Love on Ice (Cannon City Series Book 2) (5 page)

He swung his legs over the side of the bed and found the spent condom attached to his thigh. He saw a Kleenex box on her nightstand and used a couple of them to pull it off. As he stood up, he glanced into her closet and it struck him as odd. He went over and looked in. There were only a couple of hangers with tops, a jacket and her uniform. She owned a couple pairs of jeans neatly folded on the shelf and on the floor were two pairs of shoes. One pair of sneakers and some snow boots with tread. He saw the box with her skates behind the shoes.

Jay felt himself frown and then got stabbed with a guilt attack. He shouldn’t snoop in her things. He walked into the bathroom and tossed the tissues in the garbage can by the toilet.

“Hey, Kate?”

“Yeah?”

“Can I join you?”

“I was just going to get out, but sure, for a minute.”

He moved the curtain and stepped into the hot spray. He smiled at her. “You are a beautiful woman.”

“Thank you. I haven’t showered with anyone since junior high school phys. ed.” She started to move so he could get more of the water.

“Have you washed your hair yet?”

“Yes.”

“That’s too bad. Next time, I get to soap you up. It may have something to do with the laundry detergent aisle.” He smiled and pulled her up close to him. “There will be a next time, right?” He leaned over and found her lips open and ready for him.

“If you keep kissing me that way I’ll hope for a lot of next times.” She moved him back into the water and stepped out of the shower.

He heard her drying her hair and he shut the water off. He opened the curtain and saw she’d already dressed. She set the hair dryer down and turned to him.

“Jay, I only have one towel. I tried not to get it too wet.” She picked it up off the toilet and handed it to him.

“Would you dry me off?” He smiled and licked his lips.

“Yes, but...”

“No buts, remember, babe. The only butts are the ones God gave us.” He saw her pause.

She continued to hold the towel out and looked down at the floor. “I don’t like to be late for work and I need to finish drying my hair.”

“Kate, what just happened?” He put his hand around her wrist and tried to pull her toward him. She looked up at him and he could feel fear come off her in waves. He took the towel and let her go.

He watched her turn to the sink with her eyes closed. She clasped her hands in front of her and opened her eyes. As she stared at herself in the mirror, he could only guess at what just happened. She picked up the dryer and aimed it at the back of her head. He slowly dried himself and watched her.

She switched off the dryer and continued to stare at herself in the mirror. “Old fears have a way of creeping back in on me and I start to doubt a lot. It’s not you, Jay. It’s just me.” She looked at him in the reflection of the mirror and leaned against the counter. “I’ve never had a decent relationship and you seem like a good guy. I want to really try to not let my old fears overwhelm me, but I’m going to need some patience. There are times I freak out really easily.”

Jay dried himself off and wrapped the towel around his waist. He stepped out of the shower and moved behind her. They stared at one another in the mirror.

“You’ve got it, sweetheart.” He put his hand on her shoulder. He moved her hair and kissed her neck. His other hand moved around her waist and he felt her hands on his arm. “Kate, I don’t know what happened to you and I hope you’ll be able to tell me one day. I can feel you shake and I don’t like the idea that I scare you. I said it before and I swear it to you again, I’ll never hurt you.”

“I know. It’s not you; please don’t think I’m afraid of you. I’m not. I hope I’ll get there. I really want to be with you. I’d be stupid to not try.”

“Good.” He kissed her neck again. “Now, finish drying your hair and I’ll drop you at the diner.” Jay moved out of the bathroom and got dressed. He used the towel to dry his hair and then hung it over the shower curtain bar.

Kate came out of the bathroom and sat on the end of the bed putting on her socks and shoes. Jay sat down next to her and bumped her shoulder.

“After we have your first Broom Ball lesson, I’d like to show you my house.”

“You have a business and a house? How cool is that?” She leaned against his shoulder. “Jay, do you think we’re moving a little too fast? We’ve only known each other for a day or so.”

“You know, no one could have predicted our response to one another. When I came over today I had every intention of asking you to go zip-lining. Who knew we were going to have a chemical reaction?”

“The big-bang.” Kate smiled.

“I want to kiss you again, my dear. I want to crawl back into bed with you, too. However, you would be late for work and I can’t be responsible for making Harry mad at you. He needs to let you off early tonight.”

Jay stood up and held his hand out. Kate stood next to him and laced her fingers through his.

“Oh wait, I have to bring some clothes to change into...Oh crap. I completely forgot my laundry.”

He smiled as he watched her race off to another door. In a couple of seconds she moved past him with a few more pieces of clothing. He watched as she folded the pieces on her bed.

“I like those lacy under drawers you wear, my dear.” He grinned at her.

She looked at him over her shoulder. “I’ll have to be sure to wear only the lacy ones when I’m with you.”

“This is going to be a really long day,” he mumbled as he felt excitement make his shaft twitch.

Chapter
Eight

Kate spent the late afternoon and early evening trying to focus on her orders and not Jay. It was very difficult and during her dinner break, she found a quiet corner in the locker room to sit and let her mind wander. She tried to figure out if maybe she’d gone nuts. One minute she’d left to go home and pack up her stuff to leave Canon City. The next minute she remembered the way his arms felt around her and the way his penis twitched in her hands when she’d put on the condom. It caused her to get warm and all the fears returned like a jack-hammer. Both pounded on her - part in her head and the other part below her waist.

She thought about the last eight years and accepted the loneliness she’d felt, but now wondered if there could be more for her with Jay.
Was that the reason she’d let him into her life?
she asked herself. She liked Jay, but was afraid she’d hurt him in the end if she just took off one day. The other question that started to run through her brain was
If she broke it off with him and left now, would it be better for him?

She didn’t want to end it now. She liked him and didn’t want to not see him or be with him. All the nights she’d been alone and wanting a man in her life added up to a big zero and it made her brain hurt. She knew her hormones took her over and her logical brain was on ice right now. She decided to take it one day at a time. It was a boring cliché, but that would have to do for now.

When the dinner crowd slowed down in the evening Harry agreed she could leave early. She changed her clothes and left her uniform in the locker.

She crossed the street to the rink and walked through the front doors. She saw Jay sat with his feet crossed on a table. A notebook lay open on his lap and he seemed to make notes. She looked at him and felt warmth run into her body. He was so handsome and giving. All thoughts she’d had of walking away crashed headlong into a brick wall.

She decided then and there, she’d have to figure out a good time and way to tell him the truth about her past. Then she’d know if he could understand and accept her. All of her emotions would be out and she’d know if she should stay or go. She needed to do it soon.

Suddenly, she saw him stare at her. Those gorgeous brown eyes seemed to smile at her and she could feel his arms around her even though he sat in the table area.

“Hey there. Are you coming in?” he asked and put his feet on the floor. He set his notebook down with the pen on top.

“Yes, I am.” She smiled back and moved to him.

He stood up and gave her a kiss. “It’s been too long since I last saw you.”

“Damn, those jobs. They intrude into people’s lives way too much.” She stood on her toes and gave him a kiss. She set her purse on the table and noticed a roll of duct tape. She picked it up and frowned. “Jay, I’ve read a ton of romance novels.” She looked up at him and still frowned. “You’re not into bondage or something?”

“Huh?” He looked at the tape. “Well, what do you know? I hadn’t even thought of it, but now that you bring it up.” He took the roll from her hand and arched his brow. “Actually, no. This is for something else entirely and I can tell by the look on your face that you’re not into bondage either. Which is a great relief, believe me. I’m not into whips and dominating anyone.” He held out his hand.

“Thank you for not giving me a heart attack,” she said and took her jacket off. “You know that means we’re vanilla?” She saw his eyebrows crease in the middle of his forehead. “I’ve read some of those books.”

“I see. If you do have a heart attack I know CPR and would love to give you mouth to mouth.” He grinned.

They walked over to the boards and she saw two sawed-off brooms and a red ball.

“Now, first things first.” He ripped a piece of tape off the roll and put it on the bottom of one of his shoes. He took off another piece of tape. “Are you a lefty or righty? As in which foot is primary?”

“Right foot.” She watched him bend over by her side. The top half of him was behind her and she had a great view of his rear-end.

“Foot up,” he said.

She lifted her foot and felt him put the tape on the sole of her shoe. He then grabbed her butt from both sides and bit through her jeans.

“You have a great back side, woman.”

Kate started to laugh and patted his cheeks. “Yours isn’t too shabby either.”

Jay stood up and wrapped his arms around her. “Did you come over here tonight just to feel me up?”

She smiled. “No, I did that this afternoon, but I could be convinced it would be fun to do, again.” She placed her warm lips on his and let his tongue into her mouth. She touched her tongue lightly to his and then pulled back. “Sir, you are distracting me from the task at hand. What do I do with tape on my foot?”

He took her hand and she followed him to the entrance to the ice. He handed her a broom and they walked onto the ice.

“This should be easy for you since you know how to skate. Put your right foot forward, you’re going to slide on that foot. Push off with your left foot.”

Kate did as he said and slid forward. “Who would have known you could slide around on duct tape? Skates will become obsolete.”

“Lord, don’t say that. I’ll lose my business.”

Jay showed her how to play the game. Kate felt wobbly at first, but it was fun. They passed the ball back and forth and she thought the practice would help if she came out for the game tomorrow night. She wanted to be there, too.

At one point, Jay passed her the ball and she headed for the markers he’d set up for goal posts. He caught up with her near the boards, wrapped his hands around her waist and pressed her against the rail.

“I believe that is a foul and don’t you have to go to the penalty box?” she asked and felt him press his hard penis against her pelvis.

“It’s probably an infraction, but we’re pretty loose with the rules. It’s a foul in basketball and a penalty in hockey.”  He gave her a quick kiss.

“What is it called in broom ball?” She grinned and liked that she could joke with him.

“Ha, ha, it’s the same as hockey, but we don’t use the box. These games are for friends to get together and annoy each other. Nothing more.”

She squirmed out of his arms and moved the ball to the goal. She turned and smiled at him. “I can think of a couple of ways you could pay me back for that penalty.” She batted her eyes at him.

She watched him push off on his foot and come toward her. Kate turned around and moved down the ice. Jay caught up with her, threw his broom down and put his hands around her waist. He held her tight against his chest.

“Tell me all of those ways you want me to pay you back,” he whispered in her ear.

Kate laughed and didn’t remember any time in her life she’d had so much fun.

****

After midnight, Jay convinced her to come back to his house. She walked in the front door after him. He hit a light switch so they could see where they were going.

“Wow, this is amazing,” she said. As she walked into the living room she saw a huge stone fireplace and built-in wooden shelves along one wall. A very long couch sat in front of the fireplace with what looked like a handmade coffee table. In a corner sat a shelf unit with a TV and stereo system. “Did you make this?” She sat on the couch and ran her hand over the smooth wood on the table.

“Yeah. A friend of mine had a cedar tree fall in his yard. I cut a wedge out of it. You can see the knot dead center.”

“It’s beautiful, Jay. When do you find the time?”

“Oh, here and there. I turn things over to the gang at the rink and work for a couple of days here. The week I did the wood floors upstairs was the worst. It killed my knee and I finally had to hire someone to do the work. Sometimes I don’t know when to stop.”

Kate stood up and looked around the room. There was a double door off the living room that had what looked like lead plated glass windows. She turned and looked into the dining room The chandelier over the dinner table was some kind of woven material and fit the room perfectly.

“Is there a deck out those doors?” she asked.

“Yep.”

“You are incredible, Jay.”

He puffed out his chest. “Do you think so?”

She put her hands on his chest. “Yes, I think so. I wouldn’t have said it if I didn’t feel it.”

He put his arms around her waist and lifted her up. He gently put his lips on hers and nibbled her neck and chin. Kate brought her legs up and around his waist.

“You have incredible legs, Kate. They are very strong. Your lips are so warm and your tongue...You’re a very good kisser.”

“So are you, mister.” She ran her fingers through his hair.

“Your mouth really grabbed my attention this afternoon.”

Kate realized they were moving and Jay took steps up. They were on their way to the upper floor and she felt her heart start to beat harder in her chest.

“I think I still owe you another orgasm.” He turned into the bedroom.

“I thought you weren’t keeping score.”

“I’m not. I just want to give you the best orgasm in the world, so you’ll stay with me for a very long time. And I’m dying to taste you. I only ever did the oral sex thing with one other girlfriend years and years ago. She said it was the best orgasm she’d ever experienced.”

Kate almost stopped breathing, and then saw the largest bed she’d ever seen. “Oh my, why the big bed?” she asked and looked around the room.

“See, I’m six-foot-four inches and I’ve slept in a lot of too short beds over the years. Now I have an extra long, king-sized bed and never have cold feet anymore.”