Shutout | Complete

Chapter 16

Ella lay on one side of the bed, hair illuminated by the Christmas lights outside my bedroom window. I reached out, brushing a strand off her forehead and tucking it behind her ear. She was radiant in every sense of the word. Much like Ella's soft, blonde tresses, her skin glowed. The rosiness of her cheeks gave her a healthy sheen. The length of her body, still hugged by the sinful red dress, beckoned me for a round two. The hem threatened to ride even higher up her thighs.

There couldn't be a more beautiful woman out there, could there?

I gripped the material under my pillow, restraining my thoughts. While Ella and I have added casual hookups to our agreement, I didn't want to push my luck. I fought back a yawn, my mind slowly registering how late it was getting. The party on the other side of my bedroom door had long since died down. The music that had once rumbled through the two stories of the Hockey House had dissipated into nothing. All I could make out was light chatter from downstairs.

"Maybe I should go," she whispered, eyes searching mine as we laid across from each other. We had spent most of the night curled up, talking about everything and nothing all at the same time.

I dragged myself to sit up, wiping the drowsiness from my face. "I'll drive you home."

"No," Ella insisted. She mimicked my movements, swiping her phone from my night stand. "Don't worry about it. I'll grab an Uber."

I took a moment to appreciate the way her lip gloss still managed to stay intact. "How did you get here?"

"Olivia drove," she replied with a shrug of her shoulders. "She texted me a while back, asking if I wanted her to wait for me, but I told her to go. Unlike me, she's got morning classes."

My brow furrowed. "I don't know how I feel about you Ubering home alone at this time of night."

"It'll be fine. I do it all the time," she stated, fingers flying across her phone.

"You do?"

She offered me a large grin. "No, not really."

While I was still stunned by her smile, Ella barreled forward across the mattress. A chaste kiss placed on my nose. "Walk me out?"

"Of course," I said, rising up off my now empty bed.

Ella smoothed out her dress. Even with her long fingers brushing along the silky fabric, there were creases covering every inch. Part of me knew that I should have felt guilty about ruining it, but instead my ego flared. If Liam was still downstairs, every doubt of his regarding Ella and I would have been flying out the window.

"All set?" I asked as Ella fixed her hair over her shoulder.

When she nodded I unlocked the bedroom door. It clicked, creaking open as I ushered her out into the hallway and down the stairs. The aftermath of the team's pre-celebration was clear from the top floor. Cans and bottles were littered across the front foyer. It was going to be a pain to clean up.

We headed downstairs, the bottom of my shoe sticking with every step.

"Are you sure you don't want to cancel the Uber and have me drive you home?" I tried again when we reached the bottom step.

Ella wrapped her arms around herself. The temperature in the foyer was much lower thanks to the revolving front door. I wanted to reach out, run my hands down her arms and warm her up, but I thought it was best not to. "As much as I like riding passenger in your truck, you have to be up early for practice."

I gave her a teasing glance. "So do you."

"Exactly why I need to get a move on. There's a good chance I'll sleep through any alarm if I don't get to bed in the next thirty minutes."