I laughed.
“Intimacy isn’t a performance.” Her voice was quieter. “It’s just two people paying attention to each other.” She stood then, carrying her empty cup toward the trash. At the door, she paused and looked back at me. “One last thing,” she said, her tone casual. “If he hurts you emotionally, I will kill him.”
I blinked.
She nodded. “Donna will help me. She has great upper body strength and surprisingly few moral objections when I’m upset.”
Laughter burst out of me, and Mila smiled at the sound.
“You deserve to feel safe too, Luka.”
The words followed me long after the door closed behind her, and in the silence that fell, I realized a few things.
I knew how to earn approval.
I did not know how to believe I deserved care.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Luka
Dean’s smilewhen he opened the door?
That was exactly what I needed to see.
I went inside, and he closed it behind me. A heartbeat later, my arms were around his neck.
“Hello, Dean Foster, Olympic champion ice skater.” I couldn’t help but return his smile.
He beamed. “Well, hello there, Luka Davorin, Olympic champion ice skater.”
I curved my hand around his cheek. “You were amazing. I had to remind myself to breathe. That quad…”
He stilled. “Are we really going to talk skating? Because I can, you know. I can give you a blow-by-blow analysis of every element.” His lips twitched.
“Blow-by-blow?” I narrowed my gaze. “That was not subtle.”
Dean grinned. “Yeah, but I knew you’d pick up on it.” He looked me in the eye. “And you talk all you want. We don’t have to do anything.”
I knew he meant it. Ilovedthat he meant it.
My hand was still on his cheek. “Thank you. But all the way from my room to yours, all I could think about was lying on your bed, kissing you… touching you.”
His smile lit up the room. “Sounds perfect.”
He took me by the hand and led me to the bed. We stopped at the foot of it, and he leaned in and sniffed.
I knew he could smell the soap and shampoo from the shower. My face grew hot, remembering how long I’d spent in there once Mila had finally gone. How much attention I’d paid to certain… areas.
Then I forgot everything when his mouth met mine.
His hands were in my hair, gentle and restless, and I slipped my arms around him, pulling him to me, molding myself to his firm body. My heartbeat raced, my pulse danced, and I sighed into his kiss. When we finally broke, he pressed his forehead to mine.
“I’ve been thinking about this ever since I walked off the ice,” he murmured.
“Taking my virginity?” I knew my attempt at humor was only a mask.
I also knew Dean would see right through it.
