From Fling to Ring: A Hockey Romance (The San Francisco Aftershocks)

Chapter 25

TYLER

I’m watchingLucy cross the room toward me, her gaze locked with mine and her pretty red lips twisted into a snarky little smile. Her dress swishes as she walks, her tits bouncing lightly, and she knows, goddammit, that I can’t take my eyes off her.

The bet, while it was funny as hell just a few short weeks ago, is starting to feel, well, pretty shitty.

While Lucy continues to weave through the crowd, a hand lands on my forearm.

“Oh, Daphne. Hello. Didn’t know you’d be here.”

She gazes up at me, her heavily made-up eyes wide open as if she wants me to see her as innocent as she wishes she were. The woman is trouble. That’s all there is to it.

She runs a hand over my suit jacket, feeling up my bicep. “Mmmm,” she says, “just as… hard as ever, aren’t you?”

I politely pull myself out of her grasp. “Daphne, are you here with Chuck? Where is he?” I ask, scanning the crowd.

“Oh, don’t worry about him, honey?—”

“Hello.” Lucy appears next to me and extends her hand to Daphne, whose head snaps back on her neck at the interruption.

“Oh. Hello.” She looks Lucy up and down with a shitload of disdain and I swear, if she were a dude, I’d wipe that smug look right off her face.

Lucy weaves her arm through mine, her hand landing on the forearm Daphne was just trying to claim. “I’m Lucy Daley,” she says with a hint of warning behind it.

Fuck, I like her even more now.

She extends her hand for a shake.

Daphne limply takes her hand. “I’m… Daphne. Nice... dress,” she says, looking Lucy up and down and clearly not meaning a word of the compliment.

Lucy returns the favor by checking out Daphne with a head-to-toe assessment. Her eyes travel over the sparkly gold number her breasts are spilling out of, then she looks back at Daphne with a small smile. She takes a sip of her champagne, glances around the room, and doesn’t utter a word.

Fuck yeah. She put this woman in her place without uttering a single word.

My girl’s a baller.

Chuck joins us a second later.

“There you are,” he says, putting an arm around Daphne’s shoulder.

“Oh. Hi honey,” she says in a flat voice.

Chuck turns to Lucy. “Hello. We haven’t met before.”

As if to further irritate Daphne, Lucy responds with a warm smile, extending her hand. “Nice to meet you.”

As they exchange pleasantries, Daphne taps me on the shoulder, signaling for me to bend closer so she can say something in my ear.

Lucy catches this and nips it in the bud. Jesus, I may have to marry this woman.

“Whatever you have to say, why don’t you tell us all, Dorothy?”

Chuck clears his throat. “Oh, Lucy, it’s Daphne. Not Dorothy.”

She whips her gaze in his direction. “Isn’t that what I said?”

Holy shit, she’s good.

“Uh, no. You didn’t,” he says with a chuckle.

Daphne and he both look at Lucy, waiting for something like an apology.

And no big surprise, there was none to be had.

“Oh, Lucy, I have to introduce you to Coach over there,” I say, pointing in some random direction. “Chuck, Daphne, we’ll see you around, okay?”

I lead Lucy away as fast as we can and once we’re swallowed up by the crowd, I turn to her.

“Nice beat down. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like it.”

She smiles, her eyes sparkly and playful. “I went to an all-girls Catholic school. And it wasn’t the fancy kind. It was full of juvenile delinquents and tough city chicks. I learned to settle things in whatever way the situation calls for.”

Unbelievable. She’s beautiful, intelligent, and has street smarts to spare.

“So what’s with that woman? You know, Dorothy?”

We snicker like naughty little kids.

“I dated her. Briefly. Now, she’s going out with Chuck, who’s new around here and hasn’t caught on to her bullshit.”

“Where is she from? I couldn’t place her accent.”

I have to think for a moment. “Slovenia, I think. Eastern Europe, in any case.”

Lucy narrows her eyes at me. “I thought there was something going on, what with her touching you the way she was. I was forced to pull my alpha dog move. Let her know where she stands in the pack.”

I laugh. “Is that what you call it? Impressive as hell, I’ll tell you.”

“What can I say, I’m a city girl. So I have a question for you. Or maybe it’s more of a statement.”

“Yeah? What’s that?”

“I’ve been thinking, Tyler. About you. About us.”

Uh-oh.

She continues. “If you… you know, ever wanted to date somebody else, it’s fine with me. I’d be okay with that.”

What the what? A feather could knock me the fuck over.

Here I am, thinking how incredible this woman is, unable to take my eyes off her as she walks across the room, and she lays a bomb like this on me?

“Um, I don’t get it,” I say.

She looks around, all cool and casual. “Oh, you know. I don’t want to cramp your style,” she adds in a breezy tone.

Well, fuck me.

“Tyler, look, I know who you are. I’m sure you date lots of women. I just don’t want you to think I expect exclusivity.”

“Lucy, are you not enjoying our time together? Is there something you’re trying to tell me, without actually telling me? Are you the one who wants to date around?”

She looks puzzled. “No. I don’t think so. It’s just that I think guys like you?—”

“Wait, wait, wait.” I take a deep breath when I realize I have raised my voice and attracted the attention of the people nearest to us. “What do you mean guys like me? What are guys like me like?”

She shifts nervously, fiddling with the belt on her dress. “I, well, I don’t know. I just don’t usually date athletes and stuff, and I figure you’re used to a certain lifestyle.”

I look at her. Like, really look at her. This is completely unexpected, completely coming from left field. I don’t get it.

At least I think I don’t.

“Lucy, what gives you the idea I’m against exclusivity? Do you have some idea I have a need to sleep around or something? Because if you do, I’d like to know where that is coming from.”

Her eyes widen and she takes a small step back. “Gosh. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to insult you. It’s just that I saw that woman trying to flirt with you and I was thinking, I don’t want to stand in the way of, you know, your bachelor life.”

“Baby, you’re good, and we’re good. The only thing in the way of anything right now is that dress. I say let’s leave soon, so I can take it off you.”