Page 21 of Rookie Moves

He laughs softly, but it’s not in a mocking way. “Okay, so how about we start with what you have done?”

“With other people?”

He nods.

“Nothing.”

He frowns. “What do you mean, nothing?”

“Like, I haven’t done anything. I wasn’t kidding when I said I’m a rookie at, like, everything. I haven’t even kissed someone.”

His eyes nearly pop out of his head, and I let out a strangled laugh at his expression.

“Seriously? Not even those awkward-as-fuck kisses you have in second grade?”

“Nope, nothing. I’ve been too busy playing hockey to have time to think about anything else, and next thing I know, I’m months away from the draft, and I haven’t even kissed anyone.” I flop back onto the bed and blow out a defeated breath up at the ceiling. “I’m such a superstar, right? I can score goals, but I haven’t scored in a hole. They should put that on their next headline,” I grunt.

Tyler bursts out laughing. I crane my head to look at him, catching him holding on to his stomach as he leans forward, wiping tears from his eyes with his other hand.

“Fucking hell, Colbs,” he wheezes between laughter, and I can’t help but join him.

He lets out a shaky breath and uses the hem of his T-shirt to wipe his damp eyes, giving me a teasing glimpse of his ripped abs.

My mouth instantly goes dry.

Fuck. Why are they hotter outside of the locker room?

Focus, McKay. Now is not the time to be drooling over his abs.

“Okay, so we’ll start with the basics, but tell me, what have you done solo? Do you have any toys?”

I nod, feeling heat crawling up my neck and flooding my face. “Yeah, it would have been a real rookie move not to. I didn’t want to risk blowing my load too soon or end up bottoming and not enjoy the feeling. So, I’ve played. A lot. With myself, obviously.”

Jesusfuck. I’m pretty sure my face is on fire right now.

Tyler lets out a choked noise.

“Well, yeah, that’s something.” He rubs the back of his neck. “It’s good to play with yourself because it gives you an idea of what you do and don’t like, but playing with toys is a little different from being with someone, so I think we should work up to, like, penetrative sex,” he says, his voice coming out a little thicker than usual.

I swallow roughly. Pleasure throbs in my groin from this entire conversation.

Is he as affected talking about this as I am?

“We’ll go at your pace, okay? We won’t be doing anything you don’t want to do. Even if we’re midway through something and you decide you don’t want to go through with it at all, that’s cool too.”

A coil of tension unfurls in the base of my neck, not realizing how important it was for me to hear his reassurance.

I give him a shaky nod. “Yeah, okay.”

“We’ll have to figure out the best time and place to meet up. My place can be busy, but some days, it can be completely empty.”

With that, he stands and gathers up the trash, stuffing it into the paper bag the food came in, and disappointment pools in my stomach. Are we not going to do anything tonight? Hell, I was worried we would start and I’d realize I wasn’t ready for it.

Standing from my bed, I follow him toward the door. Suddenly, he spins around to face me, and I stumble slightly, trying to avoid colliding with his chest. His eyes rake over my face, like he’s assessing me for something.

Feeling a hint of nerves swirling in my stomach, I pull my bottom lip between my teeth, unsure on what I’m supposed to do right now.

He raises his hand, and my breath comes out in a shudder when he uses his thumb to pull it free. Then it’s like time freezes. Tyler leans in, brushing his lips over mine. It’s gentle. Just the barest caress of skin touching skin. His teeth graze over my lip, and I whimper. The rush of electricity shooting down my spine into my groin has my toes curling inside my socks.