Save the Date (Chicago on Ice Series Book 3)

by Aven Ellis

  “That will get you into the arena for the games and into the wives and girlfriends lounge,” Luca explains. “So, if you wanted to go to the game tomorrow night, our home opener, you could. We could meet up afterward, too.”

  I know what I’m holding in my hand is huge.

  Luca is not only saying I’m his girlfriend, but he wants to announce it to the world by giving me a season credential.

  “Luca, I’m so happy,” I cry excitedly, hugging him. “Of course, I’ll be there. There’s nothing I want more than to see you play tomorrow.”

  “I’m glad,” Luca says, running his hand through my hair. “So glad.”

  He leans in and kisses me again, and I melt from his touch.

  He breaks the kiss and clears his throat. “Cinderella, I hate to do this to you, but I need to watch the San Francisco game tonight. We’re playing them tomorrow, and I have to study.”

  Insecurity flickers in me. I know Luca takes his preparation seriously. I understand that. I do. He’s paid a lot of money to make saves, and this is part of his job.

  But a small part of me wonders if I will always be shown the door for the sport he loves.

  “Are you upset?” Luca asks, squeezing my hand. “Please don’t be. I hate having to do this, but I must watch this game to prepare for tomorrow night.”

  I see worry on his face. I can’t do this to him. I can’t express my feelings. Luca doesn’t need to hear this, not when he’s on game two of a very long season. Besides, I’m being stupid. While I wish he could watch the game tomorrow morning and spend more time with me tonight, I know that’s selfish, especially considering we just started seeing each other.

  I quickly put my mask on and shove my insecurities down.

  “No,” I say, shaking my head. “I understand you need to prepare.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Absolutely sure. We have a date tomorrow night after the game, right?”

  Luca is still studying me, trying to see if I am being honest or wearing a mask, but this time, he can’t see through me.

  “We do,” Luca says. “I can’t wait.”

  He stands up and brings me with him. Luca rakes his hands through my hair, staring down into my eyes.

  “Thank you for understanding,” he whispers, kissing me.

  As I kiss him back, I know I made the right call. He doesn’t need to know my stupid insecurities. Luca has enough pressure to worry about being a starting goalie in the league without me adding to it.

  I break the kiss and move over to get my coat. I slip into it, and Luca swipes his car keys off the countertop.

  “Don’t be silly. I’ll grab a cab,” I say. “You’ve already put off work long enough.”

  “No, I’m driving you home. It’s part of the 1955 boyfriend code.”

  Swoon.

  We hold hands as we walk down the street to where his SUV is parked. The air is cool and crisp with a bit of a bite to it, and a crescent moon is visible in the inky black sky. As we stroll down the sidewalk, among the brownstones and street lamps, I can’t help but feel as if I’m in a movie where the heroine is falling for the hero and hoping with all her heart he is falling, too.

  Luca opens the door to his SUV, and I climb inside. He slides in behind the wheel, and we make the quick drive over to my neighborhood. There is no parking available in front of my building.

  “Don’t walk me up. You’ll spend a stupid amount of time searching for a space. It’s not worth it,” I say.

  “Not walk you up? What kind of guy do you think I am? Let me drive around for a bit,” Luca insists.

  I smile at him, wondering how on earth I got so lucky.

  He makes a loop around the block and finds a space a street over. We hold hands as we walk down the city street as if we’ve done this a million times before.

  It’s so romantic.

  It’s so right.

  Luca escorts me all the way to my apartment door, and as I press my back against it, he frames his large hands around my face.

  “Thank you for tonight, Cinderella,” Luca says, dropping his lips on mine with a sweet goodnight kiss.

  “It was perfect,” I say, winding my hands around his neck. “Thank you for dinner. And everything else,” I add, grinning at him.

  “Everything else,” Luca repeats, dropping another kiss on me.

  Mmm. I love his goodnight kisses.

  I reluctantly remove my hands from his neck, and Luca sighs. “Okay, I need to go now or I’ll never leave.”

  I nod and turn to put my key in the lock. I open the door and step inside.

  “Goodnight,” I say.

  “Goodnight.”

  I turn and shut the door, and only then do I hear his footsteps going down the stairs.

  I toss my empty shopping tote and purse on the counter. Then I rush to the couch and fling myself on it, grabbing a tartan pillow and hugging it to my chest as I relive Luca’s last kiss.

  After tonight, one thing is clear in both my head and my heart.

  I’m falling in love with him.

  And I couldn’t be happier about it.

  Chapter 19

  Showing respect is important . . .

  T.G.I.F has never been a truer abbreviation for me as it is in this moment.

  Today was exhausting. Larissa and her hostess called me non-stop with changes and demands for the baby shower tomorrow. It was a constant battle pushing back on things that were ridiculous to expect at the last minute. I managed to find a harpist in fewer than five hours, but that didn’t stop Larissa from being pissed that I couldn’t change the sugar cookie design from flowers to polka dots since they were already baked and ready for pick up.

  Then there was the secret Momzilla Pinterest board Pamela started and invited me to pin on. When I pinned a gorgeous picture of a rustic autumn-inspired dessert table, complete with candy apples to prove I was paying attention to her request, she left me this comment:

  Surely you can do better than this idea. Candy apples? Next you’ll suggest guests melt their own caramel and dip them for fun. What age do you think my guests are, five? #stupid

  So yay, happy Friday to me!

  None of that nonsense matters now.

  “Welcome to the Hotel Jourdin,” a doorman says as I approach the luxurious entryway.

  “Thank you,” I say, stepping inside the open door.

  A crappy day is irrelevant when I’m going to meet Livy and Aubrey and see my boyfriend play in his home opener for the Chicago Buffaloes.

  I step into the opulent lobby of the hotel. Livy lives in one of the hotel’s condos with Landon, and I know the property well from previous events I’ve worked, including the puppy party from hell last spring.

  Ugh. I can’t bear to think about clients any more tonight.

  I’m about to take a seat in a plush chair to wait for Livy and Aubrey when suddenly I’m bumped from behind.

  “Oh, I’m so sorry,” a familiar voice says.

  Wait. No, it couldn’t be.

  I spin around and find Taylor smiling at me.

  “Taylor!” I gasp, stunned at the sight of her. “What? . . . When? . . .”

  Before I care to ask another question, I throw my arms around her and give her the biggest hug. Her signature fig perfume wraps around me and tells me that indeed, one of my very best friends is home.

  I step back from her, shocked that she’s here. I’m about to ask a slew of questions when she begins answering them for me, reading my thoughts as she has always been able to do.

  “After we talked, I went to my boss and said I needed to go home for a few days,” Taylor explains. “I told her I was burned out. She started balking, but I pointed out I hadn’t taken any vacation time this year, an
d if I left now, I wouldn’t have to take it in December, during the busiest sales time for the company. According to HR policy, I had to take it before January first, so voilà! I’m here for four days.”

  “When did you get here?” I ask, searching her face. Her eyes, normally a radiant violet-blue, seem dull. Almost as if she’s been waging a war and is exhausted.

  My heart aches for my best friend.

  “This morning.” Taylor turns to look over her shoulder, and I see Aubrey and Livy standing back and watching us with big smiles on their faces. “Livy picked me up. I wanted to surprise you.”

  “Ah! I’m so happy you’re home,” I say, hugging her again.

  “Home,” Taylor repeats softly, holding on to me.

  Her husky voice catches on the word, and I step back and put my hands on her arms.

  “This is where you belong,” I say firmly.

  Taylor nods, and I can tell she’s trying not to cry.

  Livy walks up and draws us both into a hug. “We are going to have a real live, Friday night girls’ night out,” she says excitedly.

  “You have no idea how much I’ve missed this,” Taylor says.

  “Remember the last time we all went to a hockey game?” Livy asks. “It was when Aubrey started dating Captain Smart Ass.”

  Aubrey bursts out laughing and joins our group hug in the lobby. “And to celebrate, I got the same seats from the captain himself. I’m connected, you know.”

  “I remember. I thought that Dallas Demon with the tattoos peeking out from his sleeves was cute,” Taylor says, a distant dreamy look in her eyes.

  “Ugh, you can do you better than that,” Aubrey declares. “There are so many cute, single guys on the Buffaloes.”

  Taylor shakes her head, sending her black hair swishing. “Oh, no. I can’t even figure out my own life. The last thing I need is a guy who lives in a different city.”

  “That’s temporary,” Livy says.

  “And hockey players make fantastic boyfriends,” Aubrey adds. “The three of us are proof of that.”

  I blush as I think of Luca.

  Taylor laughs. “This is ridiculous. Three of my friends are dating hockey players. That’s insane.”

  “You’re more likely to meet people to date in your social circle,” Livy explains. “I’d say odds are good you’ll meet one, too.”

  Taylor snorts. “Ha-ha. Not likely.”

  “Come on, let’s go,” I say. “I hope to catch warm-ups.”

  Aubrey shoots me a mischievous look. “Yes, we don’t want to miss Luca stretching, do we now?”

  I turn bright red.

  No, I think as my friends laugh, we don’t.

  As we walk outside to get a cab, I can’t help but think what a wonderful place my life is in. My dream of working with horses has been given a new spark. I have Taylor back home, if only I can convince her to stay. I have amazing friends and family.

  And I have Luca.

  I’m so lucky. Blessed to have found him, to get to know him, and to actually be his girl. I feel like I’m dreaming. But I’m not. This is my life, and I’m so grateful he came into it.

  I smile to myself, happy for where I am and excited for where I might be going.

  Now, it’s time for his girl to see him play in his first home opener as starting goalie.

  Chapter 20

  Things you didn’t plan will always happen . . .

  I anxiously lean forward, watching the action play out on the ice in front of me. The puck has been dropped, and the game is under way between the San Francisco Breakers and the Chicago Buffaloes.

  Luca is in the goalie net on the other end of the ice, and I can’t stop watching him. I track Luca with my eyes the same way he tracks the puck on the ice.

  “Oh, there’s Hunter,” Aubrey says, popping a french fry into her mouth. “This is the first time Beckett has played against him.”

  I manage to tear my eyes away from Luca to spot Beckett’s younger brother on the ice, playing defense for the Breakers.

  “It’s crazy that Beckett now has two brothers playing in the league,” Livy says, pausing to take a bite of her salad.

  “Which one is he?” Taylor asks, glancing at Aubrey.

  “Number thirty-two. He was drafted by San Francisco in the second round,” Aubrey explains.

  The Breakers head Luca’s way, and I hold my breath as one of their players rips his stick back for a shot and ping! The puck bounces off the crossbar over Luca’s head.

  Gah! My stomach lurches at the sound. I know Luca will be irritated he didn’t stop that shot, even though they didn’t score.

  Landon chases the puck around and behind Luca, trying to get it away from their net. He breaks free and sends the puck down the ice toward us.

  “Go, Landon!” Livy yells.

  The offensive line is back on our end of the ice, and Beckett is circling the goal, looking for a shot.

  “Do you want a nacho?” Taylor asks, holding her carton toward me.

  I take one look at the neon-orange cheese, which seems as real as the talking mice in Cinderella, and shake my head. “No, thanks.”

  “Aren’t you starving?” Taylor asks, scooping up some cheese on a chip before eating it. “These arena nachos are life. Life, I tell ya!”

  I grin. It’s good to see Taylor smiling. If disgusting faux-cheese nachos give her life, I’ll take it.

  “I’m too nervous to eat,” I admit.

  Just then, the Buffaloes turn the puck over, and the players skate back toward Luca’s end.

  Aubrey snorts.

  “You need to get over your fear. There are eighty-two games in a season. You’ll waste away to nothing if you don’t eat when your goalie is playing.”

  “Oh, just think! That’s forty-one home games and forty-one opportunities for nachos,” Taylor says.

  “Taylor, that’s disgusting. Those are awful for you,” Livy says, wrinkling her delicate nose.

  I watch as another line change occurs, and the Buffaloes regain control of the puck. Austin Anderson, one of our forwards, heads our way with the puck as Hunter Riley chases him with tremendous speed. They are coming straight for us when all of a sudden, Hunter goes airborne and crashes with Austin into the glass in front of Taylor.

  The Plexiglas breaks when Hunter’s massive body hits it full force. We jump in our seats, and Taylor shrieks in surprise. She leaps upright, her beer and nachos go flying, and the sheet of Plexiglas lurches toward her. It catches on the ledge, snapping a piece off that lands at Taylor’s feet, before falling backward and landing on the ice.

  “Shit!” Taylor cries, her eyes wide.

  Play halts, and Hunter leans through the opening to make sure nobody got hurt. His large brown eyes widen in recognition when he spots Aubrey.

  “Hey, sorry, Aubrey,” he says to her. Then he turns to Taylor, who is now wearing nacho cheese sauce in her jet-black hair.

  “I’m so sorry about that. Are you okay?” he asks as the repair crew comes out to replace the glass.

  “I think you owe me nachos,” Taylor deadpans, casually flicking cheese out of her hair.

  “Excuse me,” one of the repair workers says, moving in front of Hunter to take down the broken pane. As they begin work, Aubrey leans across Livy to talk to Taylor.

  “Ha, Beckett will give him so much shit for busting out the glass on you, Taylor,” Aubrey says in delight.

  I glance at Taylor, who has an upside-down nachos carton parked on her boots and beer sloshed down the side of her jeans. I hand her my napkins, but she doesn’t seem to notice.

  “Taylor?” I say.

  The crowd “oohs” at the replay of the crushing hit shown on the Jumbotron and then laughs at Taylor’s reaction of jumping
up and throwing her nachos.

  While the audience watches her, Taylor’s eyes are fixated somewhere else.

  On number thirty-two for the San Francisco Breakers.

  Hunter Riley.

  “This is going to be on Total Access Total Sports,” Aubrey says.

  “What?” Taylor asks, furrowing her brow.

  “Where were you?” I ask, although I’m pretty sure I know.

  “Sorry. I’m still shocked. I never expected the glass to come flying at me,” Taylor says, taking the napkins from me and blotting beer off her jeans as her gaze shifts back to Hunter.

  Hmm.

  The crew retrieves the broken piece of glass and sweeps up the fragments, and as soon as the crew is off the ice, the game continues. By the time the first period is over, Luca has stopped all shots on goal, but the Buffaloes haven’t managed to capitalize on offense.

  Luca will man the net in front of us for the second period.

  “Do you guys want to go down to the WAGS lounge for some more food?” Livy asks.

  “Sure, might as well see how you all live,” Taylor jokes. “Do you think they’ll love my new signature scent of eau de nacho?”

  I have to admit, I love Taylor’s sense of humor. It has been missing from our conversations as of late, and I’m glad to see it’s returning to her tonight.

  We head down to the lounge and use our credentials to enter. The team has set up an amazing space for the significant others. There is a state-of-the-art viewing system for the game, leather seating arrangements, a fully stocked bar, and a buffet. There is even a section for children.

  I spy chicken parmesan and lasagna at the buffet and while I know I should eat, I can’t. I’m far too anxious.

  Livy and Aubrey introduce us to the other women, and as I shake hands, I wonder if any of them will become my friends. I’m grateful to have Livy and Aubrey by my side to help me navigate this new world I’m entering.