“I’m going in early to set up.”

“For a consult?”

“It’s an important client.” I haven’t told Tenley who’s coming in, mostly because I don’t think she’ll actually care. She’s not a sporty girl, so I don’t expect her to get all excited about a hockey player getting a tattoo.

She cocks her head to the side. “Who’s so important that you have to go in this early?”

“I have an NHL player coming in. I usually schedule his appointments early so it’s not a thing, you know?”

Tenley perks up a little. “An NHL player? For Chicago?”

“Yeah.” I take her hand and curl all but her index finger into a fist. Then I swipe it over the spatula.

“Which player?” she asks as I bring her finger to my mouth.

“Ballistic.” I suck the creamy sugar off, swirling my tongue to make sure I got it all.

“Randy Ballistic?” She yanks her finger away, her eyes going wide. “You have a consult with Randy Ballistic?”

“Uh, yeah.” I go for the spatula, but she hides it behind her back. It’s not much of a deterrent. In fact, it allows me to pin her against the counter.

“I can’t believe this is the first time you’ve mentioned it! And you’re meeting with him today?” Tenley’s voice is all pitchy.

I pause in my quest to get the icing from her. “Since when do you like hockey?”

“Are you kidding? Who doesn’t like hockey?”

“You’re always reading something when I put sports on.”

“I can multitask.”

I’m not sure I believe her, but her face is going red. “What’s his number?”

She grins. “Sixty-nine.”

“What position does he play?”

“He’s a forward, and he played for New York before he was traded here last year. Chicago only made it through the first round of finals, and their team captain, Alex Waters, suffered a serious concussion and some broken ribs in March, which took him out for the rest of the season.”

“Who are you, and what the fuck have you done with my girlfriend?”

Tenley pokes me in the chest. “Just because I’m a book nerd doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate highly aggressive sports.”

“Apparently.”

Her other hand also disappears behind her back, which pushes her chest out. If she wasn’t wearing the cupcake-patterned apron, I’d be able to see some cleavage. When her hand reappears, she holds her index finger in front of my face. It’s covered in icing. I latch on to her wrist and wrap my lips around it. The only thing I like better than Tenley’s cupcakes with buttercream icing is Tenley decorated with buttercream icing. It makes for sticky, but fun and delicious sex.

“Do you think I’d be able to meet him?”

I’m still sucking on her finger, so I’m hoping the breathless quality of her voice is related to what I’m doing, rather than thoughts of Randy. I take my time tongue-cleaning her finger before I let it go. “Only if you keep it together and don’t act all starstruck.”

“I won’t act starstruck.” She sounds a little offended.

I give her a look.

Tenley purses her lips. “Seriously. I will keep it together.”

“Okay. Why don’t you come by the shop when you’re done with the cupcake business.”

Her grin is ridiculous. She jumps up and down, her boobs bouncing. “Oh my God! Yay!”

“On second thought, maybe it’s not a good idea.” I’m sort of teasing. Tenley never gets girly excited over anything apart from maybe when I take her to concerts, so this kind of reaction makes me a little wary. Because I get jealous like that.

It’s something I’m working on.

Based on my current reaction, I’m still not quite where I need to be.

“I promise I’ll get all my excitement out before I get to the shop.”

“Should I be worried about how jacked up you are over this?” I steal the spatula from her and lick it, heedless of her protest.

Tenley skims my arm and curves one palm around the back of my neck. “Are you getting territorial on me?”

“Should I?”

She cocks a brow. “That depends.”

“On what?”

“On what I get out of it.”

“You mean besides meeting a famous hockey player?”

Tenley twirls the end of her ponytail around her finger and runs it along the column of her neck. She’s taunting me. On purpose. I lean in and brush my lips along the edge of her jaw. “I have to leave for work.”

“Okay. We can talk about this later.”

I bite the sensitive skin just below her ear. She tastes sweet, like the sugar she’s been feeding into the mixer. I move down an inch and suck just a little.

“Hayden,” Tenley grabs my shoulders.

“Hmm?” I move an inch lower and suck again, harder this time.

Instead of getting annoyed at me for possibly giving her a hickey, Tenley grabs my hair, keeping my mouth attached to her neck. “Don’t start something you’re not going to finish.”

I chuckle and glance at the clock on the stove. It’s only ten after nine. I can take care of her and still get to the shop with plenty of time to prep. I left everything out on my desk last night anyway. It’s just me being anal, partly because Randy’s consult will be followed by a group meeting in a couple of weeks. He and a few teammates are getting similar versions of the same tattoo. I want everything perfect for when the guys come in to review their designs.

I pull the tie on her apron, and Tenley ducks her chin so I can get it over her head. Her nipple shields are visible through her flimsy tank. Before I take that off, I reach behind her and pull down the blinds, keeping the neighbors across the way from getting a view of the action. Tenley helps out by dropping her shorts and kicking them across the floor.

I grab her by the hips and lift her onto the counter.

“There’s only ten minutes before I have to test the cupcakes,” she warns.

“I’ll be fast.”

“Not too fast.”

I pull her tank over her head and groan. Cupping her breasts, I thumb her nipples. “Did you change these this morning?” She has on my favorite shields: cupcakes with little jeweled barbells. They make her nipples look permanently hard.