“Luke,” she whispered into my mouth.
“Come for me.” My low command pushed her over the edge, and I felt the force of her orgasm. With one last grind of my hips against her, I came with a force that made me groan long and deep.
“That was amazing,” she said, pulling away to find her clothes and get dressed again. “I’m so sorry it’s been so long.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“Yeah, but we were supposed to be together more once I moved here. You must feel a little cheated.”
She wouldn’t look at me. I furrowed my brow as I wrapped my towel back around my hips and she busied herself getting dressed.
“Hey.” When I spoke, she glanced up at me. “It’s not your fault your dad’s being a prick. Believe me, I get it. We’re together, that’s all that matters. Don’t doubt me, okay?”
She nodded, and the tears that pooled in her eyes tore at my heart.
A brisk knock on her door made her jump. She pulled her shirt on in a frenzy and I sat down on the table.
“It’s just me,” Isaac said through the door right before she unlocked it and pulled it open.
“Hey, what’s up?” I asked.
“You know, just checking on you.”
“We’re good,” Dell said. “I’m planning to ice his knee. No more practice for him today.”
Isaac nodded and headed back through the locker room. Dell came over to the table and I wrapped my arms around her.
“Is Sadie bringing Kyler by?” I asked.
“Yeah. He’s hanging out for a while because I have paperwork to finish for the front office.”
“Why don’t I take him out for ice cream or something?”
She smiled. “He’d like that, if you don’t mind.”
“I like hanging out with him. I need to find out how the throw down between him and the kid who said soccer’s cooler than hockey turned out.”
“Five-year-old problems,” she said, shaking her head. “If only they were all so simple.”
I rubbed a hand in circles across her back. Even if we couldn’t be together in all the ways we wanted right now, I liked being with her every day again. She grounded me in a way no one ever had.
Her Dad could throw up all the roadblocks he wanted, but nothing could keep me away from her. I wished she’d not just hear me saying that, but believe it.
***
Dell
The sex, though quick, had infused me with a deep sense of relaxation. I couldn’t stop smiling as I worked on the guys after practice.
Vic walked in my office and sniffed. “Smells like sex in here.”
My cheeks warmed. “It smells like all sorts of body parts in a locker room, Vic. What can I do for you?”
“My neck hurts again.” He sat down on my table and I set to work. Kyler came in with a stack of freshly washed towels.
“I folded them for you,” he said proudly. The pile he held looked like it might fall to the floor at any second, with edges hanging out all over the place.
“Perfect!” I said. “Can you put them in my cabinet?”
He loved being my office helper – asking for a new job as soon as he finished one. He’d organized everything from top to bottom and was drawing pictures on a pad of paper at my desk when my dad came in.
“Hey, Ky,” he said warmly.
“Grandpa!” Kyler reached for him with a hug.
“You want to come out and skate?”
“I’m going to get ice cream with Luke.”
“Oh. Well, another time, then.”
“Can I spend the night at your hotel?” Kyler asked eagerly. My parents were still house shopping in Chicago, and Dad was living at a hotel in the meantime.
“Sure, maybe this weekend if it’s okay with your mom.”
They both turned to be and I shrugged. “As long as it’s not a school night, it’s fine with me.”
I was still furious with my dad, but I wouldn’t stoop to using my son as a pawn in our fight. John hadn’t called to ask about him, and I didn’t want Kyler losing contact with my father, the one man who had been a constant presence in his life.
“Thanks, Adella,” Dad said, not looking at me as he left my office. What we both knew remained unspoken – even though I was a woman, I was a bigger man than him.
***
Luke
Ryke eyed me from head to toe as we waited around in the locker room.
“You checking me out?” I asked.
“Fuck no. You’ve cut weight. I’ve never seen you this lean.”
“It’s the Butch Price workout plan,” I muttered. “I needed to drop ten pounds anyway.”
“You heading out of here?”
“I’m waiting for Kyler. We’re going out for ice cream.”