Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 107667 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107667 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
I kiss her jaw then the spot by her mouth before I drag my nose along her cheek. “Tennessee?”
She doesn’t open her eyes, but she purrs, “Yes, dragon king?”
My laughter comes quick, and I swear I fall for her even more as she smiles lazily up at me, her eyes still shut. I kiss her nose. “You’re such a dork.”
“Says the dragon king,” she mutters, wiping her mouth and cuddling into my chest. I take hold of her willingly, moving her hair to the side so I can kiss her temple. “God, you smell fantastic.”
I grin against her hair. “I gotta go in for morning meetings.”
“What time is it?”
“Seven.”
“Ew,” she mutters, cuddling deeper. “Are you leaving now?”
“Yeah, but you don’t need to get up.”
“I have to go back to my place. I have nothing here.” The request is right there, but I hold back. “And the Vols play at one, so I need my special shirt. How long will you be in meetings?”
“Until about twelve. Do you want me to meet you back here or at your place?”
“Just come to mine because I’ll start cooking around twelve.”
I raise a brow. “You’re cooking?”
She opens one eye. “Yes, you have to have tailgating food for a Vols game.”
“So, Vols games are a whole thing?”
“Oh, it’s a huge thing. I’ll have your shirt ready.”
I chuckle as I lean down, pressing my lips to her forehead. “Sounds good. I’ll see you in a bit.”
I kiss her lips and then roll off the bed, but her hand catches my wrist. I look back at her, and she smiles sleepily. “I’ll miss you.”
I run my thumb along her wrist because if I kiss her, I’ll never leave. She just obliterates me. “I love you, baby doll.”
Her smile grows as she cuddles into my pillow. “I love you.”
I sigh as I make myself get out of bed. I look back at her when I reach the door, and her eyes are on me, a flush on that gorgeous face as the sun kisses her skin once more.
And just how I have to force myself from that room, I force myself to keep my fucking mouth shut.
“See you soon,” she calls to me, and my heart aches.
“Not soon enough.”
Me: There is a key on the counter to lock the dead bolt. There is food in the fridge since I ate the last piece of pizza. The coffee machine is a bitch, so tell me your order and I’ll put it in down the road at the Dunkin’.
The Only Ten You’ll Ever See: You ate my pizza. Rude.
Me: lol. My bad. I was in a rush.
Me: What do you want from Dunkin’?
The Only Ten You’ll Ever See: I can order it myself. Aren’t you busy?
I am, but Coach can’t see me texting under the table.
“Miklas, you know I see you texting, right?”
I laugh at that while the guys razz me, and I lean back, meeting Coach’s gaze. “My bad.”
“Yeah, sure,” he calls to me, and once he turns, I return to texting.
Me: I am, but I want to get you coffee since I didn’t have the chance to get it for you this morning.
The Only Ten You’ll Ever See: You’re lucky my app isn’t working. A caramel latte, please. Thank you.
I order it just as Coach turns, and I send her the confirmation, to which she sends me little hearts and kissy faces. My heart does a dance in my chest. I tuck my phone into my pocket and lean back in my seat, listening to our game plan for the game Sunday afternoon. We have morning skate again tomorrow, and I hate the dread that sits in my chest. The season is kicking off, about to be in full swing, and it worries me that Tennessee will hate it. She’s made it clear she doesn’t want space between us, but hell, this is my career. All of November, I’ll be gone. It’s one of the pitfalls of what I do. And it’s why I don’t have custody of Sabine.
I swallow thickly, knowing I’ll have to see that look in Tennessee’s eyes every time I have a road trip. I’ll have to sleep without her. Won’t be able to touch her. Kiss her. Man, this is gonna suck. As Coach breaks for a moment to take a long for a swig of his water, I lean into Owen.
“How do you handle you and Angie being apart when the season is going on?”
He looks over at me, his brows coming in. “FaceTime, and I’ll send you the link on Amazon for a great vibrator for her and some good lube for you.”
I just blink at him. He answered that like he was telling me the weather. “Thanks, buddy.”
Owen nods, swiveling back and forth in his seat.
It’s hard not to laugh, but now, instead of paying attention to the meeting, I’m thinking of all the naughty things I can say as Tennessee gets herself off. Which does nothing good for me since I have no clue what’s going on in the meeting. I’ll be okay, though; I know how to play hockey pretty well.