Chapter 11 #2
“Okay, Riley. Let’s get back to our campsite. Say goodbye and thank you to Mr. Harper,” his dad says. Riley gives me a hug and waves at Erin, who waves back, and then they walk in the opposite direction.
“You made his day. He’ll have stars in his eyes for months,” Erin says as we pick our pace back up and turn left on the trail. We’re near the back entrance of Huxley Bay Park now.
“Fan interaction with kids has always been fun for me. Some athletes hate it, but most hockey players are cool with it,” I explain as we descend down a few concrete steps that lead to a large black gate. Erin pushes it open and closes it behind me once I’ve stepped through.
Her phone buzzes in her back pocket. She stops to pull it out. When she lifts it to check her messages, her eyes brighten, an exhale of relief escaping her.
“Good news?” I ask her.
She’s beaming as she says, “Ink and Print sent me the task.”
“Bookworm, that’s great,” I say with a grin as she scans through the email before putting her cell back in her pocket. “Tell me about the task.” I point at the empty bench that’s just a little farther up from where we’re at.
She hesitates.
“Distract me. Please?" I ask.
We settle on the bench. “They’ve given me four chapters of a book,” she half says, half squeals. “I have to come up with a plan to help promote it.” Her hands fly around her face as she shares the ideas she’s considering. The diamonds in her eyes sparkle with every new thought.
She’s a vision.
“What’s the book about?” I ask as I twist so that I’m facing her.
“Oh, it’s just a romance book,” she says, dismissing it with her hand.
“A spicy romance book?” I wag my brows. Her eyes widen just a tad, and I know I’m right.
My little minx.
“Not that I’m saying guys can’t read romance, but how do you know what a spicy romance book is?”
I chuckle as my mind travels back in time to Valerie’s first week with the team. She’d been hired as our social media and content creator.
We were heading to an away series when Valerie left her seat to answer a call from her cousin, Mad Dog. Rudy took the opportunity to peek at what she was reading.
He read a spicy cowboy passage to the entire plane. Valerie came storming over when she heard us shaking with laughter and proceeded to tell us there was nothing wrong with a book that had spice, especially if it had a great plot.
What Valerie did next?
The ultimate revenge.
“For the entire month of February, Valerie, our team’s content creator, had players read a quote from different hockey romance books and posted them over Instagram. The fans ate it up.”
“That’s amazing,” Erin beams.
“There was only one person the fans really wanted to hear talk dirty to them. Our grumpy captain and center, Hayes Borelli.”
Erin barks out a laugh. “Do you still remember your quote?”
“‘Tell me you want me. Tell me that you think about me as much as I think about you. Tell me there’s no one else that makes you feel the way I do. Tell me what I want to hear, so I can finally call you, mine.’”
A beautiful, slow bloom coats her cheeks, and she turns her head, avoiding my eyes. I want that color on every surface, in every corner of my space. All I can think about is kissing her to see what else I can do to her. The words may not be mine, but I mean every single one.
“You have a strong memory,” she says.
“Thank you.” I dip my head. “Now, tell me about the book.”
Her lips part in a wide grin. “It’s an enemies-to-lovers trope. A hockey player who falls for the tutor that hates him because he was mean to her in grade school and stole her pudding cups to give to other girls at recess.”
She twists a little more on the bench, facing me fully as she carries on, clearly in her element.
She’s going a hundred miles an hour. I have no idea what she’s talking about, but I can’t take my eyes off her. She’s completely mesmerizing.
When she’s done, her tone shifts.
“Everything I’m planning is what I wish I could still be doing at W&B. If only we still had the budget.”
“You can’t please everybody all the time, Erin,” I say. “Sometimes things change. Maybe it’s time to move on.”
She pauses, letting the words sink in, a thoughtful crease in her brow.
Then the spark hits and her cheeks rise, giving her face an almost childlike glow.
It’s a smile that radiates pure happiness.
Her eyes light up as she launches into an idea she has about trading cards for hockey players, their skills mixed with their personality traits and a few tropes in the book.
I don’t even care that I already know what a trope is when she tells me. I just love listening to her talk.
I love her presence.
Her smile.
Her everything.
And I desperately want to take her out on a date.
“What will you start with first?”
“Well, it’s a hockey romance, so I need to learn about the game, which is gonna take some research and—”
“I’ll help you.”
The words are out of my mouth before I can stop them. I can tell they’ve taken her by surprise when she rears back just a little.
And because it’s pretty clear I’ll do just about anything for this girl if it means she’ll keep smiling at me, I repeat myself.
“I’ll help you. I’ll be your own personal hockey tutor and teach you everything you need to know about the game. I can ask Valerie if she can give you some cool tips and ideas, too. She lives for this stuff.”
“You’d do that?” Erin asks, her eyes shining with hope.
A grin spreads across my face because I think I’ve just found a way to get that date.
“I will. If you—”
“Deal.”
I chuckle. “Just like that?”
“Yep.”
“You sure?”
“Positive.”
“Let me take you on a date.”
The light drains from her, and her beautiful sun-kissed skin pales.
“What?” she whispers.
“A date, Erin. You know, two people who like each other hanging out. Exactly what we’re doing now, but I promise it will be much better than a woodland trail and a park bench. I can be quite the romantic.”
Her hand curls over the bottom of the bench, holding onto the wood for dear life. I reach out, peel her fingers away, and hold her dainty hand in my calloused ones.
“The truth is, Erin. I know we haven’t known each other for long but…
I don’t feel like I’m drowning when I’m with you or gasping for air.
It comes easy to me, and it doesn’t hurt to breathe.
I can think when we’re together, and I like that, Bookworm.
Spending time with you has easily become a luxury I want more of. ”
“I…”
“Say yes, Bookworm.” My thumb moves back and forth over her skin as I wait for that three-letter word.
“I… can’t. I-I’m sorry.” Her voice dissolves, and her hand slips out of mine as she stands.
She power walks away, then takes off in a run when I call out to her.
The panic that was in her eyes makes me question if she’ll ever let her walls down for me.
I want to go after her, but the last thing I want to do is crowd her when she’s clearly overwhelmed. So, I stay put and wonder why the girl I’m really starting to like won’t let me get close to her.