Collide: A Hockey Romance

I’M SECONDS FROM tossing my five-year plan in the trash and dropping out. How important is it to pursue dreams anyway? Living a life that rivals a crash on the I-95 can’t be that bad.

“You’ve totally disregarded the basis of your original proposal,” Donny continues berating my work.

“My research can differ from my proposal. That’s the whole point,” I argue. This conversation is making my eye twitch. After storming out of Aiden’s truck two nights ago, I haven’t slept. I couldn’t stop thinking about the way he kissed me. Or the moan that left his lips when he rolled his hips against mine. Until his damn conscience became a cockblock.

“The final paper should still be based on it,” Donny states.

“I changed a few things in my methodology and literature. That’s bound to happen.” Arguing with Donny is impossible.

He tightens his jaw and turns to our professor. “Don’t you think what I’m saying is correct, Lau—Dr. Langston?”

Donny averts his eyes, and a weird tension looms in the air of her office as if I’m missing a large piece of a puzzle. The slip-up isn’t significant, but no one calls Langston by her first name unless you’re a colleague. She made it very clear the first time I met her to call her Dr. Langston. I guess that’s one way of getting your money’s worth for a Ph.D.

“Donny has a point. We want to keep the methodology close to your original plan.” She reads over the paper. “You’re almost done, Summer. I’d hate to see you lose sight of your goal now.”

Those words sounded a lot like Donny’s. When I pack up to leave, he doesn’t move. I’m not sure why he still needs her guidance if he got early acceptance to the program.

“I’ll send you the edited version,” I mutter. Donny doesn’t make a move to leave, so I head out alone. I’m halfway down the hall when the door clicks shut.

The odd thoughts in my head burst when I see Shannon Lee parked outside the Annex.

“Shannon,” I call, waving as she carries a large box into her car. “What are you doing?”

She slams the car trunk shut. “Packing my things.” She fidgets with her keys. “Turns out the program’s more competitive than I thought.”

“Shit. I’m sorry.” I pull her in for a hug and she squeezes tight. “They have no idea what a mistake it is letting you leave.”

“It’s fine, I got into my backup. Go Tigers!” She smiles weakly. “What about you?”

“Just finalizing my application. My backup is waiting for my answer.” Stanford University sent me an offer weeks ago, and I’m hoping I’ll get to deny it once my Dalton application goes through.

“If I’ve learned anything, it’s to make your own decisions before someone else makes them for you,” says Shannon.

THERE ARE TIMES when I let my irritation about one thing trickle into other parts of my life. Today, I feel it happening when I wake up to a stuffed animal sitting on my desk.

A fucking cow plushie.

“Who left this here?” I demand, stepping into the living room clutching the plushie.

Amara shrugs. “Maybe someone enjoys leaving you gifts.”

The box of tea Aiden left for me also miraculously made its way inside the dorm. I’m starting to think loyalties are shifting around here. It’s pretty clear how this tiny thing sat itself on my desk and watched me while I slept. It’s probably the reason I woke up with a start. It’s one of those Palm Pals that can fit in your pocket. The ridiculously adorable cow gives me the urge to rip it in half but also to safely tuck it into bed. The extreme mood swings ravaging my mind are because of one guy.

With a vengeance, I call an Uber, head straight to the hockey house, and ring the doorbell.

“We don’t want your cookies!” Cole opens the door, brows pulled tight in irritation until he sees me. “Oh, I thought you were a girl scout. You good, Sunny?”

“Can I come in?”

He nods, moving to the side. “Cute cow.”

I push past him, climbing the stairs two at a time, heading straight for the door on the left, not caring if he has a girl in there. Strawberries and whipped cream on a pair of tits are the least of my worries. Plowing through the door, I’m hit with his familiar scent, sparking a topsy-turvy feeling deep in my stomach.

The door to his bathroom opens and Aiden steps out, halting when he sees me. He’s shirtless and wearing low-riding sweats. He looks unsurprised, which tells me he’s noticed the Palm Pal in my hand. He leans against the bathroom door, arms crossed.

“What’s this?” I ask, rounding the bed to show him the cow.

“A stuffed animal?”

My eyes narrow. “I know that. Where did it come from?”

“If it’s in your possession, shouldn’t you know the answer?”

“I’m being serious.”

He sighs and moves to sit on his bed. “I won it at the carnival. I was going to give it to you on the Ferris wheel but…” he trails off. The heavy reminder of that night pulls at my gut.

“Why?”

From the way his eyes flare with annoyance, he doesn’t like that question. “It’s a toy, Summer. It doesn’t need to mean anything.”

Who wins you a stuffed animal as a token from a carnival without it meaning something? It felt awfully sentimental. From the look on Aiden’s face, he’s not going to elaborate.

Not wanting to argue, I turn away and head to the door. But impatience lights my skin, and I pause before I can twist the doorknob to exit. “I guess you’re still on that nice guy shit, huh?”

Aiden moves so fast I don’t register it until his palm is flattened against the door. He hovers over me, green eyes glowing like kryptonite. “You don’t like nice guys, Summer? Won’t that disrupt your little five-year plan?”

Annoyance tightens my throat. “You’re such an asshole.”

“Yeah?” He leans in. “Does that make you wanna fuck me now?”

“Screw you.”

“I’d rather you do it.”

My chest heaves as his breath tickles my temple. “I don’t like you.”

He takes a suffocating step forward and my heart flips. “Good to know.”

I lick my lips, drawing in his weighted attention. “You don’t like me either.”

His expression softens with an unexpected warmth. “I never said that. I’m pretty sure it’s impossible not to like you.”

Frustration claws through me, and I react by crashing my mouth to his, either to shut him up or because I’ve been needing this ever since I got a taste of it in his backseat. When a satisfied moan parts my lips he reacts quickly, and I feel the wet glide of his tongue as if it were between my legs. The pressure spreads a feverish ache to my core.

I grip his hair when he cups my ass. My back hits the door as we devour each other, his hips on mine and a hand on my throat. The kiss is nothing like the last time. This time it’s carnal, almost animalistic the way we go at each other. Like the small taste left us thirsty and impatient.

“You’re so fucking stubborn.” He smacks my ass.

“Only because you’re so irritating.”

His hand dips into my leggings and he fists my panties. My desperate sound breaks our kiss, and Aiden’s lips find my neck. My entire body flames, and I need him to ease the burn.

My hand cups him through his sweats, and he groans, his face drawn up in pure pleasure. “Fuck.”

“Can I?” I ask against his lips, and he nods, watching me drop to my knees. “I need your words, Aiden.”

“Yes, Summer.”

My breath hitches as I drag his sweats and boxers down his legs and see all of him. Most importantly the spider tattoo that sits just below his hip bone. My attention is snatched from the ink before I can question it.

“Tell me you want me in your mouth.”

“I want you in my mouth,” I say, completely thrown off by the view of him.

Aiden tightens his fist around the thick base and pumps it a few times. My eyes flicker from his hard dick to his face when he slaps it against my cheek. “Open.”

It’s one of the rare times I do as I’m told. I bring my half-lidded gaze up as I take him entirely in my mouth. Aiden grips my jaw and slides in so deep, I have to regulate my breathing to keep up. My lips suctions around his shaft, and his hand sinks into my hair.

“Just like that, baby.”

Tears spring free from the corner of my eyes when I take him deeper, hitting my throat. Aiden’s head falls back on a groan, and I take that as my cue to cup his balls and give them a gentle squeeze. The deepest rumble vibrates against my core, and his hold on my hair is so tight it almost hurts. He pushes me forward to take all of him, and I brace myself with a firm grip on his thighs.

“So perfect. So fucking good, Sum.”

My belly flutters, and I squeeze my slick thighs together.

“Fuck. I’m going to come,” he chokes out when I take him so deep, I splutter. “In your mouth?” he asks.

When I nod, warm release trickles down my throat, and I swallow his satisfaction. With a low curse, he bends to press his forehead against mine.

“You’re going to be the death of me,” he says, bringing me to my feet with a tender kiss.

Aiden’s hands stay firm on my face, but my burning skin is pleading for his heavy hands. “Touch me,” I whisper.

I can feel him smile against my neck when he cups me between my legs, and my breathy noise of approval soaks the room.

Suddenly, I’m tossed on his bed, and he pulls off my leggings, lifting one of my legs to kiss a path to my inner thigh. Soft lips kiss the scrap of fabric until his finger hooks on the waistband. Aiden’s hands tremble, as he drags my panties down my thighs. This confident athlete who could have anyone on a golden platter is trembling, and it drives an entirely new heat to my core.

I squirm when his gaze warms my skin, and just as quickly his face disappears between my legs. His fingers dig into my flesh, lifting my hips off the bed as his mouth covers me. I grasp his hair as he tortures my clit with painfully good suction.

“You taste so fucking good.” His warm breath makes me so hot that my breasts ache with pressure. When he slips his tongue inside me, accompanied by two thick fingers, my eyes squeeze shut, and I swear a tear stains my cheek. He continues at an intense rhythm that rips my breath from my lungs and makes me come so hard I don’t have a single thought for several minutes.

I only regain focus when he’s kissing my stomach, lifting my shirt higher until his eyes meet mine to ask for permission. I chuckle, pulling it off myself. He removes my bra next, and doesn’t hesitate to relieve the budding pressure. His thumb caresses the distended nipple on one as his tongue swirls and sucks the other.

I bring my hand to his face, making him look up so I can kiss him again. I love the way he kisses. Slow and attentive like he’s reading exactly what I want. The sweet kiss incinerates any inhibition, and my body lights up with a specific need. The desperation sends a shiver cradling my body, and when Aiden pulls away, he’s already smiling.

“That good?” he teases.

I roll my eyes and pull him closer. “Can you fuck me already?”