Page 55 of Body Check

twenty

. . .

Amelia

Snow blankets the ground in Buffalo. Despite my winter boots, I’m slipping and sliding on the slick pavement as I haul my equipment bag into the arena. The boys won yesterday’s home game, and now we have a full day of practice and workouts before a night off. After the game tomorrow night, we’re on the road to Ottawa before finishing the road trip with a stop in Montreal.

I follow Derek and Graham into the arena and to our medical bay. The guys will start rolling in for their yoga class in about an hour, so I have plenty of time to get set up.

There’s a knock on the door, and I look up to find Robby in the threshold, two cups of coffee in his hands.

“How’re you doing?” he asks, offering me one.

“I’m good. Slept like shit.” I take the paper cup and blow on the opening before taking a sip, even though I know it’ll scald my tongue.

It does. It fucking hurts. But the caffeine warms me from the inside out, and sometimes, that’s worth a burned tongue.

“Oh? Any reason why?” He raises an eyebrow expectantly.

“Because someone set the alarm clock in the room to go off at four o’clock in the fucking morning, and I wasn’t smart enough to turn it off before I went to sleep.”

“Oh? Not any… extracurricular activities?”

I roll my eyes. Whatever he’s trying to insinuate, I won’t play his game.

“No, I didn’t pack my vibrator.” Only on domestic trips—not international. I don’t want to get stopped by customs agents and have to explain my equipment in front of the guys.

“Shame. You could probably use a good fucking,” Robby drawls.

My eyes narrow.

“You know, since you’re so tense.”

“I’m not tense.”

“Really? You seem tense.”

“Stop saying tense.” I take another sip of coffee so I don’t give in to the urge to hurl it in his stupid, pretty face.

“Or maybe you recently got a good fucking,” he says slowly, raising his eyebrows.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Really? Because I seem to remember you and Jason leaving the bar together.”

“He was already leaving when I went outside. We shared a car home. We live on the same block.”

“Uh huh.”

“That’s it. Nothing happened.”

Except it was everything. That night… I’ve relived it in my head over and over, making myself come to the memory of him in me, on me, and surrounding me.

It was more than just sex. But to him, that’s all it was.

And it’s not like it will ever happen again. I value my career too much to throw it away for a fling… no matter how hot the sex is.

Robby looks me up and down, clearly not buying it.