue along his bottom lip, catching a stray drop. The shiny metal of his piercing flashes and I damn near go up in flames. I don't realize I'm staring until his words make me snap my eyes up to his. "Maybe, but that's not the only thing it says." He leans closer to me, his gaze burning into mine. "Admit it. You feel the same pull toward me I do toward you. Like no matter how bad we might be for each other, you can't stay away. Can't stop thinking about me. Tell me I'm wrong."

I swallow hard, my heart doing freaking sprints as he reaches across the table and takes my hand in his, stroking his thumb across the underside of my wrist. Fucking chills. His smirk widens when I can't hold them back. When I don't say anything to deny his words. "Point proven."

I snatch my hand back, hating myself for letting him see the way he affects me. "That proves nothing. It's cold in here."

"You're going to have to get better at lying if you want to convince me, Princess," he says, shrugging. "But I'm not going anywhere, so feel free to keep practicing."

I sit back, needing the distance from him because what the hell is happening right now? "You can"t have me, Hayden. How's that for truth?"

He smirks at me before taking another slow sip of his drink. "We"ll see. And the way your nose wrinkles just the tiniest bit when you lie gives you away. Maybe try it in front of a mirror before you come at me with your you can't have me," he raises his voice in a poor imitation of mine, the asshat, "bullshit again."

The waiter comes back with our food and we eat in silence, watching each other across the table, and it takes me way too long to realize I never even ordered.

"You ordered for me."

"And? Do you not like it?"

I grip my fork harder, hating that the braised short ribs melt in my mouth and they're exactly what I would've picked for myself. "That's not the point."

"You know, this argumentative thing you've got going on really does it for me. Makes me want to swipe all this shit onto the floor and bend you over the table. Maybe leave a print of my palm on your ass."

"Don't you dare," I hiss, glancing around. He wouldn't… right?

After unlocking my little exhibitionist kink the other day, I can't even deny that a whole rush of heat pours into my veins and settles into a nice, low throb between my thighs. Fan-fucking-tastic. Guess my shower head and I are going to have a date when I get home.

Hayden eyes me as if he's considering following through with his threat, a devious glint in his eye as he drags his pierced tongue along his lower lip. Then he seems to let it go, blinking and finishing off his glass of whiskey. My guard is still all the way up. Eventually he asks, "What"s your deal?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why this hatred toward my kind?" When I blink at him, confused, he elaborates, "Hockey players." He takes a bite of his steak, waiting me out. When I don't answer, he keeps going. "Seems like it"s personal for you." He points his fork at me. "And don't try to tell me it's the way I play on the ice. It's more than that. I can feel it."

I swallow hard, hating that he can read me so easily when I don"t even know him. "I…"

"Don"t want to talk about it?" he guesses, looking a little bit pissed off that I"m not spilling my secrets to him on this date... or whatever it is.

"Nope."

"How about I take a guess? Morozov did something to fuck you over?"

I snort out a laugh that"s super embarrassing and try to turn it into a cough to cover it up. "Oh, he fucked someone over. Over the sink in the bathroom at my bar, actually." I bite my lip while I consider. "Or maybe over the toilet. I don"t actually know the specifics."

He winces. "Ouch."

"Yeah," I say, setting down my fork. Nothing ruins an appetite more than the memory of my ex banging some fame-chasing groupie while we were supposed to be exclusive for the past year. "And I own a hockey bar. I've seen how the players act. I thought he was different, but he wasn't. I doubt you are, either."

"I feel like I should be insulted."

"Are you going to tell me you've never cheated while you were on a road trip or out celebrating after a win?" I down the rest of my wine, feeling a warm buzz loosening my inhibitions. Fuck, I need to cut myself off before I give him an inch. I have a feeling Hayden Vaughn would take my world if I let him.

His dark eyes lock with mine. "I've never cheated. Can't cheat if you've never had a girlfriend."

I study his face as the seconds stretch and then I blow out a breath. "For some stupid reason, I believe you."

He smirks. "Because this connection between us is strong as fuck, and you can tell when I'm lying just like I can with you."

I keep going like he didn't just say that. "I swore off all hockey players after… that. In fact, let's make it professional athletes in general."

His eyes darken as he leans closer to me again, his voice low. "You"re not going to swear me off."

"Why not?" I ask, raising an eyebrow at him. "Because you"re"—I make air quotes—"different?"

He shrugs, staring at me with a look so intense, I shiver. "Maybe I am."

I shake my head, snagging another breadstick to have something to do with my hands. "I doubt that."

He laughs, dropping his fork and leaning back in his seat again, but his foot tangles with mine under the table. "You"re stubborn as fuck, you know that?"

"So are you," I say, ripping off a piece of the breadstick and throwing it at his head. He ducks it easily, and the woman seated beside us glares at me as it ends up on her table. Stupid athletic reflexes. "But you don"t see me giving you shit about it."

He smirks at me like he"s got some kind of plan forming in his head and I don't ask because I don't think I want to know.