Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 64727 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64727 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
No perving, asshole. Rafe is your fucking roommate.
“Everything feels and looks amazing,” Rafe gushed, moving to the full-length mirror in the corner. “I was just wondering if it’s a little too snug in the crotch area.”
He splayed his hands over his junk and—
Oh. Fuck me. I couldn’t do this.
“I, um…” I coughed, pointed at the tin and sputtered some more. “Need coffee. I’ll grab a couple of lattes and extra cream and sugar and…”
I was out the door before I’d finished my sentence, wiping beads of sweat gathered at my temple as I sucked in a gulp of air. The late March chill had the same effect as a bucket of cold water…thank God. Sure, it had been a few weeks since I’d gotten laid—or at least, since I could remember getting laid—but c’mon, this was a rather extreme reaction to a fully clothed man getting manhandled by a professional seamstress.
No, it couldn’t be the clothes or the hint of skin and muscles and a tight ass. It was Rafe. The way he moved was…seductive. I had a sudden urge to see him perform. I wanted to see that transformation in action—all that power and grace and beauty on ice. That had to be something special.
I returned to Rita’s shop with a tray of drinks, hoping they’d wrapped up their meeting. I’d taken my sweet time and made sure I had my head on straight.
It was okay to be attracted to Rafe. He was a good-looking guy and a genuinely cool person. He was exactly the friend I needed at the moment, and I wasn’t going to fuck it up by making something out of a hot kiss, a little friction, and a random peek at skin under a sequined top that looked like sex and salvation and—
Okay, so…my chill had slipped a bit, but no one noticed. Rafe had redressed in his jeans and sweater and was chatting with Rita about his invoice.
“You pay what you can now and the rest later. It’s no problem,” she was saying.
“I’ll have the full amount next week if you’re sure that’s all right.”
She shooed him away, her eyes flicking to me in the doorway. “Ah, see…your friend has paid with coffee and a nice appetite. Take the kolachki and go.”
Rafe hugged her, careful not to squish the plastic bag draped over his arm. “Thank you.”
I handed Rita her latte, thanked her for the cookies, and breathed a sigh of relief to be on the road again a few minutes later.
“The new Costco is in Haverton, just fifteen minutes away,” I pronounced, sliding into traffic.
“Oh…right. What do you want to buy other than corn dogs?”
“I dunno. Stuff.”
“Okay.” Rafe sighed happily as he stared out the window.
“What are you thinking about?”
“Nothing much. I’m just…in love with that costume. It’s sublime.” He twisted in his seat to face me. “I’ve had it for a few years, but it’s been slowly coming undone. I was lucky to find someone like Rita to save it from a mothball death. At a reasonable price, too.”
“I don’t get it. Doesn’t your team pay for your costumes?”
“Some amount, yes. Not all. This one is special, though. If the stars align, I’ll wear it for the Collegiate Championships tryouts. It’s a good luck charm, and I need it. I haven’t performed to a larger audience in a while,” he said wistfully.
“Your knee.”
“Ankle.”
I squinted at the glare from the Jeep sliding into my lane. “You sprained it, right?”
“No, I tore a ligament.”
“Ouch. How’d you do it?”
“Truthfully, I don’t remember. It happened at practice when I was going over some new choreography with one of our coaches. I was in my zone, in tune with the music and my own energy. It was relatively simple—a triple Lutz, land, toe loop, land, but that second landing didn’t go according to plan. My skate caught a divot in the ice or something. I wasn’t expecting it, obviously. I couldn’t counter my balance or even fall to avoid impact. Everyone assumed it was a sprain at first, but the ligament damage was severe, which was why it took so long to heal.”
I stopped at a red light. “And now it’s good as new?”
“Mostly, yes. I carried my weight on a new team this year, and that felt like a mini miracle. I have to build on it. Next step, qualify for the championships and after that, assuming I do well, I’ll hopefully join a club with excellent coaching. Of course, I’ll need sponsorship and…” Rafe broke off with a laugh. “Oh, wow. Snoozeville. Sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself. I guess I’m a little excited, but my God, that costume is just dreamy! I can float on air, spin like a leaf in the wind, or…I could the last time I wore it.”
“Ah, so it’s a superstitious thing.”