Chapter 9
Mac
For the second weekend in a row, I find myself in the bar upstairs after the game.
I feel drawn to Eliza in a way I can’t explain, and our dates have only amplified that feeling.
Instead of having the group mixed around the table like last time, the girls are sitting at one end while guys are at the other.
I managed to take the chair that happened to be beside Eliza, and I fight the urge I have to wrap my arm around the back of her chair.
We need to be public about our relationship, but I also have a feeling that anything more than the flowers and cheek kiss might have her second-guessing our entire arrangement.
Two separate conversations are happening as the girls talk about a variety of things I don’t quite understand and the guys talk about the Cyclones.
Growing up, I didn’t have a specific NHL team I supported.
It wasn’t until I moved to Vancouver that I started supporting the Cyclone, and it was more because it was where I lived and it was the team everyone was discussing.
I had been playing on this rec team for a few years before Josh bought the team.
While all of the guys engage in the conversation, no one is as into it as Josh and Matt.
I pay attention to the way that Josh mentions his wife in the conversation, and I if I didn’t already know she’s really into hockey, I would now.
I hear my name brought up in the girls' conversation, and when I turn to look at the end of the table, all eyes are on me.
“Pardon?” I ask.
“We were asking you and Liz about your date yesterday,” Hannah says, and I watch the blush stain Eliza’s cheeks.
“And what exactly were you asking?”
I notice how the conversation at the other end has ended and can feel the attention of the entire table on Liz and me.
“Liz only told us you went to dinner. Where’d you go? What had you asking her out? Are you going out again?” Hannah throws her questions at me, and I’m more than ready to answer them.
“We went to Ristorante Bellanotte, I asked her out because she makes me curious and I wanted to get to know her better, and yes, I hope that we’re going out again.”
Silence fills the table. That’s probably the most direct answer I’ve given to a personal question.
I stop fighting myself and place my arm across the back of Eliza’s chair.
She tenses for a second before relaxing back into her seat.
All eyes remain on us, and I can feel Eliza retreating into herself as everyone stares.
Wanting to get the attention off us, and seeing the questions in Matt’s eyes, I turn to Caleb and ask, “Are you ready the baby to arrive?”
He smiles, and I remember how that was something he didn’t do a lot of two years ago, but here we are, him married with a daughter and a baby on the way.
“Yeah, we’re ready. Charlie is excited about being a big sister.”
“She’s going to be amazing,” Liv says.
Conversation moves on to both Liv and Bailey’s pregnancies, and Liz mouths thank you when I look at her.
I don’t respond, just simply run the back of my fingers across her shoulder and watch as a smaller shutter travels through her.
When we’ve all finished eating, we leave the bar.
I hang back as Eliza says goodbye to her friends and slip beside her as she begins to make her way to her car.
Once we reach her car, she doesn’t unlock it immediately. She bounces between her feet, and I can see the wheels turning in her head. When I open my mouth to say something, she beats me to it.
“When can we start my part of the deal?” she blurts, the words rushing out of her.
I can’t help the pull at the corner of my lips as I reach out and tuck hair behind her ear, brushing the backs of my fingers across her cheeks and taking a step closer. Her sharp intake of breath is audible.
“Are you asking when I’ll take you to bed?” I ask, my voice low.
She swallows, and I watch her throat work. She looks up at me through her lashes, and it takes everything in me to not lean and take her mouth as I press her into the side of her car.
I lean in closer, letting her feel my breath against the shell of her ear as I say, “We’ll get there. Don’t worry, I plan to follow through with my part of the deal and so much more.”
A nearly inaudible squeak escapes her, causing me to chuckle softly. I reach around her and press the button on her door handle before pulling the door open for her.
“Let me know when you get home safely,” I say before pressing my lips to her cheek. She nods and slips into the car, and I close it as she does her seat belt.
The way that Eliza reacts to me has pride swelling in my chest, and I can’t wait to see how she’ll react when we finally take that next step.
But I’m not going to be rushing into it.
I need to build trust with her before we start doing anything that has one or both of us removing clothing.
Losing her virginity is her decision, but I’m also not going to be disrespectful wanker about it.
I need to make sure she feels safe and comfortable with me before we take that next step.
As I walk in the door of my flat, my phone buzzes and I look down at the text. It’s Eliza telling me she’s home. I’m about to respond when another text comes through. This one isn’t from Eliza, though.
It’s from my father, and my entire body stiffens when I read it, knowing what I’m going to have to do tomorrow.