Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 80045 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 267(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80045 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 267(@300wpm)
“I know I am,” I answer. “I was faster than half the guys in Denver.”
Coach’s eyebrows climb up his forehead, his mustache twitching as he holds back a smile. “Better than half the guys?” he asks, humor lacing his tone. He nods to Kiplin, who stands behind me in the skating group. “You hear that, Clay? Half.”
A few chuckles sound around me, and I roll my eyes but keep my mouth shut.
“While I'm sure that being faster than half the guys in Denver is a perk that we’ll appreciate, I guarantee that none of you guys can skate like your new skate coach can. She's a decorated figure skater and is lightning quick on the ice.” Coach’s voice rises as murmurs and questions rumble at his mention of a figure skater being our new expert skate coach. “And she is an integral part of this team now,” he continues, finally getting everyone to quiet down. “Trust me, she knows more than you, and if any of you so much as disrespect her, you’re gone. Treat her like your sister—no, like your grandmother. Treat her like you would a member of this team. Listen to her, and I guarantee you're going to be faster on the ice than you’ve ever been.”
Silence falls as he continues to explain what the other groups will be doing.
After a few moments, he finally tells us to break. The other three groups shuffle off to their designated spaces, leaving my group on the ice.
“All right everyone, Coach Wren is going to take it from here.”
We all turn our heads to watch as Coach Wren takes the ice. I'm expecting at least an over-fifty woman based on the grandma comment Coach made, but that couldn't be further from the truth.
Coach Wren, who can't be over twenty-three, glides onto the ice like she was born wearing skates.
Fuck. Me.
Not that I have any reason to, but I would recognize those long legs tucked into a pair of figure skates anywhere. She propels herself on the open ice before us, doing several spins and a leap that has my jaw dropping.
And when she stops showing off, she skids to a halt so quickly she shreds ice onto my skates.
“Blakely?”
She smirks. “Wolfe.”
CHAPTER 2
BLAKELY
There’s something about the smell of the ice that has a way of soothing my nerves. The crisp clean scent has always offered a sense of comfort and peace whenever I breathe it in, but this morning it's not as comforting as usual.
My body is in knots despite knowing I'm about to step onto the rink, which has been one of my favorite places to be since I was a kid. Sometimes it feels more natural to be in a pair of skates than it does to be in a pair of heels, and I'm chiding myself for my current nerves.
It was just a kiss.
But it wasn't.
Before the kiss, Lawson—the mysterious stranger—had saved me from a terribly awkward and uncomfortable situation with my ex, Brian.
Lawson credited his perceptiveness to his little sister, which I couldn't help but think was adorable as hell. I’m not usually one for being rescued, but last night he'd showed up right when I needed him.
And sure, he definitely had that cocky prick attitude that bordered between insufferable and irresistible, but I never thought he was a Badger. I wouldn't have let him kiss me if I suspected he was.
Now I'm regretting it more than ever because that kiss had ignited a hungry need in my core that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since. It kept me up more than half the night, the memory of his lips against mine, his strong hands raking over my body as he brought us flush, the way he kissed me like there was nothing else in the world he'd rather be doing.
Which is ridiculous because it didn’t mean anything.
It was for show.
A show for my benefit, but that didn’t stop him from reacting to me. It was easy to tell he was attracted to me, and before I figured out he was a Badger—thanks to Clay hollering at him about practice across the bar—I’d already been calculating a way to have some no-strings fun with him.
Reese and Monroe—my two best friends—had been hounding me since breaking up with Brian to allow myself some exploration. They knew how difficult Brian had been when it came to physical intimacy, but it’d been hard for me to spot because I’d never experienced anything else.
I'd been with Brian since my freshman year of college, and I had spent my high school years focusing on my figure skating aspirations, so I never had any serious boyfriends or any serious sexual experience before him.
After one kiss with Lawson, I'm realizing my best friends might’ve had a point.
I had no clue how amazing intimacy could be. And yet a perfect stranger had awakened sensations inside me that I never knew existed from just a kiss.