Page 24 of Arctic Titans of Northwood U: Volume 2

It made my heart grow when he immediately pulled his phone out and slowed down.

“You alright?” Sawyer asked. It was barely louder than a murmur at this distance and I pulled deeper into the shadows.

“Uh, fine. Go ahead, I’ll catch up. I forgot my earbuds.” Avery looked around and one corner of his lips pulled up enough that I noticed from afar.

“Ah, of course. Your earbuds. Tell them we’ll kick their butt when we play against them in two weeks,” Sawyer said.

I swallowed a chuckle at Avery’s steel-like expression. He squared his shoulders, then reluctantly nodded. “Will do.”

Sawyer laughed and walked away. Avery, on the other hand, scanned the area methodically. When he found nothing, he turned his back to me and began to type.

I was light on my feet as I approached him from behind. His black jacket fit him well, showcasing his broad shoulders and the V shape of his torso. I was almost tempted to wrap my arms around him and carry him away. Instead, I tiptoed until I was so close he had to be aware of me. But before he could react, I covered his eyes from behind.

That moment of contact and the short, sharp inhale made me want to stay like this forever. Even when scared, he was cool and composed. I wondered if Avery Collins had ever made a single rash decision in his life. Those words were the first from my lips when I found my tongue.

I slowly pulled my hands away and he turned around to look at me. “Rash? I’m sure I have.”

“Like what?” I asked.

His gray eyes narrowed in thought. “One time, Sawyer and I were at this cocktail bar. I didn’t read the menu. I ordered the first thing I put my finger on.”

I laughed into the night sky and placed my hands on his chest for support. “Thrilling. What else?”

A note of amusement crossed his face. “The other night,” he said. “When I decided I wanted to kiss you.”

That took my speech away. On the ice, Avery was a ruthless machine. At parties, he was an uninterested, robot-like presence. Even I had called him a psycho not that long ago. But privately, when he took that wax mask off, he said the most wonderful things. He was funny in a way Cole and Spencer could never understand. I wondered how many of Avery’s friends knew it, too. “Why don’t you decide that again now?”

He did. Instantly, his lips were on mine, and his heated kiss was made so much more special because he didn’t bat an eyelash. He gave it all to me. The way he held me when he kissed me lent me the sense of stability I never knew I needed.

The years of growing up in the closet, envying the boys and girls who almost flaunted their freedom and ability to steal kisses, didn’t scream at me now. What else were we doing if not precisely that? We gave one another the things we hadn’t had. Avery needed the space to allow his trust to grow. I needed someone who would fulfill the fantasies of the boy I had once been. All the adult things we’d done countless times with other people could wait.

I kissed him hard as the attraction between us blossomed. And when the blazing kiss made me sway on my feet, Avery’s stability kept me standing. We parted with boyish smiles painting our faces. “That’s one way to say ‘hello.’”

Avery nodded in agreement. “What are you doing here?” he asked after a moment.

“Oh, you know, running errands,” I said as we stood side by side and I poked him in the ribs with my elbow. “Stalking you, basically.”

“Stalk all you like,” he said, moving a few steps forward.

“I was wondering if I could steal you away for an hour or two,” I admitted. “Somewhere that isn’t brimming with Titans.” The clarification was necessary. “I know how testosterone runs high after practice. I don’t want to tempt them.”

Avery pulled on a wolfish smile. “They were nice last Friday,” he pointed out.

“And that’s why I don’t want to push my luck.” I dared slide my arm around his waist. He didn’t need a lot of nudging. He leaned into me as we matched our pace and moved along. His arm pressed against the side of my torso and he didn’t pull away.

“What do you have in mind?” he asked.

I shrugged. “There’s a taproom just off campus.”

Avery thought about it for just a heartbeat. “I can do one round. We’re playing against the Icehawks tomorrow night.”

“And I’m wearing a Titans jersey in support,” I joked.

Avery met my gaze. “You better.”

We shared a laugh and turned left at an intersection so we wouldn’t pass by the tavern they had at the heart of their campus. We walked a little faster and found the taproom more empty than full when we got there. It was warm and dark inside. Neon signs for craft beers gave some colorful light from the walls and the discreetly placed lamps filled the rest. I got us a round of drinks and we found a secluded corner to sit in.

I watched him as he got comfortable and I pulled back the mental picture of the photo he had sent last Friday. The blissful, beautiful photo of his shirtless torso. I recalled the tattoos that decorated his collarbones and his shoulder. I recalled the firmness of his pecs both in the picture and under my hand with his shirt in the way.