by Toni Aleo
“Gideon Aguilar.”
“Yeah, good to meet you, man. Hope I didn’t cramp your style.”
“Don’t worry about it. It’s all good.” Gideon frowned as they exited the men’s room. “Did I see you on a billboard or am I just imagining things?”
Ian laughed. “No, that’s me all right. Got a sweet sponsorship deal.” He patted his stomach. “I have killer abs. What can I say?”
“You have killer farts, is what you have,” someone remarked.
“Fuck you, Baxter. You meet the new guy yet? Aguilar?”
Gideon went through another introduction, all the while wanting to get back up to Bailey. He didn’t want her to think he’d abandoned her, but the guys were herding him to the bar telling him he had to buy the next round.
Chapter Seven
About five seconds after Gideon left, Bailey realized she should hit the restroom too. She didn’t want to return to the party looking like she’d just had hot rooftop sex, even if said rooftop sex had been the most incredible sexual experience of her life.
She still felt stunned by it all. There had been none of the fumbling or uncertainty that usually pervaded spontaneous encounters like this. Not once had she wondered about faking it to get him to finish faster or wished she hadn’t let it get this far. In fact, nothing could have been farther from the truth. Everything he’d done had turned her on. He’d been so sure of himself and yet gentle at the same time. She’d never come with someone the first time they were together. In her experience, it took a few practice runs and here Gideon had made her come twice.
Bailey was in a stall just about to flush when the door to the ladies room opened.
“I’m telling you, Maya,” a woman said, “you can barely see the scars. I’m one hundred percent certain he wouldn’t be dating me if I hadn’t gotten them done.”
“They look really natural, Shay.”
“You should feel them. They feel like the real thing.”
“No, it’s okay. How much were they again?”
“Five thousand.”
Maya gasped.
“I know. That’s higher than average but this doctor was worth it. Not everyone is born with a chest like yours.”
Bailey wasn’t sure if she should make herself known or not then figured, if they were concerned about privacy, they’d have checked under the stall doors for feet. She was just about to stand up when…
“Speaking of chests,” Shay said, “did you see who the new guy was with?”
“Are you talking about Mr. Holy Guacamole?” Maya asked.
“Yeah. I don’t know his name, but he looks like he could be Antonio Banderas’s brother.”
“That’s him. I didn’t see his date.”
“Oh my God, it looked like he picked her up off the street in Chinatown. Her dress looked like it was from Target and she’s flatter than I used to be and that’s saying a lot.”
Bailey’s face heated with embarrassment and she carefully collected handfuls of her dress so that it wouldn’t be visible. Like every other red-blooded American woman, she had some minor body issues. She did wish she had more in the chest department. She didn’t think her sense of fashion was keen either, so Shay’s barbs went straight to Bailey’s vulnerable underbelly.
Thankfully, the door closed and Bailey breathed a sigh of relief.
Intellectually, Bailey knew that some men weren’t that particular about boob size, but figured they were probably the ones who were grateful to have access to any boobs. Hotties like Gideon could afford to be choosy.
Had he slept with her? Yes.
Had he paid any attention to her breasts?
She sighed.
Not really.
She flushed the toilet, left the stall and as she washed her hands, she peered into the mirror. She didn’t look anything like the other women here. With the exception of Dakota, they were all tall, blonde and busty—beautiful in every way that Bailey wasn’t. Nor did she resemble the girls in her family everyone cooed over. She had not inherited porcelain skin or a pouty mouth. No one had ever called her lithe or graceful.
Exasperated with herself, she stuck her tongue out at her reflection.
“This is what you have to work with, girl, so don’t knock it. It was good enough to snag Gideon Aguilar for one night, wasn’t it?”
Temporarily, yes. But the upside to hearing those girls talk was that her eyes were opened to reality. This wasn’t a fairy tale where the village girl got the prince. This was real life where girls with the finest boobs money could buy caught the professional athletes.
Yes, she’d monopolized him for a few hours, but she should leave now and avoid the awkwardness of him assuring her he’d call when she knew damn well he wouldn’t. She prided herself on being a person who was happy most of the time and the key to that was being grateful for what you had and not yearning in vain for things that were out of your reach. This was the perfect time for her to put that tenet to the test.
She’d had a once-in-a-lifetime experience tonight—one that hundreds of thousands of hockey fan girls would give an ovary to have.
She’d attended the Christmas party of the San Francisco Dragons hockey team.
She’d hobnobbed with every player on the team.
She’d been made love to by the sexiest man she’d ever met.
Time to cut her losses.
Chapter Eight
Gideon called out Bailey’s name as he fast-walked around the roof. He got no answer because she wasn’t here. Damn it.
He went back inside and started asking random people if they’d seen her. No one had.
After searching the top two floors with no sign of her, he was beginning to think she’d taken off for some reason. Maybe there had been of some kind of emergency.
Thinking the valet would know for sure if she’d gone, he went outside to the little stand.
“Dude, I’m looking for—”
“The Lady in Red? Missed her by that much.” The kid held his index finger and thumb close together.
“Damn it. She didn’t happen to mention why she was leaving, did she?”
“Nope.”
“Did she, er, leave a message for me?”
Gideon had to give the kid credit for not laughing at that ridiculous question.
“No. Sorry.”
Dejected, Gideon looked up and down the street as if by some miracle he’d spot her electric blue Prius. He didn’t, but he had one last hope. Maybe Cam or Dakota had a lead he could follow.
“Bailey left and I didn’t get her phone number,” he said when he found them inside the restaurant.
“She must have found out about your obsession with Celine Dion,” Cam said. Then he saw Gideon’s stony expression. “Sorry, dude.”
That got Cam a light punch in the arm. “You hockey players never stop teasing,” Dakota said.
“It’s in our DNA,” Cam admitted.
“I don’t even know her last name,” Gideon said. “Did she tell you guys what it is?”
Dakota shook her head. “Cam?”
“No. I just knew her as Bailey.”
“Okay, thanks.”
“Don’t worry,” Dakota said reassuringly. “I’m sure she’ll get ahold of you.”
Chapter Nine
Bailey met Indigo the next day for dim sum brunch. Indigo, having had dim sum with Bailey a couple of times before, wasn’t shy about requesting her favorites from the passing carts—the barbecued pork bun, shao mai, the sticky rice bundles. Bailey had offered to pay, so Indigo was ordering like they were expecting a battalion of teenaged boys.
“Hey, all this stuff is good left over,” Indigo said defensively after Bailey raised an eyebrow.
After she’d poured soy sauce on her plate, Indigo said, “So I’ve decided to grant you clemency for your Girl Code Misdemeanor last night. You may thank me by passing the shao mai.”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Bailey said, handing her the small metal steaming dish, “but I told
you why.”
“Yes, I remember. You went to a party with NHL player Gideon Aguilar, another violation of the Code, which clearly states when a girl is invited to a killer party at which famous people will be, said girl must invite her BFF along.”
“Indi, come on, that would have been awkward.”
Indigo gave her a deadpan stare. “Awkward schmawkward. Are we BFFs or not?”
“We are. And I guess I could have asked if you could come. I’m sorry.”
“Apology accepted. Now tell me all the details. Leave nothing out or I’ll be forced to make you buy me dinner too.”
The truth was Bailey was dying to share what happened with someone. It was almost as if it hadn’t really happened if Bailey was the only one who knew about it. So she told her story from the moment Gideon hopped into her car to the moment when she fled the restaurant, checking her rearview mirror to see if he was standing on the sidewalk watching her drive away. She mentioned the rooftop sex, but didn’t go into detail.
Indigo took a bite of a steamed barbecued pork bun. “What are you going to do?”
Bailey shrugged. “Nothing. What can I do? I’m not going to go chasing after him and embarrass myself.”
“Pfft. The way I Iook at it, you have nothing to lose.” Indigo leaned forward. “What if he really likes you? What if, when he found out you weren’t on the roof where he left you, he looked everywhere, desperate to find you? What if even now he’s cursing himself for having let you go without getting contact information? Did you think of that, Cinderella?”
“Cinderella? What are you talking about?” Bailey asked.
Indigo rolled her eyes. “After attending the ball, Cinderella flees and the Prince turns the kingdom upside down looking for the girl who captured his heart. That’s you and Gideon.”
Bailey took a bite of one of the luscious custard tarts called daahn taat. “They must have spiked your tea because you’re talking crazy talk. There is absolutely no way that Gideon Aguilar has even thought twice about me since that night. To him, I’m sure it was like losing a pen he liked. It’s no big deal because he can just get another pen.”
“Girl, you are not an office supply. You’re an amazing person. He must have liked you. He invited you to the party. And he made tender love to you under the light of the mother-effing moon.”
“I never said it was tender.”
Eyes going wide, Indigo made a startled squeak.
Bailey waved a hand in exasperation. “Look, it was just sex. That’s all it was. Two people occupying themselves with a pleasurable activity for a little while.”
“You know, someone who doesn’t know you as well as I do might have actually bought that, but I know better. You. Don’t. Have. Casual. Sex.”
“Apparently, I do when it’s a hockey player,” Bailey mumbled.
“That’s not a crime, but I’ll tell you what is. Not following through. At least look at social media and see if he posted about you.”
“I will not,” Bailey exclaimed, signaling the waitress to indicate she was ready to pay the bill. “I won’t stoop.”
“Fine. I have to go to the bathroom,” Indigo said.
Five minutes later, Indigo returned looking sad. “Well, he doesn’t seem to be much for social media.”
“I thought you went to the bathroom.”
“I lied. I just wanted some time to stalk him without being interrupted. He has a Twitter account, but he posts something about once a year and usually it’s for some kind of charity work. Same with Instagram and Facebook. But don’t give up hope. You never know. I’m going to keep checking for you.”
Bailey appreciated Indigo’s optimism but knew it was a waste of time.
Later that Sunday evening, out of some perverse desire to torture herself, she watched the Dragons play the Jets on TV. Gideon busted his butt. He played with focused energy every moment he was on the ice. There were a few misfires but that was to be expected. He wasn’t used to playing with his defensive partner yet. Still, he was instrumental in more than a couple defensive plays.
For a moment, she let herself imagine what it would be like to be Gideon’s girlfriend and be at the game, rooting for him in person. Her heart rate zoomed into the triple digits as she thought about the excitement and pride she would feel. She would congratulate him when he won and console him when he lost. And then she told herself she was being an idiot. Like she’d told Indigo, it was just a one-night stand.
Chapter Ten
During the week since the Christmas party, Gideon and Cam became friends and when Dakota found out he’d been staying in a hotel, she insisted he bunk with them until he found his own place.
Dakota had just served their game day meal—delicious poached salmon on a bed of pasta with lemon, olive oil, red pepper flakes and garlic. Cam and Dakota’s little girl was having a snack with them. She sat at the table swinging her legs back and forth and doing a word-search puzzle.
“So I think you should find a house here in this neighborhood,” Dakota said. “Quite a few Dragons live here. Some of them carpool to practice and the airport, Cam included. It’s a great place to raise kids—some of the best schools, too.”
“Do you have any kids?” Zinny asked. “Because I could be their buddy at school.”
Gideon smiled. Zinny was one of the most adorable little girls he’d ever met. “No, I don’t have any kids. I don’t even have a girlfriend.”
“What happened to Bailey?” Dakota asked.
“Nothing. Unfortunately, it’s almost impossible to find someone when you don’t even know their last name.”
“What do you know about her?” Zinny asked.
“Well, she makes me laugh. She’s smart and funny and adventurous. She can do origami and she’s an excellent listener.”
“Dude,” Cam said. “If she hasn’t tried to get a hold of you, she probably isn’t interested.”
Dakota shook her head. “If I didn’t know better, Cameron Bowes, I’d say you didn’t have a romantic bone in your body. Honestly.” She turned to Gideon. “She seemed very interested to me at the party. Maybe she’s intimidated.”
Gideon scoffed.
“Look at it from her point of view. You’re an NHL player. She’s a fan,” Dakota said. “It would be like me trying to contact Chris Pine after talking to him at a party.”
Except we did a lot more than talk, Gideon thought.
“You like Chris Pine?” Cam asked.
She gave him a look. “This isn’t about you, Mr. Fragile Ego. It’s about Gideon and his future happiness. Try and be helpful.”
“Okay, here’s an idea,” Cam said. “How about you get a private detective? I bet a P.I. could track her down, no problem.”
“And that wouldn’t be creepy at all. ‘Hi, Bailey, I really wanted to see you again even though you don’t seem to want to see me, so I hired a detective to find you.’”
Dakota had her lips pressed together in amusement. “Yeah, that does sound a little stalkerish.”
“Only if you tell her,” Cam said.
“Cam, don’t encourage him to be dishonest with his future wife.”
“Future…?” Cam looked flabbergasted and Gideon intervened.
“I’m not hiring a P.I.”
“Oh my God!” Dakota exclaimed, slapping her hands on the table.
She startled everyone, even the dogs in the corner.
“Koko, you scared me!” Zinny said.
“I’m sorry, sweetie. I just remembered something.” She turned to the men. “When you went to get us the daiquiris, she and I talked for a bit and she told me where she works.”
Gideon leaned forward. “Where? Tell me.”
She held up a hand. “Not so fast. I’ll tell you, provided you promise to be my first ProMeal client.”
Dakota had told him she was starting up a meal service for professional athletes. She’d done a lot of research on what pro athletes need for energy and recovery and developed a menu of fresh or frozen meals tha
t she delivered. All a guy had to do was heat them up. It sounded like a done deal to Gideon, who could cook, but didn’t particularly like to.
“Done. Sign me up for a month. Sound good?”
Dakota beamed. “Perfect.”
“Now tell me how I can find her.”
“She works on the cable cars.”
“What?” both men exclaimed.
“I thought only men did that. That job is really physical,” Cam said.
“No, she’s not the grip man. She’s a conductor.”
“When did you find this out?” Gideon asked, excited that he finally had a real lead.
“When you guys were at the bar getting our daiquiris.”
Gideon stood up. “Can I borrow your car, please?”
“Hold on there,” Cam said. “You’re just going to go to some random stop and hope she’ll be on the car that picks you up? We have a game tonight, dude. Right? What time is it?”
“Three past two,” Gideon replied.
“There. See?” Cam said. “You’ve got to finish eating and nap. Don’t screw with your routine now. You’ve been fucking killing it lately and she’s not going anywhere. Take your time. One more day isn’t going to hurt. Jesus.”
Unfortunately, Cam was right. Gideon would be stupid to fiddle with his routine now, not when he was doing so well. His minutes on the ice had doubled since his debut as a Dragon and like a lot of hockey players he was a little superstitious.
“You’re right,” Gideon said. But as soon as he could, he was going to follow this lead and find Bailey.
Chapter Eleven
Bailey had only been a cable car conductor for two months and she loved her job but the cable car crews were ninety-five percent male and it had been a little rough so far. She and Indigo had gotten hired at the same time as part of a diversity initiative and despite the fact that many of them were of minority races, some of the guys were resentful. A few didn’t want any women on the crew and made oblique suggestions to that effect.