He laughed. “It’s okay. I don’t get tired of talking about it. It’s the only thing I ever wanted to do. Hockey is in my blood. My uncle taught me how to play when I was little. He had skates on me by the time I was four.” Ben smiled as the memories of his childhood came back to him. Afternoons spent at the rink watching his uncle play. His mom bundling him up in winter clothes before he took his first stick out for a practice run.
“Was he a player, too?”
“Yeah, Bobby Price is my Uncle.” Ben waited to see if she recognized the name.
Ally’s eyes widened. “Wow. I don’t even know anything about sports, but everyone knows Bobby Price was one of the greatest hockey players of all time.” Bobby Price’s name was synonymous with hockey legends such as Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. “Jeez, Ben. That must make you royalty to people.” He was sexy, nice, rich and famous royalty.
Great, she thought. Like there wasn’t enough pressure before I found that out.
“Nah,” he said shrugging his shoulders. “I still have to work just as hard as everyone else to earn a name for myself.”
“I think it’s great that you found your passion and pursued it into a career you love.”
Ally admired that about him. It wasn’t everyday that she met someone who got paid to do what they loved most in life.
“Playing hockey is a dream. As a kid, I would watch it on TV and it was all I wanted to do. If I didn’t make it into the UNHL, I don’t know what I’d be doing. I never had a back-up plan.”
“So, your legendary uncle taught you how to play, huh?” she asked.
“My mom was a single mom and he practically helped raise me, so it was natural for him to wanna put a hockey stick in my hands. Now, my uncle coaches in Colorado for the Denver Blizzards.” The Blizzards were only one of the hottest teams in the league.
Then, he shared something personal with Ally. Something he hadn’t told many people about. He told her about his mom’s battle with cancer.
“She was really great. She used to go to all my games.”
“I’m so sorry. I know how hard it is to lose someone you love.”
“Thank you. So, enough about me and the depressing stuff. Tell me about school and veterinary medicine.”
“Well, I didn’t realize it until I started working at the animal clinic, but I really want to become a veterinarian. Until now, I kind of wandered around from job to job and felt like I had no calling. Just the thought of being able to help those poor helpless animals has so much meaning to me.”
It felt good to say it out loud to someone besides Gram or Izzy. It made it feel more real to share her goals with Ben.
If he were a sick puppy, Ben couldn’t imagine anyone else he’d rather have take care of him. “That’s wonderful.” He knew she would be great at it. She had such a gentle, kind way about her.
“Thanks. It all sounds good, but it’s a little more work than I bargained for. I’m just starting my general education courses at the community college and then I’ll be able to go to school for veterinary medicine.”
“It sounds like you’ve got everything figured out.”
“Hardly,” she laughed. “Every day is a constant battle.” Most days it seemed like life was trying to make things as difficult as possible.
Figuring out your career path? Six years. Taking care of your ailing grandmother? Eight years. Meeting the man of your dreams? Priceless.
“You are going to make an amazing vet.”
“Thank you.”
“So, where have you been all my life, Allison Monroe?”
“Right here. I’ve been in Red Valley all my life with Gram.”
“You two are pretty close, aren’t you?”
“Oh yeah. My parents died when I was four and Gramps died when I was in high school, so it’s just been the two of us for all these years. Sorry. More depressing stuff. So, where have you been?”
“Mostly Colorado. I grew up in Denver with my mom, then went to college and the minor league and then the Razors drafted me.” He had been first all-around draft pick. Not only his name, but his talent and drive had assured him a quick climb to the professional league.
“I can’t believe you’ve been right here for years and I’ve never run into you until now,” she wondered out loud.
“It’s a big city and unless you go to the NorCal Center or the practice arena,” he said referring to how they first met and where he spent most of his time, “you wouldn’t know I existed.”
“That’s not necessarily true. You’re on SportsCenter all the time.”
“Oh, really? You’ve been watching SportsCenter?” He nudged her playfully.
“Yes, thanks to you, I’ve broadened my horizons,” she said proudly.
During dinner, Ben was so laid back and comfortable that Ally began to relax and not worry so much about every little thing. If her hair was just right, if she should suck her stomach in, if she said the right things. He may have been somewhat of an athletic celebrity, but he had asked her out. So, it was obvious he wasn’t expecting Cameron Diaz or Reese Witherspoon. He would have to take Ally the way she was or leave her. In a puddle of animal encyclopedias and doctor bills. It wasn’t like he had expected celebrity good looks and Princess Diana social graces. He knew what he was getting himself into with a homebody girl struggling to take care of her ailing grandmother and put herself through college.
Little did she know, he was sitting across the table from her wondering how he could have been so lucky to strike gold. She was beautiful, funny and intelligent. It was the three Must Haves in a woman. The holy grail of the opposite sex. He was flattered that she took the time out of her busy life to give a guy like him a date. And what was becoming the best dinner of his life. He spent so much time around other guys that it was refreshingly nice to have a female presence across from him.
After they finished their meal, Ben tried to think of what he wanted to do next. A movie seemed too impersonal. The thought of ice skating crossed his mind, but that would be cliché. And the guys in the locker room would never let him live that down if they ever found out. But still, he could picture how she would look on the ice. Skating, angelic and graceful, her long blonde hair flowing behind her. Too bad he didn’t bring his helmet tonight, because he was falling for her hard and fast.
Clearly Ben hadn’t planned out their entire date. He’d only known he wanted to take her out to dinner and be with her. At the time, he didn’t care what they were doing as long as he was getting to spend time with her. But now, he thought she probably expected him to have an event planned after dinner. Little did he know, she felt the same way that he did. As long as she was looking into those brown eyes, she was all good.
After he took care of the check, which she obligatorily offered to split and he promptly refused to let her, they got back into his car.
“So, where to now?” she asked hoping the night wasn’t over yet.
“I’ve got an idea.” He started the engine. He suddenly knew the perfect place to take her.
“Uh-oh.”
“You still have a little while before you need to get back home, right?” he asked to make sure.
“Yup. I’ve got a couple hours before I turn back into a pumpkin.”
“Good.”
“Why? Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
He drove them over to the part of town where Ally had never been to before. Where all the doctors and lawyers lived in their perfect gated communities. Where swimming pools and Cadillacs came standard.
Ben turned into a neighborhood across from the Red Hills Golf Course and wove the car up the hillside. The houses were shrouded in the night sky, but Ally could still see how magnificent they were.
At the top of the hill, Ben pulled up to a lovely home tucked into the hillside and parked the car.He got out and went around to the passenger side, but Ally was reluctant to get out. Where the hell were they? This was waaay out of her comfort zone.
What did I get m
yself into?
He opened her door and urged her out of the car, but Ally froze in her seat, her eyes wide in the darkness. “Where are we?” she whispered with slight irritation lacing her voice.
“Come on,” he pleaded. He laced his fingers with hers, ooh that felt nice, and pulled her behind him.
Trying to appear more stealth, she crouched her body low, wanting no part of this. She should have known that her first date in…forever would end up showcased on America’s Most Wanted.
“Ben,” she hissed. “I’m not--”
“Do you trust me?” He cocked his head to the side, smiling mischievously.
She did. She didn’t know how after only knowing him for such a short time, but she did. She trusted him. Probably too much.
She nodded.
He squeezed her hand and went to the wrought iron gate by the garage, unlatched it and held it open for her.
“There’s something I wanna show you.”
“Whose house is this? We can’t just--”
“It’s mine.”
“Oh.” She straightened her spine. Because everyone knew the Neighborhood Watch weren’t suspicious of people with good posture. “Are you serious? You live here?”
“Yup,” he grinned, looking all of eight years old.
“I was beginning to wonder about you. If you want me to be the Bonnie to your Clyde, you’ve got another thing coming!”
“Come on.”
She followed him down a stone path, past a cluster of trees, a Jacuzzi and more trees.
Then she saw it. His home’s breathtaking view of the city. Which did just that. It took her breath away. It was incredible seeing the entire city of Red Valley spread out in front of her, lit up and glowing in the night sky. The night was beautiful and the sky clear. She had never seen the city from this angle before.
She went up to the patio railing for a closer look with Ben only a step behind her. “It’s beautiful,” she whispered, her eyes glittering like the stars above them.
“Yes,” he agreed.
But they weren’t talking about the same thing.
“Hmm?” She turned her attention back to him. He was standing a breath away, his eyes focused on her and her alone. She was far more beautiful than any view of the city. Even the one he woke up to practically every day.
“Can I kiss you?” he asked her.
She had thought about it all night. How his lips would feel pressed against hers. If her breath caught in her throat when she only thought about it, how would she be able to breathe with him so close to her, touching her?
“Yes,” she answered softly. But before she could finish saying the entire word, he leaned over and suddenly his mouth was over hers. His lips were soft and moist on hers and kissing him felt good. Really good. She thought she was going to melt away through the patio railing and down into the city below. Or, better yet, melt into him. As he cupped her face in one hand, he pulled her closer with the other. She could definitely imagine melting into his warm embrace.
When he finally pulled away from her, he nuzzled his face into her hair near her ear. “I wanted to do that all night.”
“Me too,” she breathed.
They stayed on the patio in each others embrace and talked for a while. Ally would have stayed on Ben’s patio, on top of the world, forever but it was getting late and he reluctantly drove her back across town and walked her to her door.
“Thank you for making time to go out with me tonight. I know you don’t have a lot of free time,” he said when they reached her door step.
“No, thank you. I had a wonderful time.”
“I would love to see you again.”
“Can I see you tomorrow?” Ally asked at the risk of sounding too desperate.
“I would love that. More than anything. But I have to go on the road. We have four away games in a row and I won’t be back until next Thursday.”
“That sucks.”
He laughed at her reaction. “Can I call you?” He looked forward to talking to her from his lonely hotel room halfway across the country.
“I’d like that.” A lot.
She stood on her toes and hugged and kissed him one more time before he drove away.
When Ally finally opened the door, she was immediately bombarded with questions.
“Did he kiss you? Did he kiss you?” Izzy asked.
Ally laughed at the sight of Gram and Izzy looking at her with eyes as wide as saucers, hanging on her every word.
“Yeah, like I’m going to make out with him on the porch while you two spies have your noses pressed against the windowpane.”
Gram frowned. “Oh, no, Allison. We respect your privacy,” Gram was quick to assure her granddaughter.
“Right. Privacy,” Izzy chimed in. “Now spill,” she added, not able to endure the suspense any longer.
Ally grinned and collapsed on the sofa beside Gram. “It was wonderful.”
* * *
Two days had passed since “the date” and Ally was scrubbing her frustrations out on the bathtub. By mid-morning, she had already washed all of the windows, mopped the kitchen floor, dusted all of the furniture and cleaned the entire bathroom from top to bottom.
She had practically made out with Ben and she didn’t even get a lousy phone call in return. Didn’t he say he would call? Or had she imagined it. Maybe she had imagined the whole damn date. Nah, she knew for sure she hadn’t imagined their kiss.
As Ally rinsed the scrubbing bubbles from the tub, her mind and heart battled it out. Her brain reminded her that she had never waited on a man before, why should she start now? Her heart vehemently disagreed. She may have never needed a man before, but this was different. She wanted Ben.
She watched the cleanser wash down the drain along with her romantic aspirations. Now, she looked around the bathroom. What could she clean next?
“Allison,” Gram’s voice carried down the hallway, interrupting Ally’s thoughts. “The telephone is for you.”
Ally had been so focused on analyzing her date, she didn’t even hear the phone ring.
“Tell Izzy I’ll call her later,” Ally yelled back. She was in no mood for Izzy or her sexpot tales.
“It’s not Izzy, dear,” Gram replied, “its Benjamin calling.”
“Benjamin? Who the hell is Benjamin?” Ally scrunched her face up, trying to figure out who Gram was talking about.
Oh Crap.
Ally dropped the sponge and wiped her hands on the front of her shirt. She went down the hall and into the living room where Gram was holding out the phone with a somewhat smug smile. Ally took the receiver from her along with a deep breath.
“Hello?” Ally said into the phone.
“Hi Ally, it’s Ben.”
Holy hell, it was really him.
She reached up to smooth her hair, before promptly putting her hand back down.
He can’t see you through the phone, dummy.
“You called.” She couldn’t hide the surprise in her voice. She went back down the hall to her bedroom and sat on the bed.
“Yeah. I’m sorry I didn’t call sooner.”
“Oh, that’s okay.” She tried her best to sound casual. At least she hadn’t been waiting pathetically by the phone. Instead, she had cleaned and scrubbed every room in the house. Gram had never seen her granddaughter take such a sudden interest in housecleaning before. She was giving Mr. Clean a run for his money.
“It’s been a crazy road trip. First, we were in Dallas, then Detroit. Now we have a day off before another game against Montreal tomorrow.”
“That’s quite a schedule. I don’t know how you are able to think straight must less play a different team every night.”
“Yeah, that’s the downside of being in the west where the teams are more spread out. We have a lot more travel time than the teams in the east.”
“Where did you say you are right now?”
“Canada. Montreal, eh.”
She laughed at his Canadian accent.
God, it was good to hear her voice and to hear her laugh.
“How are you?” he asked. “Your Gram said you’ve been pining away for me.”
“I have not!” Her voice raised an octave, then she realized from his laughter on the other end that he was just trying to get a rise out of her.
“I was kidding. I know how busy you are. You probably don’t even have time to talk to me right now. Do you have class tonight?”
“Actually, I have the rest of the day off. I don’t have class until tomorrow. What do you want to talk about?”
Ally felt like a teenager all over again. Well, maybe what Izzy had felt like as a teenager because Ally never paid much attention to boys growing up. Today it was her turn. She and Ben talked on the phone for hours. He tried to explain the game of hockey and its terminology to her and she told him about her day at work. They talked about everything including their favorite movies. His was The Bourne Identity and hers was Just Like Heaven. He liked mint chip ice cream and she liked chocolate chip cookie dough. They covered all the basics. It was a great opportunity to get to know each other before he came back into town.
By the time she climbed into bed that night, Ally was smiling ear to ear. Everything was good again. And she had a clean house to boot.
The next morning Ben surprised her from over 2900 miles away. Two dozen long stem red roses were delivered to Gram’s house for Ally.
Ally carried the bouquet into her room to read the card in private. It read: Ally, I can’t stop thinking about you. Love, Ben.
A little while later when the phone rang Ally ran to pick it up on the second ring.
“Hi, it’s me.”
“Hi, Me,” she said back and looked over at the long-stem roses on her desk. “Thank you for the roses.” Their sweet and spicy fragrance was making her room smell wonderful.
“Oh good, you got them,” Ben said, relieved.
“They are beautiful. No one has ever given me roses before.”
“Really?” That boggled his mind.
“Never.”
“Well, you are very welcome. I just wish I had been there to give them to you myself. I know I’m out of town a lot, but I couldn’t bear to wait until the season ended to ask you out.”
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