He meets my eyes, and oh my God, I can tell again that he wants to kiss me. I cannot let that happen, no matter how tempting an offer that is.

“Owen didn’t send me. I heard him on the phone with the team trainer. He was called in for a meeting today and he was complaining about how it conflicted with coming to visit your class. In the end, he figured you would understand, and they didn’t seem to be giving him much of a choice.”

“So … what? You just had nothing better to do than spend your morning getting climbed like a jungle gym by half a dozen toddlers?” I ask in a challenging tone, raising one eyebrow to watch him.

His eyebrows pull together. “Are you mad I’m here?”

“No.” I wave my hands. “Not at all. I’m sorry. I’m grateful you’re here. Let me start over. Thank you for coming. Honestly. You saved my … backside. I’m just confused, I guess on how this all transpired.”

He licks his lips, and places one hand against my shoulder, lightly squeezing. “I wouldn’t have come unless I wanted to.”

A quick glance inside my classroom shows me that they’re halfway through washing hands and I only have another fifteen seconds at best, even though I could happily spend all day gazing up at his chiseled jaw and gorgeous blue eyes.

“Thank you, Justin. Honestly.”

His mouth quirks. “Don’t you mean Mr. Brady?”

I place one hand against his firm chest, and gave him a playful shove. “Behave.”

“I’ll think about it,” he says and I chuckle, letting my hand drop away. “When can I see you again?” he asks, his deep voice coming out almost whisper soft.

It’s disorienting being the focus of all his attention. No wonder his opponents get distracted on the ice.

I chew on my lower lip, checking on my classroom yet again. I can feel a few of them watching my exchange with the hockey stud they now obviously idolize.

“I think you just got a few new fans,” I murmur, eyes swinging back over to him.

“Answer me, Elise,” he says.

I swallow and look down at my shoes. “I’ll um, have to check my schedule and let you know.”

“You better,” he says, but his tone is gentle.

“I will. But I need to go hand out some animal crackers before mutiny breaks loose.”

He nods, his eyes filled with amusement as he gazes down on me. “You have fun with that.”

I grin. “I always do.”

20

* * *

Emergency Intervention

Elise

I should be paying attention to the conversation around me. I should be listening like the good friend I am, and contributing at all the right moments. Instead?

I’m hyper aware of the man seated next to me. Justin is on my right, and I can’t seem to stop my eyes from drifting that way every few minutes or so. I’m aware of every breath, every tiny movement. He’s doing nothing more than sitting beside me nursing a bottle of imported beer, yet I’m enthralled.

His upper lip is fuller than the lower, and I’m not sure why I’ve never noticed that before, but all I want to do is nibble on his gorgeous lips, and gah! It’s distracting. I’m not sure what’s wrong with me, but I’ve never felt this way before.

During the season, most of the guys seem to forget how to shave. Justin hasn’t, but it does seem to become more sporadic based on the delicious five o’clock shadow dusting his defined jaw. His eyes are the color of the ocean at sunset, and when they meet mine, a jolt of awareness skates through me.

I want him tonight.

Justin looks away, glancing over at Teddy who’s in the middle of a story about the rookie player named Morgan and a killer play they made last weekend. But I’m left with the warmth of his big body beside mine and his lingering scent that fills me with every happy memory and safe feeling from my adolescence. I don’t hate it. Not even a little bit.

I feel his hand touch my knee under the table and I’m almost surprised when I don’t jump out of my seat. A knowing smile twitches on Justin’s lips. He must know the effect he has on me. The smug bastard. I want to give him a taste of his own medicine, want him to feel the same sense of reckless abandon I feel whenever he’s near. This out of control feeling is new for me. It’s certainly not something I experienced while dating Andy, the school teacher.

Bringing one hand beneath the cover of the table, I place my palm on his thigh and give it a firm squeeze. It’s less of a warning and more of a playful taunt.

But if he’s affected by my touch, it doesn’t show. His expression gives nothing away. He takes a casual sip of his beer and sets it on the table in front of him, his thumb picking at the label. My hand drifts further up his thigh until I reach inappropriate territory, and wait to see if I’ve elicited a response from him.

His mouth pulls into a frown and his eyes cut to mine. I keep my expression neutral as I explore, locating my prize, and give it a playful squeeze.

Justin’s hand grabs mine and removes it from his hardening manhood, then places it on my lap. He gives me a dark look and mouths behave.

I shrug, fighting off a grin.

He’s right though—I’ve never felt this reckless or daring before. It’s like I’ve had a sexual awakening. But apparently Justin doesn’t want our friends witnessing it. I guess I can’t blame him. At least Owen’s not here tonight. He left about an hour ago with some puck bunny he met not even fifteen minutes before. My brother is a slut, but he’s also sweet and a loyal friend, so we don’t give him too much crap for it.

I take a sip of my drink and try to focus, listening as Sara recounts an awful first date she went on recently.

“It couldn’t have been that bad,” sweet, innocent Becca says. “At least you’re putting yourself out there and dating.”

“Oh it was that bad. At the end of the night he actually put my hand on his crotch and suggested that it was my job to take care of his problem since I was the one who created it.”

Becca groans in sympathy, and Sara nods, taking a long sip of her martini.

It makes me glad I’m not out in the dating scene, at least for the time being, while Justin and I explore our chemistry, and since he and I agreed to be exclusive. Honestly if we hadn’t, I don’t think I could have continued with this fling. Because while I’ve talked a big game to Becca, and made it seem like I was invincible, and that I was incapable of getting hurt during this whole thing, the truth is, I’m just like anyone else. I have insecurities and uncertainties, and since I’m ninety-nine percent certain I could never measure up to the brazen sexpots Justin usually attracts, it’s just better this way. Not to mention safer. I like knowing that he isn’t sharing his body with anyone else for however long it takes us to work this attraction out of our systems. Even if I am a bit surprised at how quickly he agreed to be exclusive. Scratch that, actually it was his idea—he was the one who suggested it.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Justin says, interrupting my runaway brain.

I press my lips together. I can’t exactly admit that he was the star of my daydream, especially when several sets of eyes swing over to me from across the table.

I shrug. “Nothing. I’m just glad I’m taking a break from the dating scene after the disaster that was Andy.”

Sara raises her glass and clinks it against the side of mine in solidarity. “Cheers to the single life.” She grins at me.

The conversation shifts to guy-code things that I’ll probably never understand. I hear Teddy raise his voice, passionately defending something Sara has no doubt called him on.

“Yeah but when a girl orders a salad on a date,” Teddy says, leaning forward on his elbows, “and then starts making googly eyes at my steak and fries, that’s where I draw the line. Just order what you want. Don’t steal my food.”

Sara makes a low noise of disagreement.

“You always share your fries, TK. That’s like a rule,” Becca corrects him.

“You are literally the worst, Teddy,” Sara adds, her tone firm.

“Fine.” Teddy leans back, crossing his bulky arms over his massive chest. “Let’s hear your side. In fact, everyone should share. Let’s hear your most insightful commentary on the opposite sex.”

“What do you mean by commentary? Like advice?” Becca asks.

“Sure,” Teddy agrees, grinning. “Advice.”

Teddy is always down for some good-natured fun. He reminds me of Owen a little, in that Owen is always in a cheerful mood and doesn’t let things get under his skin. But where my brother is lighter, with sandy brown hair and gray eyes, Teddy has dark hair and deep coffee-colored eyes that crinkle in the corner when he laughs.

“I’ll start,” Teddy says, taking a quick sip of his beer. “Unspoken rule—if I make a comment to a girl and it could be interpreted in one of two ways, and one of those ways offends you, I meant it the other way.”

Becca chuckles softly while Sara lightly punches Teddy in the shoulder. “You’re an idiot.”

He flashes her a grin.