Delayed Penalty (Crossing the Line, #1)

"No really, I have something in my eye," she lied, trying her luck again and sniffing, her body still trembling.

"Come here, you little emotional girl." I patted the bed, trying to coax her over to me.

She hesitated for a brief moment, wiping her eyes, and then looked over at me and then back to the ceiling. "All right, not so drunk boy, I'm gonna be a total emotional girl right now." I laughed, watching the tears as she refused to look at me, instead staring at the ceiling. "Can you just hold me?"

"I thought you just had something in your eye?" I whispered into her hair, my arms loosening around her so I could rub smooth circles over her back.

"I do. Tears."

"Are you okay?"

"Yes. Just hold me. Stop talking. You're ruining my moment."

I did.

"Don't let go," she begged, tightening her arms around me. "Please, don't ever let go."

My arms wrapped a little tighter, an unspoken promise I would never break.





It had taken me a while, but I finally realized that Ami didn't need me to protect her. Though I always would, she needed me to be there for her. Just be there.

"Did it hurt?" I asked, pouring her a cup of coffee the next morning. My condo was trashed. There were beer bottles, red Solo cups, and empty bags of chips. A party went down here last night. After we got back from Philly, the party ended up at my place and then eventually at Leo's. I knew his place was worse than this, but instead of cleaning, I had other ideas for our afternoon together.

"Yes, at first, but it got better." Her eyes lifted from her cereal bowl and winked. "Wanna try again?"

I quirked an eyebrow, acknowledging her statement, and then swiftly carried her away. It was amazing how fast I was able to scoop her up.

She squealed when I slammed the door to the bathroom shower. My hands fell from her wrists, having moved to her hips, and settled on her panties. Bunching the fabric in my fingers, I gave them a rough and sudden tug that tore them away.





"Fuck, you feel so good," I moaned when I entered her moments later.

"I love your voice." She arched around me, her body curving to me.

"I know you do." I moved to kiss her brow.

"Evan..." She breathed. My dick was so fucking hard it hurt, actually ached. "Fuck me the way a hockey player would."

My breath came out in a growl when she said shit like that. I struggled with that because of what she went through. I constantly had to remind myself that she'd tell me if she ever felt uncomfortable with anything we did—she would tell me.

"You've been rough before, right?"

I grinned. I was sure I had Callie to thank for that one.

"I heard—"

My kiss cut her off. "I don't care what you heard. You're different."

"I want you. Not someone you're pretending to be."

"I'm not pretending." I tried to play off my tone, but I was concerned with where this was going. "With you…this is me."

Ami looked at me and then smiled. "I want it a little rough. I just want to see the side all those puck bunnies saw. I want to see Evan Masen the NHL defenseman."

"There wasn't that many. You know that, right?"

Ami rolled her eyes. "Still…"

I wasn't getting out of this. "Fuck, fine." She noticed when I started to hesitate.

"Stop holding back," she pleaded, pressing her lips to my throat. "I want you to lose control with me. I'm not a china doll, damn it. You won't break me, and I'm not scared of you." She looked at my amused expression. "You don't always have to be so gentle."

"I'm not," I teased. "I pulled your hair once."

She glared. "Not at all what I mean."

She bit down on my neck, just above my collarbone. I let out a low growl as my lips parted, and I started to pant. My fingers curled against her, but still, I couldn't do it.

"You'll be sore tomorrow. Ready for that?"

She looked at her underwear on the floor, and if I didn't know any better, you would have thought I had just proposed judging by the glow on her face.

I wasn't sure what Callie had told Ami about us, but I had never seen Ami that into sex. She was screaming and moaning, and fuck if I didn't give it to her. Once I got into it, it felt good to finally relax with her and not have to be so gentle.

Her mouth fell open, steam rolled around us, mixing with our heavy breath. Her fingers clawed at my back and hair as I buried myself in her neck, frantically pumping into her over and over again. Our skin slapped together, and the bathroom echoed with desperate cries and grunts.

Her legs clamped around me, digging into the backs of my thighs with her heels. When I knew and felt that she had come, I couldn't hold back. My hand returned to her hair, clutching at the strands as my mouth found her neck. My body stiffened, and my mouth closed around her skin, biting as I released inside her.

I could feel her heart pounding against my chest matching mine. Beads of water streamed over her smiling face as I untangled us. My head dropped against the wall when she moved behind me to go under the spray of water. She tipped her head back wetting her hair. "Fuck, you're gonna kill me before next season." I panted.

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