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I feel his attention all the way to my toes. To anyone else, it probably doesn’t look like anything, but to me, it’s full of the promise of everything to come.

Everyone begins to move around me, making their way out, and despite wanting to sit here and wait for Cooper, I know I can’t.

He’s going to be a while yet. I just need to figure out how to wait patiently, because all I want right now is to check that he’s okay and be in his arms.

With the envelope I picked up at the ticket office when I arrived earlier burning a hole in my pocket, I make my way out of the arena.

The hotel the team is staying at isn’t all that far away; I could easily walk, but knowing I need to get back there and hide before any member of the Vipers’ staff arrives back, I call an Uber.

My heart is in my throat as I walk through the lobby of the hotel.

I know it’s stupid, but my hands are trembling as if I’m doing something wrong. But as I watch the doors of the elevator close and then count as the floor numbers increase, my fear turns into excitement.

Of course Cooper knows I’m here; he set all of this up. But I’m still getting a massive kick out of being able to wait for him to get back. I can only imagine how it will feel if I ever get the chance to do this as a surprise.

My eyes dart around the hallway as I step out into silence.

I’m assuming this whole floor is occupied by Vipers’ staff, so it’s empty, but I don’t want to take any kind of risk.

I move quickly, constantly checking over my shoulder as I take note of the numbers beside the doors.

The second I spot the one I want, I pull the envelope out and tap the key card to the device attached to the wall. The little light turns green as the door unlocks, and I push it open.

Butterflies are going wild in my stomach as I step inside Cooper’s room. He might have only been here briefly to drop his things before heading to the arena, but it already smells like him.

Desire flows through my veins as I lower my backpack to the desk and kick off my shoes.

Aware that I’m going to be alone for a while, I grab my cell and laptop before settling on the bed to update my numbers. Our win tonight increases our lead in our division and pretty much secures the top spot in our conference. A place in the playoffs is basically ours now. In just a few more weeks, we’re going to be embarking on the postseason, and hopefully getting our hands on that cup.

Despite being impatient as fuck, it isn’t all that long until I start hearing voices outside the room.

Each time a deep rumble gets closer, my heart lurches and my cock jerks.

At the first evidence of life, I shed my clothes, and I’m now lying here in only my boxers, waiting for my boyfriend to join me.

But none of the voices walking past belong to him; the door stays firmly locked, and I’m still alone.

Suddenly, time slows down, and it feels like forever until the sound of a lock disengaging catches my attention.

I abandon my cell on the nightstand and turn my gaze to the short hallway he’ll walk through to get to me.

As heavy footsteps move my way, I stop breathing. And it only gets worse when he finally appears.

“Holy fuck. Are you okay?” I blurt.

51

COOPER

Despite the adrenaline coursing through my veins, my legs feel like dead weights as I make my way to my hotel room.

The thought of Garrett being inside keeps me moving.

Seeing him up there tonight, knowing he was watching—fuck, it was everything I needed.

It was a hard game. Denver came out fighting, literally. I’ve got the cuts and bruises to prove it.

And I’m not the only one.