Offside Hearts (Love and Hockey Book 1)

A plaintive, desperate noise falls from my lips. After the time he took to stretch me out and make sure I was ready for his cock, my body feels empty without him, and all I can think about is how much I need him to keep fucking me.

“Please…”

“The headboard,” he repeats, rocking his hips so that his cock slides between my ass cheeks. “If you still want me to fuck you hard, then grab on to it. You’re gonna need it.”

My hands shake as I reach for the classy, expensive looking headboard, wrapping my fingers around it. Noah hums in approval, the sound vibrating against my back. With one final squeeze of my breasts, he slides his hands down to my hips. Then he draws back and plunges into me again, hitting everything from a new angle.

“Oh fuck!” I cry out, clinging to the headboard as my back arches, my entire body buzzing. “Oh god, Noah, what are you doing to me?’

“Ruining you.” His hips slap against mine, making my breasts bounce. “For every other man. Making sure you never forget how I can make you feel. How good we are together. You’re so fucking good, Sunflower.”

There’s a possessive growl in his voice, and it does almost as much for me as the way he called me ‘good girl’ earlier. My body starts to shake, and I spread my knees wider, my head falling back against his shoulder.

He’s about to get his wish.

With every stroke, every dirty word, every touch… Noah Blake is ruining me.

I swear there will be imprints of my fingers in the headboard later—that’s how tightly I’m gripping it. I’m barely even aware of the noises I’m making anymore, little whimpers and moans that spill from my lips in between pleas for him to keep going, to not stop.

“Would fuck you all night if I could,” he grunts, his breath hot against my neck. “Can you come again? I want you to come on my cock. Can you do that?”

“I… I think so,” I pant. “I might need a little… help.”

“I’ve got you, baby.”

He finds my clit again, rubbing it hard as he keeps fucking me, and I make a noise I’ve definitely never made before. It’s a raspy, almost guttural groan, and it feels like it comes from the very depths of me as something inside me winds up tight.

“There,” I gasp. “There. There. Right… there!”

If I wasn’t already on my knees, I’m sure they would buckle as the orgasm tears through me. It’s like a shot of pure sensation, enhanced by every climax that came before it tonight, and I drop my head, leaning toward the headboard as I hold on for dear life.

Noah’s thrusts pick up to a wild pace and then fall out of rhythm as he comes, his hips stuttering against my ass before he grinds against me. His cock pulses, and I squeeze around it, resting my forehead on the cool wood of the headboard.

His hands close around mine where they grip the headboard, his body draped over me, both of us breathing hard and fast. I turn my head to kiss him, sliding my tongue against his. Our kiss is messy and a little dazed, and I feel like I could float away if it weren’t for the solid weight of his body behind me.

When we finally break apart, Noah secures the condom at the base of his cock and pulls out. We both groan as he slips out of me, and I hiss softly at the sting. It felt incredible, but my body is definitely going to have to get used to this.

Noah’s lips find my shoulder, and he presses a soft kiss there before clambering off the bed. I flop down onto the mattress, not really paying attention as he pads to the bathroom to get rid of the condom. I definitely pay attention when he comes back though, lifting my head in time to watch him walk through the bedroom door in all his naked glory. I swear he’s got entire muscle groups I don’t even have.

He catches me staring at him and gives me a cocky wink, and I roll my eyes, smiling blissfully as he crawls back onto the bed to join me. I don’t even realize he’s got something in his hand until a warm washcloth presses between my legs.

I look up at him, furrowing my brows. “You wore the condom the whole time, right?”

“Yeah, of course.”

“Then what are you…?”

I look down to where he’s pressing the cloth against my pussy. Although he got me plenty wet, no cum is leaking out of me, so there’s not really much cleanup required.

“I know you said you wanted it hard, but I didn’t mean to go quite that hard,” he tells me, sliding the cloth gently over my folds. “I thought this might help if you’re sore.”

“Oh. Thank you.” I watch him work, touched by the simple gesture. It does feel incredibly good, easing the ache in my swollen pussy.

He takes his time, waiting until the warm cloth starts to cool before setting it aside on the nightstand. His fingers find their way between my legs, cupping me possessively as he stretches out beside me.

“Better?”

“Mm-hm.” I nod sleepily. “Much. Although I did say I wanted it hard, and you did promise I wouldn’t be able to walk tomorrow. So maybe we both got our wish.”

He chuckles, pulling me against his body as I curl up on my side. He wraps an arm around me and presses a kiss to the back of my neck as we relax into the cushy mattress. His pillows are the softest, fluffiest things I’ve ever felt, and it’s like I’m lying on a cloud. I could fall asleep in minutes if I let myself, but I don’t want this night to end, so I try to stay awake even as my eyelids grow heavy.

After a few moments of comfortable silence as our breathing starts to even out, I wriggle around in his arms to face him. Our eyes meet, and he smiles.

“Stay over,” he murmurs.

My stomach flutters. “Really?”

“Yeah, really.” He reaches up to tuck a messy lock of hair behind my ear. “The last time we spent the night together, in that hotel room after the storm, I slept like a baby.”

“Oh, yeah?” I lean into the warmth of his palm a little, cocking an eyebrow at him. “Interesting.”

“What?”

“It’s just… if I recall correctly, I didn’t sleep great that night. I don’t know if you know this, but you snore louder than a freight train.”

His eyebrows shoot up, shock registering on his handsome features. “I do? Nobody has ever told me that before.”

“Well, have you had a lot of sleepovers?”

“Good point. I guess not.” He sighs, grimacing. “Shit, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to keep you up. I had no idea I was that loud.”

I try to keep a straight face, but the earnestness in his expression makes me laugh, and I can’t help but throw him a bone.

“I was just kidding,” I admit, sliding a hand over his muscled arm. “I mean, you did snore a little, but it wasn’t that bad.”

“Oh, fuck. Thank god.” He blows out a breath, then his eyes narrow. “Damn, Sunflower, you almost just gave me a heart attack! I thought you were about to tell me we could never sleep in the same bed again.”

He pulls me closer, tickling me in retribution, and I squirm against him, feeling the press of his half-hard cock against my thigh.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” I squeal, and he shifts from tickling me to kissing me, his hungry lips grazing every inch of skin they can reach.

When his mouth moves upward to meet mine, we make out for a while, slow and lazy, our hands roaming a bit. The cedar scent of his aftershave mixes with the heady scent of sex on his skin, and I scrape my nails gently down his back, reveling in the way his muscles flex beneath my touch.

This man drives me fucking wild. How is it possible that I seem to have the exact same effect on him?

“I actually slept really well that night too,” I admit quietly when we break apart. “I liked having you in bed next to me.”

He gazes down at me, a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. “So… does that mean you’re going to spend the night?”

“Yeah. I’d love to.”

I nod, and he rolls over onto his back, pulling me with him so that I’m partially draped over him, my leg hooked over his thighs. I rest my head on his chest, and he rubs his thumb back and forth over my shoulder as he stares up at the ceiling.

For a little while, neither of us says anything. Our breathing is synced up, our bodies nestled together like two puzzle pieces. I’m on the verge of drifting off when Noah clears his throat. I look up to find him gazing down at me with a pensive look on his face.

“Got something on your mind?” I murmur.

He studies me, biting his lower lip. “I was just wondering… does my past still bother you?”

“Your past?”

“My reputation,” he clarifies. “And the fact that I’ve been with so many women.”

“Oh.”

I’m wide awake now, and I push myself up onto my elbow so that I can look him directly in the eyes. It’s quiet in the room as I consider my answer, wanting to be as honest with both him and myself as I can be.

“I never thought I would be interested in someone like you,” I admit. “Not just because of your reputation, but because of everything. You’re a famous athlete, a huge hockey star, and that’s all so different from the world I come from. On paper, I wouldn’t have thought we would fit together at all. I had a pre-formed idea of you in my head when we met, and that guy, I never would’ve gone for in a million years. But you, Noah, the man in front of me right now? I really like you.”

He grins, lifting my hand and resting it on his chest.

“I like you too, Sunflower.” He makes a quiet noise, and I feel the vibration of it beneath my palm. “I know what everyone says about me. And before I met you, it never bothered me all that much. But now… I would just really hate for my past to get in the way of our future together.”

Hearing him say ‘our future together’ does dangerous things to my heart, and I can feel my pulse racing a little as I whisper, “I don’t think it has to.”

“Good.” He lets out a breath, then adds, “And for the record, I never lied to any of the women I hooked up with. I never led anyone on or made promises I didn’t intend to keep. I was never that jerk at the bar who tried to get a woman drunk just so she’d go home with me or anything like that.”

“I never thought you were,” I assure him.

“I’m glad.” His expression is earnest, and his blue eyes burn with intensity. “Because when the tabloids use words like ‘player’ or ‘heartbreaker,’ it makes me sound like I’m some manipulative, sex obsessed asshole. But I swear, that’s not who I am. That’s not who I’ve ever been, and it’s definitely not who I’m going to be with you. I need you to know that, Margo. I respect you so much, and I would never hurt you.”

I can hear the promise in his voice. See it in his eyes.

Instead of responding with words, I lean in for another kiss, melting into him. He kisses me back, his muscled arms banding around me as one of his large hands delves into my hair and palms the back of my head.

My understanding of who Noah Blake is has changed so much since we met.

He’s taken every chance I’ve given him to prove to me what a good man he is. He’s shown me a side of his personality that the rest of the world doesn’t get to see, and it makes me feel like the luckiest woman alive to know what a kind, funny, attentive person he is.

In the back of my head, there’s a tiny voice warning me not to let myself fall too hard, too fast. But even as that thought tries to find purchase in my mind, Noah grips my hips and rolls us over again, and I know that the gravity pulling me toward this man is too strong.

I won’t be able to fight it.

And I’m not sure I want to anymore.