Library

10. Caroline

CAROLINE

When I agreed to come out tonight with Tatum, the very last thing I expected was to run into Hudson, let alone end up crossing whatever line he had drawn between us.

After he slides into the driver’s seat and starts the car, he pulls out of the parking spot and out onto the main road. I definitely try not to focus on the way the veins in his forearms seem to pop with his grip on the steering wheel.

God, this man is delicious. There’s no other way to put it. He’s confident. Bossy. Forbidden.

At over six foot four, he makes me feel tiny. And… I’m not a tiny girl. Well, I’m all of five feet, but everything else? There’s plenty to love. I’m a curvy girl, and I love every single inch of these curves.

Obviously, he does too.

The way he just manhandled me in that alley still has my panties wet and my heart racing.

The memory of the night in the broom closet comes rushing back yet again, and I clench my thighs together against his plush, heated seats, trying to push the thought from my mind.

Out of all the trouble I could’ve found myself in in Chicago, I stumbled into this man.

“Campus?”

I nod. “Near.”

His eyebrows shoot up, but he just nods, then pulls out onto the highway.

The bar we were at is only a few minutes from the house, and we ride in a comfortable, slightly tense silence until I reach out and connect his Bluetooth so I can connect my phone.

If we’re going to sit in silence, I might as well grace him with my impeccable taste in music.

I quickly choose a song from my playlist, crank it up, then wait.

A few minutes later, Harry, my one true love, floats through the speakers, and a deep, rumbly growl erupts from my Romeo’s chest.

“Why am I not surprised that you’re a Harry Styles fan?” he mutters, his distaste obvious.

Ignoring him, I turn it up louder and begin singing along loudly, just to annoy him. Halfway through, his scowl lessens, and I see a grin trying to lift the corners of his lips.

I’m great at a lot of things, including my unwavering love for Mr. Styles, but a singer I am not.

“Take a left here. The big white house to the right.”

He looks confused for a second, and then his gaze whips to me. “This is sorority row.”

“Acute observation, Romeo. Yes, it is.”

“Please, for the love of all things fucking holy, tell me you are not in a sorority, Caroline.”

An amused smile flits to my lips, and I lean back, crossing my arms over my chest. “Beta Pi.”

The second he pulls to a stop in an empty street spot, his forehead hits the steering wheel, and he groans. “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Not only did I fuck the coach’s daughter, who’s in fucking college,I fucked a sorority girl… who can’t even legally drink. Do you realize how fucked-up that makes me?”

I shrug. “Those are your morals, not mine. I’m sleeping perfectly fine at night after fucking an old fart.”

He picks his head up and narrows his gaze, a scowl taking over. “I don’t remember you having this mouth on you the night we met.”

“And like I told you in the locker room, I don’t remember much about that night. Well, anything memorable, that is.”

A growl—I swear to god, an actual fucking growl—echoes around the truck as he unbuckles my seat belt and pulls me into his lap before I can even blink. The man tosses me around like a damn rag doll, and I don’t know whether to be impressed or worried.

“Hudson!” I squeak when my legs fit to the sides of his hips, and my hands fist into his T-shirt. I glance out of the window, worried that one of my sisters will see me being manhandled by a hockey player. “What if someone sees? I—”

He silences me with his lips, soft yet firm, and I moan into his waiting mouth.

“Windows are tinted,” he says when he pulls back, his fingers lacing into my hair. “Just let me kiss you, Caroline. I’ve spent the last few weeks around you being fucking tortured. Smelling how goddamn sweet you smell, watching you bend over to lace your skates with your ass perched high in the air. I’m a tortured man, Juliet. Put me out of my misery.”

I can’t help it—I giggle, which only makes his gaze narrow.

“That funny to you?” he rasps, leaning in and brushing his fingers along my jaw as he tugs at the hair at the nape of my neck, pulling me to him slightly.

“It’s dangerous,” I tell him. My lips hover over his, merely centimeters apart. “Stupid. Reckless.” Leaning in, I press them ever so lightly to his. “You could lose your hockey career, Romeo.”

He sighs, then reaches to brush back my hair that’s cascaded around us off my face. “Then we don’t get caught.”

His words make me pause. Surely, this is not the man who all but lost his shit in the arena’s locker room about how we could never see each other again because he was so worried that his career was at stake.

“Why? You said this was done. Why are you still here, Hudson?” I ask quietly.

“Because I can’t fucking stay away.”

* * *

Thankfully,my class load is so full on Mondays that I hardly have a chance to stop, let alone think about Hudson and his ginormous dick, not that he would let me forget, even if I tried.

“I think I might have taken on too many classes,” I groan to Tatum as I drop my backpack onto the floor next to my bed, then crawl underneath the covers.

I’m exhausted, and I haven’t even begun to look over half the syllabi handed out. I simply shoved them into my backpack and decided that ignorance is bliss.

“Welcome to Northwestern, babe,” Tatum laughs. She’s sitting across from me on her bed, painting her toenails a pale pink and listening to Harry.

Yet another thing we’ve bonded over since I moved in.

“What if we go out for dinner after chapter tonight? There’s this taco place a few streets over that is literally the best thing I’ve ever put in my mouth, and I mean that in the least sexual way possible.”

My mouth begins to water at the mention of food. I’ve been so busy today that I truly haven’t even stopped to eat. Something tells me that I’m going to be surviving on expresso and energy drinks all semester.

“Please. I haven’t eaten today, and my stomach sounds like there’s something inside it,” I say with my head in my pillow.

Nothing in the world sounds better than a nap right now though. Just five minutes would be all that I need to catch a second wind.

I’m dozing off when my phone pings with a text.

Groaning, I lift my head from the pillow and glance at the notification with sleep-clouded eyes.

Unknown Number.

I swipe open the message.

Unknown Number: Are you playing hard to get, Juliet? You should know that I like the chase most of all.

I jackknife from the bed, my phone fumbling in my hands. It’s him.

Part of me thought that he wouldn’t text at all. Two days of radio silence after our night at the bar and the conversation in his truck where he said he couldn’t stay away from me, kissed me hard, then took me off his lap and demanded I put my number in his phone.

Me: Nope. Just seeing how long it would take you to text. I know you’re obsessed with me Hudson, but obsessions are not healthy.

Hudson: Always with that smart mouth. Ask me what I’m going to do about it the next time I get you all alone.

Me: Are you so sure that there will be a next time, Romeo?

Text bubbles pop and then disappear, only to reappear a few seconds later.

Have I left the infamous Romeo speechless?

A giggle escapes my lips. God, how is this my life right now?

Hudson: There will be because you want me just as much as I want you.

The fact that this insanely gorgeous man wants me despite what’s at stake for him has my stomach in a flurry.

I don’t think I’ve ever been wanted this way in my life, and it’s a feeling I could get used to.

Suddenly, my phone is ripped from my hands, and Tatum is standing over my bed, holding it out of reach when I try to grab it.

“You better spill right now, bitch. You’ve been giggling at that phone like a little schoolgirl for the past five minutes, and I want all the details.” When she glances down at the screen and sees Hudson’s name, her eyes widen and jaw drops.

“No fucking way.”

I use her moment of shock to swipe my phone from her hand and lock it before hopping down from my platform bed.

“Tatum, listen to me.” I snap my fingers in front of her dazed face. “You cannot tell a soul, okay? We’re just… friends. Promise me.”

She stutters for a moment. “God, you’re literally texting with Hudson Rome. Do you actually realize this right now? Caroline, you have his phone number,” she whisper squeals, practically rocking on her heels in excitement. “Oh my god, not only is he a famous hockey player, he’s like ten years older than you. He’s experienced. That’s so hot.”

Trust me, I can’t believe this either. Never in a million years did I think that the guy I hooked up with at the practice facility was a freaking famous hockey player. Or that I would ever actually see him again, let alone be flirty texting with him.

“I know, I know. But like I said, nothing is even happening. We’re just friends. Okay?”

“Ooooo-kay, but you at least have to keep me in the loop. I mean, seriously, Caroline, it’s not every day that your new roomie slash bestie is hooking up with a freakin’ professional hockey player. I have to live through you because truly, the best thing I’m getting is a frat guy that drinks too much beer and gets handsy in public.”

Ouch.

Also gross.

“First of all, you are gorgeous and could literally get any guy you wanted. Manifest that shit for this year. You’re going to find the hottest, most attentive guy ever, and he will not be in a frat. Let’s make that a thing. No frat guys.”

She nods. “That I can agree to.”

“Now, let’s go get some tacos because I’m freaking starving, and I have so much homework I want to vomit.”

Begrudgingly, she agrees and heads to the bathroom for a quick shower, leaving me alone.

I grab my phone off the bed and hover over the keyboard.

Me: I can maybe agree to seeing you again. Only for your dick. Just so you know.

Hudson: Ouch. I’m offended, but he’s not.

Me: Are you referring to your dick in third person?

Hudson: I’m going to spank your ass next time I see you.

Me: Don’t make promises that you can’t keep, Romeo.

Hudson: Let me worry about what I’m promising.

Hudson: Come over. We have things to… discuss.

Me: I’m busy. Sorry.

Hudson: Then come home with me after practice tomorrow. I’ll make you dinner.

Me: Fine. But, only because I’m a struggling college student living on ramen. Not because of your dick, even if he is great.

Hudson: Are you referring to my dick in third person?

I put my phone down, but for the rest of the night, I can’t wipe the smile off my face.

Comments

0 Comments
Best Newest

Contents
Settings
  • T
  • T
  • T
  • T
Font

Welcome to FullEpub

Create or log into your account to access terrific novels and protect your data

Don’t Have an account?
Click above to create an account.

lf you continue, you are agreeing to the
Terms Of Use and Privacy Policy.