Back in the locker room, Jody was getting high fives all around. Vlad, though, didn’t even offer congratulations. “Vlad, what’s up, man?”
“Look. I’m happy for you. You got a goal, great. I’m not fit company tonight, so just leave me be, okay?” Vlad slapped Jody on the back and left the locker room. On the way out, the coach stopped him.
“Vlad, it’s obvious that you’re dealing with something that you’re not letting us in on. You need to tell us what’s going on. Your behavior affects the entire team. Set up an appointment with Dr. Millis for tomorrow and then come talk to me.”
“Thanks for the concern Coach, but I don’t need to talk to her. I’ll be fine next game.” Seeing Zoe certainly wasn’t going to help him.
“It wasn’t a request, Bejsiuk. You’re benched until you figure out what’s going on in your head, or you decide to let us in on it. Make the appointment and see me after.” Sometimes the coach had to play hardball with these guys. Every single one of them thought they could do everything on their own. And goalies … well, goalies were in a class of their own.
“Great, fine. I’ll call her tonight.”
Vlad saw Zoe the next day. He was only there for about twenty minutes. When he stormed out of her office and slammed the door on his way out, Lacey jumped up and walked into Zoe’s office.
“Everything okay?”
“No. And I wish I could talk to you about it, but I can’t.” That was probably one of the hardest parts of her job. Lacey was her best friend. Vlad wasn’t just another patient. She wished she could talk to Lacey about what he had told her. “Do you have plans with Jody or do you think we could go get some drinks?”
“Sure I’d love to do that. We should go now. Since it’s Saturday, everything will be getting packed soon. Let’s beat the crowds. Just give me a sec to change, okay?” Lacey ran upstairs to text Jody. They actually did have plans but nothing that couldn’t be done some other night.
Lacey: Hey babe. Bad news. Can’t make it tonight. Zoe needs me. Vlad drama.
Jody: I’ll miss you. Hope everything is okay. Vlad’s been acting like an asshole lately. What’s his deal?
Lacey: No idea. Zoe can’t talk about it. He was here for an actual appointment.
Jody: That’s got to be hard for her. Not to be able to talk to you about it.
Lacey: Yup, she asked me to go get dinner and drinks. I’ll call you tomorrow.
Jody: Okay Lace. I love you, Angel.
Lacey: :) :) I love you. Xoxo
Lacey ran back downstairs, and the girls left for their night on the town. Zoe got trashed, and Lacey made sure she didn’t go home with some random guy. Zoe was going to have one hell of a rough Sunday.
Lacey’s mother called her late on Sunday afternoon. She was at Jody’s when she got the call, along with Zoe and Izzy. Lacey’s parents and Jody’s mother and sister were all going to be in San Diego for Thanksgiving.
“Hi, honey. I just wanted to confirm that you’re picking us up at the airport on Wednesday.” Lacey rolled her eyes at Zoe.
“Yes, Mom. We just talked about this yesterday … remember? I have your flight information, and I’m borrowing Jody’s truck. You and Dad will stay in my room at Zoe’s, and Jody’s mom and sister are staying with him. Jody’s picking them up tomorrow morning. Is this all ringing a bell?”
Lacey’s mother laughed. “Yes, dear. I’m sorry; I’m just so excited to see you! Okay, I’ll let you go. We’ll see you in a few days! Love you, sweetie.”
“Love you, too, Mom. Give Dad a kiss for me. See you Wednesday.” Lacey hung up the phone and smiled. Her mom drove her crazy sometimes, but she couldn’t wait to see her. It was great that her dad was able to come, too. They could only stay until Friday and that flight left at eight in the morning. Lacey’s father had to get right back to Vancouver, because the team he coached had a game on Friday night, but he wanted to make the trip so he could meet Jody – more like threaten him if he wasn’t good to his little girl.
Jody was excited to show Lacey off to his family and asked her to come to his place right from work. He was like a kid at Christmas; he was so excited.
“Would you stop pacing, Jody? We’re going to love her.” His mother looked lovely. Even better than that, she looked happy. Her new beau stayed in Nova Scotia with his family for the holidays, but he had already called her twice.
“Oh, I’m not worried that you’ll like her Mom. You’ll both love her. I just wish she’d get here. It’s already ten after five.”
Jody’s sister piped up. “Well, what time does she get done working?”
“Four thirty. And it only takes about twenty minutes to drive here from there. I’m going to text her.” He was a little worried about her, but he was always a little worried about her.
“Jody, give her a couple more minutes for Pete’s sake. Let the girl have some breathing room. You’re not doing that over protective thing with her, are you?” Karen knew how Jody felt after what her ex had done to her. She knew he felt like he could have stopped it, but she certainly hoped he wasn’t trying to keep his girlfriend in a protective bubble. That would only be sweet for so long.
“No. Actually, I’ve gone to therapy a couple of times to deal with that, and I’m doing pretty well.”
His mother was shocked. Jody was such a bonehead most of the time! “You’re going to therapy? You want to learn how to be less protective and controlling? Oh, Jody, I’m so proud of you. I know that can’t be easy.”
Jody smiled. “Thanks Mom.” Finally, he heard Izzy howling, which meant that her new favorite person had arrived. Yes, Izzy had thrown Jody away for Lacey.
Lacey walked into the room, and Jody’s face lit up. After she gave Izzy some pets and praise, she walked over to Jody and gave him a peck on the cheek. He wasn’t satisfied with that and swept her in for a hug and a proper kiss. “Hi, Angel. You’re late. I couldn’t wait ‘til you got here.”
She held up a bag. “I made a pit stop.” Remembering that Jody’s mother was a former alcoholic, but loved her non-alcoholic beer, she had stopped and picked some up in case Jody hadn’t. She also bought a beautiful cornucopia filled with assorted gourds to be the centerpiece for the table on Thanksgiving Day.
Jody peeked into the bag. “Oh, kissing ass already?”
“Language, young man! Now, are you going to introduce us to this lovely girl?”
“Sorry, Mom. Lace, this is my mother, Maddie LaGrange, and my sister, Karen.” Lacey went to shake hands, but they both moved forward to hug her. It was nice, and she stupidly got tears in her eyes.
“It’s so nice to meet you, Lacey. You’re about the only thing Jody talks about anymore.” Putting her hand over her heart, she gave Lacey a warm look. “I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking care of him when he took that awful hit. I was beside myself being all the way across the continent.”
Maddie’s eyes filled with tears at the thought of Jody being unconscious. It was such a scary thing to witness on TV and not have a way of getting to him.
“Oh, Mrs. LaGrange, I was happy to do it. I can’t imagine how hard it must be for you when you see something like that, being so far away. You can give me your phone number if you want and if, God forbid, something ever happens again, I promise to call you immediately.”
Now a tear did slip down Maddie’s cheek. “Oh, honey, call me Maddie, and thank you. Yes, you and I are going to be great friends, I just know it.”
“Okay, enough of that. Let’s eat.” Jody disappeared into the kitchen and came out with a plate of steaks. There were six of them.
“Who else is coming for dinner?” Lacey thought it was just going to be the four of them.
“No one, why?”
“Six steaks?”
“Lace, I’m a growing boy. Two steaks might not be enough for me.”
Lacey laughed at him. The man could eat more than anyone she’d ever met. His body sure didn’t suffer for it, though. “Bet you can’t eat like that
in the off-season.”
“Bet I know of some other exercise you could help me with to keep the weight off.”
Maddie pushed him out the door to put the steaks on the grill. “That’s enough of that. You leave that poor girl alone; she’s turning redder than a fire truck!”
Karen laughed and placed an arm around Lacey and her mom. “Come on, let’s grab a drink and watch Jody cook.” She poured herself a glass of wine, opened a bottle of her mom’s beer for her and asked Lacey what she wanted.
“It doesn’t bother you for us to drink around you, Maddie? I have no problem sticking to soda. I’m addicted to soda.” Lacey would hate to do anything to make Jody’s mother uncomfortable.
“Oh, no honey, not at all. I got over that a long time ago, but it was sweet of you to ask. I really do enjoy my non-alcoholic beer. I’ve gotten a real taste for it.” With that said, Lacey made a vodka and cranberry. She snagged a Molson for Jod, and they all went out to sit on the deck.
It was chilly sitting out there so Lacey grabbed some blankets for them. Maddie and Karen were sitting on the swing, and Lacey sat down on the lounge chair. After Jody put the steaks on the grill, he walked over to Lacey and lifted her out of the lounge chair. “Make room, woman.” He sat down and pulled her down to sit between his legs. Lacey immediately thought about the other time they had sat like that and snuggled back against him.
Maddie and Karen smiled at them. “It’s so nice to see you like this, Jody. I knew you’d find her someday.” Maddie was a strong believer in people having a true soul mate. She also knew without a shadow of doubt that Lacey was his.
Jody gave Lacey a squeeze. “I am a lucky bastard, I know. I probably don’t deserve her, but I’m keeping her anyway.”
When dinner was over and the dishes cleaned up, Lacey left. She had thoroughly enjoyed the evening. His family was warm and welcoming. Her parents would like them too; she knew it. Thanksgiving was going to be nice that year. Since David had died, the holidays were tough. Lacey was ready to make the holidays happy again.
As soon as Lacey’s mother got into the truck at the airport, she started asking questions about Jody.
“Are you really serious about him, Lacey? Is he good to you? What’s his family like? He looks like a brute on TV. Is he like that off the ice, too?” One thing about Lacey’s mother – there was never a pause in conversation.
“Yes, yes, wonderful, no.” Sometimes that was the best way to answer her because she wasn’t always really listening anyway. Raina just liked to talk, while her father, Hunter, sat silently, and looked at the scenery out the window.
“That’s it? That’s all I get?” Huh, her mother actually wanted real live answers. Okay …
“Sorry, Mom. Well, simply put, I love him. I’ve never felt like this about anyone, Steven included. He treats me like I’m a princess. His only flaw is that he tends to worry about me too much.”
Her dad looked at her with a smile. “Don’t see anything wrong with that, Sugar. I like him already.”
Her dad had called her Sugar from the time she was about three years old. Lacey had spilled the sugar bowl all over the kitchen floor, but instead of telling her mother, she sat down and ate it right off the floor.
“You can meet him after the game. We’re in the suite again tonight. Zoe, Aidan and his new beau will be there, too. We’re only going to have time to drop your stuff off before we leave for the game. I hope you’re not too tired. We don’t have to go if you are.”
“Are you nuts, Sugar? I’m not going to miss a chance to see your new guy play. I want to get back in the locker room, too; think we can?” Her dad lived and breathed hockey. It had been like that her whole life. Luckily, her mother never minded playing second fiddle to a sport. She loved hockey, too.
“I’ll text Jody when we get back to the house. I’m sure he can get us in.”
When they got home, Lacey sent Jody a text while her parents were freshening up.
Lacey: Hey big guy, any way we can come see behind the scenes? Dad has the need to see every hockey locker room on the planet.
Jody: Hi, Angel. Of course. Can you get here in thirty minutes? I’ll meet you in the player parking lot.
Lacey: We’ll be there. See you soon.
Jody: Ok. Love you.
Lacey called up the stairs to her parents, “If you want to get behind the scenes, we have to leave now.”
The security guard recognized Jody’s truck and waved them in. Jody came out right on time and her mother said, “Wow, Lace, he’s really cute. You can never tell with those helmets on.”
When they got to the door, Jody gave Lacey a kiss and stuck his hand out to her father. “Hi Mr. Benoit, I’m Jody LaGrange.” Then he shook Raina’s hand. “Mrs. Benoit, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“My little girl tells me you worry about her too much. Well, I don’t think that’s possible, so I say thank you. It’s nice to know she’s got a man looking after her.” Her father could be as much of a Neanderthal as Jody. Lacey and Raina just rolled their eyes at each other, but both were smiling.
“See Lace? It’s a good thing.” He winked at her and then led them through the hallways that ran under the arena.
Her parents got to meet most of the team and see the locker room. It was a quick tour since they had gotten there so late. Before she knew it, they were up in the suite. Zoe, Aidan and Gary were already attacking the catered food, but jumped up to greet Lacey’s parents when they came in.
Hugs were given all around, and Gary was introduced. Gary was always a little nervous about how people would treat him when they met him. Some people were fine with gay men, and some were not. His nervousness was short lived.
Raina gave him a hug, and Hunter warned him to be good to Aidan. “I feel like these two are mine, so I take it very personally if someone hurts them, understand?” He gave Gary his threatening look while he shook his hand.
“Yes, sir. I know how lucky I am to have him, sir.” Aidan put his arm around Gary’s shoulders, touched by his words.
“I’m the lucky one, Gary. And don’t worry, Hunter, I’ll put him in his place if he ever tries to leave me.”
The six of them sat down and waited for Jody’s mother and sister to get there while they ate their food. They walked in just before the game started. Lacey got up to greet them. “Where were you two? You came with Jody and Vlad, right?”
At the mention of Vlad, Karen got stars in her eyes. “He’s dreamy. I wouldn’t mind …”
Maddie didn’t let her finish her statement. “Stop. Do not finish that statement young lady.” She turned to Lacey to answer her question. “We were just walking around downstairs, checking out the stores. I bought myself a jersey. You like?”
“Of course I like. Best name on the team.” Lacey took them over and introduced them to everyone. Shortly after, the game began. Unfortunately, they lost, but it was a hard fought game. Vlad was in net and had a decent showing, but it just wasn’t enough and Montreal won in overtime.
Thanksgiving Day was indeed a happy day. Lacey loved having such a large gathering. Zoe, Aidan and Gary also joined them. Jody had invited Vlad, but he declined.
All of the men were watching football as the women cooked dinner and chatted about everything, but mostly men.
Lacey was in charge of the cranberry chutney, green bean casserole and coleslaw (her grandmom’s recipe). Maddie was making the stuffing and turkey. Karen couldn’t cook to save her life, so she was in charge of setting the table and cutting up the bread. Raina took charge of the candied sweet potatoes and double baked potatoes. The men had hit the liquor store and picked up the pies that they ordered from a lady a few houses down from Jody’s who used to be a baker. All of the bases were covered, and the aromas coming out of the kitchen were heavenly.
Lacey’s father got the honor of carving the turkey, and he did it the old fashioned way. He cut it right at the table and passed plates around until everyone had what they wanted. Looking around at all t
he people she loved, and the ones that she knew she would come to love just as much, was almost too much to take in. She honestly couldn’t remember the last time she felt so peaceful and happy.
Lacey got up to refill drinks. Jody followed her into the kitchen and wrapped his arms around her. She looked up at him and whispered, “Thank you.”
“For what, Lace?”
Lacey waved her arm over the counter that was laden with dishes. “For this. For you and your family. For opening your home to my family. For not taking no for an answer when I didn’t want a relationship. For so many things. Thank you.”
Jody stood there with his eyes closed and hugged her tighter. “Aw, Lace. You have no idea how thankful I am for you. I love you so much.”
The rest of the day was just as nice. At a little after eight o’clock, goodbyes were exchanged and everyone left. Lacey and her parents had to get up early the next morning to get her parents to the airport.
Three weeks after Thanksgiving, the Scorpions had their Christmas party. It was a black tie event, and Lacey was excited to go. Zoe had almost convinced her to wear the red dress that she made Lacey buy a while back. Lacey wasn’t sure if she had the nerve. She called Keith’s girlfriend to see what she was wearing, since Kelly had gone to the party the previous year.
“Hi Kelly, it’s Lacey. Do you have a minute?”
“Sure, Lacey. How are you?”
“Fine, thanks. I was wondering, what kind of dresses do the girls usually wear to the party?” She would die if she were the only one in such a sexy dress.
Kelly laughed. “Oh girl, we go all out. It’s like a red carpet of hockey girls. The sexier the dress – the better. We get our hair done, makeup done, the works. As a matter of fact, you could go with us if you want. We go to different salons in groups. We have room for one more.”
The Enforcer (NHL Scorpions) Page 24