Breaking Through the Past (Espen Jetties #3)

5. Jansen

5

JANSEN

I caved and was about to text Stephen. It was weird how much he was on my mind. I chalked it up to him being the last person I hung out with. My teammates all had lives. My trainer, who was also my best friend, had a wife and two kids. I was in a sea of my own. Maybe Stephen would want to join me on my boat and enjoy the view.

Only there was no boat, just me and my boring life.

My summer resolution needed to take effect.

Me: Hey, I had fun at the game. Want to get together again?

Dots appeared on the screen.

Disappeared.

Appeared again.

I put the phone down and went to get dressed. I had to be at Jagger’s house in thirty minutes. It was the end of July and so damn hot. I grabbed a tank top and basketball shorts and quickly put them on. My phone dinged from the other room, drawing my attention back to it.

Grabbing my toothbrush and toothpaste on the way, I started brushing my teeth while I read the message.

Stephen: Sure. What do you have in mind?

Hmmm, good question. I was winging this new friend thing with him. Maybe dinner would be best. A chance to get to know him better without a bunch of other people around. Sure, I knew him from when I dated Serilda, but that didn’t mean I knew a lot about him. Stephen was always nice, and interesting too.

Me: Dinner Friday night?

Stephen: Sounds good. Let me know where and I’ll meet you.

Me: Will do.

I didn’t want to use an exclamation point and sound too eager. I was because I was getting the fuck out of my condo. I could go to a bar or a club, but I was over that scene.

Two days to kill until then. Well, three since it was Wednesday morning, and I wasn’t seeing Stephen until Friday night. That was okay. I had daily workouts until then. It was a good thing Jagger loved me because he got to see a lot of me during the offseason.

Jagger and I didn’t meet until after he was retired from playing professional hockey. He was originally from New Jersey but bounced around from Florida to Ohio before playing his final years in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. After that, he retired to New Jersey, this time to Espen. He wanted to be near the ocean. Though the kind of land he wanted, he couldn’t get oceanfront.

We met one night soon after I was traded to Espen. We had a home game and Jagger was there hanging out with Kasper, who introduced us to him. It didn’t take long before Jagger and I were spending more time together. Then he offered to train me in the offseason, solidifying our best friend status. Yeah, I was cheesy about it and didn’t give a shit. Jagger was one of those guys you became friends with for life. He was loyal and never talked shit behind anyone’s back. He’d played in the NHL for years, knew the politics, and was enjoying his time off.

But it wasn’t time off because he had to deal with me, which was all his doing. I didn’t sign him up for this. He offered. Now he was my trainer and mine alone. It also gave him something to do so he wasn’t in his wife’s business all the time. The kids went off to camp during the day and Jagger was with me. Melanie, his wife, did whatever she wanted.

Living twenty minutes outside the city, Jagger, Melanie, and their two little rug rats had the family life. Something I didn’t want. Did I want someone to fall in love with, to spend my time with? Absolutely. Did I want kids? Not in the slightest. I was more than happy spoiling his kids rotten and leaving them there for their parents to deal with.

I pulled into his driveway and parked near the big building off to the side. It was a gym he had put in after the first year of him training me. We’d rented space back then. Jagger didn’t want to do that again, so he built one on his property. With the kind of money hockey gave him, he could splurge like this. Jagger said whenever I decided I was done playing, he’d take on another client or two. He enjoyed it a lot.

He appeared in the doorway with his arms crossed. Shirtless with his muscles on display, Jagger utilized the gym he’d built all year. “You’re late.”

“Uh huh. Bill me extra.”

“Morning, Jansen!” Melanie said, sticking her head out the front door of the house.

“Hi, Mel!” I waved.

Jagger and I walked into the building that was one of those all-metal structures. It was painted a light beige to match the house, with a deep red roof. When I said it was big, it was massive. Tons of equipment, open space for other things, and the best part… air-conditioning. Jagger kept it cold in here.

I clapped my hands together. “What are we doing today?”

“Warm up on the treadmill, move to the bike, then we’re doing strongman training.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

I stripped my tank off, throwing it on a bench, and went to the treadmill. I started slow, getting my muscles heated up before increasing the speed. I didn’t want to tire myself out. That wasn’t the point of this. It was only the start, so I was ready for the hard work.

Strongman wasn’t my favorite, but it had its benefits by helping with my core and grip. Kept me strong and built muscle, while working my entire body. As a defenseman, I needed a variety of exercises to get me ready for the next season. Since Jagger played the same position, he knew it well and tailored his program for me. We mixed it up, working on a variety of things.

It wasn’t until I was on the bike that he came over and started talking. We usually did that now before things got too intense.

“What’s new?” he asked.

“I just saw you yesterday.”

“A lot could have happened since then.”

“Oh yeah. I’m so popular. Everyone wants to hang out with me.” I rolled my eyes.

“Whatever, asshole.”

“I finally texted Stephen.”

I had told Jagger about Stephen and I going to the game, how much fun I had, and how I wanted to see him again. Of course, Jagger cocked an eyebrow at me in question because Stephen was my ex’s father, but also because he wasn’t the typical type of person I hung out with. Which was probably why I liked it so much. He was different.

“It’s about damn time. I was starting to wonder if we went back to high school, and you were debating on asking someone out.”

“Shut up. You know it’s not like that. He’s a friend.”

“And you’re not into guys.”

I shrugged. “Never have been, but if I were…”

“I wouldn’t care, Jans. You know that.”

“I do.”

“So, you have the hots for teacher?” He waggled his eyebrows.

Picking up the towel I had over the handlebar of the bike, I threw it at him. “He’s my friend, nothing more.”

“Yet you were worried about texting him.”

“I didn’t say I was normal.”

“You definitely aren’t.” He grinned.

He did have a point about the whole guy thing. I wasn’t interested in them. They didn’t get me all hot and bothered like women did. The curves… Fuck, I loved the way a woman’s body was shaped. The sweet sound of their voice. Their long hair I liked to grip when I fucked into them.

Men I never looked at like that. Like I wanted more with them. I had gay, bisexual, and pan friends. The appeal was never there for me.

Stephen was someone I wanted to be friends with. To talk to and enjoy myself. To put the hockey shit aside and just be me without that aspect of my life. He didn’t want to talk about hockey all the time. Sure, he loved going to the games, but he wasn’t a rabid fan who was only hanging out with me because of the publicity it would bring him. Stephen wasn’t like that.

“Come on,” Jagger said. “We have to warm your way up to the deadlift.”

I liked doing this but was also grateful I didn’t have to do it every day. We typically only did this once a week. It was challenging, which I loved, but fuck, my arms and legs would be tired when I was done.

Melanie came in thirty minutes later when I was covered with sweat and breathing hard. She liked to grab my phone and take pictures of me so I could post them on social media. It was smart. She became good at this stuff while Jagger was playing. Some fans loved getting insight into our lives off the ice as much as they loved watching the games.

She had me pause mid-exercise and she got some candid shots. I didn’t post every day. More like once or twice a week, so I didn’t fall into oblivion.

Staying for the rest of my session, I finally finished and went into the single shower Jagger had in the back. I wasn’t about to traipse my sweaty ass into their house, although the two of them wouldn’t mind if I did. They had kids who were mini tornados and left paths of destruction through every room they were in.

Melanie was sitting beside Jagger on one of the benches when I came out. Their shoulders were pressed together, and she was smiling sweetly at him. They had the kind of relationship I wanted. It didn’t matter how many years went by, they still looked at each other like they were newlyweds.

I stepped into the room a little louder than normal, so I didn’t surprise them. Melanie turned to me with a smile. I knew what that meant. It wasn’t the same sweet one she gave to Jagger. No, this was mischievous.

“No,” I told her.

She fake pouted. Her dark brown hair fell forward, straight over her shoulders when she dropped her head.

“Now you did it,” Jagger muttered.

“I didn’t do shit. Mel, I’m not going.”

Her gaze snapped up to mine. Fake pout gone. “You don’t know what I was going to even ask you.”

“I don’t? Who is it this time?”

She sighed. I knew her better than she thought I did. “You’ve met my cousin, Lindsey, before.”

“I have and there weren’t sparks flying then. Why would there be now?”

“That was last summer. She’s different now and dumped that jackass she was dating. She looks great.”

“She looked great last year too, but I didn’t hit it off with her.”

“That’s because her ex was hovering around her like he was waiting for someone to take her from him. Such a controlling asshole. I’m so glad she’s rid of him.”

“Mel, no. I don’t want to be set up. Whoever I date, I’ll find them on my own.”

She huffed out a breath. “You’re no fun.”

“Oh, I’m a lot of fun, but not with your cousin. Thanks for the recommendation though.”

“You’re insufferable.” She stood and started walking toward the door.

I ran toward her. She squealed and bolted but I was faster. I had my arm around her waist and was sweeping her feet off the floor before she could say anything else.

“What do you want me to do with her, Jag?” I asked.

He chuckled. “I’m not sure. She did try to set you up, even though she shouldn’t have been butting in.”

“You’re supposed to be on my side!” she yelled. I put her on the floor momentarily so I could pick her up again in a bridal carry. “Put me down, Jansen!” She playfully batted at my arm while laughing. Melanie was like a sister to me. I loved how she could be a mom one second, yelling at her kids, and wrestling with Jagger another, being carefree.

Instead of doing as she asked, I walked out of the building, and toward the back of their house where they had an inground pool.

Melanie started wiggling when she saw where I was heading. “Don’t you dare, Jansen. I’m warning you.”

“Your threats don’t work on me.” I smiled while closing the distance to the pool and throwing her in like she weighed nothing.

Melanie spluttered when she broke the surface, hair plastered to her face. “Jerk!”

I was about to say something back but was shoved from behind. I went flying face-first toward the water, trying to position my body so it wouldn’t hurt when I made contact. No such luck. The sting of the water sucked. But it was also how the three of us ended up in the pool fully clothed, splashing each other, and laughing our asses off.