One More Night

Marc didn’t know when he’d made the decision to kiss her. He wasn’t even sure he’d made one; one minute he was seeing if she’d call him on his shit to get a laugh out of her, and the next his lips were on hers. She kissed him like he meant the world to her, and that fact alone, regardless of how they’d connected and how attracted he was to her, made him want more.

He’d never been a self-assured person. He wasn’t Eric or Jordan; he’d always depended on other’s opinions to determine his own worth. In hockey that was all that mattered – you could think you were a great player, but if others didn’t think so you wouldn’t get anywhere. So at a young age Marc had learned that other people’s thoughts mattered a lot. That had carried on into his adult life, even though his family and friends had insisted that he change his mindset.

Robyn’s aloofness and strange behavior toward him had him on edge; he was feeling nervous, insecure, and worst of all like he’d done something wrong. Like there was something wrong with him, and he didn’t know what to do or how to fix it. She made him feel like he wasn’t worth the time or the effort, and that had grated on his confidence in an extreme way. His parents had noticed, although he’d assured them he was fine, and his brothers had definitely noticed, but called him out on his lies about being okay.

Bree, on the other hand, made him feel wanted. She held onto him like there was nobody else she’d rather be with. She looked at him like he was worth her time and her attention. And she kissed him like he meant something to her.

So to feel Bree’s soft lips beneath his moving with him, all but asking him for more, was all the invitation he needed to cup her cheek and flick his tongue against her lip. Her sigh breathed into him, and he gently rolled her onto her back, supporting himself on his elbows above her while they kissed. She ran a hand through his hair, taking a soft grip on the shorter, more sensitive hairs at the nape of his neck and pulling him down to her; effectively pressing their bodies together.

Things quickly progressed. Before Marc’s brain caught up to everything else more than a few articles of clothing were on the floor, and it wasn’t until a rogue spring in the old pull out couch dug into his palm that he realized this wasn’t the best place for what was going on. He ended their kiss, and as if reading his mind Bree nodded, pushing on his bare chest for him to sit up. Her hot touch sent shivers down his back, and at her simple look he stood and followed her to her bedroom.

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He woke up with a searing headache, to say the least. His eyes were sensitive to the light sneaking in through the blinds, and he groaned before snuggling into the soft sheets, trying to bury his face and slip back to the serene darkness that had been sleep. The soft sigh that came from the form in his arms, however, stopped him dead. Robyn never made that sound, and the voice… the tone wasn’t right.

Marc swallowed hard, hoping like hell he was wrong, that even though he was sure that the woman in his arms wasn’t his wife he’d open his eyes and see her. His brain was still foggy with sleep, the night’s events not yet at his disposal.

When he opened his eyes and was met with the sight of a sleeping Bree he didn’t know whether to panic or curl back up and go to sleep.

The conflict of interest scared him as much as the fact he’d slept with someone. He felt like shit, and honestly so – he knew he should feel like scum for cheating on his wife – but it wasn’t just the fact he’d slept with another woman that had him feeling like this. It was the fact he hadn’t been totally honest with Bree and that she’d very likely hate him once he came clean.

He should sneak out. He should call Jared, leave her apartment, and try to forget that last night ever happened. Robyn would hate him; give him the cold shoulder, make him sleep on the couch for a few weeks, but she’d forgive him. Just like when they were dating and she’d gotten drunk at a party and cheated on him. It was the loneliness, and the alcohol, and the fact that their relationship wasn’t ever textbook ‘normal’ – playing hockey and dating never was.

But he didn’t want to sneak out. Marc wanted to cuddle up next to Bree, close his eyes and sleep until she woke him up. Her hand was engulfed in his; their fingers laced together as they’d slept, and he marveled at the fact such a small gesture meant so much, even though they really didn’t know each other. Something about her had reached out and touched him, reaching a place that not many people could – where Marc was completely and utterly comfortable. Even with his wife he was rarely completely at ease, able to let down his guard and not worry about what she would think about him.

While Marc struggled with himself Bree began to wake up; the cool air meeting skin where Marc had been alerting her brain something had changed. She squeezed his fingers, still mostly asleep, and Marc smiled down at her before laying back down. Without a moment’s hesitation Bree rolled over, snuggling into him with a soft sound in her throat. He grinned to himself before pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head, relaxing back into the mattress and closing his eyes.

“Marc?” he heard her whisper against his chest, as well as felt her lips brush against his skin.

“Yeah?” she jumped slightly at his voice, making him chuckle. He looked down to see a sheepish look on her face, her cheeks a slight shade of pink.

“I didn’t wake you up, did I?” she asked, biting on her lip a little. Marc shook his head, before leaning down and pressing a kiss to her lips.

“No, I’ve been up for a little while,” was his reply. She nodded, sighing and pulling him closer. Marc rubbed her back softly, enjoying laying there, but feeling dread and guilt starting to build up in his stomach as thoughts of Robyn and his family kept flooding into his mind.

“Are you okay?” Bree’s question caught him off guard, and he stumbled and stuttered for a response for her. He wanted – needed – to come clean to her, because even though he’d hate to admit it to anybody he really cared about her. But he wasn’t ready to do that right now.

“I, yeah, um…”

“You have somewhere to be?” she suggested, and with a mute nod from Marc she sat up and stretched, making his heart rate jump at the sight before him.

“All you had to do was say so Marc… to be honest I kind of thought you’d sneak out,” she admitted, that same pink flush gracing her cheeks. Marc felt a little hurt by her words, wondering what she thought of him to assume he’d be gone before she woke up.

“Really?”

“Kind of… I mean, I hoped you wouldn’t… but you’re a guy and we aren’t in a relationship so…” he laughed, sitting up as well and kissing her cheek as he wrapped his arms around her.

“So that means I should be a douche and sneak out at some ungodly hour?”

“I no…” she was blushing and stumbling over her words, before finally choosing to quit attempting to explain and instead buried her face against his chest. He merely chuckled and kissed the top of her head, content to sit for a moment and take in the fact that he couldn’t let this happen again.

“Well, you better get in the shower… unless you really want to do the whole ‘walk of shame thing’ and leave as is,” she giggled, and he pretended to think on it for a moment, getting a laugh out of her.

“Thanks, that’d be great,” he agreed, and followed her to the bathroom. He kept the shower quick, wondering what the hell he’d tell whichever brother he decided to call to come and get him. Jared would probably be the easiest to convince that nothing had happened, whereas Eric or Jordan would immediately tell their wives, and once the news got there it would reach his mother and Robyn before he could talk to either of them.

Jared was definitely the safer bet.

Marc toweled off and dressed in his clothes from the night before – Bree had been kind enough to find his scattered clothing and hand them to him once he’d stepped out of the shower. He put his towel in the hamper and made his way out to the kitchen where Bree sat, cup of coffee in hand and dressed in a pair of gym shorts and a baggy Toronto Argonauts jersey.

“Help yourself,” she gestured to the kitchen, and with a shy smile Marc obliged. He poured himself a cup of coffee and grabbed an apple from the bowl on the counter before sitting down across from her. She’d turned the television on, some music playing quietly in the background, but other than that they were quiet; only commenting on the occasional song that came up. Marc was delaying texting or calling his brother, merely because he didn’t want to go back to the uncertainty that was his life as of late.

“What time was your brother going to get you?” Bree asked, startling him out of his thoughts. He quickly calculated approximately how long it would take Jared to wake himself up enough to drive, and then actually drive into Thunder Bay and downtown to where they were.

“About forty minutes? Something like that,” he answered, finally going into his contacts and selecting Jared’s name from the list. He kept the text quick and to the point, hoping Jared wouldn’t question him too much.

‘Hey – stayed in town last night. Come get me, please – two blocks east and one north of the bar. Thx. – Marc’

Jared’s reply was almost instantaneous, and of course asked where Marc had stayed last night. Marc decidedly ignored Jared’s question and instead explained the apartment building, and once Jared had agreed to pick him up he turned his cell to silent and set it down on the table.

“So, he must be curious as to where you ended up last night,” Bree teased, and Marc managed a rough chuckle before nodding.

“Yeah, he’s going to pelt me with questions when he gets here,” Marc allowed, and Bree nodded before taking another sip of her coffee.