Chapter 3 Ben
Ben
There was no doubt about it. Melody McGuire was enchanting.
After almost a decade in the NHL, Ben was used to having women run their eyes over his body with clear admiration in their gaze.
He spent more hours than he cared to think about working his body so that he could stay at the top of his game.
It wasn’t by dumb luck that he was still killing it on the ice when other players his age were slowly being replaced by younger, hungrier upstarts.
He’d fought for his place with long hours of leg lifts, bench presses, crunches, and cardio.
So, no, female appreciation was nothing new to him. What was new was seeing a woman display clear signs of embarrassment for having been caught checking him out.
Ben enjoyed the way Melody’s eyes had seemed to widen as she slowly took him in.
His abs, in particular, had seemed to give her pause, as though she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
But that wasn’t what had really affected him.
What had sent an uncommon buzz of sensation coursing through his body was seeing the potent flush that had stolen up her cheeks.
Unless appearances were incredibly deceiving, Melody McGuire wasn’t the type of woman who made a habit of gawking at half-clothed hockey players.
Despite her father being a long-time professional hockey coach, she appeared wholly unused to seeing such a display of naked muscles.
Ben couldn’t help the way his smile broadened.
Or she wasn’t used to being so transfixed by what she was seeing.
Ben was definitely enjoying this. There was something refreshing about a woman who liked what she saw, but didn’t feel it was her right to claim his body as part of her due for being a loyal fan.
He smiled at the way Melody appeared to gather herself before lifting her gaze to meet his.
Chocolate brown eyes connected with his as words formed on her lips.
God, it was like a whole world existed beyond the veil of her eyes.
A whole new world of depth and intrigue that he found himself eager to explore.
“Hi. I’m Melody McGuire.” Her smile was bashful, but genuine. Ben loved it.
“Benjamin Logan,” he returned as he reached for her hand and gently pressed it between both of his. He rather thought of it as the modern-day equivalent of kissing the back of a woman’s hand. Warm and intimate, but not too forward. “Ben.”
Ben held her hand between his for a hair’s breadth longer than necessary, but not nearly long enough to cause alarm. Still, he heard her breath hitch. Because he was watching for it, he also detected a slight increase in the tempo of the pulse at her neck.
A lightness filled his chest as a feeling of satisfaction washed over him. She definitely wasn’t immune to him.
“Okay,” Eric Cassidy spoke into the silence, pinning them both with a slightly reproachful glare. “Now that you two have been introduced and have stopped laughing at my expense, are you just about ready to go, Mel?”
If Cassidy had witnessed Melody checking him out, he made no mention of it.
Sparing him one last shy smile, Melody turned to face Cassidy. “Just about,” she said as she repositioned the cloth bag on her opposite shoulder.
Cassidy eyed the bag with undisguised optimism. “Is that what I think it is?”
“If you think it’s groceries for movie night snacks, you would be correct.”
Cassidy grinned from ear to ear and rubbed his hands together in eager anticipation. “Oh yeah,” he said, drawing out the vowel sound.
Melody returned his smile but rolled her eyes at him. Clearly, she wasn’t as impressed by her potential offering as he was.
Cassidy’s eyebrows knit as he studied the bag. “Do we have enough to share?”
The question made Ben realize just how full her bag was.
Melody appeared to be doing a silent calculation in her head. “We should have enough for five or six.”
“Sweet,” Cassidy said as he turned to face the guys remaining in the locker room.
Ben had been so fixated on the captivating woman in front of him that he hadn’t taken note of the other guys filing out. Only he, Cassidy, Richie, Alexei Volkov, and Kevin Phillips remained.
“Do you guys want to join us? Mel and I have an exciting night of mayhem planned.”
The look Melody cast Cassidy’s way was dubious. “Mayhem? You didn’t say anything about mayhem when you suggested a movie night.”
“Mayhem can’t be avoided,” Cassidy explained. “Don’t you remember what happened last week when you left me in the kitchen unsupervised?”
Melody cringed in apparent remembrance.
“I forgot to put the lid on the blender before turning it on,” Cassidy clarified for their group. “Kitchen carnage.”
“Good point.” Melody shuddered. “You are hereby banished from your own kitchen.”
“Yes!” Cassidy pumped his fist in triumph.
“So,” Cassidy continued, “now that we can be assured that ‘Kitchengeddon’ won’t be taking place at my condo any time soon, who can I interest in a movie or two? Mel’s a great cook and I should have beer aplenty.”
Ben was surprised by the effort it took to keep his smile in place when Cassidy slung one of his arms around Melody’s shoulders. Much to his disappointment, Melody didn’t try to throw off Cassidy’s arm.
“I wish I could,” Phillips said, “but I need to get home to Pam and the girls.” The warm glow lighting his eyes made it clear he wasn’t in any way put out by his decision to prioritize time with his family.
“I am in,” Volkov said.
“Richie?” Cassidy inquired.
“Thanks for the offer, but no can do. I’ve got a hot date.” Richie winked at them.
It was clear someone thought he’d be getting lucky tonight.
“Logan?” Cassidy asked.
Ben’s eyes flicked over to Melody, silently asking her if she’d mind if he joined them. As seemed to be her habit with him today, she smiled shyly before traces of pink started to suffuse her cheeks.
God, this girl. All he had to do was look at her and her cheeks colored with the sweetest of blushes. Her honest, uncontrived response to him was promising. It was also touching in a way that he hadn’t experienced in a very long time, if ever.
Ben glanced back at Cassidy. “I’d love to.”
“Perf,” Cassidy said. “Are we ready to go then? My car can fit five if anyone needs a ride.”
“I’ll just be a minute,” Melody answered. “I want to say a quick hello to my dad before we head out.”
Cassidy shot her a two-finger salute. “Okey dokey.”
Ben watched as Melody walked off in the direction of the coaches’ offices. He appreciated the gentle sway of her hips and the subtle bounce of her ponytail as she moved away from them.
Based on the snippets of conversation Ben had overhead about the girl who hadn’t given Cassidy crabs, as well as his so-called penchant for cougar bars—though maybe Melody had been joking about that?
—Ben didn’t think Melody and Cassidy were a couple.
Still. The two shared an easy camaraderie.
Ben wasn’t sure what the nature of their relationship was.
Maybe they were just friends, but Ben couldn’t rule out friends with benefits or some such arrangement.
Clearly, more investigation was in order.
This was certainly something he felt he should know before he risked making a play for his teammate’s girl.