Sarah smiled. The poor guy looked terrified. “I like the person fine, and he’ll enjoy my present. That’s all I’m saying.” It was kind of fun to mess with the guys’ heads.
“Okay,” Nikolai drawled, but grinned at her as they got off the elevator. “See you in there.”
Sarah placed the herring on the table before anyone else had a chance to ask her about it. Stopping to grab a drink, she chose a bottle of white wine standing in an ice bucket, no doubt there solely for her, then poured a glass.
She was joined by Nikolai, who said, “I keep your secret, don’t worry. It might cost. What you call it? Eh…bribe? Maybe I ask for kiss.”
Sarah knew better than to take the incorrigible flirt seriously, so she snorted. “You wish. Besides, you have a girlfriend. You know, Natalia?”
Laughing together, she and Nikolai walked over to a group of guys who were assembled around a table talking about Christmas plans. Sebastian came in with Rob and both of them set their presents down on the gift table, grabbed beers, and joined the festivities, which had now stretched to include three tables of rowdy partygoers all talking over each other to be heard.
With Rob on his other side, Sebastian sat down next to Sarah. He was as mouthwatering as ever in tight jeans that hugged his muscular thighs and a dress shirt with an extra button open at the top. She yearned to see more.
The guys didn’t seem bothered about walking around barely clothed in front of her. She had seen Sebastian’s finely-chiseled chest and six-pack abs, plus those two tattoos she was dying to ask about but didn’t dare, in the locker room more than once, but somehow her knowledge of his body didn’t diminish the thrill. She wanted in the worst way to rip that shirt to shreds and put her greedy hands all over him.
Sebastian’s individual male scent permeated her nostrils with every breath, and she fought to keep her mind away from the personal porno playing on a loop inside her head of her licking that scent from his skin. With no small amount of difficulty, she forced her attention back to the conversation.
Sebastian leaned in and whispered, “Joyeux Noël. Merry Christmas.”
She smiled and then went around his back to say Merry Christmas to Rob. That was a mistake. Her breast brushed Sebastian’s arm and he stiffened as waves of heat pulsing off his body blanketed Sarah. Her hand crept up to touch him, but she forced it back to her lap.
How was she supposed to keep things professional when she didn’t have another outlet for the surge of need she experienced every time she was in his presence?
She shook her head at her own foolishness. Even having another outlet, in the form of Dan, hadn’t worked. It hadn’t even scratched the surface of that need.
Sebastian was staring at her mouth. She shifted in the uncomfortable chair, but couldn’t relieve the pressure flowing to her sex. When her leg rubbed against his under the table, she let out a very un-ladylike curse, and several of the guys swung to stare at her.
“What?” she demanded, her voice coming out much louder than she’d intended, but no one questioned her further. There was no way she was going to chance checking what Sebastian’s reaction to her outburst was, but she could hear Rob snickering. Sebastian scooted his chair back a bit and she glared at Rob, but he grinned and she couldn’t stay mad.
“Merry Christmas, Rob.” She indicated the elaborately wrapped gift he’d placed on the table earlier. “That’s quite a package you’ve got there.”
As soon as the words were out of her mouth she started to repeat her curse from earlier but caught herself just in time. The guys were going to think she was losing it if she kept this up.
Rob smirked as if he was considering a filthy comeback then glanced at Sebastian. “I love Christmas, so I go all-out. Ask Sebastian.”
Sebastian rolled his eyes, but the effect was lessened by his expression, one of rueful indulgence. Then he grinned at her and her breath caught.
When he unleashed that killer smile, he was a force to be reckoned with. She’d seen countless girls and women throw themselves at him just because he’d smiled in their general direction. Of course, he was nothing but polite in return, but everywhere the team went, Sebastian left a wake of broken hearts behind. That damn smile had the same effect on her though, so despite the irrational need to tear every single one of those girls apart, she couldn’t blame them for their behavior.
“You should see it. It’s unreal. Our entire house is filled with Christmas crap.” Rob protested that it was his house, not their house, and he was only letting Sebastian stay there because he was such a nice guy, but Sebastian ignored him, turning in his chair to focus on Sarah. “I mean, I like Christmas as much as the next guy, but he goes overboard. With garlands, wreaths, three trees, and enough lights to keep the dead awake, it’s like Christmas threw up in there.”
Sarah laughed at the assessment and the image it brought up. “Really? I find it hard to believe Rob would go overboard on anything. He’s the picture of good taste.” Rob stuck his tongue out at her, but she continued. “I haven’t even put up a tree. I doubt I’ll bother with so little time until Christmas.”
Rob’s mouth fell open in shock. “No tree? You’re kidding me! You’ve gotta have a tree!”
“Well, it’s not easy lugging a big ole’ tree into the house and setting it up when you’re a single woman living alone—well, aside from my renters—and besides, who would care if I put one up?”
Sarah could see Rob’s mind working and she wasn’t at all sure she wanted to know what his overly creative imagination was concocting. He didn’t leave her in suspense for long though.
“Tell you what, after the exchange, Sebastian and I will change and go get you a tree. We’ll even get a stand and come set it up for you. She’s got to have a tree, eh?” Rob, a small, evil smile playing up the sides of his mouth, regarded Sebastian.
Sebastian glared at Rob for a moment but said nothing.
Sarah panicked. No way could she have these guys in her house. Seeing Sebastian every day was bad enough, but to deal with him in an intimate setting like her house?
Might as well tag and bag me. There would be no way she’d live through the ordeal.
“Guys, thanks for the kind offer, but you don’t have to do that. It’s no big deal.”
Rob wouldn’t be dissuaded though and continued to insist she had to have a tree. She was mercifully saved from giving a final answer when Scott, dressed in a Santa costume, sauntered into the room, followed by several staff members bearing loads of brightly wrapped gifts.
Scott grabbed his fake tummy. “Merry Christmas!” he roared. “Before we do the Secret Santa, I have a few gifts for everybody. They’re all the same, so everyone gets a big one and a small one, including on- and off-ice staff.”
Inside each large box from Scott was a framed Storm team picture from that season. The Storm had done the traditional team picture, but this one had been taken by a photographer hired to take shots of the players in street clothes. Those black-and-white images hung along the concourses of the arena and featured each player by himself. The thinking had been that fans would better identify with the players if they knew what they looked like without their helmets and other paraphernalia.
The photographer had also come to practice one day in early November and taken the group picture, which now hung as a mural stretching across the walkway between the parking garage and arena, of the team and staff as they leaned against or sat on the boards. The players had removed their jerseys to keep with the laid-back theme of the picture. Some sported pads or one of the ubiquitous Storm shirts or hats they were given to wear to publicize the team. Others had on the ratty stuff they wore underneath their jerseys to practice.
Everyone was laughing and talking in small groups, many of them not even looking at the camera. The casualness of the scene gave the picture a very cool, artsy feel, if you could say that about a picture of a bunch of hockey players. She, of course, looked like a dork next to all the guys, but she loved the picture an
yway.
After that, they all opened the smaller presents. Inside were an iPod and a gift card to iTunes. Everyone laughed when they saw the iPods had already been loaded with a few choice songs like “We are the Champions,” “Another One Bites the Dust,” “Welcome to the Jungle,” “Enter Sandman,” “Eye of the Tiger,” and others Jordan played before games, as well as the team’s official music score, the sound of the goal horn, and a compilation of calls from their iconic play-by-play announcer.
The guys appeared surprised to receive the iPods, and expressed their thanks to Scott as he did the rounds through the tables. The team’s previous owners, being the thieving bastards they were, never would’ve done something like this, and Sarah was sure the players were touched by Scott’s thoughtfulness.
Jordan and Rick, who had appointed themselves the elves for the party, grabbed the Secret Santa gifts off the table and distributed them. Sarah smirked at an image in her mind’s eye of the hulking Rick in an elf costume. It was hard to say if it would be amusing or nightmare-inducing.
Sarah’s present was a small envelope, most likely bearing a gift certificate, which didn’t surprise her in the least. As the lone female among the hockey operations staff, she doubted any of the guys would’ve had a clue about what to get her.
Ignoring her own gift for the moment, Sarah kept an eye on Fredrik, who was staring at the shopping bag Jordan had gingerly set on the table while making exaggerated retching sounds. Finally, Frederik opened the bag and a smile lit up his face. The other players seated with him moved their chairs to the opposite side of the table, teasing him about the stench.
She waited until Fredrik reached in and pulled out the Tupperware container. He opened it, much to the chagrin of his tablemates, and then dipped a finger into the sauce. He grinned and nodded, and Sarah could see his mind working about who would’ve done something like that.
Sarah turned away before he could line up suspects and opened her own gift. As she’d suspected, a gift certificate to a local mall was inside. Sensing someone’s eyes on her, she glanced up to see Ben looking at her, a small smile playing over his face.
Ah, the culprit. Sarah guessed his wife, Jaela, was behind the gift. Otherwise, God only knew what she would’ve ended up with. She could imagine what Rick would’ve given her—a wrench, new floor mats for her car with a zebra pattern, a boa constrictor—she shuddered to even think about it.
Sarah watched other people open their presents. Marc got a bottle of high-end whiskey, Rick received a bunch of CDs, and Jon got a “Coaching for Dummies” book and a new set of markers for the white board located in the locker room. The players had affectionately dubbed the large dry-erase board that spanned one entire wall in the locker room “The Bible.”
Rob opened a set of cufflinks with the monogram “DON”—his nickname, given to him because of the flashy suits he wore. With his short, stocky physique, he could pass for a convincing mob hit man. He was a gym rat, and he was built like a tank, with a thick neck and well-muscled shoulders tapering down to a smaller waist. Considering he was well under six feet tall, being stocky was the only way he could survive in the rough-and-tumble world of the NHL.
Sebastian was the last at their table to open his gift, and, upon seeing the contents, murmured, “Mon Dieu.” With wide eyes, he stared at the box. His present was a Hustler magazine, some lubricating lotion, and several porno DVDs. Sarah guessed it was part of the unofficial year-long rookie hazing program the guys on the hockey team appeared to adhere to.
Sebastian flushed as the rest of the guys gathered around to get a better look at the magazine. He passed it off to Rick like it was a live grenade, and Rick didn’t disappoint, flipping through it and making typically male comments about the women inside. At this point none of the guys bothered to censor their words around her, which was fine. Most of them were decent and would never treat a woman badly.
A brief flash of her confrontation with Jaroslav flitted through her mind. Since that time in her office, they’d avoided each other for the most part. He was there today, but she didn’t feel threatened. The team had forced him into counseling, and she thought it had helped, from what she could see. Jaroslav had even apologized to her when he’d been allowed to come back to the team.
A gift certificate fell out of the magazine, and Sarah picked it up and handed it to Sebastian, who appeared rooted to his seat, his face dark red in embarrassment. He usually took the hazing in stride, but now appeared as if he’d pay someone a small fortune to show him an escape path.
“At least it’s not a total loss,” she told him, noting the gift certificate was to one of Buffalo’s best restaurants.
While the guys gave opinions on the DVDs or jockeyed for a better view of the magazine, Sarah got up to get herself more wine. Would Sebastian use his present? Some of the guys rented porn when they were bored on the road, but Sebastian didn’t seem like the type.
“Boys will be boys,” Rob said, joining her. “He’s a rookie. You’ve seen the way rookies get treated. I’m not even a rookie, and look what I got.” He held up the cufflinks, and Sarah nodded with a smirk.
Despite what he said, the gift suited him. “I saw them. Are you going to wear them?”
“Yeah, totally. I have to. After all, I am ‘The Don.’” He chuckled. “I bet they’ll go great when I break out the white zoot suit during the playoffs.”
Sarah barked out a laugh. “Nice image.”
He moved closer and lowered his voice. “You know Sebastian isn’t going to do anything with that stuff, right? He doesn’t go in for that kind of thing. I mean, look at him. Does he seem like a guy who would get a rise from Hustler? He’s trying to be cool about it, but he’s horrified.”
Sarah dropped her voice. “Why are you telling me this? I thought you were against us getting together.”
“And I still am. Sebastian is a good guy and one of my best friends. The kid’s got the purest heart of anybody I’ve ever met. Right now you’re kind of playing with him, Sarah, and that’s not cool.”
Before she could say anything in response, Rick called out, “Sarah, Rob, what are guys doing over there? Trading secrets?”
“If we were we wouldn’t tell you,” Rob retorted. “You’re worse at keeping secrets than a thirteen-year-old girl. Or Doug.”
Rick grinned. “Hey, I resemble that remark. Well, not the Doug part. I’m much hotter.”
Doug leaned over from his seat at an adjacent table and whacked Rick upside the head.
Fredrik stopped in front of her as she walked back to the table, winked, and said, “I think you made the fish.” Sarah smiled but remained silent. “You are only one who can cook. These guys don’t cook, at least I hope they didn’t or I might die.” He beamed and put his hands to his throat in a choking motion.
“Yeah, I guess it wasn’t too hard to figure out since these guys aren’t gourmets. I couldn’t believe it when most of them said ketchup was the one thing they always have in their fridge. Whatever happened to actual food? Ketchup is not food!”
Fredrik laughed then leaned toward her, whispering, “I think I will leave fish out. Is annoying everyone and funny.”
Now Sarah laughed too. “Hey, whatever gives you a rush.”
“Thank you for making it. It means much to me to have good Finnish food.”
“No problem. I’m glad you liked it. You may be the only one who likes it, but you’re the important one anyway.”
As everyone continued to talk amongst themselves, Sarah sat once again. Sebastian’s gifts, which had been abandoned by the players in favor of other pursuits, were a good distance across the table and the poor guy was watching them as if they might bite. Sarah noted the expression on his face and snickered. “They got you good, you have to admit that.”
He grinned and blushed, and Sarah was happy to see the set of his shoulders relax. “Yeah, that’s the problem with being a rookie, you get treated like shit. At least I got a gift certificate out of it.”
> Rob leaned down. “So do you want us to go get you a tree?”
Sarah shook her head, waving him off. “That’s not necessary.” I can’t trust myself with Sebastian. Doesn’t Rob know that?
Again, Rob would hear none of her protests. He insisted she couldn’t have Christmas without a tree. If she kept arguing, people would notice, so she relented, giving him her address.
“Give us a few hours and we’ll be over.”
“No problem. I’ll even feed you dinner. After the trouble you’re going to, it’s the least I can do. I’ve been told you guys don’t mind being guinea pigs if it means you don’t have to cook.” Though she tried to ignore it, a combination of excitement and nervousness took up residence in the pit of her stomach. Sebastian was coming to her house, whether she was ready for him or not.
****
Sebastian and Rob piled into Rob’s truck and Sebastian turned to his friend. “Why did you insist we go get this tree for Sarah?”
After turning the key in the ignition, Rob shrugged. “She’s lonely. She lives by herself and she’s not close to her family. I don’t think she has a ton of friends, either. No one should have to go through the Christmas season like that.”
“And that’s the only reason?”
Rob leaned back in the seat. “Look, man, this whole thing with Sarah is getting out of hand. I don’t support the idea of you guys being together, but at this point I think it’s the inevitable conclusion.”
“You say it like Sarah and I are a bomb or something.”
“Hell, you might be. I don’t think it’s going to turn out well, but neither of you are willing to give the other up or move on, so I don’t see a better solution.”
“Wow. I can’t believe you said that.” Sebastian’s head was spinning and he couldn’t figure out if he should be angry Rob had done this or grateful someone was forcing him into making a move.
Rob put the truck in gear. “It’s not that crazy. I’m getting tired of it, so you guys must be seriously losing your shit. I like both of you, and if being together is the only thing that’s going to make you happy, then that’s what I think you should do. I am very much not on board with you dating someone who’s practically a coach, but if you’re in love with her and can’t be happy without her, then I guess I need to support you as your friend. Now let’s go get a tree. I’m hungry again and Sarah said she’d feed us.”
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