by Mignon Mykel
When a group of guys collectively looks at a girl, trying not to be obvious, it generally has the opposite effect. And it’s unnerving.
I couldn’t help but wonder what they’d been talking about. But maybe I was better left in the dark.
With a quick shake of my head, I forced myself to file it all away for another day. I was just another fan with an adolescent crush on a guy who didn’t know she existed.
A few days later, I was minding my own business at the mall.
Honestly, I was.
I had my head down and I was lost in thought while thumbing through my receipts.
Anyway I digress. I was minding my own business at the mall when I collided into someone. Usually I’m good about being aware of my surrounding when I zone, but this time I complete missed the voices as they were nearing me. As I went to apologize though, the words became lodged in my throat.
I had run into Jason Thompson who, by luck of course, wasn’t by himself but with another player, Kyle Connor. I gapped up at them, not sure what to say. Without much thought, I blurted, “Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness, I am so sorry.”
Wonderful. That sounded great.
“Hey, no big deal,” Jason said. “Are you alright?” One hand in his pocket, he used the other to pull the beanie on his head down farther over his hair. Longer and blond, it curled over the edges.
“Yeah, just…. a little startled,” I said, going for honest. “I really am sorry. I wasn’t paying attention and nearly forgot where I was and—”
Kyle cut me off. “It’s not a big deal. We weren’t paying that much attention either, I guess. We could have moved.”
“You’re Ryleigh, right?” Jason asked.
And just like that, folks, my stomach plummeted. He remembered who I was.
Of course he remembered who I was. I wasn’t the most graceful when putting Sage’s skates on the other day.
“You’re a hockey fan, yeah?”
I nodded and pretended to look for my phone. I knew where this conversation was going and I’d rather not have it.
“How’s your… niece, was it? How is she doing? She seemed to enjoy the skate the other day.”
“Oh, she’s not really my niece.” Doh. Why do I always feel the need to explain myself? “Look,” I said, changing subject. “I have to go. I’m really sorry for bumping into you.”
Kyle nodded while Jason looked to the ground. One of her receipts had fluttered to the ground after the collision. “Here,” Jason said as he bent to retrieve it. “Got a pen?”
Confused, I took one out of my bag and handed it to him.
I was always prepared like that.
Watching him write quickly, I could feel myself blushing. I was pretty sure that was a phone number.
Jason handed me back my pen and the receipt. “You seem like you could be fun to hang out with.”
Psh. Who was he kidding? He should save the compliments for someone who could handle them.
“If you want to party or hang out or something, give me a call.”
Right. I’d get right on that. Sometime within the next zillion years or so.
Rather than saying that, it would be rude of course, I thanked him, apologized again, and went to move around them before Jason spoke again. “Don’t run into anyone else. Safety first.”
…and I thought I couldn’t blush any deeper.
I somehow found myself invited to the team’s holiday party.
Don’t ask.
Ok, do ask. I gave in that night and text Jason, telling him to just text me instead if, you know, the desire to hang out was that great. Well, just like a man, he didn’t listen and called me right away. He invited me to the party and clarified that it was just as a friend, reiterating yet again how fun he thought I would be to hang out with.
Seriously. Who was he looking at when he said that?
I maybe muttered something about alcohol not being my friend and he responded that I could always take one of the rooms. The party was being held at the new hotel that was built near the arena after San Diego announced the team. He even offered me a ride.
After mulling it over, I decided to just do it. I mean, I don’t really go out much and it could be fun. I’d just stick close to Jason. I’m not really a social kind of girl. I handle my school room of elementary school kids fine, the eight and under crowd didn’t bother me at all, and when I’m running a photoshoot I’m good because it’s generally only one, two, maybe a handful of people. But a holiday party, where the team and their guests and who the hell else knows would all be there… That was the type of crowd I tended to keep myself away from.
My mind flashed to Noah’s face; I worked hard to shut that down, the ever-constant thinking of the man I didn’t even know. He would be there. It was his team’s party. Maybe I could still manage to avoid him. Finally manage to put him behind me.
As it currently was, I was standing in the middle of my now littered room, dresses surrounding my feet. The latest to be torn off was a strapless blue one that didn’t do my figure any justice. It made my upper body look great, but it didn’t do a whole lot for the pudge around my belly.
Maybe if I chose a darker dress…
Eyes wide, I remembered I had a little black dress… somewhere. I bought it because my mother had instilled in me that black dresses were always a great item to have in one’s clothing inventory, her words. With a small smile, I remembered telling her that I’d never need one but she just smiled and said someday, I just might.
My mom passed away from breast cancer three years ago so any reminder of her made my heart happy. With a little sigh, I set to work on finding this dress I bought at her urging, but never figured I’d need.
After tearing apart my already battle-worn room, I finally found it in a storage container under my bed. It was a simple dress with a rounded square neck and one inch straps, but it still made a statement. I pulled it on and walked to my full-length mirror to inspect.
Perfect. It fit in all the right places and hid all the wrong sights.
Next? Shoes.
I knew just the pair. They were super comfortable and I had them in both nude and black; once you found a comfy heel, you didn’t mess with a good thing. I had them in two colors and could wear them for any occasion.
Deciding to go with nude, I slipped my feet in the four inch heeled pumps and again, looked myself over in the mirror.
Turning this way and that, I smiled to myself.
Damn, I actually looked kind of pretty. And that was without the hair and makeup!
And surprisingly, I wasn’t feeling nerves.
At the moment.
We’d reevaluate in an hour.
Chapter Five
I really didn’t dig holiday parties.
I liked the booster club parties and the pre- and post-season festivities that teams put on, but holiday parties were a bit too stuffy for me.
While we didn’t have to go all away-game attire on it, we did still have to wear slacks. Thankfully we could ditch the ties and sport coats.
I was messy-spiking my normally, well, messy hair when in the mirror I saw Jason Thompson come barreling into the apartment. He didn’t even live in this complex, so what the hell he was doing here was beyond me. He had to go past the hotel this shindig was being held at in order to get here.
I could see him go to the kitchen where I assumed he grabbed one of my beers to shoot the shit with Caine. He didn’t like Caine’s big name brews but gravitated toward my local microbrewery ones.
I was going to make him start paying, the shit.
I didn’t see him leave, but when I went into the kitchen when I was finished, I saw one of my beers sitting on the counter.
Only a quarter gone.
“That fucker’s going to start paying. Stop fucking drinking my beer, fuckface.”
Caine grinned slowly and chuckled, shaking his head. “You’ll forgive him.”
“That’s shit’s expensive.” There really wasn’t hea
t in my voice, because let’s be honest, I could afford it, but shit. Respect, man.
“It’s a fall beer, Press; they’ve moved on to their winter lagers.”
“All the more reason to savor it.”
“Whatever. You done in the bathroom, Beauty?”
I didn’t know if he was referencing a princess or using hockey slang, but it didn’t matter either way. “Hey now, some of us like to look good,” I said, running my hands down my light blue button down dress shirt and tucked my hands in the pockets of my brown slacks. I shrugged and grinned. “Can’t help it that I’m pretty. You probably should stop breaking your nose.”
“Ladies like the ruggedness.” If I played that way, I would admit Caine was a good looking guy too. He was already dressed for tonight and honestly, the guy’s hair was so short that styling was pointless.
His nose was crooked, though.
As Nick left earlier to be with his fiancée and Teague actually spent the previous night at his lady friend’s, it was just Caine and I. “You going to fix your mug before we go, or you ready?” Between the four of us, we actually did a lot more carpooling than people probably realized.
“Two seconds,” he said before draining his beer. He slammed the glass bottle down on the counter with a shmuck-y grin. “I’m good.”
He moved toward the keys and grabbed my truck keys. “You’re driving.” He tossed them at me and I caught them almost a moment too late.
“You’re paying gas, then.” When he didn’t move to grab his own keys to change his mind, I simply followed him out.
The truck was the better choice anyway.
Finally, my hair and makeup were done.
Similar to the dress mishap, I had a similar problem with my hair. Up, down, half-do. Eventually I had no choice but to wash it, dry it, and curl it all over again. While the curls were setting, I put on my face then finger combed my curls for a result of long, thick banana curls.
I glanced out my window to see if I spotted the car Jason said he’d be arriving in and when I didn’t, I decided I should go find my sunglasses for the drive. The sun was just about to set and was harsh on the eyes.
Just before I could go search for them though, the doorbell rang.
Oh shoot.
Guess I didn’t time this as well as I thought I did.
I walk-ran in my heels to my room, hopeful that my sunglasses were on my dresser. Thankfully they were, so I was able to walk-run back the other direction, grab my keys, and head down the stairs that lead to both my garage door and the front door. On the bottom step sat my purse.
Yes, I put my purse on the bottom step.
I didn’t usually use it; I was more of a pocket person, so I needed every reminder to grab it. Before picking it up, though, I shrugged into my peacoat. Suddenly, I was awash with nerves and butterflies.
I shouldn’t have agreed to this. This wasn’t my scene, this wasn’t what I did. Oh my gosh, I should just cancel. I’d just open the door and tell Jason I had an emergency. Yeah, that’s what I would do.
The doorbell rang again and just as I went to pull open the door, excuse on my tongue, a little voice whispered, “Just do it. It’s just one night.”
It was just one night.
That’s all. Just one night. I could do this.
I could freaking do this.
I hadn’t seen Jason’s car because he parked it in the mini lot in front of the building next to mine. He said there hadn’t been space at the time, but there were two open spots right in front of my door. Whatever.
I buckled myself into his fancy sport car convertible, which definitely seemed his type. It was black with tinted windows and had a full-stereo system. “So,” I started. I figured I could get my big girl panty questions out of the way so I wouldn’t have to be preoccupied with them all night. “Noah has a girlfriend, doesn’t he?”
I glanced over at Jason and decided he cleaned up pretty nicely. I was honestly expecting him to have a beanie on his head, but instead his curly hair was free and he wore khakis and a nice dress shirt.
“Yeah, I think so,” he said, glancing over his shoulder as he pulled back out of the parking spot.
I tried to hide my disappointment with a quick grin. “Damn,” I said in what I hoped was a jesting voice. “Well, I guess you don’t get to be that gorgeous and not have a girlfriend.”
Jason chuckled as he maneuvered us out of the complex’s lot. “Are you telling me I’m not good looking?”
Eye wide, I caught my mistake. Jason didn’t have a girlfriend, and if you put one statement with the other… “Oh no, Jason. No. You are good looking, just… You’re just not my cup of tea.”
Well, if that didn’t make me sound eighty.
“Not your cup of tea, ‘eh?” he repeated with a grin.
“I’m sorry?”
With just a chuckle, he drove. After a few minutes of surprisingly comfortable silence, I broke it. “Tell me about yourself.” The devil on my shoulder scolded me for prying where I didn’t belong so I quickly amended, “Or don’t. Just looking for something to talk about.”
Jason glanced at me briefly but decided to play along. “Well. I’ve been playing hockey forever. My family is originally from Canada. My older brother, Jamie, plays in the NHL for Ontario, and I also have an eighteen year old sister. She’s a gymnast. Missed the Canadian Olympic team by a hair.”
“Is you family super un-normal when it comes to sports? Please tell me someone is normal,” I asked, grinning wide.
“Sports were always important in my family. But I guess there’s hope for normal?”
When I didn’t say anything, he added, “My dad remarried and I have a half-brother.”
“Let me guess. He excels in academics and is already on a high school varsity team.”
Laughing, Jason shook his head. “Nah. Hunter’s three. He doesn’t do much of anything right now. I mean, he likes sports, but he doesn’t have a niche or anything.”
“Because everyone needs a niche,” I teased.
“Hey, you’re the one who asked. What about yourself? What do you do besides ram into hockey players at the mall?”
I couldn’t help the grin from spreading on my face. Hey, I wasn’t half bad at this conversing with strangers thing. “I did not ram into you.”
“Close enough.”
I shook my head, but the grin remained. “Anyway… I graduated last year and received my teaching license. I have a permanent sub job at the elementary school, but I’m hoping for a full-time position. I also am a photographer. Mainly family and friends but I love it. Kind of sort of working out a business plan for that.”
“Cool,” he said. “Did you know that Paden and Noah live in the same apartments as you?”
I turned my head quickly and lifted my brows. “No?” My stomach dropped, that good mood that I was in slowly deflating. Insecure-Ryleigh was making her appearance.
He nodded. “Yeah, just down from you. Stopped there before picking you up. He’s the building next to yours.”
I didn’t think that Noah, nor Caine Paden, would appreciate Jason blabbing their apartment to a team fan and to be honest, I was unsettled with the news. The note came rushing back to me, the odd looks, the group collective look the other day… Shit, why did I decide to go to this party?
I hated social gatherings. I didn’t know anyone. I wasn’t on the booster club.
Shit.
I really should have declined. I had a pint of Ben & Jerry’s Americone Dream in the freezer and a brand new DVD just dying to be released from its cellophane and be watched.
Jason must have noticed my mental battle because he spoke up again. “Something wrong?”
“Oh. Nope.” I took a deep breath, going for that cleansing breath everyone says is good for you. “Just a lot on my mind.”
Thankfully he left it at that. Not so thankfully, we arrived to the hotel just minutes later.
I could do this.
I could totally do this…
From the bar, I watched Jason walking in with Ryleigh. On the ride over, Caine slipped and informed me the reason Jason stopped by the place, saying Jason had invited Ryleigh to the party tonight. Therefore I was expecting to see her. Confused as hell, but still, I was expecting to see her.
I lifted the longneck bottle to my lips and watched the two of them cross the floor. She looked like she felt both out of place and uncomfortable, but she certainly looked good.
She also looked fucking cozy with Jason. All sorts of things were going through my head. She said she wasn’t a puck bunny, and she clearly looked uncomfortable. Fuck all this in my head. It wasn’t like she came out and said she wanted to screw me and not the others on the team. I was just the one with the fucking slip of paper.
Beside me, Kyle was talking with Nick. When I heard my name, I turned my attention back to the two of them just as Nick nodded in Jason and Ryleigh’s direction. “Who’s the girl with Thompson? Isn’t that your Ryleigh?”
“She’s not my anything, but yeah, that’s Ryleigh.” What the hell was she trying to do? What bothered me the most, I guess, was that I really was trying to find a way to get to know her. Find a way past that shy guard.
She wasn’t a puck bunny, my ass.
“What is she, like eighteen?” Nick must not have gotten a good look at her before if he was only seeing her young features now.
“Twenty-three,” Kyle answered.
I swung my head in his direction. “How the fuck do you know that?”
Kyle shrugged, not seeming to be caught off by my tone. “Jace and I bumped into her at the mall. He told me.”
With a short, slow nod, I turned my body back to the bar, away from Jason and Ryleigh.
“Why, you have a thing for her too?” Kyle asked.
Nick barked out a laugh but I shook my head once, bringing my beer to my mouth once again. “Nope.” Not anymore.
Some things die fast.
I was getting giggly.
Nothing about being the giggly girl was cute. Nothing.