Game On (Hometown Players Book 6)

by Victoria Denault

  Mac jumps to a stop in front of us but not before splashing us playfully. “What’s up?”

  “So Brie has been wanting to ask you something important,” I start and Brie whispers my name under her breath followed by an “oh God.” She tries to step out of my embrace, but I hold her to my chest. “She’s too nervous to ask you, so I figure I’ll ask for you, Brie.”

  “I’m confused,” Mackenzie says, her brow furrowing.

  “Mac, Brie would like to know if you’d like her to adopt you, because she would really love to adopt you,” I tell Mac and her face instantly looks stunned.

  “Oh my God…” Mac whispers her hand covering her mouth as she gasps. My eyes fall quickly to the scar on her forearm and I think God, that was a lifetime ago. “Really? Are you shitting me?”

  “No. Not shitting you,” Brie manages to squeak out. “But don’t worry if you don’t want to it’s okay. I get it. You can still stay with me until you’re ready to apply for emanci—”

  Mac starts to cry. “No. I want to be adopted. By you. I do.”

  Mac throws herself on Brie and the hug would knock them both over if I wasn’t there for support. They’re both crying now and I have a lump in my throat the size of a damn baseball. I try to clear it out. “I love you, Brie.”

  “I love you too.”

  I turn to Mac. “I love you like a daughter, even with your attitude and potty mouth.”

  She smiles. “Then you should get in on this and marry her so I can be adopted by both of you.”

  “Mac!” Brie gasps and starts to blush.

  I laugh and splash Mac. “Way to steal my thunder, kid!”

  “What?” Brie looks at me with complete confusion.

  “I have a ring upstairs in my bag. I have been carrying it around for two months trying to find the right time to ask you to marry me and if I can adopt this goofball with you and maybe even a couple more one day,” I tell her. “So Gabrielle Bennett, what do you say? Want a husband to go with your kid?”

  “As long as it’s you, yes,” she says and launches herself at me. I catch her in a hug. “One hundred percent yes.”

  Mackenzie squeals like only a teenage girl can and jumps on both of us causing me to lose my balance and we tip backward into the water, one big happy family.

  My family.

  Keep reading for a preview of

  SLAMMED

  A San Francisco Thunder hockey novel

  Available December 2017

  Prologue

  Dixie

  Come on…where is the damn elevator?

  I glance at my phone to check the time and then shove it into my blazer pocket. Tonight is not going as planned. I was almost late getting to the arena because of an accident on the freeway, and as soon as I arrived I realized I forgot my employee pass. So I had to skip the PR briefing and run to security to get a temporary pass. I managed to print out the press list, but now I’m late for a meeting with the owner of the team, Ryanne Bateman. She’s the reason I wanted to work for the San Francisco Thunder hockey franchise to begin with, and I’m about to mess up my first impression. The thought has me so panicked my skin is itching.

  I jam my thumb into the elevator button again. And again.

  “Punching it repeatedly doesn’t make it come any quicker, you know.” The voice rumbles through me like an earthquake. My first thought as soon as my eyes land on him is Ooh…he’s pretty. If a scientist mixed the DNA of a Disney prince and an action hero, this guy would be the result. Tall, dark, rugged, muscled and exuding calm confidence. Who the hell is he?

  I glance at his chest, which is expansive, to say the least, looking for the pass that should be around his neck if he’s a guest or staff, but there’s nothing there. My eyes move up from his chest to his face, and on the way they land on a scar. It’s hard to miss because it’s pink and puffy and takes up a lot of real estate on his strong neck, moving from below his ear to an inch or two from his Adam’s apple. There’s only one person with a scar like that who would be in this arena.

  “You’re Levi’s brother,” I announce, like he doesn’t know his older brother is captain of the Thunder.

  “Just Eli is fine,” he corrects and his voice is even deeper than before, which is both unbelievable and unbelievably attractive.

  He’s in a suit that fits him like a glove, and the charcoal gray color compliments his shock of thick, dark hair. His eyes are…green? I’d have to step closer to find out, and I almost do but catch myself. Then he smiles, something that his constantly brooding brother rarely does, and it’s sexy as all hell.

  “Are you lost? Are you looking for the friends and family lounge or something?” I ask and glance at the elevator, which still isn’t here. “I’m heading down that way. You can come with me.”

  Eli’s sexy smile grows bigger. “There’s nothing I’d rather do.”

  He winks at me. Wow. Talk about cheesy. So why am I smiling? I bite the inside of my cheek to stop it from spreading as he takes a step closer so he’s standing right beside me now. He’s looking down at me with those definitely green, like dewy moss or freshly cut grass, eyes. Wow. He’s hot. Am I breathing? I don’t think I’m breathing. I take a deep, deliberate breath. “You’re going to need to get a pass from security.” I hold up mine as an example. “All non-players walking around the VIP areas need a pass on game days.”

  “I don’t need a pass,” he replies casually and then dips his head a little to read the name on my pass. “Dixie Wynn, PR intern.”

  I glance down. “Crap. They printed my old title. I’m PR staff now. Since June,” I mutter, annoyed. “Also, I know you’re the captain’s brother, but you still need a pass.”

  He smirks at that. “I don’t.”

  Wow. He’s entitled. I decide not to argue with him. He’ll find out quick enough when the security guard at the players level won’t let him off the elevator.

  The elevator dings and the doors open. No one is there. That’s weird. Why was it taking so long if no one was in it? I step inside and he follows, once again standing right next to me even though we have the whole elevator to ourselves. It’s disconcerting and yet somehow flattering at the same time. I keep my eyes focused on the elevator panel after I punch the bottom floor.

  “There might be something wrong with my eyes,” he murmurs and his rough, deep voice seems to reverberate off the walls of the elevator. I look up at him and he smiles. “Because I can’t seem to take them off of you.”

  Oh God. Is he serious? Who uses lines like that? Our eyes meet and he grins, and it makes me grin. Damn it. I’m enabling him.

  “That was cheese-tastic. You need to work on your pickup lines,” I say. “On someone else.”

  He chuckles lightly. This guy must think because he’s the captain’s brother he can do whatever he wants.

  “You clearly don’t know why I’m here, so how did you know who I was?” Eli asks, and it makes me look up at him again.

  “You’re here to visit Levi, obviously, and I recognized you because…” My eyes linger on the scar instead of his face, and when I do make eye contact I can see a scowl cross his face, but he quickly smiles.

  He raises his hand to his neck. “I got it saving orphans from a knife fight.”

  I bite back a laugh. “Do you actually tell women that?”

  He nods. “Sometimes. Other times I say I was saving puppies from a hostage situation. Women love heroes, Miss Wynn.”

  “Are you for real?” I ask, and I can no longer hold back my laugh. “Do cheesy pick-up lines and ridiculous lies honestly work for you?”

  He laughs too. “Yeah. Because it gets women to laugh and it starts a conversation. And it takes the stick out of even the tightest little asses, like yours.”

  “You really can’t talk to me like that!” I warn him, but I can’t sell it because I’m not all that angry—just mostly stunned. “Are you sure you share DNA with Levi? He’s way more…refined than you.”

  He chuffs at that. “Refi
ned? You mean boring.”

  Before I can answer there’s a noise—a horrendous grinding sound that makes the hair on the back of my neck rise—and then the elevator shimmies and stops abruptly. I reach out and grab for the small railing along the walls, and he reaches out and grabs me. His hand around my waist is tight and firm and it causes a tingle that has nothing to do with the fear from the faulty elevator. I can’t remember the last time I was this close to a guy this hot, which seems pathetic, but I’ve been busy with work, and since I found out about my dad being sick, I haven’t exactly been in the mood to go out and meet people.

  When I’m convinced it’s not going to move again I step forward, out of his protective embrace, and look up at the lights telling us what floor we’re on. No floor is lit up. I punch the bottom-floor button again. Nothing happens.

  “No,” I say out loud. “Just no.”

  Eli steps forward. I can feel his whole body like a warm, muscled wall behind me. “It’s stuck.”

  “No.”

  “Yes.”

  “Fucking hell. Fuck my life!” I blurt out and instantly hate myself for it. I couldn’t be more unprofessional right now. Embarrassed by my outburst, I step away from him, closer to the panel of buttons, and hit the one marked Call. A ringing sound fills the elevator.

  “It’s okay. We’ll get out of here,” he says in a soothing tone. “It’s not going to turn into a survival movie where one of us has to eat the other. Although I’m open to that…”

  I snap my head up to stare at him. He’s grinning again. Jesus, does this guy take anything seriously? Why is everything sexual? And why is it suddenly warm in here?

  Before I can chastise him the ringing stops and a voice comes out of the little speaker above the floor numbers. “Security.”

  “Hey! We’re trapped in an elevator!” I blurt out, panicked.

  “Okay ma’am…” the security guard says. I bristle at that term and see Eli chuckle. “We have fourteen elevators in the building, so can you read me the number at the top of the panel? It’s engraved in the metal. That will tell me which one you’re in. I don’t see an alert on our system.”

  Oh fuck. That can’t be good. “S4,” I say.

  “Okay…” His pause fills me with dread. “We’ll figure this out. I will send someone over there to see if they can manually reset it and call the elevator company immediately. It will take a little bit of time though, so hold tight.”

  “How long?” I ask and the anguish in my voice is more than a little apparent. It’s so strong Eli drops a hand on my shoulder and squeezes. “I have somewhere to be.”

  “We’ll work as fast as we can, ma’am.”

  “We’ll be fine. Thank you,” Eli says. “We’ll buzz you again if we need an ETA.”

  He hits the button again and the little light that was lit up fades. I look up at Eli. “What did you do?”

  “Ended the call so he can get to work getting us out of here,” Eli explains casually. I want to argue with him, but I don’t know why. He didn’t do anything wrong. I’m just raging inside that yet another thing today has totally backfired and I want someone to blame. Being late makes me crazy. I’m always early to everything—meetings, parties, doctor’s appointments, funerals.

  I pull out my phone and pull up my boss’s number. I text Mr. Carling that I’m running behind. I’m about to make a bad first impression on a woman I’ve studied and admired since college.

  “Who are you texting? Your boyfriend?”

  I roll my eyes. “My boss. He was going to introduce me to the team owner, but now I’ve screwed that up.”

  “It’s not your fault the elevator crapped out,” he reminds me.

  “Yeah, she’s not going to care. She’s just going to see me as a screw-up,” I tell him, my voice filled with disappointment. “In her memoir Ryanne says all mistakes must be owned, and nothing is out of your control. If something goes wrong, there’s a reason, a choice you made, that should have been different. Like I could have taken the stairs.”

  “Wow, you’ve read her memoir?” he says, his green eyes wide.

  I nod. “She made her first million by twenty-eight. She’s a marketing genius and the only woman to own a professional hockey team. And the Thunder are the most popular California hockey team in the league, thanks to her marketing savvy.”

  Eli’s expression seems to cloud a little, dimming the flirtatious twinkle in his eyes. “I’m sure she has flaws. Maybe even a dark side.”

  I roll my eyes. “Yeah, men often say that about successful women.”

  He chuckles. “I’m just saying. We all have a little fault in our stars.”

  I glance at my phone screen to see that Mr. Carling replied.

  She’s done meeting staff, gone to meet with the team. Maybe I can introduce you after the game. Hope you get unstuck soon.

  I slump against the wall and cover my face with my hands for a moment, fighting to rein in all these hideous emotions. “Dixie? Tell me what I can do to help.”

  He’s suddenly serious and it radiates through his tone. It’s low and rough and I feel it inside me like the bass in a song coming out of kick-ass sound system. I drop my hands and look up into his eyes. “Your voice is so deep it’s kind of insane. It sounds like sandpaper but feels like velvet.”

  He stares at me. His expression intense, but his face passive and calm in an unnerving way. “You feel my voice?”

  Somehow he said that with even more sandpaper and velvet. I feel it everywhere. I try to swallow and nod my response. The elevator suddenly feels claustrophobic and hot. I move away from the wall, and him, and shrug out of my blazer. The air swirls around my bare arms, and I pinch the front of my sleeveless silk shirt and move it, creating a breeze.

  “If it makes you feel any better I have somewhere important to be too,” Eli tells me quietly, still serious. “And I could use a little luck right now too.”

  I have no idea what he’s talking about and I open my mouth to ask at the very moment the elevator lurches up but stops just as abruptly as it did before. It makes me squeak in shock at the sudden movement and stumble, but he grabs me again, this time with both hands on my waist, and I face-plant into his chest. It’s rock-hard and warm, and he smells unbelievable. I look up at him. “I guess we both need something good to happen.”

  “So let’s make something good happen.” Before I realize what he’s doing he’s got his hands against my cheeks and he’s tipping my head back.

  His mouth hovering so close to mine as he tilts his head slowly. His lips part just a little bit, as his mouth gets even closer. I feel like the whole world has stopped just like this elevator. We’re frozen in this almost kiss. And then his lips are against mine. It isn’t sudden. It isn’t rushed. I’m not taken by surprise. I knew exactly what he was going to do and I let him do it. Still somehow I’m surprised. My pulse races and my breath catches, but I kiss him back. With everything in me, I kiss him back.

  It’s long, it’s deep and hot and perfect, and I find myself suddenly begging the universe to leave us here in this elevator forever. But the universe isn’t taking my calls right now, obviously, because the elevator shudders and starts moving down. This time it doesn’t stop.

  He steps away from me abruptly and my hand flies up to cover my mouth. He just stares at me, a victorious smile on his lips. “That was something good,” he says in that deep velvety voice.

  Oh my God. Suddenly he’s way more than just a pretty face. And just like that I am totally, fully and completely crushing on Elijah Casco.

  The elevator stops, smoothly this time, and the doors slide open. I rush out. He follows. We’re on the player level, my original destination. I turn to him and I start to open my mouth because I need to say something—but what? Do I ask for his phone number? Do I ask him out for drinks? Do I act like that kiss just didn’t curl my toes and set my insides on fire?

  “Dixie!” Mr. Carling’s voice shatters the euphoric post-kiss haze that had engulfed me. “Y
ou’re out!”

  I spin to face him as he approaches. “Hi Mr. Carling. Yes. We’re out.”

  He glances past me at Eli and his entire face lights up. “Elijah! You were trapped in the elevator too? We’ve been looking for you everywhere! The rest of the team is already dressing, and Ryanne wanted to meet you before the game.”

  Rest of the…what? I blink. My eyes fly up to Eli. He’s giving Mr. Carling an easy smile. “Sorry. I would have called but my phone is in the locker room.”

  “You still play?” I blurt out, stunned and horrified. Eli’s nods. His back is to Mr. Carling because he’s about to walk away, so Mr. Carling doesn’t see the smug smirk and the wink. That’s just for my viewing pleasure.

  Mr. Carling looks at me with confusion and a little judgment, which makes me feel like I just let him down somehow. “You didn’t know?”

  “I mean, I knew he played in college…” I mumble like an idiot. “I saw the news reports on the accident a couple years ago, but I assumed he quit hockey after that.”

  Eli frowns, hard, but I ignore him and concentrate on Mr. Carling, who’s still looking at me like I’ve just failed some test. “He’s been with our farm team for almost a year now. We called him up for the game tonight. I guess you haven’t see the team roster yet.”

  “No. Sorry,” I mumble, stunned and confused. It’s like the world just stopped and started spinning in the wrong direction.

  “I figured you wouldn’t even need the roster since Levi is best friends with your brother. I’m surprised Jude didn’t ever mention Eli was playing in the organization,” Mr. Carling glances past us, down the hall, and smiles. “Oh! There’s Ryanne. Let me go get her.”

  He starts to march down the long, curved corridor. I try not to fall headfirst into a panic attack because holy shit, the hottest kiss of my life just turned into a giant mistake. There’s a strict policy against fraternization between employees and players, and I’m fairly certain having Eli’s tongue in my mouth in the service elevator counts as fraternization. I don’t break rules. Ever. Especially ones that can cost me my fledgling career.