Off the Ice (Penalty Kill 2)

Who the hell is this guy? He’s definitely not a hockey player and I’ve never seen him before yet here he is, asking for my girlfriend. Before I can answer, Presley squeals, pushes past me, and jumps into the guy’s arms.

“Zack! Oh my God! How are you?”

“You didn’t forget about me, did you?” He smiles at her.

“Of course not! How could I forget about you? How was it? I want to know all the details!”

I clear my throat before he can speak, making Presley aware of my presence.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Levi.” Presley turns back to the guy and says, “Zack, this is my boyfriend, Levi Carr. Levi, this is my friend Zack Jones. He spent last semester studying abroad and the jackass is just now getting around to coming to see me!” She slaps his arm, much like she has done to me many times before and laughs.

Zack sticks his hand out and I shake it. “Nice to meet you,” I lie. Couldn’t the little fucker pick a better time to stop by besides the time where I’m about to fuck my girlfriend? My girlfriend who is wearing a tiny bikini underneath those sweats, and I can’t haul her to the bedroom because of him.

As if sensing my displeasure with him, Zack looks to her and asks, “Pres, is it a bad time?”

“Yes,” I say at the same time Presley says, “Of course not.” She cuts a glare at me, and I smirk back. C’mon, Smarty, I silently beg, make him come back later.

/> “We were just hanging out, Zack. Come in and you can tell us all about your trip!”

“It’s alright, Pres. We’ll have lunch tomorrow, okay?”

“Zack, it’s fine.”

“I’ll text you,” he says in a decline to her offer. Maybe it’s just because of the confident vibe he gives off with his hand on Presley’s back or maybe it’s the kiss he places on her cheek before he leaves, but I don’t like him.

“Who is he exactly?” I ask once we’re back on the couch, but Presley is sitting beside me and not in my lap, her milkshake and bikini forgotten. For her anyway.

“He was a friend of Trevor’s before he moved away with Dad. After Trev left, Zack would keep an eye on me and study with me. He’s a good friend of mine, Marley’s, and Trevor’s.”

“Did you date him?” I ask flatly, not liking the thought of an ex hanging around.

Once her surprise disappears, she drills me. “Levi Carr, please tell me you are not one of those jealous ‘You can’t hang out with any other guys’ jackasses. We’re just friends.”

Chuckling, I take her hand to tug her into my lap. “No, Smarty. I’m not. You can hang out with all the guys you want. I was just trying to figure out who he is to you. You’ve never mentioned him before,” I say softly.

“That’s because he was studying abroad. Wait.” She tilts her head, watching me with squinting eyes. “Not that you should be, but you weren’t jealous at all just then? I mean, before I told you who he was, I was in his arms giving him a hug and then he pecked my cheek before he left. You weren’t jealous? Not even a little bit?”

“Do you want me to be a jealous jackass?” I ask, repeating her words.

“No, but a little jealousy is nice.” Her lips barely form a pout, but it’s definitely there.

“Smarty,” I start gently, “I admit that I don’t like how I didn’t even seem to intimidate him and that he seemed a little too confident with me glaring daggers at him. I will even admit that I don’t like the fact that his lips touched you at all, but I wouldn’t call that jealousy.”

“Oh, no? What would you call that, Mr. Green Monster?” She smiles playfully at me, and I’m so happy I can amuse her.

“I would call that a slight bruise to my ego.” Presley laughs and I continue, “I mean, look at how tall and built I am compared to that guy. He could pass as a little teenager, for God’s sake.”

To drive the point home, I sit up just enough to take my shirt off and then take her hands to run them up my chest.

“I bet he doesn’t even have an ab, much less six of them,” I whisper. Her fingers splay over my stomach, running over each one, seeming to be completely mesmerized. Smirking, I know I’ve hooked her when her hands leave mine and travel up my chest on their own accord.

“You’re sneaky,” she says as her eyes come back to my face, catching my cocky grin. Presley leans down and kisses the spot above my chest. “You better be glad I love you and that I really love your body because my milkshake isn’t any good now.”

“You should definitely show me just how much you love me.”

Chapter Three

Presley