Chapter 16

"So this is what you like to do for fun?" I asked.

Toby led me to a large room near the rink, where a blanket was spread out on the carpeted floor. Cushions were piled here and there, along with a bottle of wine, two glasses and three large pizza boxes.

"I didn"t know what toppings you liked," he said. "They"re all half and half so there"s plenty to choose from." He guided me down to the blanket so my back was leaning against one of the piles of cushions.

He sat beside me and frowned. "You do like pizza, right?" He smacked himself in the forehead. "It didn"t cross my mind you might not. I can get something else in." He pressed the heel of his hand against the floor, ready to push himself back to his feet.

I caught his wrist. "I love pizza. What"s not to love? Bread, melted cheese and a variety of toppings. It"s basically the perfect meal."

He relaxed back against the cushions and reached for the bottle and glasses to pour us both wine.

"See, that"s exactly how I feel about it. Burgers too. They"re basically all the food groups rolled into one. Do me a favour and don"t tell Coach I was eating pizza."

"My lips are sealed." I took the glass he offered me and took a sip. "Mmmm. That"s so good."

"I have to give it to you Aussies, you know how to make wine." He set down his glass and picked up a remote control to turn on a huge screen on the wall. "We usually watch replays and shit on this. I figured we could put it to better use."

"Should we be doing this here?" I asked. "I mean, what if Kage turns up and busts us eating pizza and drinking wine at your workplace?"

Toby shrugged. "I doubt he"s going to turn up here on a Tuesday night. If he does, I"ll deal with him." He pressed a couple of buttons before a movie filled the massive screen.

"I wouldn"t have thought you"d be a romantic comedy guy," I remarked.

"Don"t go telling anyone, but I like me a good romcom." He gave me a nod before putting the remote down and reaching for a box of pizza. He took a slice and passed me the box.

I took one for myself and nestled back against the cushions to eat and watch. "How did you know this was one of my favourites?"

Without looking at me he said, "Lucky guess. You struck me as the romantic type. The kind who can stand up for herself, but doesn"t mind it when the guy does it sometimes. This guy," he nodded towards the screen, "he"s got it sorted out. Sure, he makes some mistakes along the way. Who doesn"t? But in the end, he"s got his shit together."

"Are you trying to say I should end it with Oliver and just go out with you because you"ve got your shit together?" I asked.

He glanced over and barked a laugh. "I don"t know what I did to give you the impression I had anything together, but thanks. I"ll take the compliment. For your information, I wouldn"t tell you to end anything with anyone. That"s the choice you gotta make. Personally, I like Oliver. I am going to punch his lights out if he hurts you though. Same with Cole." He settled back against the cushions again.

"All I"m saying is that you"re worth it," he said. "I"m going to do my best to get my shit together, for you. Before…"

I frowned. "Before what?"

He cleared his throat. "Before you realise I"m a hot mess and end it with me instead."

I didn"t think that was what he was going to say, but his lips were pressed together in a tight line, like he wasn"t going to elaborate even if I asked. I decided not to push the matter. If it was important, he"d tell me. Right?

I couldn"t help or ignore the way the hair on the back of my neck rose, but I put it down to us being here, where maybe we shouldn"t be. The last thing I wanted was for him to get a reprimand for bringing me here when he shouldn"t. Would he get a slap on the wrist, or a fine? Maybe he"d get nothing more than a stern glance or a few words not to do it again.

"I"d be surprised if you were actually a hot mess," I said. "Hot, yes. Sometimes messy." I frowned again. I seemed to be digging myself into a hole here.

He grinned. "See? Hot mess. Just the way we both like it."

It wasn"t more than half an hour since he fucked me up against the boards, but my clit still throbbed when he smiled. Especially when he looked at me the way he was right now.

"We should watch the movie." I reached for another slice of pizza. "This is nice."

"The pizza?" he asked.

"That too," I agreed. "And the wine. And the company. And this whole picnic. It"s super sweet."

"I have a confession to make," he said. "Two of them in fact."

"Yes?" I asked tentatively.

Should I be worried about what he was about to say? In my experience, confessions usually didn"t end well. I hoped to change that when Oliver and I confessed to Cat and Eden about what we were doing.

"Firstly, I am super sweet." He grinned and sipped his wine. "Secondly, I really wanted to have a picnic under the stars, or take you to an outside concert. Maybe a drive-in movie, but there are none of those in Opal Springs. But then I realised, it"s fucking cold outside. I figured this was a good compromise. I didn"t want you to freeze your tits off."

"I don"t want me to freeze my tits off either," I agreed. "Or your cock." I tilted my head and thought for a moment. "I wonder if cum can freeze. I mean, outside a specimen jar." Obviously frozen semen was nothing new.

"Excuse me if I don"t try to find out," he said. "Ejaculating ice sounds painful as all hell." He grimaced.

I winced. "I"m not sure I want to know how it would feel if you came inside me like that." I won"t say I wasn"t curious, but that could go in my ‘maybe' tray for another day.

"This is definitely a good compromise," I said finally. "It"s like a private movie theatre. You really watch all the replays here?"

"Every one of them," he agreed. "I gotta admit, it took time for me to get used to watching and critiquing myself, but now I just do it." He shrugged one shoulder. "It helps me to visualise what I"m doing wrong and what I need to do right. In the heat of the moment, I sometimes don"t know how the puck got past me. When I watch it back, it"s obvious. I was too slow, or I didn"t read their play correctly. It"s always something. I"ll never stop working on it, not until I"m perfect. Since perfection is impossible, then I"ll just keep doing what I"m doing."

"I"ve seen you on the ice," I said. "You"re very impressive. One of the best goalies I"ve ever seen. Maybe even better than Phoenix DiMarco."

Toby"s eyebrows twitched. "Maybe? Come on now, woman. I"m at least as good as he is."

I smiled teasingly. "The yardstick is pretty high. He is one of the top goalies in the country."

"He was until I landed here," Toby said with all his male, New York bravado. "Next time we play the Demons, I"m going to hand that motherfucker his ass."

I laughed. "I"m sure you will. I"ll be right there cheering you on the whole time."

"You better be," he growled. "I want my woman there every time I play a home game."

A shiver went through me, sending a pulse straight to my core. "Your woman, hmmm?"

"Damn straight you are," he said firmly. "My woman. My girlfriend. Mine. I"m gonna keep on reminding you of that as long as it takes to sink into that pretty little head of yours." He placed his glass aside and leaned over to kiss my mouth.

"My boyfriend," I said against his lips.

"I like the sound of that." He deepened the kiss like he wanted to devour me from the outside in, piece by piece, until all that was left was a puddle on the blanket.

In the background, the movie played, while we explored each other"s mouths, tasting and teasing, tongues dancing. Once I started kissing him, I didn"t want to stop. I put my wine glass aside and wound my arms around him to pull him closer.

He lightly caressed my face, my cheek, my neck and throat. He moved his hand down slowly until it was resting on my hip. He made no move to remove my clothes or even get under them. For now, he just kissed me, his stubble rough against the smooth skin of my face.

I couldn"t get enough of the way it felt, or the way he tasted. His plush lips were firm but gentle against mine, like he wanted to merge both of our bodies together, starting with our mouths. Like he wanted to kiss me until I was completely and utterly his. Claiming me.

I let him. I couldn"t remember having ever just made out with a guy before. Tonight I did. Our bodies side-by-side, absorbing each other"s warmth while we put everything into the kisses.

With every passing moment I felt more and more like this was exactly where I was meant to be. With him. With Oliver and Cole too, but right now this was about me and Toby. It felt like the universe put us right here, right now, together. He claimed me, but I claimed him as well. I could easily fall head over heels for him. With no regrets for doing it.

We finally broke off, both of us breathless, bodies tangled around each other. My mouth must have been red from so much kissing.

I nestled into his arms and rested my ear against his chest. I closed my eyes and listened to the pounding of his heart. Rhythmic and soothing.

I sighed softly.

"What are you thinking?" He softly stroked my hair, his fingers tangling and untangling, over and over.

"I wasn"t thinking anything," I confessed. "I was just enjoying the moment. You and me, being here right now. It feels right. But…"

His whole body stiffened. "Uh-oh, I don"t like the sound of but," he said. "Am I that shitty a kisser?"

I tipped my face back to look at his, and smiled. "You"re an amazing kisser. I was just going to say that if I"m not careful, I could fall for you."

"That"s not a bad thing," he said. "I"ve already fallen for you."

"I"m scared," I confessed. "I"m scared of falling so hard and then having things go wrong."

"You"re scared I"m going to break your heart?" he asked gently. "I can"t promise I won"t fuck up, but I can promise to try not to. I"d rather tear out my own heart than break yours. That"s my promise to you. I"ll do everything I can to keep your heart whole."

"I"ll do the same," I said. "As long as we keep communicating, then maybe we all stand a chance of being together and being happy."

"I see no reason we can"t be each other"s forever," he said. He kissed the top of my head and squeezed me tighter.

"I"d like that," I said softly. Oliver, Toby and Cole. What more could one girl want?