Just Add Ice, page 10
Rayne turned back to the wall, not wanting Nick to see him getting all emotional over some photos. A moment later, Nick appeared in his peripheral.
“He would have liked you,” Nick said, his voice soft.
Rayne swallowed hard and cleared his throat. He needed to snap himself out of his sudden bout of melancholy.
“Enough for a threesome?” he deadpanned.
A shocked burst of laughter broke from Nick. “We weren’t into that, but for you?” He turned to face Rayne. “I’m sure we’d have made an exception.”
Rayne looked into Nick’s captivating eyes and smiled, his equilibrium settling back into place as he admired this man that he hadn’t been looking for but now never wanted to be apart from. Nick was beautiful, not just in looks but in heart and mind too.
“Sorry if I woke you,” Nick said after the moment stretched into surprisingly comfortable silence. “You looked like a little cherub sleeping so soundly. I didn’t want to disturb you.”
Rayne laughed. “That’s the first time anybody’s ever called me a cherub.” He narrowed his eyes. “Don’t you dare let any of my teammates hear you say that. Ever.”
Nick chuckled as he bent to pick up Rayne’s shirt from the floor. “Promise.”
After Rayne slipped his shirt over his head, Nick clasped his hand. He leaned in for a kiss, a soft press of mouths that made Rayne’s toes curl even still.
“Come on.” Nick gave his hand a little squeeze. “I made us breakfast.”
Rayne’s stomach growled on cue, loud enough he was sure half of Boulder would have heard it. Nick only flashed a knowing grin at him.
“We missed around two,” Rayne said as he sat at the already set table and Nick headed for the kitchen.
Roo padded over and put her paw on Rayne’s thigh, her tail sweeping the floor as it wagged back and forth. “Good morning, sweetheart.”
“Hmm.” Nick dropped a couple slices of bread into a toaster. “How about we spend the day together? That way, we’ll have plenty of time for round two, even if we need a power nap first.”
“Yes, please.”
Like Rayne even needed to think about it. With it still being early in the off season, his teammates all out of town, and the kids’ hockey club not practicing again until the weekend, his schedule was his own. He couldn’t think of anything better to fill it with than quality Nick Seavers time.
“Good.” Nick flashed a smile and began plating their meals. “It’s been a long time since I’ve cooked for anybody. I’ve missed it.”
That pretty blush crept into his cheeks again, calling to Rayne. He rose and walked over to Nick, pulled him into his arms and kissed him slow and languid. Nick sank into him. His hand slid up to grip the back of Rayne’s neck. A moan vibrated between them, but Rayne couldn’t be sure if it had come from him or Nick.
The toast popped and Nick stepped back, his eyes a little unfocused.
“Sit,” he said, and for a second, Rayne didn’t know if Nick was speaking to him or Roo, who was once again watching them.
“You’re a little peeper, aren’t you?” Rayne teased, scrubbing behind her ears as he went back to the table.
Breakfast was an incredible vegetable omelet, with sourdough toast and fresh orange slices on the side. Rayne took a bite, and it was like his mouth had a flavor orgasm.
“Oh my god,” he said after he swallowed. “This is amazing.”
Nick ducked his head, but Rayne didn’t miss the pleased smile tugging at corners of his mouth. “Thank you.”
Conversation was easy, bouncing from topic to topic as they ate, and all the while Roo watched intently for any treats that might fall to the floor.
“I want to show you something,” Nick said when they were finished.
“Oh, yeah?” Rayne stretched his leg under the table until his foot found Nick, and he toe-walked up and into Nick’s groin, teasing the treasure beneath his jeans. “Does it look something like this?”
Nick wrapped his hand around Rayne’s foot, thumb stroking the sole. “No, not exactly.”
“I don’t need to see it then,” Rayne said, dropping his foot and crossing his arms over his chest.
Nick laughed, the full-bodied sound filling the house in a way Rayne had a feeling it hadn’t had in a long time. He loved that sound and wanted to hear more of it—wanted to be the one to bring it out of Nick.
“I promise you’ll love it,” Nick said as he rose to collect their empty plates. He scraped them off before loading them into the dishwasher.
After Rayne took a quick shower—alone, because Nick had showered earlier—and tugged on one of Nick’s smidge-too-small T-shirts, they climbed into Nick’s truck. Roo hopped into the backseat with excitement in her amber eyes.
Less than ten minutes later, Nick turned onto Flagstaff Road and Rayne thought they were going to Chautauqua Park. He loved running trails there even though the reservoir trails were closer to home, but Nick kept going up the winding road before pulling into a small parking lot. A trailhead sign read Welcome to Panorama Point. Roo stayed close as they hiked the short trail to a lookout point, which was less than a thousand feet above Boulder. They sat on a bench over-looking an amazing vista that stretched east as far as his eyes could see. The north and south views were obstructed by ponderosa pines and the Front Range mountains.
“Wow,” Rayne said. “I’ve never been up here before.”
“This is one of my favorite spots. I started coming up here after . . .” Nick’s voice going distant before he continued. “There’s something peaceful about sitting here surrounded by nature, and at night there’s a sense of magic as the city lights twinkle.”
Rayne was quiet, but when Nick looked at him, he had a soft smile on his face.
“It means a lot that you brought me here,” Rayne said. “Thank you.”
Nick threaded his fingers with Rayne’s and rested their joined hands on his thigh. They sat in silence, gazing out over the city of Boulder and the plains beyond, while Roo sniffed and explored the surroundings.
A vibrant orange and black butterfly with white spots along the edges of its wings fluttered around them before landing on Rayne’s knee.
“That’s a monarch,” Nick whispered, with a note of awe in his voice.
Rayne’s breath caught as he shared a wide-eyed glance with Nick. He held still, not wanting to disturb the beautiful, winged insect. After a few moments, it took flight again. When it was out of sight, Rayne said, “I’ve never experienced anything like that in my life.”
“It was a sign,” Nick replied.
“What kind of sign?” Rayne asked, hoping maybe it was finally time for him to have the things he’d wanted most his whole life. Roots. Home. Love.
“Butterflies are a symbol of hope and transformation.” Nick turned to study him and added, “New beginnings.”
There was a weight to the last two words that Rayne was afraid to read too much into, but he couldn’t deny he liked the sound of it. He leaned forward and kissed Nick, his lips warm from the heat of the sun. “I like that.”
“Butterfly symbolism or the kiss?” Nick asked with a cheeky grin.
“Both.”
Nick let go of Rayne’s hand and draped his arm around Rayne’s waist as they sat and stared out over the city. A light breeze ruffled through the pines, birds called to each other, and the buzz of insects rounded out nature’s chorus.
“How are hockey and firefighting going to work?” Nick asked, breaking the peaceful quiet.
He sounded a little hesitant, as though he was worried about how Rayne might answer.
Rayne shrugged. “Depends on what offers I get. If the Denver Mustangs offer me another prospect contract, then I’ll stay here and keep playing hockey with the Blitz and hope for the call up. Or the Blitz could offer a contract directly. But if they don’t and I get an offer with another PHL team . . .” He sighed. He didn’t want to move again, but until now, he’d never had a reason not to move. “I’m not sure yet if I’ll take it. If I don’t, then my hockey career is effectively over, and I’ll become a full-time firefighter.”
“Do you want to keep playing hockey professionally?” Nick asked, his voice quiet.
Rayne let himself get lost in the changeable depths of Nick’s eyes for a moment. The way the breeze toyed with his hair and how the sun hit his face just right, highlighting the small cleft in his chin. The answer was as clear as it was fanciful.
Not if it takes me away from you.
“Depends,” he said, the word spoken as quietly as Nick’s question.
“On?”
“What happens between us.”
Because it really was that simple. If there was the possibility of a future with Nick, then he was going to take it. Hockey or not. But without Nick, hockey was the only thing he had—until it was time to hang up the skates. The plan then, was to get hired on at a fire station somewhere.
Nick whispered. “What do you want to happen?”
It was too soon for Rayne to get ahead of himself and say things that might freak Nick out—hell, they were kind of freaking him out a little—but Rayne had gone from lusting over the hot instructor at the beginning of firefighter training to falling halfway in love with the man before the course had even ended. And now, with their first official date bleeding into a second, and maybe even a third, he knew he was barreling past halfway and skating full tilt toward all the way there.
But that wasn’t a conversation for today, so he changed gears and slanted a come hither look at Nick. “Round two!”
ON THE WAY BACK FROM PANORAMA POINT, Nick drove across town and into North Boulder so Rayne could change his clothes. Nick had invited him for homemade dinner tonight and hadn’t realized until he was driving how much he’d missed cooking for someone again, how much he loved taking care of a man of his own. Meeting Rayne had made feel like he had a reason again, someone to care for and who cared for him. How he’d thought he’d spend the rest of his life going through the motions alone, he didn’t know.
“On the right here.” Rayne indicated the entrance to a newer condominium complex painted in earthy shades of sandstone.
Nick turned in and parked. They rode the elevator to the top floor of the four-story building, sharing teasing glances and grins the whole way. There was a lightness to Nick’s mood that he hadn’t felt in a long time, and he knew it all had to do with the man currently eating him up with his expressive eyes. They walked hand-in-hand down the short hall until Rayne let go to open his door. He motioned for Nick to enter ahead of him. The apartment was a west-facing corner unit flooded with natural light, with a view of the Front Range.
“Make yourself at home,” Rayne said with a wave of his arm to encompass the open living, dining, and kitchen area. “I’ll just change real quick.”
Rayne disappeared behind a door to the left of the dining area. Nick wandered the space, curious to gain a little more insight into Rayne, but while the condo looked lived in and comfortable, there was a surprising lack of personality to it. The condo was functional at best, with simple furnishings. The throw pillows on the couch added pops of deep yellow and bright blue to the otherwise muted color scheme. But other than a few framed hockey posters, a signed hockey stick on the wall, and a signed hockey puck in a glass case on the coffee table, there was nothing that said Rayne Hamilton Lives Here.
But then, Nick guessed it made sense, since Rayne had been moving his whole life. He’d never had a chance to dig in roots and truly express his personality. Which was far more alive and vibrant than this apartment.
Nick wandered over to a tall bookcase in the corner of the living room. He wasn’t surprised to see all the sports and hockey themed books, but what caught his attention was the bottom shelf full of romance novels—some of which were gay romance books that Nick recognized immediately, because Geoff had been an avid reader of them. Did Rayne read those, too?
“Do you live alone?” Nick called out.
Rayne hadn’t said, and Nick hadn’t thought to ask before, assuming because he played professional hockey, he made a nice income and could afford to live on his own. But maybe that wasn’t the case. Nick didn’t know how hockey worked outside the NAPH, with their massive salaries.
“No,” Rayne replied from the other side of the apartment. “I have a roommate, but he’s gone home to spend the off-season with his family.”
Rayne returned, pulling a blue Boulder Blitz T-shirt over his torso, and Nick instantly missed seeing all that beautiful skin on display. He’d had a taste last night, but one taste wasn’t enough. A niggle in the back of his mind warned he’d never get enough of Rayne Hamilton.
He cleared his throat and motioned toward the bookshelf. “So, who’s the romance fan?”
Rayne followed his line of sight and his cheeks pinked adorably.
“They’re Lavoie’s books. My roommate. He plays on the Blitz with me.” Rayne rocked on his heels and shoved his hands into his pockets, not making eye contact when he said, “But . . . I might have read one or two.”
“Did you like them?”
“Maybe.” Rayne dragged the word out, shooting a flirtatious grin at Nick.
This man . . . Nick crossed the room and grabbed the hem of Rayne’s shirt, lifting it over his head.
“Hey, I just put that on,” Rayne complained, but the laughter in his voice said he wasn’t all that upset about it. In fact, he sounded quite pleased.
Nick tossed the shirt over a chair at the four-person bar-height table and then began peppering kisses over Rayne’s collarbones.
“Yeah,” Nick said, his lips ghosting over Rayne’s chest. “But it looks so much better off.”
“Yours off too would be even better.”
“We’ll get to that.”
But first, Nick was busy. He kissed a path across Rayne’s smooth, muscular pecs, toying with his responsive nipples to see how hard he could get them. Rayne’s head fell back, and he moaned as he slid his fingers into Nick’s hair.
“I take it we’re having dessert before dinner, then?” Rayne breathed.
“Dessert—” Nick tugged on the other nipple. “—before dinner—” He kissed the base of Rayne’s neck, “—is the best—” the sexy column of his throat, “—kind—” the proud jut of his chin, “—of dessert.” And ended with an open kiss on his mouth.
Rayne growled into the kiss and sparked a fluttering arousal in Nick’s belly. His abdominals, not nearly as defined as Rayne’s, tightened with want.
“I think we need to move this somewhere more comfortable,” Nick gasped against Rayne’s lips.
“Best idea you’ve had all afternoon,” Rayne teased as he slid a finger behind the waistband of Nick’s pants and began walking backwards. “This way.”
Nick would have let Rayne lead him anywhere, especially when he was looking at Nick with so much magnetic intensity that Nick couldn’t look away. Until Rayne banged into the corner of the door frame, jolting him out of his seductive stare and into bright-eyed chuckles.
Rayne’s bedroom was much the same as the rest of the apartment—muted colors, functional furniture, and walls bare of adornments—and unexpectedly clean. As in showroom, clean.
“What?” Rayne said when he sat down on his bed and tugged Nick close.
“I’ve never seen guys your age with such tidy and organized apartments,” Nick marveled.
“I don’t know anything about most guys my age,” Rayne said absently as he lowered the zipper of Nick’s jeans. “But living with billet families teaches you to pick up after yourself. And do you really want to talk about my housecleaning abilities right now?”
“Hmm.” Nick pretended to think for a second before shaking his head. “Nope. Let’s see how untidy we can make your room.”
“Better yet.” Rayne leveled a scorching stare at him, his voice gruff when he said, “How about I make a mess of you?”
He shoved Nick’s pants down, letting them rest just below his glutes, Nick’s straining erection springing free. The heat in Rayne’s cool blue eyes had Nick shuddering with desire. How badly he wanted Rayne was a marvel, and one he desperately wanted to lose himself in.
“Beautiful,” Rayne said before leaning forward and wrapping his lips around the head of Nick’s length.
Nick’s knees weakened, and he gripped onto Rayne’s strong shoulders to keep his balance while Rayne worked him closer and closer to the edge. With a pained groan, he gently extracted himself from Rayne’s gloriously hot and talented mouth.
“I want to come inside of you,” he said, answering the unasked question in Rayne’s eyes.
“Oh my god, yes.” Rayne’s expression morphed from confused to excited as he scrambled up onto the bed and made quick work of removing the rest of his clothes. “I’ve wanted this since the moment I saw you.”
More than the words Rayne spoke, it was the conviction behind them that made Nick’s heart swell. Somehow, in such a relatively short time, Rayne had made Nick feel not just alive again but desired, like he mattered . . . was needed.
“What you do to me . . .” Nick breathed.
Nick shucked his pants off the rest of the way and yanked his shirt over his head, careless of where it fell. He climbed up onto the bed and lowered the full length of his body over Rayne, nestling into the groove between his legs where he fit perfectly. It was as if they were pieces of a puzzle, where one had fallen under the couch, only to be found years later when the urge struck to rearrange the room.
“Good things?” Rayne asked, his voice a growly whisper.
“Nothing but.”
Nick started slowly with lazy kisses and long swipes of his tongue as he worked his way down Rayne’s body. He wanted to savor every second as he explored the man beneath him, who had awoken Nick from his deep fugue and brightened the world around him. He wanted to memorize every flavor, every smell, every sound, every curve and muscle that made up the masterpiece of human form that was Rayne.
