by Toni Aleo
“Wouldn’t be tied if it wasn’t for you, BP. Attaboy!” he called out with an extra tap on Benji’s head.
He nodded, a grin pulling at his lips as the trainer came over to make sure he was okay. He told him he was, and he was sure of it. It would be a nasty bruise later, but for now, he had a game to win.
But even though the Assassins fought, the Stars scored two more times, winning the game.
Benji hated losing games. Probably more than he hated when someone died on Game of Thrones. Which was basically everyone, but whatever. He hated it. Especially when Coach ripped into them. He was loud, he was mad, and who could blame him? The defense let Odder down and Benji didn’t like that. Every goal that was shot was something the defense should have blocked. It should have been easy for Odder, but when his own team was blocking him, how was he supposed to do his job?
They had some work to do.
Leaning back in his locker, Benji sucked in a breath and let it out before he gently eased his jersey off, wincing at the pain.
“Jesus, you got stung bad,” Sinclair said from his left, and he nodded as he touched the aching spot very lightly. The pain was red-hot.
“Fuck, it hurts.”
“Nothing is broken, though?”
Benji shook his head. “I don’t think so. We’ll see tomorrow.” Sinclair nodded as he leaned against his legs, pulling in a breath. “We need to work on the kids. The goals tonight shouldn’t have been scored,” Benji announced.
“Agreed. We’ll take care of it tomorrow,” Sinclair said, letting out a breath. “I mean, I get that I’m young like them too, but they were making careless mistakes.”
“That’s what I think.”
“Oh, well, we’ll get there.”
“That’s right,” Benji agreed, continuing to take deep breaths to ease the pain.
“So, I know you’re hurting and you can turn me down, but Baylor and I wanted to take you to dinner, if you’re hungry.”
Looking over at his captain, Benji smiled. Ordinarily, he’d turn him down. He wasn’t much for going out after games. Usually, the guys went for drinks or to party after a win. Benji was more of a go home or to the hotel and chill kind of guy. That’s just what he did, and he figured that was why Sinclair looked so wary when asking. But what he didn’t know was that Benji hadn’t stopped thinking about Sinclair’s sister since Monday night.
It was getting bad. Like, he stalked her Facebook, her Instagram, and even her Twitter. He found that she really didn’t post on Twitter, or even Facebook, but that girl’s Instagram was loaded with pictures and videos of Angie. Some of Lucy too. One in particular that he couldn’t get out of his head was her on the beach this past summer. She had a baby in her arms, her thin, sexy body curvy in every way possible, and the smile on her face was gorgeous. It made her ten times more beautiful than he already thought she was, and he still couldn’t shake the image.
He wanted Lucy.
Bad.
So with a nod, he said, “I’d love to.”
Sinclair’s brows rose. “Really?”
Benji could only laugh as he untied his skates.
He really needed to get out more.
Maybe with Lucy.
Sitting across from Baylor and Jayden Sinclair at the little sushi bar they chose in downtown Nashville, it was easy for Benji to see they were made for each other. As much as she gave and he took, he threw right back at her. They argued over food choices, about where to lay her bum leg, and also what they were doing after dinner with him. Baylor wanted to go home and sleep, but some of the defense team had gone out to drink their sorrows away, and Sinclair wanted to go monitor. Benji kind of agreed with Baylor, but he knew that Jayden needed to go.
Not that it was any of his business, which is why he said nothing, only drank his water. Baylor took it in stride, though, and Benji was pretty sure their bickering was foreplay, which made things a little uncomfortable for him, but he was on a mission.
Lucy.
“Anyway,” Jayden said after they ordered and he wrapped his arm around Baylor, pulling her into the crook of his arm. Or so Benji thought. But instead of resting his arm around his wife, Jayden pulled out a bag, handing it over to Benji. “This is a thank-you for helping me out Monday. Baylor picked it out, but I think you already have these.”
Benji took the gift with a laugh. “You didn’t have to get me anything. I don’t mind. I loved it, plan on helping still.”
Baylor beamed as Jayden scoffed. “Seriously? I heard those girls are nuts.”
“They are.” He grinned, opening the bag and finding at the bottom were a few Game of Thrones Funko Pops. He had two of them, but the other three he didn’t, and it took everything out of him not to geek out in front of his friends. “Ah, awesome! I needed these. I’ve been looking. Where did you find ’em?”
Well, he tried to be cool.
Baylor giggled as she leaned on the table. “I was on a mission. Can’t tell you my sources.”
“You must. I have to go back for more,” he begged and she laughed.
“The comic store downtown.”
“Ah, I hadn’t made it that way yet. Thank you, guys,” he said with all his heart. “I really did need these.”
“You’re welcome, dude,” Jayden said as Baylor leaned on him, her lips curved sweetly.
“It really means a lot to us that you were there for Angie. Jayden is such a rock for her now that Jude and Jace have moved, and we felt terrible. But apparently, you were awesome. She has been talking about you nonstop.”
Benji grinned, his face reddening a bit as he laid the bag beside him. “She’s an awesome girl.”
“She is. The best ever, and I knew I could trust you. So thanks again,” Jayden said with a nod. “And I’m so sorry if my sister was hateful to you. I know she kinda cut Vaughn down, so no telling what she said to you.”
Before Benji could say anything, though, Baylor was talking. “Vaughn asked her to go home with him. I think that warrants her to call him what she did,” she defended and Jayden shrugged.
“Yeah, I guess. But she’s ice-cold to everyone, I swear. I don’t even know how she is succeeding in her design business.”
Ooh, he didn’t know that… Or wait, yeah, he did. He remembered Elli saying something about coming to Florida for their house. “Like home design?”
Baylor nodded. “Yeah, she’s amazing. She’s done everyone’s houses. She’s about to do the Adlers’ home in January. Jayden has basically made the whole team call her.”
Benji made a face. “Not me.”
“You have an apartment, that’s why.”
“No, I don’t. I have a house.”
Jayden’s face showed confusion. “What? I thought you were staying over at the Hampton Places?”
Benji shook his head. “I moved this summer into my new house over by Anderson.”
“Oh. Well, hire my sister!”
Benji laughed before saluting Jayden. “Yes, sir.”
Laughter filled the table, but before anyone could say anything else, their food was delivered and they dug in. He liked Sinclair. He had been nervous when they were paired together. Benji was with Thomas, but Sinclair and King didn’t click the way they did, and Coach moved Benji up. He was thankful, but when he first met the kid, he thought he was just that. A kid. But Sinclair was way more than that. Wise beyond his years. He was a good guy, and Benji was lucky to be playing with him.
Taking a bite of his sushi, Benji looked up as Jayden asked, “Was she bad? I’ve been dying to know, but then I’m worried you’ll say she was horrible to you and I’ll have to defend her and then we won’t be friends.”
Baylor snickered as Benji rolled his eyes playfully. “You sound like a teenage girl, Jay.”
Laughing, he nodded. “I know, but she’s hard, man. I love her. Like, with all my heart. We are all so close, my family and I. But Lucy and I have that temper, that undying kind of love for the people we love, so I know how she can be when she gets
mad. Me not showing up or manning up like I should have, I’m sure, made her want to kill the first person in sight.”
“Yeah, I’m surprised she hasn’t killed him in his sleep yet,” Baylor laughed, but then she paused, shaking her head. “No one hurts Angie and lives to tell the tale. I didn’t even know he hadn’t told her until I saw the death threats she was sending him.”
Wow, Lucy had quite the reputation. Too bad he gave no shits about it. He was pretty sure the thick wall she had up was just that, a wall, and he was going to get over that thing. Why, he wasn’t sure. Maybe it was her smile that had driven him to this madness, but he wanted the chance. He wanted to make her smile again.
“She wasn’t that bad,” he said softly, but they both didn’t believe him.
“You don’t have to lie. Was she really that bad?”
“Please tell me she didn’t try to hit you,” Jayden said, embarrassment all over his face, and Benji laughed.
Shaking his head, he shrugged. “She was snarky as shit, and she didn’t trust me. Really, she wasn’t bad, but then my main focus was making sure Angie was okay, you know? I think she appreciated that.”
“Oh, I’m sure,” Baylor said. “Angie is her world, and if you knew her backstory, it would make sense, you know? Her ex-husband is a piece of work.”
“That’s an understatement,” Jayden said with a shake of his head. “But that’s none of our business.”
What? Yes, it is, Benji thought, but he didn’t press. He could tell the loyalty between Jayden and his sister was unbreakable and he admired that. But yet, he wanted more. He wanted to know everything.
“Yeah,” Baylor agreed. “I just want her to be happy.”
Jayden nodded. “Yeah, but I really don’t think it will ever happen. I’ve never seen her with anyone but Rick the Dick, and since they’ve been divorced for four years now, I’m starting to think my sister will never get with anyone else. She’s gonna be one of those really angry old ladies who beat people with canes.”
As they shared a laugh, Benji swallowed hard. Their laughter died down and Jayden slowly shook his head. He looked sad, but the anger was there. It was loud and clear that Jayden was not a fan of Rick the Dick.
“I just don’t know. She worries me. She needs to be happy too,” he said, more to Baylor than Benji, but there was no unhearing that. “I just don’t know why she doesn’t try, at least.”
Clearing his throat, Benji leaned on the table. “Because it’s easier to hide from the fear of rejection and pain than to put yourself out there and try.” They both looked up at him and he shrugged. “But then the right person comes along and it makes you want to try. It makes you overcome the fear.”
“Whoa, that’s some deep shit, bro,” Jayden said, his eyes widening.
Baylor’s brows pulled together, a knowing look in her eyes. It sort of made him nervous. Did she know he was crushing on what was apparently an unattainable girl? “Sounds like you have some experience in that department.”
Benji smiled. “Eh, a bit.”
“Yeah, but you’re different, BP. You’re okay with being alone. I don’t think Lucy is, and that’s what makes her so mad.”
Benji laughed. “No one is okay with being alone if they’re honest. The human race wants companionship—that’s why God gave Adam, Eve.”
Jayden nodded slowly. “My apologies.”
“No big deal, but she’ll come around. Don’t worry. The right guy will come for her, as the right girl will come for me. God has a plan.”
“He sure does,” Baylor said, leaning into Jayden and he smiled.
“Yeah, he does,” he said softly, kissing her nose. She smiled up at him and love was shining out of her pores. They reminded him a lot of him and Ava when they had first gotten together. Young, unadulterated love. What a beautiful thing.
When Jayden looked back over at him, he was breathless as he said, “But I pray that the guy He sends for her is ready for Hurricane Lucy.”
When Baylor laughed in agreement, Benji knew their statements should have been a red flag. A clear sign that he needed to go the other way, that he wasn’t even sort of prepared to take on Lucy. No matter what he felt, it didn’t matter. She didn’t want anyone.
But he didn’t care.
And as much as he should be ready for Lucy…
She should be ready for him.
Wow, that sounded way more confident than Benji felt, but it felt right.
It felt true.
And for once, Benji was excited for the future.
“There’s Benji!”
Angie full out ran toward him as Lucy followed behind, Angie’s bag on her shoulder. Angie had been talking incessantly about meeting Benji early for some extra practice. Since she was leaving for her dad’s in two days and she wasn’t happy about it, Lucy figured she should try her best to get her to the rink. Thankfully, she was able to move a consult to later that night so they were able to come early. She was worried that Benji wouldn’t be here, but apparently, he just assumed they’d be there. Or maybe he came just in case they could make it.
She wasn’t sure how that made her feel.
As she watched Benji greet Angie, she couldn’t help but notice that he was sort of hotter than he had been on Monday night. His hair was falling into his eyes in an unruly fashion, while his face was covered with coarse, dark hair. She was pretty sure he hadn’t shaved, and if she was honest, she liked it. A lot. Like, a little too much…
Instead of the sweats he had on Monday, tonight he was wearing a girdle and socks, with a tight, Dri-FIT, long-sleeved shirt covering his torso. Every ripple of muscle on his chest was screaming at her, and for some reason, she felt like doing her laundry on his abs. Praise Jesus, his thick shoulders were almost screaming to have nails dug into them, and they did nothing but make it hard for Lucy to concentrate on the simple task of walking.
Her tripping was a sign of that.
Lord, he was gorgeous and, unfortunately, she had been thinking a lot about Mr. Benji Paxton.
More than she would like to admit.
She wasn’t sure if it was because he was adorably dorky or if it was because he was so great with Angie, but she found her mind wandering to him more than it should have. She wanted to know if he was married, if he had kids. Angie had said he had a daughter, but when she Googled him—don’t judge—she couldn’t find anything about a wife and daughter. It was weird, and a part of her wondered if he was a deadbeat dad. That didn’t seem right, though. He didn’t seem like that kind of guy. But then, like he said, she had no clue what kind of guy he was. All she knew was her daughter loved him, and Lucy was sort of, in some crazy, weird way, attracted to him.
It was bizarre.
Or she was losing it.
Sucking in a breath, she came up just as Angie declared, “So I’m a little crazytown today, as my mom calls it. My day care forgot to give me my medicine this morning, so I might be a little crazy.”
If waving her arms at the end didn’t say crazy, Lucy wasn’t sure what did. Her sweet baby had been diagnosed with ADHD two years before. Getting her medicated was a feat, but they overcame it, and now Angie was flourishing. In school and in life. She was just happier and, in turn, that made Lucy happy. It wasn’t easy, though, especially when Rick blamed her for all of it. If it wasn’t enough that she was already blaming herself—because obviously there was something she could have done to make sure her baby didn’t have those problems—having her ex-husband throw at her that it was her fucked-up genes was just great.
It had been a tough couple of years, but they were good now. Rick didn’t toss it in her face as much anymore, and Angie was great. Lucy was proud of her little nugget, and when she looked at Benji, she was happy to see he wasn’t judging Angie, only smiling at her.
“It’s cool. I love crazy!”
Angie beamed as Lucy smiled. “All right, Hans.”
Benji looked confused, which made her question that he had a daughter. Anyone with a daughter
had seen Disney’s Frozen at least a million times. “Who’s Hans?”
“From Frozen!” Angie said with a laugh and Benji chuckled. She then promptly started singing the “Love is an Open Door” song. Benji looked confused and Lucy just smiled. Man, Angie was a nut.
“I haven’t seen that one yet.”
“What!” she cried out and Lucy laughed. “Mommy, we have to watch it with Benji.”
“Honey, I’ve seen that movie so many times, I don’t think it would be fair to subject Benji to that. But we’ll see. Okay?”
Benji looked over at her and smiled. What surprised her, and also made her a bit breathless, was that his smile filled his whole face. He was like a happy little puppy that had just been promised a treat.
She really needed to stop associating this man with a dog.
It wasn’t nice.
But then, she never claimed to be a nice person.
His eyes were darker than a puppy’s, though, and full of something. Something dirty, maybe. As he dragged his eyes from hers to her daughter, his face broke into a happy grin. “A movie night sounds awesome. I’ll bring candy. But let’s wait a bit. Gotta make sure your mom doesn’t think I’m a weirdo.”
Angie scoffed. “She already does.”
“Angela!” Looking at Benji, her face beet red, Lucy shrugged. “Sorry?”
But he laughed. “No biggie. Maybe I can change that.”
Whoa… Lucy’s hands tightened on Angie’s bag as she got lost in the depths of Benji’s gray eyes, hot lust gathering between her thighs. If that wasn’t suggestive, she didn’t know what was. She’d been out of the game for a bit, but she knew when someone was hitting on her. And weird, puppy-dog cutie Benji Paxton just hit on her.
Felt pretty fucking nice, too.
“I’m so glad you guys came. I almost texted Jayden to make sure you guys could make it,” Benji said then, his eyes still holding Lucy’s.