Frozen Hearts (12 page)

"I'm ready," I mumbled.

"You sure?" Tyce asked. He forced me to look into his eyes. All I saw was Tyce's blue eyes, blown black with want and lust and something else that made my stomach squirm. I nodded.

"Roll on your side," he said. "It'll be a little easier."

I did what I was instructed and suddenly I felt his cock pressing against me. This was always my favorite part when I was topping. The initial feel of heat and pressure when you entered another person, but when I did it with Tyce it was so much more. I silently hoped he would feel it with me too.

He bent my leg forward and pressed hard against me.

"Relax, baby," he said again. He reached around and stroked my cock. I leaned back against his chest and suddenly he was inside me. He stayed still, letting me adjust to the massive intrusion. I knew what he was feeling. His breath was coming in short bursts and I knew he desperately wanted to thrust into me, but still, he didn't move. He was waiting for the okay from me.

"Tyce, move," I gasped and he blew out a long breath, gripped my hips and slowly started moving in and out of me.

"Oh my God, Erik," he cried.

My body relaxed and it felt so good that I wanted more from him. I pushed back and Tyce dug his fingers into my waist.

"Erik, I need," he stuttered.

"Yes," I gasped and tried to rise to my knees. His cock slipped out and I got up. He sat up on his knees, grabbed my shoulders and shoved back into me, making me shout when his cock nudged my prostate.

"Not going to last," he said.

"I grabbed my dick and started tugging wildly. At the same time, Tyce's thrusting got erratic.

"Hurry, Erik," he said.

I groaned and spurted all over my sheets. Tyce shouted, his rhythm stuttered, and I felt his dick pulse. He grabbed tightly around my waist, plastering us together.

"Fuck," he howled and I couldn't hide the grin that spread across my face, because I did that to him.

He collapsed on my back, which sent me face first into my pillow. I didn't give a shit. Finally, he slowly pulled out of me. I couldn't move. He'd fucked the life right out of me, leaving me boneless and fully sated. The bed moved and he disappeared into the bathroom. He was back in a few moments with a wet washcloth, wiping me off.

"One day," I mumbled into the pillow. "I want to feel all of you."

"One day," Tyce repeated and collapsed next to me. The heat of his skin burned into me and I sighed loudly, flipping over so I could kiss him. We fell asleep pressed tightly against each other.

Chapter 7

When I woke up in the morning, Dix was sitting on the edge of my bed with a piece of paper clutched tightly in his fist.

"Good morning, princess," he said. He thrust the paper into my face. I could barely see him, let alone the paper that was in front of me.

"Tyce?"

"Tyce had to go to class, but he left this love note for you. Must have been some night you two had," Dix chuckled.

"Fuck off," I groaned and flinched when I moved.

"Mmmhmm," Dix laughed and slapped my ass, making me squeak and throw my pillow at him when he scurried out of the room. I unfolded the crumpled piece of paper and stared at the giant X. I held it against my chest like a lovesick girl.

I crawled out of bed and limped to the shower. How the fuck was I going to walk around campus today without everyone asking questions? And didn't Dix tell me we were playing hockey again tonight? Oh my God, everyone was going to know what Tyce and I had been doing. Although they probably already figured we were doing it, so what the hell difference did it make. But the ache in my ass made me think about him and that made me smile, because it had been fucking great to be able to give myself to him. I decided everyone could fuck off.

I made it through my classes and only heard a few whispers about my limp. I hoped most of them thought it was a hockey injury. Of course when Sam saw me, he laughed his fucking head off, teasing me about my inability to sit on a chair. I told him to get fucked and he frowned. He made me buy him a cup of coffee for that offhanded remark.

"I came this close to begging your sister last night," he said, holding his fingers up with no space between them.

"Shut up," I grumbled. I didn't need any more visions of him and my sister. I didn't want to think about my sister with anyone.

"I'm serious. I need it and seeing you shifting around in your chair makes me want to beg you to give it to me nice and hard."

"Shut up, Sam," I warned.

"Fine," Sam grumbled, running a hand through his dark hair. It stuck up everywhere, but I think it was the look he was going for.

"I know Tyce doesn't like to share and I definitely know he would never share you. The little fucker is head over heels for you."

His words made my stomach tip upside down and my limbs go numb. Sam batted his bangs away from his eyes and winked at me when he noticed the red in my face.

"You do know how much he loves you, don't you," Sam asked.

"Uh." My face turned maroon. I wasn't used to talking about my feelings.

"All right, hockey boy. I won't embarrass you anymore," Sam said, pretending to pout. "It's so easy though. Just don't do anything to hurt him. I don't think he would ever recover."

"I don't plan on it," I said. I took a deep breath. "I… me too. You know, uh, love him."

"I know you do, Foxy," Sam said. "You skating again tonight?"

I sighed. "Dix says we are, but I don't know how fast I'll be tonight."

That was probably not the best thing to say, because Sam almost fell off his chair, laughing at me. My phone beeped and I was almost relieved I had to get to class. I didn't know how much more of Sam's teasing I could take. I left him snickering behind a mountain of research he was doing for a paper he had to have done in two days.

When I exited the coffee shop, an eerie feeling washed through me. Goosebumps erupted on my skin and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I swear someone was watching me, but when I spun around, there was no one there again. It made me feel a bit crazy.

The feeling of being watched stayed with me the rest of my day. It made me uncomfortable and suspicious of everyone. I scanned faces but didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

By the end of the day, I was wrung out from being so tense. My phone buzzed and startled me. When I answered, Arielle started shouting about reading my emails. I told her I never checked the stupid things. I always left it up to her to keep on eye on my so-called fans.

"Are you done with class?"

"Yeah, I was just heading home."

"I'm already on campus. I'm coming to get you," she said. "You need to read some of them."

"Can't you just give me a rundown. I'm not interested in reading a bunch of hateful shit."

"Hateful is a way nicer word for what's in there," she said.

Would this ever end? I should have never let her set up that stupid fan page or whatever the hell she called it, but she talked me into it by telling me people were interested in my career. I quit reading the emails and comments since the majority of them were propositions for sex or marriage. Arielle sifted through them and would answer the legitimate hockey fan questions.

I sighed and waited by the student union for Arielle to pick me up. I'd tried to put reading the shit off until tomorrow, but she insisted it had to be now. She was visibly shaken when we sat down at my desk, opened my laptop and scrolled through the emails. She opened one and made me look at it. The words exploded in front of me. Long rants about how I'd hurt Rochelle and desecrated the game of hockey. Did people actually believe crap like that? Holy shit.

"I think we should turn these over to the cops," Arielle said. "These are serious threats, Erik."

"I can't deal with this fucking shit," I said. "Besides they're just words, Arielle. Most people never act on them and the cops would probably tell me there's nothing they can do unless something happens."

"How can you say that? What about that car in the parking lot and those guys at the restaurant."

"The car was probably just some drunk and the guys were at the restaurant and took advantage of the situation."

Arielle looked like she wanted to argue with me but held her tongue. I sighed and pushed delete. That action made Arielle shriek. She tried to form complete sentences, but she was so angry all she could do was snort and punch me in the arm. I suppose I should have waited until she was gone before I erased the messages.

"I'm going to the rink," I said.

"Is that your answer for everything?" she shouted.

"Fuck off, Arielle," I said.

The hurt in her eyes made me cringe the moment the words left my mouth and I wanted to take them back.

"Fine," she shouted. Before I could utter an apology, she rushed out of the apartment and slammed the door so hard it made my teeth rattle.

"I'm sorry," I whispered.

"What the hell was that?" Dix asked, busting into my room.

"Me sticking my foot in my mouth. I need to skate," I said.

Dix clapped me on the back. "Of course you do."

I was on edge at the rink that night. Tyce questioned me but I just laughed it off and told him I was a little stiff. He eyed me curiously but laughed along with me. The hockey was fierce. I came off the ice with a bloody lip and a sore ankle when some guy took a whack at me with his stick. I shoved him into the boards and punched him in the ribs. He grimaced and called me a fag, right as he nailed me in the mouth with his elbow. Tyce yanked on my jersey before things got any worse. I rolled my eyes and skated away. The shit was getting old and wearing on me.

The stands were loaded with people again and it confused the shit out of me. Sam told me I should sign some autographs and pose for pictures. I didn't think most of the people in the stands wanted to hug me, I think they wanted to choke me. What bothered me the most was that I wasn't sure why they wanted to choke me. Was it because I was quitting hockey or was it because I had come out of the closet and was going against people's idea of what a hockey player was supposed to be? The questions raced around my head and drove me nuts.

After the game, I called Arielle and begged for her forgiveness. I let her scream at me for about fifteen minutes then I begged her not to tell Tyce about the emails. I still didn't think they were anything too serious, but she thought they were important enough to suggest going to the cops. I didn't need Tyce siding with her. My plate was already full.

As the final weeks of school disappeared, more and more people showed up to play hockey with us. The stands continued to fill and Dix suggested we start charging five bucks a head. Tyce figured he could pay off his student loans with the profits.

I didn't think I would enjoy playing as much as I was, but it seemed that hockey was still in my blood. The need to compete, to fly across the ice and put a small black disk into a net, was second nature for me. It helped me cope with all the shit that was hanging over my head.

Maybe it had something to do with Tyce. The hockey was different with Tyce next to me, better. He made the years of sadness disappear, and every time I was on the ice with him, all I felt was pure joy. I could shut out all the bullshit and just play hockey. When he was on the ice, I could sense him. I think it was the same for him. He knew where I was without looking for me. Our passes flowed easily and we hooked up on so many goals, it was frightening. I was having fun on the ice again.

"Hey," Dix shouted when we walked through the door of the arena for another game. I lost a bet this morning so I was playing pack mule today. Both bags of gear were piled on my back and I swayed under the weight of everything. Tyce strolled in behind me, shooting texts to Arielle and laughing at his phone.

The stands were already filled with people and Dix shrugged when I gave him a questioning stare.

"Holy shit," Tyce said. He scanned the arena and shook his head. "Dix is right, we should be charging admission. I really could pay off my student loans."

Tyce sat down and I dropped his bag at his feet.

"Do you require anything else, your majesty?" I asked, kneeling down to unzip my bag.

"You're asking me if I need anything else while you are on your knees in front of me," Tyce said.

I looked up and grinned up at him. He winked at me and dug around in his bag until he found a black marker. He grabbed my arm, quickly scribbling an x on the heel of my hand. I snatched the marker from him and placed an x on the inside of his wrist. I let my fingers linger on his skin and he sucked in a quick breath.

"Don't get me all riled up," he whispered.

"Wouldn't dream of it," I said, smiling at him. I was on the verge of getting myself riled up, so I closed my eyes and let go of his arm.

We finished getting dressed and hit the ice. There were several familiar players on the ice. I wasn't sure how to react to my ex-teammates. Cookie skated by me but didn't look at me. Rexo and Zips did the same. I guess that answered my questions. So that was how it was going to be. I'd played with those guys for two years and now they were blowing me off because of who I was dating.

"Forget them," Dix said.

"Whatever," I said, waving Dix off.

We always kept the same core group, but Zips ended up on our team. He started to complain, but Dix shut him down and told him if he didn't like it, he was free to leave.

The game was crazy from the first drop of the puck and it got worse after Tyce and I hooked up for two quick goals. Cookie smashed his stick against the boards, shouting something at his goalie. The guy said something back and Cookie banged into him.

Dix tossed me a water bottle when I sat down on the bench. "This is nuts, Dix."

He shook his head and jumped over the boards right into the play. Tyce tapped me with his stick, signaling that it was our shift. I took off after the puck. The moment Tyce stepped on the ice, Cookie elbowed him in the head, smashing him face first into the boards. He went down hard. The play stopped and I turned around, watching as blood dripped from Tyce's mouth, turning the ice a bright red. Tyce was on his knees and I started to skate toward him. Zips grabbed me and shoved me into the boards.

"What the fuck?" I shouted. "Let go of me you fucking prick."

"Let them sort it out, Foxy." Zips hissed and twisted my arm behind my back.

Tyce stayed on his knees for a few seconds before he scrambled to his feet and took off after Cookie, swatting at Cookie with his stick. Zips dropped my arm and started to head toward Cookie but I tripped him up.

"Let them sort it out," I snarled.

Cookie swung around and tried to punch Tyce, but he stepped aside and Cookie hit nothing but air, almost losing his balance. Tyce dropped his gloves and tore his helmet off. Cookie did the same.

"Fuck," I shouted.

Cookie had been one of the enforcers on our team and Tyce had never been a fighter. It took exactly two punches from Tyce to send Cookie to the ice in a heap. The entire arena went silent. Zips stood up. He was lucky I didn't punch him in the face.

"I'm done for the day," Tyce said as someone tossed him a towel from the bench, so he could swab up his blood.

"Me too."

I'm pretty sure I heard the word homo uttered as I skated away with Tyce.

Arielle stood by the boards holding an ice pack. "Cookie did that on purpose. Totally lined you up the minute you stepped on the ice," she said to Tyce.

She made Tyce tilt his head and shoved a cotton wad up his nose to stop the bleeding. She placed the ice pack on his cheek.

Some of the guys skated by to check on Tyce, grumbling about dickheads showing off.

"We're going to head down to the locker room," I told Arielle. She waved me off and started yelling at one of my teammates for not sticking up for Tyce during the fight. I felt sorry for the guy. He hadn't even been on the ice during the altercation. I figured Arielle just needed to shout at someone.

"Fuck," Tyce said as he sat down to take off his equipment. "That hurt."

"I can't believe you got up and went after Cookie. Not many people with any common sense will fight with him."

"It was a fucking dirty hit. He deserved it," Tyce said. He spit more blood on the ground. "Let's get out of here."

"Gladly," I said, shoving the last of my equipment into my bag. "Hey, I thought Sam was supposed to be here tonight. I didn't notice him in the stands and he's hard to miss."

"Yeah, he said he was coming," Tyce said. He took out his phone but there were no messages or missed phone calls from Sam. I suddenly had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.