That dickhead Glanden.
A TV timeout was called as the referees regrouped at the middle of the ice, oblivious to the trouble brewing between teammates near the net. Blinded by fury, Isaac started to pull off his gloves, ignoring the pain that shot up his right side from his ankle to his shoulder and neck.
Strong hands gripped both shoulders, and Isaac glanced from one side to another, his bad temper coursing through him. He was ready to do battle, and at this point he didn’t give a shit if it was with the opposing team or his own teammate.
“Don’t,” said Cooper’s firm voice in his ear.
“Take a deep breath, Ice,” said another, friendlier voice—Blake.
Isaac tried to shake off his teammates, still ready to fight. Glanden stood a few feet away, a satisfied smirk on his face. Isaac imagined wiping the smirk right off the guy’s ugly mug with a hard right jab to his jaw.
“Sorry, you got in the way. Didn’t mean it, man,” Glanden said, sounding insincere.
“Back off,” Cooper snarled at Glanden, sending him a look that should’ve melted all the ice at this end of the arena. Glanden skated backwards, putting space between himself and the captain, his smirk replaced by a worried frown.
Isaac stopped struggling to free himself and shut his eyes momentarily. He counted to ten. He could not get into a fight with his teammate. The guy was baiting him, and he’d be all kinds of a fool to take the bait.
“I’m fine,” Isaac spoke through gritted teeth. Cooper and Blake relaxed their holds.
Cooper studied him for a moment, nodded, and skated away, pausing to say a few choice words to Glanden as he skated past. Isaac couldn’t hear what was said, but by the look on Glanden’s face, he knew he’d stepped over the line, and there’d be hell to pay after the game.
* * * *
Avery saw the almost altercation between teammates and couldn’t stand not knowing how it ended, fearing Isaac might let his infamous temper get the worst of him. While it looked like a couple teammates accidentally got in each other’s way, she knew better. Isaac had shared his issues with Glanden, and the guy had it out for him.
Once the game ended, she texted Isaac.
Is everything okay? Call me.
Very aware of Isaac’s tenuous position with the team, she worried he’d be blamed for the incident. When he didn’t respond, Avery feared the worst. She paced the floor of her small apartment, pausing on each turn to check the phone sitting on the kitchen counter. Good thing Emma was crashing a party with Izzy and Bella, leaving Avery to fret in privacy.
It was well after ten Pacific time when her phone rang. Isaac’s name showed on the display. Avery grabbed for it, fumbling with the phone and sending it skidding across the tile kitchen floor. She dived for it and punched the Answer button on the sixth ring. “Hi,” she said breathlessly.
“Hey, did I interrupt something?” Isaac’s voice held a hint of amusement, and she relaxed slightly. It couldn’t be all that bad if his voice was any indication.
Her face flamed, and she was grateful he couldn’t see it. “No.”
“Okay.”
Irritated with his one word responses, she pressed on. “What happened with Tom Glanden? The broadcast cut to a commercial, and they didn’t say anything when they returned other than ‘tempers are running hot in this game.’”
“That’s good. Coop and Blake kept me from killing the guy on prime time TV.” Isaac chuckled.
“I’m glad. He’s an ass.”
“Yeah, an even bigger ass than I am, if that’s possible.”
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re not an ass, Isaac.”
He didn’t respond for a very long time, so long she feared he’d disconnected. “I am, Avery. I’m a selfish bastard who doesn’t deserve the friendship of nice people like you or Blake.”
“I disagree. I think you’re a good friend.”
“I think you’re delusional.” He barked out a snort of wry laughter.
“Better delusional than stupid. You guys aren’t home until next Sunday morning?” She couldn’t prevent the disappointment from creeping into her voice.
“Yeah, that’s right. How about we plan to go out to dinner on Sunday night? I’ll treat since you’ve been such a good surrogate parent for my delinquent boxer.”
“I’ll hold you to that.”
Avery heard a commotion in the background, followed by some colorful swearing.
“Oh, crap. I have to go. My teammates are invading my privacy again.”
“It’s good for you.”
“Yeah, right, forcing a loner to socialize is a good thing.”
His sarcasm wasn’t lost on her, but she chose to ignore it. “It is a good thing. Besides, I don’t believe you’re really a loner—not deep down.”
“Avery, don’t make the mistake of assigning noble human emotions to my actions. You’ll only get your heart broken.”
Avery swallowed. He thought so little of himself. If nothing else came of their friendship, she’d teach Isaac Wolfe that he was worthy of friendship and love, regardless of what others might say and of what Isaac thought himself.
Chapter 12—Kindred Spirits
It was crazy stupid. They were just friends, but Isaac couldn’t wait to see Avery again. As soon as he got home at four AM, he paced his floor until about five-thirty.
Avery was a morning person. He was discovering that most horse people were. Unable to wait any longer, he threw on some sweats and a hoodie and took off for a run in the misty morning air. Fog hung over the hay field and his breath came out in gray puffs. He ran a few laps around the field until he saw lights flip on in the barn. He couldn’t contain his grin as he changed direction and sprinted for the barn.
The road trip had been a successful one. The team won four out of six and Coach was happy. Isaac played hard, scrappy hockey. With the exception of a few times in the sin bin, he kept his nose relatively clean. He expected to be called on the carpet for the altercation with his own teammate but instead Coach benched Glanden for the remainder of the road trip, warning him if it happened again, he’d be gone.
Glanden heeded Coach’s warning and avoided Isaac, acting as if he didn’t exist, which suited Isaac just fine. They didn’t have to like each other in order to play on the same team. They only needed to leave their personal issues off the ice. In the past, Isaac wouldn’t have been able to do that, now he didn’t have a choice. He suspected Glanden was biding his time, waiting to catch Isaac in a moment of weakness before he pounced. Glanden wanted him off the team, and Isaac would be damned if he’d let that slimy weasel ruin his NHL career. He had to admit he sort of liked playing for Seattle, and if that opportunity got screwed up, he’d be solely responsibly, not some dickwad out to jerk his chain.
Pausing in front of the barn to catch his breath, Isaac pushed open the double doors wide enough to squeeze his body through and stepped into the dark aisle. His heart pounded in his chest, and he’d be delusional if he attributed the pounding solely to his recent run. His heart rate wasn’t speeding into overdrive because of exercise. Hell, no, it was the thrill of seeing Avery after two long weeks.
A dim overhead light illuminated the blackness. Feeling in his pocket for the chocolate mint, he grinned as he walked past all the horses with their heads over their stall doors. They nickered a soft greeting, and he touched a velvety nose here and there. He’d have never believed it himself, but he liked the horses. They were honest and unpretentious. What he saw was what he got.
Not seeing Avery anywhere, he stopped at Onyx’s stall. As usual, the black horse stood with his butt toward Isaac, his head buried in the corner.
“Hey, Nyx, you badass. You don’t fool me one damn bit, buddy, ’cuz you and I are two of a kind, hiding behind a smoke screen of anger and foul temper.”
Onyx swished his tail and stomped one front foot on the ground. Isaac took a careful step forward. The horse spun around, teeth bared, and charged the stall. Isaac stood his ground, n
ot moving or reacting. Onyx stopped within inches of the stall bars. His brown eyes narrowed with mistrust, his entire body one tense coil of fear cloaked in anger.
Yeah, fear. Isaac could’ve guessed that. Isaac used his anger as a shield and pretended he wasn’t afraid of anything—but sometimes he wondered if it wasn’t the exact opposite. Maybe he was actually afraid of everything—being alone, being rejected, not measuring up, not being good enough.
Not being worthy of love.
“Hey, buddy, I get it. But it’s a helluva way to live your life, you know. Take it from a guy who’s been there and is still there. Don’t be like me.”
Onyx’s ears swiveled back and forth. Isaac wasn’t sure what that meant—he didn’t understand horse body language—but the animal wasn’t gnashing his teeth or preparing to attack him again.
Isaac dropped the mint into the feeder and waited. Onyx waited, too, watching him. The black animal kept glancing at the feeder and the treat. Only when Isaac backed up a few steps did Onyx snatch the mint. He whirled around to his corner, but Isaac heard him munching away on the mint. Onyx turned his head and looked as if he were hoping there might be more.
“Sorry, big guy, next time I’ll bring a few more, but I’m guessing I can’t load you up on sugar. Probably not a good thing.”
“Isaac?”
Turning from the horse, Isaac grinned. “Hey.”
Lord, he’d missed her.
And how crazy was that? The last thing that girl needed was a screwed up mess like him. Tanner was so right. Isaac destroyed everyone who ever cared about him. It was his special talent. He drove people away to prevent them from getting so close. He’d learned his lesson with Jenny and his sister Karen. He should’ve spared them, but they couldn’t be driven away. They saw through him. And it had killed them.
He had killed them.
He couldn’t do that to Avery, but he could look and not touch. Looking never hurt.
She was so beautiful. Sure, he’d dated beautiful women before, but none like Avery; not even Jenny had been as beautiful as Avery. Disloyalty pricked at his heart for thinking that, but it was true. Though it was somewhat like comparing apples and oranges. Jenny had been petite, dark, and exotic with mega makeup. Everything had to be perfect—her hair, her clothes, her nails, and she made sure he paid for that perfection. He’d gladly shelled out the bucks because money didn’t mean much to him anyway, but it had to her.
Avery, on the other hand, didn’t care about her nails, her hair, or her clothes. He suspected every penny she made went right back into the horses. And despite her lack of attention to her appearance, she was still the sexiest woman he’d ever met.
Hal padded along behind Avery, yawning. He’d never been a morning dog. He glanced at Isaac on his way outside to do his business and growled.
“Good to see you, too, buddy.” Isaac laughed.
Hal showed his yellow teeth and waddled on by. Isaac laughed, feeling better than he had in quite a few years. Hell, he felt better than he ever had.
Avery laughed at Hal. “He has a love-hate relationship with you, doesn’t he?”
“More like a hate-hate.” Isaac stared into her eyes, unable to drag his gaze away. For the longest moment, they said nothing, just gazed at each other. It was weird. It was wonderful. It was wrong. But he couldn’t stop himself from drinking in every feature of her makeup-free face.
She broke her gaze first and moved to a stall to check on a horse. He moved behind her looking over her shoulders. She turned abruptly, obviously not expecting him to be so close, and bumped into him. He steadied her with his big hands, his fingers massaging the points of her shoulders. His mouth was only inches from hers, and he wanted to kiss her so badly, he ached all over. Her lips parted, forming an “O” and revealing straight white teeth and a pink tongue. Isaac licked his own lips and cleared his suddenly dry throat. They froze for a moment, neither moving, neither breathing, but he swore he could hear both their hearts beating in unison.
Avery’s mouth clamped shut, and she ducked under his arms and moved to a safer distance. “I need to feed the horses,” she stated, even as she made no move to do so.
Isaac didn’t want to leave, not yet, so he searched his mind for a safe conversation. “How did your lessons with that German guy go?” he asked, genuinely interested.
“Awful,” she sighed and pushed her blond hair off her face.
“Want to talk about it?”
“Not really.” She shook her hair out of its ponytail then wrapped it back up again. Watching her deft fingers tame her wavy hair made him harder than a guy after an overdose of Viagra.
Isaac swallowed, itching to bury his fingers in that luxurious mane. “What does something like that cost?”
“More than I make in a week or two. I might have to beg my sister to let me party crash again.”
Isaac opened his mouth to offer to pay for her lessons then snapped it shut. She would never accept the offer, and he knew all about wounded pride. Isaac and his brothers specialized in it.
“So we’re still on for dinner tonight? Maybe a movie?”
“As friends, right?”
“Yeah, of course. You can even invite your sister as long as she keeps it between us.”
“Thank you. I think I will.” Avery smiled at him and lit up his world, even the dark, dank corners that hadn’t seen light in years—if ever. “I really have to feed the horses now.”
“Okay.” He watched her walked away, those long legs eating up the distance between her and the feed bins at the other end of the long aisle. She had a great ass, just perfect for his big hands, and her long legs would wrap just right around his waist. He loved her hair, long and luxurious, even if it was rarely styled and spent the majority of the time in a messy ponytail—not the stylish kind women liked to use, but the kind used by a woman in a hurry who considered her hair a bother and something she needed to keep off her face.
Everything about her, as imperfect as it might be, was perfect for him.
* * * *
Avery chewed a bite of salmon and glanced nervously at Emma. She desperately wanted her twin sister to like Isaac. It shouldn’t matter, but it did. Considering Emma’s secret crush on Isaac’s brother, Avery feared Emma might take sides.
She shouldn’t have worried. The two hit it off famously, talking about everything from the weather in Seattle to the dying Orca whale population in the San Juans to the Sockeyes’ chances in the playoffs—assuming they made the playoffs. Who would have ever thought Isaac would be so well-informed or so deep on subjects not related to hockey, and who would’ve guessed her bookworm sister even knew what a puck was for, let alone be able to intelligently talk hockey. The entire evening was proving to be an eye-opener.
It was a cold, crisp night in Seattle, and the lights from a ferry bound for Bainbridge illuminated the waters of Elliott Bay. Avery watched as it motored out of Seattle and into the darkness of Puget Sound.
“So, Mr. Wolfe, what do you think of our city so far?” Emma leaned forward, her eyes sparkling, and drew Avery’s attention back to the conversation.
Isaac smiled back, not one ounce of badass, all nice guy. “I love it.”
“Really?” Avery inserted. “What do you love about it because it’s not everyone who can handle Seattle winters?”
“I don’t mind the gray. It’s—it’s romantic.” Isaac ducked his head, concentrating on cutting a piece of steak.
Was he blushing? Or was it just hot in here? Avery wanted to fan herself so it had to be the temperature in the room. She took a long slug of water, but it didn’t cool her down. Stealing a glance at Isaac, she found him watching her with an all-too-familiar hunger in his predatory ice-blue eyes.
Emma gave Avery a pointed look. “I’ve never thought of it that way.”
“I have.” Isaac winked at Emma and grinned.
Emma shot another sideways glance at Avery, and Avery got the distinct feeling the two were conspiring against her.
“He bit my ankle, took over two-thirds of the couch, and farted for an hour straight, so I’d say all in all he’s a happy dog.”
“Tiff and he have bonded.”
“What’s the story with her, anyway?” Isaac asked.
Emma shot Avery an accusatory glare. “You never told him?”
Avery shrugged.
Emma turned to Isaac and leaned forward, lowering her voice, like the two of them were BFFs or something. It was disgusting. “You don’t know?”
“Really, I don’t.”
“It’s very tragic. We all protect her as best as we can. You heard about the Seattle school shooting last fall, right?” Emma glanced around, as if making sure no one could hear her.
Isaac nodded.
“Tiff was there. One of the shooters was her boyfriend. He pointed the gun between her eyes, point-blank range, and pulled the trigger. There wasn’t a bullet in the chamber. The gun just clicked. I guess he laughed and said something like ‘Remember me and remember them’ and shot her two best friends dead in front of her. She’s never been the same since. It’s tragic.”
Isaac frowned, his brows drawn into a grim line.
“Cooper’s nephew Riley was there, too. He was shot, but not seriously.”
“I had no idea.”
Emma glared at Avery. “I can’t believe you didn’t fill him in considering the huge crush Tiff has on him, and how the tragedy affects his team captain.”
“I was planning on saying something.”
As one they both stared at her, and Avery squirmed. She really should’ve told him. She saw the disapproval in her sister’s eyes and the hurt in Isaac’s.
Isaac shrugged one shoulder as the hurt disappeared to be replaced by the cold, unemotional Isaac he’d been when she’d first met him. She hated that she’d caused him to retreat into his shell.
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