The Mistake(30)

A desperate noise tears out of my mouth, but it’s instantly swallowed up by another blistering kiss from Logan, whose hips rock harder, faster, until the knot of pleasure explodes in a rush of pure bliss that sweeps through me, buzzing in my fingers and curling my toes.

Logan’s head falls in the crook of my neck and he lets out a low grunt. Breathing hard against my skin as his entire body trembles.

“Fuck. That was so hot,” he groans a few seconds later.

His arms wrap around me, holding me tight to his rock-hard chest as we both recover, our breathing labored and our heartbeats hammering in unison. A full minute passes before he releases me and takes a step away.

My eyes have adjusted to the darkness, and I see him reach for a stack of paper napkins on a nearby shelf. His hand dips inside his pants before crumpling the napkin and tossing it in the wastebasket by the door.

Then he’s back, his voice husky as he brings his mouth to my ear. “Happy birthday.”

I start to laugh. I have no idea why, but this entire hook-up was so surreal that I find myself quaking in amusement, which elicits a deep chuckle from him.

“Thank you,” I answer between giggles.

His lips graze mine for one fleeting moment, and then he takes my hand and leads me to the door. He pauses in front of it, bowing gallantly before holding it open for me. “After you, gorgeous.”

Aw hell. Those three words turn my heart from a solid to a liquid. A warm, gooey pile of mush in my chest.

Well, at least I’ve figured out how I feel about him.

I think I might be crushing on the guy. Hard.

*

Logan

The next evening, I’m battling Tucker to the death in an intense game of Ice Pro when Dean wanders into the living room, shirtless and barefoot. He rakes a hand through his spiky blond hair before settling on the armchair next to the couch.

“Listen, I need to talk to you about the freshman.”

“What freshman?” Tucker voices the question even as his eyes stay glued to the screen.

Mine do too. “You mean Grace?” I say absently.

My team is kicking Tuck’s ass, probably because the idiot refuses to play as anyone other than Dallas, who’s been eliminated from playoff contention, what, a million years in a row? I, of course, play exclusively as Boston, because that’s the team I grew up cheering for and the one I envisioned myself playing for someday.

“Yes, I mean Grace. Unless there’s another freshman you took to the movies and sucked face with the whole time?” Dean’s remark oozes sarcasm.

I pause the game to take a sip of my Coke. Yup, Coke. I’m still making an effort to dial down the partying. Well, that and my first exam is tomorrow, and I don’t want to show up hung-over.

“I didn’t take her to the movies,” I answer. “We ran into them there, remember?”

“Oh, I remember. I also remember the sucking face part. Seriously, bro, every time I turned around, you were going at it like porn stars.”

It’s a good thing I haven’t told him what we did in the closet. He’d probably have a field day with that one.

“Wait—you’re going out with a freshman?” Tuck’s expression is unreadable, but I’m pretty sure I hear a chord of relief in his voice.

“Naah, we’re not going out.”

“Good,” Dean says, nodding briskly. “Those younger chicks bring way too much drama to the table.”

Tucker snickers. “Drama? Is that what we’re calling the Bethany incident now? Because that wasn’t drama, dude. It was stalking.”

“It was a pain in the ass, that’s what it was,” Dean mutters. “And thanks so much for reminding me of it. Now I’m going to have nightmares tonight. Jerk.”

I roll my eyes. “Don’t worry, Grace isn’t like that. No drama whatsoever with her.”

Which is one of the reasons I’m so drawn to her. She’s the most uncomplicated girl I’ve ever met. Plus, when I’m with her, I don’t think about Hannah at all, which is—

So you’re using her to not think about Hannah?

The accusation flies into my head like a hockey team on the offensive.

No. Of course I’m not using her.

Am I?

No. That’s crazy. I genuinely like Grace, and I f*cking love hooking up with her.

But…she does happen to be a great distraction from all this Hannah bullshit.

A great distraction?