by Toni Aleo
“I like you, too,” she whispered, which made him grin.
“Good. Now, come on, let’s dance.”
She nodded as he led her to the floor. Sean Hayes ‘Powerful stuff’ started, and Elli grinned as Shea mouthed the words, taking her hand and raising it above their heads as he moved his body against hers to the music. He was an amazing dancer and Elli hoped she could keep up. She bit her lip as she moved against him. Elli’s eyes drifted shut a little as his hands went down her body, bringing her closer to him, and Elli thought at that moment that nothing could get better than this.
The night couldn’t have gotten have been any better, Shea thought as he and Elli drove back to his condo. They had danced until the party had ended and he had never loved dancing with someone more until he had dancing with Elli. She had moves and when she bit that plump bottom lip, he really wasn’t sure if he was going to make it. She was sexy, beautiful, and amazing; he couldn’t get enough of her. He parked beside her truck and got out, going around helping her out. He held her hand as they climb the stairs to his condo. After unlocking the door and throwing his keys in the basket, he turned to see Elli standing by the door.
“You can come in, babe.”
“Yeah, but, I’m stupid tired Shea, is it okay if I stay again? I promise it’ll be the last night!” she said with a hand up, a little red dusting her cheeks.
“I hope it’s not the last night,” he said with a grin, “of course, you can stay, babe.”
“Okay, I’ll have to leave like crazy early, though; I gotta go home in the morning and get clothes.”
“So, no breakfast?” She laughed, smacking his chest as she walked by.
“Probably not,” she said, but she didn’t get far before he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her against him. He kissed her shoulder, then her neck, before turning her in his arms to kiss her hard on her lips. When they parted, she smiled up at him, “Can I borrow a shirt?”
His breathing actually hitched at the thought of her in his shirt. He could only nod as he walked with her still in his arms. She laughed out loud, almost tripping a few times, but he had her, she wasn’t going anywhere. When he threw the bedroom door open, Elli’s laughter stopped as she looked up at him. He backed her up until her legs hit the bed.
“Still not ready?” he asked, because he was ready, so ready. She shook her head, biting her lip. His head fell back, as he looked up at the ceiling, trying to control his breathing. “Okay,” he said. He looked down at her and kissed the side of her mouth before walking to the dresser to get her a shirt.
“I can still leave, Shea. I’m sorry.”
“Baby, its fine,” he said as he found one of his old JR League shirts, he handed it to her, not really looking at her as he went toward the closet. He stopped at the door. “Do you need to take a shower?”
“Yes, please, if that’s okay.”
“Absolutely, I’ll take one after you.” She looked like she might cry, which wasn’t what he wanted. “I’m gonna go get a drink, catch some highlights while you’re in there, let me know when you out.”
She nodded then hurried into the bathroom. Shit. He mentally kicked himself as he went into the kitchen to get water out of the fridge. Elli drove him crazy. He wanted her so bad, but he had to get himself in check before he scared her away, made it where she would never talk to him again. That would be hell, since, now that she was in his world, he couldn’t imagine her not in it. The thought actually made it hard to breath. He couldn’t fathom it.
Shea went into the living room, turning the TV on as he sat down on his leather couch. He heard the water running in the bedroom as he turned ESPN on. He watched the highlights and it actually calmed him. He had been in overdrive since the beginning of the night and watching his favorite thing, sports, made him feel better. He was so nervous about how to act around Elli that it was driving him mad. He didn’t understand it, really; no woman had ever done this to him. A woman who didn’t want to have sex with him, fine, on to the next, but he didn’t want the next, he wanted Elli. What if after he has had her he didn’t want her anymore? The thought scared him so badly, he had to turn off the TV and cover his face with his hands. What if this was about the chase, because she said no.
But it couldn’t be, because when she was away, he missed her, and when she was with him, he felt so good. He didn’t need the sex, he just needed her: her smiles, her country twang, her giggles, her, Elli. When they finally did it, it would do nothing but make whatever was going on with them stronger, yeah, that’s it. There was nothing to worry about, nothing…he hoped.
Elli came into the living room just as Shea stood up, putting the remote on the table. “I’m done,” she said, he then saw that she had a pillow and blanket from the bench at the end of his bed.
“What’s that?” he asked, nodding his head toward her hands.
“Oh, I was gonna sleep on your couch.”
“Elli, I told you, this couch is hell on the back, call anyone, they’ll tell you.”
“Oh, I’m fine.”
“Fine, don’t sleep on the couch because I want you to sleep with me.”
“Shea..”
“No, stop, when you walked through my door, where did you think you were sleeping?” She kicked the floor, looking down at the bundle in her hands. “With me, right?”
“Right.”
“Okay, so I asked if you’re ready to fool around, you say no, and that causes you to sleep on the couch?”
“I just don’t want to disappoint you anymore, Shea, I feel like that’s all I do. I’m not like the girls you would date, I won’t put out, I mean, I suck!”
“You do not. How many times do we need to do this, Elli?” He hated that he was getting mad, but she was pissing him off and she started yelling first. “You are the girl I want, I mean, yeah, I would love for you to put out, but I’ll live until you’re ready!”
“I just don’t know if this is going to work. I think I’m fucked in the head, and I’m sorry, but I just don’t know.”
“This is going to work Elli. Stop thinking so much, we’re fine. Now when I get out that damn shower, you better be in my bed or I’ll come in here and sleep on this God awful couch with you,” he said stepping towards her, “Because if you are in the same place I am, I will be beside you.” He kissed her hard before going down the hall to the bedroom. He grabbed his night clothes and went into the bathroom. After getting cleaned up, and using the bathroom, he threw his clothes on and went out of the bathroom to see Elli laying in the bed, watching TV. He smiled to himself as he hung up his suit before coming back into the room, climbing into the bed with her. He laid on his side, looking at her as she turned off the TV.
“Why was Harper mad earlier?” he asked, she looked down at him, and smiled, as she put the remote on the night stand.
“Jakob called her his girlfriend. She didn’t like that much.”
“I thought they were?”
“No, Harper is really weird; she’s all about sex and only sex.”
“Jakob isn’t like that.”
“He knows she is, though, he thinks he can change her, but Harper Allen will never change.” He took her hand in his, playing with her pink nails as they laid in the silence. He felt so good, so complete. Elli did this to him. He wanted more. So much more with her.
“When I introduced you to Mary Ann, I wanted to call you my girlfriend, Elli,” he looked up at her to see her eyes were wide, “I’ve never had a girlfriend, so I’m not sure if I’ll do the boyfriend/girlfriend thing right, but the thought of you being with someone else, or me with someone else, actually hurts my gut, so I guess what I’m trying to say is,” he took a deep breath, this was huge, and he thought he sounded stupid but with the way her eyes were glazing over, maybe he was doing this right. “I was wondering if you wanted to be my girlfriend.” She smiled at him lovingly, cupping his face in her hands.
“Are you sure? I’m kinda crazy.” He laughed, kissing her palm.
&nb
sp; “I’m sure.”
“Then, yes, Shea, I would love to be your girlfriend.”
Chapter 11
The next couple days flew by. Even with all the weddings, baby showers, and birthday parties, all Elli could think about was the fact that she was Shea Adler’s girlfriend.
Sitting in her glass seats, watching her hunky boyfriend (Yes, boyfriend!) play the night before was awesome. It was ten times better than it had ever been. He would give her little smiles or hit the glass with pucks or just come over and smile at her, which caused people to talk around her, but she didn’t care!
She was Shea Adler’s girlfriend!
Elli was in her truck, driving to Shea’s so they could go to his sister’s for dinner as she listen to her new mix cd. She was wearing a pair of jeans with a cute purple plaid short sleeved shirt. It was getting chillier, but not cold enough for fall clothes, yet. She loved fall in Tennessee, it was so rich with color, so beautiful. It was one of her favorite times of the year, and she couldn’t wait, but it also meant that hockey season would be in full swing and that meant that Shea would be traveling a lot.
He was leaving tomorrow for a week; he had games in Dallas and Tampa Bay, then he would be home for two weeks, only flying out for two games before going back out for a week, but November, that was a whole other story. Shea would only be home for 2 home games. Needless to say, she was not looking forward to November. Elli then thought that she had to bring Shea home for dinner. She was so nervous that he would probably drop her like a bad habit and she would never see him again. So really, she might not have to worry about November.
Well, hells bells.
Elli sighed as she pulled into the parking spot beside his truck and climbed out. She walked up the stairs to his condo and knocked. Shea open the door with a grin; he was wearing a pair of jeans with a Rolling Stone’s tee and a black hat.
Yummy, as always.
“There’s my girl,” he said, pulling her against him to kiss her senseless.
“Hey, you,” she said against his mouth as he held her tightly against him.
“Come on in for a minute, I need you to do me a favor.”
“Sure,” she answered as she followed him in, “Hey, do I look okay? I brought a dress just in case.”
“Yeah, you look great, its casual, babe.”
“Good,” she said as she followed him into the kitchen. He went to the island and turned around with a piece of paper and a key.
“Grace is really busy this time of year with Halloween and crap. She usually waters my plants and makes sure the condo is good when I’m gone. I was wondering if you could do it for me.”
Elli nodded, taking the key and piece of paper with the code to the condo and door from him, “Sure.”
“Great, thanks, babe. Next month will be crazy and with me not being here much. I’m gonna need your help.”
“No problem.”
“Great, ready?”
“Yup,” Elli said with a grin as he took her hand. They left, getting into his truck and driving over to Grace’s house. They talked about the week ahead and what Elli had planned, which was a bunch of weddings.
“Well, if you get tired, babe, you can stay at the condo. I don’t mind.”
“Oh, I don’t know.”
“Its fine, if you had planned on staying with Harper, why not just stay at my house, at least my bed will stay warm.”
“I do love your bed,” she said with a grin, he smiled back at her as he pulled in Grace’s driveway. They got out the car and walked up to the house, hand in hand. Shea open the door, calling out that they were here. Grace came from the kitchen, Amelia on her hip and a grin on her face.
“Hey, guys!” She gushed before she kissed Shea’s cheek, and gave Elli a sideways hug. “How are you Elli?” she asked as Shea took Amelia, kissing her loudly on the cheek.
“I’m great, and you?”
“Wonderful, come on, come meet my husband,” she said walking towards the kitchen; Elli and Shea followed just as Ryan came barreling down the hall, screaming for his Unky.
“Unky!!” he yelled, jumping up and down.
“Hey, bud,” Shea said picking him up, holding him in his other arm while still holding Amelia.
“Unky, I played hockey with daddy this afternoon. I won.”
“That’s my nephew,” Shea said as he ruffled Ryan’s hair, which the four year old protested to. With that, Ryan was back down the hall, slamming his door when he reached his destination.
“Ryan Michael Justice! I told you about that slamming!” Grace yelled, causing Shea to cringe.
“Sorry mom!” Elli smiled as Grace shook her head.
“Jesus, Grace, you sound just like mom,” Shea said walking past her into the kitchen. Grace looked over at Elli, exasperated.
“Do you have brothers?”
“Yes, and a sister”
“Jesus, do you ever want to kill them?”
“All the time,” Elli answered simply, making Grace laugh.
“I like you Elli, you’re good people.” Elli smiled as she followed Grace into the kitchen. Shea stood at the island with Amelia on his hip, beside him was James. Elli had seen him at Shea’s party, but never met him. He was a good looking guy, big brown eyes, with brownish blondish hair, he had high cheek bones, and a pointed nose, but he was cute. Not someone Elli would think that someone as beautiful as Grace would settle down with, but really who was she to judge. Shea Adler was her boyfriend; it was like beauty and the beast.
Elli was the beast.
“Hey, Elli, this is my brother-in-law, James, James this is my girlfriend, Elli Fisher.” The room went quiet as Grace and James looked back at Shea, then to Elli.
“Hold on, what did you say?” James asked, as Grace went, “Did you just say girlfriend?”
Elli blush deep red, looking down at the floor until she heard Shea’s booming laugh, “Yes, I said girlfriend, because she is.”
“When did this happen?” Grace asked, still looking confused.
“Thursday,” Shea answered, kissing Amelia’s cheek and putting her down, “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Shea, I think the last girlfriend you had was Alyson Jacobs, in 12 grade, I’m sorry if I’m a little shocked,” Grace said, leaning against James. Shea smiled, then looked back at Elli. She just shrugged her shoulders, not knowing what to say or do. “Wow,” Grace said shaking her head, then she smiled, “Well, come on, let’s eat.”
After that, it was easy. Grace was amazing, but Elli had already known that. James was funny, but serious all in one. He would get so mad when Shea and Grace teamed up against him, and they did it a lot. It would be about the kids or Ryan’s hockey or Amelia doing dance. Anything James said, Shea and Grace went against it. It was really funny, especially when James’ face would turn beat red, that had Elli laughing so hard, she couldn’t breathe.
“Oh, you just wait, Elli. Grace is nice to you now, so was Shea to me when we were just dating. But as soon as you guys get married, it all goes to hell and you’re an outside to the Shea and Grace show.” Everyone laughed at that, but Elli just smiled, moving around some of the amazing three cheese mac and cheese Grace had made. Like Shea would ever marry her. It had taken him what, eleven years just to get a girlfriend, shit; he would probably never get married.
“We aren’t that bad,” Grace said with a shake of her head, “but he is my twin, and I do love him a lot. So we tend to go into our twin mode.”
“I think it’s cute,” Elli said with a smile, taking another bite of steak.
“Yeah, well you just wait until you meet the rest of the Adler clan. Their mom, jeez, she’s a hoot, and their dad is amazing, the best father-in-law ever.” Grace leaned over to kiss James’ cheek as Shea nodded.
“My dad is pretty awesome,” Shea agreed. Grace nodded her head, taking a sip of wine.
“How about your family James, do they live here?”
James shook his head, “My parents died when I was
nineteen. I have Grace and my kiddos, that’s it.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry.”
“It’s fine, thank you, though. When I found Grace, everything fell into place, so I’m good now.” Elli smiled as Grace leaned over again and kissed him loudly on the cheek.
“How about your family Elli, do they live here?” Grace asked.
“Not in Nashville, but in Clarksville,” Elli said with a smile.
“Both your parents?”
“Yup, they are still married after 32 years.”
“That’s nice, you said you had three siblings?”
“Yup, my brothers, Liam and Noah, then my sister Victoria. I’m the youngest.”
“Are they all married?”
“Victoria isn’t, but Liam and Noah are, both have three kids.”
“Does Victoria have children?”
“Jesus, no, she hates kids.”
“Wow,” Grace said with a laugh, while Shea chuckled.
“Yeah, I on the other hand, love kids. I take my nieces and nephews once a month to go hang out. I love them so much.”
“That’s so nice!” Grace gushed, looking over at Shea, “Shea did that for me a couple of weeks ago, and then my son came home talking about open mouth kisses.” Elli had taken a drink before Grace started to speak and promptly spewed her drink everywhere with Grace’s comment. Everyone died laughing, as Elli wiped her mouth.
“Oh, my goodness!” Elli laughed. Shea was about to fall out his chair while Grace held her gut, and James turned bright red with all of them laughing their butts off.