The Dating Tutor: Alec's Story (10 page)

As soon as it hit the ice, he straightened and shook off his gloves. Justin did the same, and they immediately began circling one another, looking for an opportunity to land a blow.

Justin was the larger of the two, but Alec had speed on his side. Before his opponent could realize what was happening, Alec ducked in and delivered three quick body shots.

Almost immediately, Justin got a meaty hand up and delivered two rough punches to the side of Alec’s head.

Thankfully, his helmet absorbed the worst of the blows, but the impact had knocked it askew, obstructing his visibility. Without a second thought, Alec ripped it off and tossed it to the side. He shook his dark shaggy hair out of his eyes and pulled back to circle his opponent, while Justin tossed his own helmet to the ice.

When they locked up again, Alec managed to get an arm free. He delivered a quick shot to Justin’s jaw. The other boy reared back and Alec hit him again…and again. It felt good. He harnessed all of his recent anger into the movement of his arm as it delivered the blows. It was downright therapeutic.

Alec pulled his fist back again, but Justin got his around first. It caught Alec in the brow with enough force to jar his head back.

Pain shot through him immediate and intense, but Alec didn’t shrink back. Instead, he pulled his arm back and delivered a right hook that knocked Justin to the ice. His opponent plopped down in front of him, blinking in dazed surprise at being knocked on his ass.

Alec’s shoulders rose and fell with labored breaths that forced their way past his lips. Blood was trailing down his face and dripping onto his jersey. The eye that had taken the hit was already starting to swell closed.

He was so focused on the adrenaline coursing through him that it took a moment to notice the referee who was screaming at him over the roar of the crowd. The man jerked a finger in the direction of the locker room, and Alec understood enough to realize he’d been ejected from the game.

Cursing in aggravation, Alec snatched his helmet up, skated off the ice, and stalked down the ramp way that led to the locker rooms. The last thing he’d needed was an ejection from the game. It was further proof for Jerich that his son was nothing more than a thug.

Entering the locker room, Alec wound back his arm and chucked his helmet at one of the locker doors. The sound of its collision echoed throughout the empty room. With a frustrated growl, he sank down to the bench in front of his locker and dropped his head into his hands. He took deep breaths, trying to still the rage that seemed to pump through his veins.

A few minutes passed this way, with him staring at the blood that dripped from his eyebrow onto the floor. He knew this whole thing was his own stupid fault. He’d lost his temper and cost his team by leaving them short a defensive player.

“Alec!” Ellie’s worried voice invaded his ears. She was suddenly dropping to her knees in front of him and peering into his eyes with shock evident in her own. “Alec, what were you thinking?”

His head stayed lowered, but he lifted his eyes to hers. In a cold voice, he asked, “Why are you back here, Ellie? Shouldn’t you be with your date?” The compassionless words rolled off his tongue before he could stop them.

Her eyes narrowed at him in response. “I cancelled with Jake. You’re my best friend. I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“I’m fine.” The words came stiffly from his lips. He was far from fine, but for the first time in his life, he found himself unable to divulge to her the turmoil running through him. The best friend who had gotten him through so many hard times in the past was the reason for his current misery.

As always, she saw straight through him. She saw through the bullshit to the distressed person beneath. “You are not fine.” Her eyes danced over him, lingering on the cut above his eye. “You’re bleeding everywhere. Why would you start with someone who has fifty pounds on you?”

This finally brought a smirk of amusement to his lips. Here he was overwhelmed with emotional crap, and she was worried about some silly fight. “I kicked his ass, didn’t I?”

She gave him a look of disapproval. Grabbing a towel from a stack at the end of the bench, she pressed it against the gash on his forehead. “You scared me,” she admitted quietly.

“Why?” He looked up at her with surprise. His on-ice fighting had never seemed to bother her in the past. “I’ve fought a thousand times. You’ve never cared before.”

“I’ve cared. It’s just I wasn’t… You’ve never… This was different.” She inhaled deeply, then held that breath as she stared at him. After a moment, she exhaled and pressed the towel to his head in an effort to stop the bleeding.

As her eyes flitted almost uncomfortably away from his, Alec gave a sigh of his own. He’d never meant to upset her. In fact, he honestly hadn’t thought it would matter to her one way or another. He was a goon; he fought. That’s how hockey went. But she was right. This had been different.

Normally, he fought when he felt a game required it or when someone took a cheap shot at one of his teammates. Today, he’d fought because he was pissed at her. He was suddenly very ashamed of his actions. “I’m sorry. I never meant to scare you.” That was the last thing he ever wanted to do. Unable to help himself, he reached out and ran his fingers through her hair before tucking it behind her ear. “I just…” He shrugged and dropped his hand away self-consciously. “I’m a goon. Senseless violence is what I’m good at.”

She made a sound of protest in the back of her throat. “You’re more than just a goon. You’re a good hockey player.”

He grumbled an unconvinced response.

Ellie pulled back, staring intensely into his eyes. “You are! You’re an amazing athlete, and I’m proud of you.”

Alec swallowed thickly at the compliment and lowered his eyes to the ground. He stared at the droplets of blood, trying to keep his emotions at bay. It was not good to have these sorts of feelings for her. It was making him act irrational.

“Alec.” Her voice all but demanded he pay attention. Cupping his cheek in her hand, she forced him to look at her. “You know how amazing I think you are, right?”

His eyes locked onto hers and held them. The passion he saw there had his heart pounding against his ribcage. For a moment, he considered that perhaps she reciprocated his feelings. He lifted a hand to cover hers. “Ellie, I—”

“I can’t believe you pulled something like this before the game even started, Horner! I sure hope it was worth a two game suspension.” Coach Grimmly, who had obviously ducked out to check on him, rounded the bend and stopped suddenly upon seeing Ellie in the room. “Oh. Miss Harper. Hello.”

Ellie jumped guiltily away from Alec and jammed her hands deep into her pockets. “Coach Grimmly. Hi.”

Grimmly was a large, imposing man, but he was more fatherly as a coach than harsh. Many of the other students found him to be intimidating, but the members of the hockey team admired him completely. The coach’s massive feet slapped against the ground as he stomped over. “Well, let me have a look at it,” he said gruffly. “Are we going to need stitches?”

Ellie peeled back the towel to reveal the gash on Alec’s head and shot the coach a nervous glance.

Leaning down, Grimmly peered closely at Alec’s brow. After a moment of silence, he gave a harrumph. “It’s barely a scratch, boy. Why are you bleeding like a stuck pig?”

Alec shrugged. “I don’t know. It was a lucky shot. He must have just hit me in the right place to make it gush.”

The coach gave a snort. “Lucky. Yeah.” He dabbed at the blood on Alec’s brow before tossing the rag to the bench. “You’re real lucky that gamble paid off, or I’d be yelling up a storm.” He grinned. “Michaels got all wound up after that fight, scored us two goals.” He clapped Alec on the back. “Good job, kid. Good job.” He waved toward the exit. “Now get your butt home before I decide two games isn’t a long enough suspension. Go on.” He gave Ellie a pointed look. “Get him home. I don’t want him driving with blood running into his eyes.”

She nodded. “Yeah. I’ll get him home.”

“Take care of him,” the coach added.

Alec shot an affectionate look in Ellie’s direction. “Don’t worry,” he said. “She always does.” Despite the recent tension, that was something he knew he could always count on. She would have his back if he ever needed it.

* * *
*

A few hours later, Alec sat in Ellie’s basement watching the Rangers game from the previous night.
She’d been awesome enough to record it for him, as he’d been busy at practice. Apart from the awkward car ride back to her place after his ejection from the game, things had grown more comfortable. Once they were in their familiar environment and hockey was unfolding on the big screen, it was as if the drama of earlier was forgotten.

Lounging on the couch like this with her, he could almost overlook the past few weeks. It almost felt as if things were as they’d been before the fiasco with Jake had started to make him doubt his entire way of thinking. This is what he’d needed. Some uncomplicated time in front of the television with the girl next door who knew all of his secrets and never judged him by them. Now if only the referees would stop calling the game so biasedly, things would be perfect.

“Come on,” he growled when one of the refs blew his whistle and signaled for a slashing penalty against Arron Asham. “He was going for the puck!”

As Asham skated for the penalty box, Alec gave a frustrated growl and tossed his arm along the back of the couch in defeat. Ellie jumped at the sudden movement, drawing his attention to her. “What?” he asked. “You disagree?”

She hesitated as if unsure she wished to share her opinion. Finally, she said, “Um…yes. It was totally slashing.”

His eyes narrowed, and he turned his body so he could better face her. “No, it wasn’t.”

“It was,” she argued. “It was a good call.”

“You’re blind. He has a right to go for the puck.”

“True. But he doesn’t have the right to slash. He’s a shady player, and you know it. He’s always getting in trouble for crap like that.”

Alec’s eyes narrowed. She had a point. No matter what team he played for, Arron Asham had a tendency to find himself in the penalty box. He was struggling to come up with a retort when Ellie blurted out something completely unexpected.

“Can you help me learn how to kiss?”

He jumped back as if he’d been burnt. “What?” His voice was an octave higher than usual, causing him to cringe with embarrassment. Her request was just so sudden and unexpected. He’d been trying to ease back into normal territory, and she’d blindsided him with this.

“I don’t really know what I’m doing…and you seem to be the expert. I just thought…” She shrugged, her eyes lowering shyly to her hands. “I thought maybe you’d practice with me…or teach me. Whatever.”

“When?” he asked, voice sounding pained. He felt like a deer, trapped in the headlights of an oncoming car. He saw the danger as it raced toward him, but he was unable to get out of its path.

She shrugged again before motioning to the television. “It’s almost intermission…”

Intermission. She wanted to do this
now
. Panic welled within him. He knew he should tell her no. He knew he should stop things from getting any more abnormal between them, but the thought of kissing her was too enticing to let pass.

He swallowed thickly before bobbing his head in agreement. Ignoring the rest of the period, he shifted closer to her on the couch and curved his arm around her waist, drawing her gently toward him. “Come here.”

He leaned in, bringing his mouth closer and closer to hers. She wiggled in his arms and released a nervous breath against his lips that sent a tingle down his spine. “Close your eyes,” he instructed with a shaky laugh.

She complied, fluttering her eyelashes closed as she tilted her chin up ever so slightly in invitation.

With a little smile, he closed the remaining distance and brushed his lips lightly against hers. Just that simple contact sent the blood pumping in his veins; it sent his heart roaring with want.

Ellie gave a soft, eager whimper. She became lax in his arms and melted against him, curving her body along his.

“Don’t do that,” he growled into her mouth as he lifted both hands to brush her hair back from her face. He continued to kiss her ever so gently, his fingertips stroking along her jawline as he shifted her hair.

“Don’t do what?” She whispered her reply between soft, slow kisses.

“Don’t whimper like that.” He ran his thumb along her bottom lip. “Only make that sound if you’re looking for a full on make-out session. No guy can control himself after a sound like that.” He moved his thumb away from her lips before lowering his mouth to hers again.

Ellie leaned into his kiss. Giving another soft whimper, she lifted a hand to the back of his neck to deepen it.

She was toying with him. Alec knew without a doubt that Ellie had whimpered again on purpose. It was like she wanted him to lose control. Well, she was about to get her wish, because that sound had driven him over the edge. He gave a growl of arousal and slid his hands down her hips, so he could pull her closer. Her body was pressed tightly against his, and he could feel her breasts through her sweater. He teasingly bit at her lower lip before nudging her mouth open with his own. “Mmm, Ellie…”