Avalanche Read online

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  “Now, the board might be a little big for you,” I told her as I buckled her straps for her. “But you’re just learning the basics, so you should be okay for now. If you like it, we’ll see about getting one made for you. You’re so damn petite.”

  “I’m quite regular sized, thank you. Just because you’re a woolly mammoth doesn’t make me small.”

  “I think you’re kind of like a chihuahua. Your personality is so big, it gives you a false sense of size. Trust me, baby, you’re itty bitty.”

  “I don’t think that’s the compliment you think it is,” she said, her hands going to her hips.

  “It’s not anything other than an observation,” I assured her. “But we’re not here to talk about your diminutive stature. You wanted to learn how to board.”

  I took her through the basics, walking the board, flat sliding and the movements for turns. She was fidgety from the beginning, and I knew she was anxious to get to the actual hill.

  “Okay,” I said finally, after the third time she’d rolled her eyes at me. “You want to dive headfirst into it. Let’s go.”

  We slid over to the edge of the slope. It wasn’t too steep, but it wasn’t exactly a bunny slope, either. She slipped her goggles into place and positioned her board exactly as I’d shown her. I moved in beside her, and just as I was about to take her hand, she pushed off.

  Delia flew down the hill, her hips swaying, the board sliding under her as if had been born a part of her. I was so busy watching her glide I almost forgot to follow her down.

  I pushed off quickly, turning to pick up speed on her, but she was so light and handled herself so well she flew way faster than I ever could. I called out a warning as I saw a drift in front of her that we hadn’t noticed from the top, but I knew it was no good. She’d never hear me over the rushing of wind in her face.

  Bending to gain more momentum, I threw my weight forward, desperate to get to her before she fell. Of course, my little ice princess was a champ. She hit the drift and did a fucking spin when she went airborne. She might not have heard me, but her gleeful laugh carried on the wind to my ears.

  She hit the end of the slope and raised her hands triumphantly, turning to look up at me as I slid in a moment later.

  “Did you see that?” she asked, throwing herself into my arms, laughter still thick in her voice. “That was awesome.”

  “You’re a fucking natural, kid!” I said, picking her up into my arms and kissing her. “That was incredible.”

  And it was. I’d never seen anyone handle themselves that well on a board their first time out. Or even their tenth time. It was amazing. I knew she must crazy lower body strength to hurl her body through the air on skates. But I had no idea if that would always translate to being good on a snowboard or if she was a special case.

  God knew, she was special to me.

  “Can we go again?” she asked.

  For an hour, I took her back up the hill then watched her speed back down. She did a few more spins, some jumps and even managed a toe tap on the board.

  “I’m starving!” she said after her last time down the hill. “This is so fun, but if you don’t feed me I might fall over.”

  “Do you want to head to the cafeteria or try heading out into town?” I asked, kicking my straps off before lowering myself to undo hers.

  “Are we allowed to go into town?” she asked.

  “Well, we’re adults,” I teased her, helping her step out of the board boots. “I think we can do whatever we like.”

  “That’s not what I meant,” she said. “I honestly didn’t know we were allowed to leave campus.”

  I guess I didn’t really know for sure myself. But we certainly hadn’t been forbidden to. And Mike had a rental car, so it wasn’t as if we were trapped there.

  “Sure, we can. We’ll have to grab Mike’s car, but he won’t care. I think there’s a crepe restaurant not far from here. Is that close enough to pancakes?”

  “That sounds amazing,” she agreed.

  “Well, crepes it is.”

  Chapter Seven

  ~ Cordelia ~

  “Crepes were a terrible idea,” I told James for the third time.

  We were sitting in Mike’s rental car, eating pancakes from a drive-thru, in the parking lot of the Games’ camp.

  “Yes, dear,” he agreed. “I’m sorry. It never occurred to me that we’d be recognized.” I mean, yeah, Mike had said so, but I hadn’t believed him.

  “You were recognized,” I corrected him. “God, is it always like that? I’ve never seen anyone mobbed like that.”

  “They didn’t mob me,” he argued. “They were just excited. We’re kind of famous. I was mostly scared for you.”

  “Trust me,” I said with a laugh. “There wasn’t a single person in that restaurant who knew who I was. Thank God. I don’t think I could have handled it. It was scary enough watching it happen to you.”

  “I swear to you, that has never happened before. I go out in Minnesota all the time. People couldn’t care less.” He shook his head. “Sorry you didn’t get crepes.”

  “This is fine.” And it was. I liked being alone in close quarters with him like this. If it wasn’t someone else’s rental car, I may have suggested a lot more than pancakes. I think since I missed out on the making out in cars with boys thing when I was growing up, my body wanted to make up for lost time with James.

  How could I have gone from oblivious virgin to wanting this man nonstop? No one else had ever instilled these feelings in me. And when he’d told me he loved me, I thought for a moment my heart had stopped.

  James “Avalanche” Pryor loved me? What in the actual fuck? Was this real life? I hoped like hell it wasn’t just some beautiful dream.

  “You’re pretty far away,” he said, pulling me from my thoughts.

  “I’m right here,” I assured him. “Just eating syrup and living my best life.”

  “What are you doing after the games are over?” he asked.

  “Probably heading back to Michigan.” I hadn’t given much thought to after. If I won gold on Saturday, I’d have to do a press junket. There would probably be more endorsement offers than there had been when I’d won silver. But skaters weren’t as high profile as other sports. Even James had been given a Wheaties box. I’d probably just go home and start training all over again.

  “You look really sad about that,” he said. He reached over and ran his thumb over my chin.

  “Not really,” I assured him. “I’m looking forward to going home and seeing my family. I was just thinking about off-season training.” I blew out a sigh. “I don’t know if I want to do this anymore.”

  “You’re a world-class skater. Could you really give it up?”

  “Yes.” The immediate response surprised me, but it was totally true. I didn’t love skating anymore. When I was younger, it had been fun. Now, it was just work. Every time I laced up my skates, I may as well have been pulling on a pair of heels to go work at a bank. There was no passion in it. And I knew, deep down, that would keep me from winning this year.

  “Okay,” he said. “What do you want to do?”

  “Tonight?”

  “No.” He chuckled. “Forever. You can do anything you want, you know? If you stopped skating tomorrow, what would you want to do instead?”

  I frowned, realizing I’d never thought about doing anything else. It wasn’t as if I had this list of ten dreams written down in a diary somewhere, things I’d pursue if I wasn’t a figure skater. This was all I’d ever known. All I’d ever believed I could do.

  “It shouldn’t be that hard,” he said softly.

  Tears pricked my eyes, and I stared out my window, not wanting him to see me cry. It was ridiculous. I was twenty-one years old and had no idea what I actually wanted out of life.

  “Don’t shut me out,” he pleaded. “I didn’t mean to upset you, baby. You have your whole life to figure out what you want. We’ll work it out.”


  I watched his reflection in the glass, his brow furrowed and his hand reaching out for me then stopping just before he would have held my shoulder. And suddenly, I knew what I wanted. Unfortunately, it was scarier than not knowing had been.

  James. I wanted James. I wanted to marry him and have his babies. I wanted to stand on a mountain, surrounded by a pack of little Pryors, watching their daddy win gold for our country again and again.

  But I couldn’t tell him that. We’d just admitted to being in love with each other hours ago. I didn’t know much about relationships or men in general. But I knew you didn’t go from having sex the first time to talking about marriage in the span of a day. That was the kind of thing that sent men running for the hills.

  “I’m sorry.” I turned to face him. “I didn’t mean to ruin dinner.”

  “I think the horde of rude people at the restaurant did that, princess. And I’m the one who brought up future stuff that doesn’t matter right this second. Do you want to head inside?”

  I nodded, opening the door while he gathered the garbage and got out the other side of the car. We walked back to his dorm together, the silence stretching between us. I wasn’t sure what he was thinking about, but I was just trying to psyche myself up and out of the funk I’d just landed in.

  What the hell did I have to be upset about? I was on a date with James Pryor. The Avalanche himself. A wonderful man who said he loved me. Who I loved with my whole heart. This was the best night of my life. And if I was lucky, we’d go back to his room and he would make love to me again.

  Yeah, none of that sucked. If I was so miserable about my future, it was completely in my power to change it.

  By time we got back to his dorm, I’d managed to turn myself around. I took off my coat and hung it up while he walked into the kitchen to throw our trash away. When he came back, he pulled me into his arms.

  “You okay?” he asked, kissing me softly on the lips.

  “Never better,” I told him, and it was the truth.

  “Can you stay tonight?”

  “I’d like that. Will Mike mind?”

  “Nah, he probably went off to find other accommodations,” James assured me.

  “Really? Why?” I looked up at him confused.

  “Well, he knows I’m crazy in love with you. He’s a pretty smart guy. He probably knows we’d rather be alone.”

  “Oh God.” My cheeks heated with embarrassment. “He knows? What we did earlier?”

  “Not exactly,” he said, holding my face in his hands. “It’s not like I told him I’d bring you here and fuck you, princess. But you know…birds and the bees and all. When a man loves a woman very much…”

  “You really do love me?” I asked, my heart pounding. He’d told me. But I just needed to hear it again.

  “You’re the only woman I’ve ever loved, Cordelia Quinn. And I’m going to love you and love on you for as long as you’ll have me.”

  I hoped he was being honest, because forever was a really long time.

  Chapter Eight

  ~ James ~

  I was worried about Delia. She’d taken such a dark turn earlier, and I desperately wanted to make her happy again. I knew she had a lot of stress in her life, knew she wasn’t happy with the way her training was going. But I also knew if she’d let me, I’d do everything in my power to never see her down again.

  “Can we go to bed?” she asked, startling me from my thoughts.

  I scooped her into my arms, making her squeal, then carried her into the bedroom. Honestly, if she’d let me, I’d carry her around all day, every day. I couldn’t get enough of the feel of her in my arms.

  Laying her on the bed, I fell over her, claiming her mouth in a crushing kiss. She canted her hips into me, her body pressing hard against my already aching erection.

  “You taste like syrup,” I whispered against her lips.

  “Is that a bad thing?” she asked.

  “Not at all,” I assured her as I slid down her body. “But it makes me want to taste you all over.”

  I popped the button on her jeans and slid them off, taking her panties with them and dropping everything to the floor. Wrapping my arms under her thighs, I pulled her farther down the mattress until my face hovered over her sweet pussy.

  “I believe I owe you an orgasm, princess.”

  Delia cried out the moment I touched my tongue to her slit. I lapped at her folds, sucking her clit hard before delving back into her weeping channel. She tasted so fucking sweet.

  When I slid a finger inside her, she bucked into my face, her hands fisting into my hair and my name tearing from her mouth. I paused, letting her come down from the release, but the moment her hands loosened, I dived back in.

  “You’re so fucking wet, princess,” I whispered, staring up her body to meet her gaze. “I can’t believe all of this sweet cream is for me. You’re practically dripping with it.”

  “Oh my God, I want you,” she cried. “Please?”

  “I’m not done yet,” I told her, my thumb softly stroking her clit. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be done. I could eat this beautiful pussy forever.”

  Lowering my face again, I pushed my tongue back inside of her, pressing hard against her clit, making circles over it, pulsing my thumb, until her body tensed again, her thighs quaking against my arms. I felt it building, and when she came, her pussy flooded over my tongue, and I suckled every drop of release she offered me.

  I climbed up her body, dragging kisses up her stomach, pushing her shirt up as I went until I made her sit up so I could pull it over her head. She lay back down and looked up at me through hooded eyes. It was the sexiest fucking thing I’d ever seen.

  Quickly divesting myself of my own clothes, I eased back over her and positioned my hips between her legs.

  “How do you want me, baby?”

  “I just want you,” she said, her chest heaving and her voice breathy.

  “Oh, that’s not an answer,” I told her, pushing forward to slide my cock inside her. “Do you want me slow?” I rolled my hips, fighting the urge to just slam inside her. She was still quivering, and the grip around my shaft was agonizing. “Or do you want me hard and fast?” I pushed deep enough to bump against her cervix, and she screamed, her eyes rolling up as her nails dug into my shoulders. “Tell me.”

  “Hard,” she whispered, sucking her bottom lip between her teeth. “And fast. Please.”

  “As my princess commands.”

  I lifted her hips and gave in to my body’s desire, slamming in and out of her like a piston.

  “Fuck, Cordelia, you feel so damn good,” I told her. “You’re so God damned beautiful, baby. So perfect. Give me that pussy. Fuck me back.”

  She shifted her hips, rocking to meet every thrust I gave her, using her grip on my shoulders for leverage. Small, desperate sounds escaped her throat as her eyes squeezed shut and her legs clamped around my hips.

  We came together, our cries mingling as stars exploded behind my eyes. I collapsed on top of her, rolling to the side and pulling her with me. She rested her head and torso on my chest.

  “Wow,” she whispered. “That was way better than pancakes.”

  “Glad to hear it,” I said, chuckling as I kissed the top of her head. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” She sighed, her breath tickling against my chest hair. “I’m so glad I met you.”

  “Me, too, princess.” I held her tight, and within moments, her breathing evened out. She’d fallen asleep in my arms.

  I smiled through a yawn, settling down and pulling a blanket over us. Staring down at her tousled hair, I knew I could spend the rest of my life falling asleep and waking to that view.

  I was tired, but my mind was going too quickly to actually fall asleep yet. Tomorrow would be insane, getting everything ready for competition Saturday. I didn’t know what her plans were beyond that. She would probably leave Sunday, so I had to figure out pretty quickly how I’d convince her to marry me in the short time
we had together.

  Would her parents be coming on Saturday? It would be nice to get their blessing, though if I couldn’t, that wouldn’t deter me.

  I prayed my event would end in time to get over to the rink and see her compete. When she won, I could propose then, make it the best day of her life.

  Fuck. I needed to get a ring. And there wouldn’t be any time between now and then to get out and get one. Maybe, I could have Mike do it.

  I started a mental list of things I needed to do. Change my flight to go straight to Michigan instead of home to Minnesota. Text some pictures of rings to Mike, so he could show a jeweler to pick one up for Delia. Find out if her parents were coming, so I could get their permission.

  And somewhere in there, I’d get my gear together, do one last trail run, and win a gold medal.

  No problem. I had this. Everything was under control.

  But, it still took me a while to fall asleep that night. I wasn’t anxious. I just wanted to make sure I had everything under control.

  Yeah. Sure.

  Chapter Nine

  ~ Cordelia ~

  “I’ll probably be too busy to get back here today,” I told James as I hovered by the front door.

  We’d had a beautiful night together, and if I were totally honest, I was actually a little sore from all the sex. But it was the best kind of ache I could imagine. I knew I’d remember that evening for a long time.

  “My parents are coming in tonight,” I continued. “And with training and icing down, I just don’t know if I’ll have time to see you.”

  I didn’t want to leave. I had to get straight to the rink, and as it was, I was already late. My phone vibrated in my back pocket, but I couldn’t be bothered to check the messages that were undoubtedly from Charlie.

  “I know. I’ll be busy all day, too,” James said, stepping forward and hugging me.

  We were both competing tomorrow. And then… Well, I had no idea. I was pretty sure we’d meet up at some point afterward. But I was flying home on Sunday. We hadn’t talked about the future, about how we’d handle a long-distance relationship…or if we even would.