Chapter 16
~Deacon~
Dinner with Daley wasn’t on my radar this morning. Hell, even when I got to the rink and saw her, one look confirmed that I still wanted a chance to get to know this woman properly, but I didn’t have any kind of plan on how to achieve it.
Luckily for me, things just kind of fell into place.
As the team got changed for practice, Rob, one of the assistant captains, announced that he’d booked some tables at a nearby lounge for food and drinks afterwards. All new players were invited, along with anyone else who wanted to celebrate the start of the new season.
“Are you gonna go?” Erik asked me, and I almost said yes before my eyes landed on River and I remembered the conversation I overheard between him and Daley. She was staying at his place, so if he went out with the guys, as he should, she’d be on her own.
“I think they might be a little more comfortable without me there,” I replied.
“Right, because you’re so intimidating,” Erik teased, but he didn’t push it. The point stood. For new players, having the captain along would almost feel like bringing your professor along on a night out in college. They could be themselves more easily if they weren’t worried about impressing me.
When we got onto the ice, I spotted Daley in the stands immediately, and noticed how she tried to hide her tears as she watched her son during his first NHL skate.
She has a soft heart, that much was clear, and it only made her more appealing to me.
The desire to spend more time with her grew stronger by the minute, especially after I noticed her checking me out during our stretches.
I had to take my shot with the puck asking her to dinner.
It didn’t shock me when she turned me down because I knew she wouldn’t want River to know about it.
A quick chat with him after practice to nudge him towards going out with the others while I promised to look after his mom was all it took to get me to this moment, standing in front of a wary but amused Daley as River says goodbye to us both and bounds off to his truck to meet the others at the bar.
“I’m parked just outside,” I explain, gesturing to the player entrance. “Follow me.”
She follows, not saying anything else while we’re still inside where anyone might overhear us. When we reach my car, her eyebrows raise ever-so-slightly at the sight of it, but she remains silent while I open the door for her and she slips into the passenger seat.
It’s only when I get into the driver’s seat next to her and close the door behind me that she speaks again.
“Exactly how much of this did you arrange?”
I shrug, giving her my most charming smile. “Only about 25%. The team outing and you needing a ride were out of my hands. I just helped to tie things together. But now that we’re here and River won’t be home for a few hours, how about that dinner?”
Her lips pull into a smile that she does her best to fight. “Deacon, I’m flattered by the invitation, but I don’t think we should…”
“Eat?” I interrupt, putting the car into reverse and backing out of my spot.
My hand on the gear shift rests so close to Daley’s thigh, it’s a struggle not to reach out a little further and brush against her.
“That’s all I’m suggesting. We both need to eat, we both have no one waiting for us, so why not get some food together? ”
She exhales, clearly weighing her next words carefully. “You could have gone with the rest of the team. Did you turn them down because of me, or are you avoiding spending time with your teammates after what happened with Brady?”
My hand slips, shifting the car into the wrong gear and causing us to stall. With a muttered curse, I restart and resume the drive out of the parking lot. “I guess that means you read up about me.”
Whether that’s a good or bad thing, I can’t tell.
She must have been curious enough to make the effort, which means I crossed her mind once or twice, but I liked her not having any preconceived ideas about me.
I suppose it would have been too much to hope that she wouldn’t have found out eventually.
However, maybe it’s for the best. At the very least, it spares me from reliving all the embarrassing details yet again.
“A little,” she admits frankly, her eyes darting over to me before returning to look straight out the window. “I’m sorry about your marriage.”
“Me too.” I wave to the guard at the booth as we exit the lot and I take a left turn, steering the car towards my favourite restaurant where I already made a reservation.
She still hasn’t agreed to dinner but since she hasn’t said no either, I’m going to take my chances.
“To answer your question: no, I’m not letting Brady’s betrayal affect how I treat the rest of the guys on the team.
They didn’t do anything wrong. I’m skipping out on tonight to give the younger players a chance to bond without me hovering, that’s all.
That it leaves me free to take you to dinner is a happy coincidence. ”
Daley hums low in her throat. “That sounds pretty convincing but I’m not entirely sure I believe you.”
“If you have dinner with me, you’ll be able to make a better assessment of the situation.”
A smile breaks through. “You’re relentless.”
“It’s my best and my worst quality.”
“That, I believe.” She turns to face me while I keep my gaze straight ahead on the road. “Just dinner? Nothing else?”
“Nothing else,” I confirm, half-truthfully. I want a whole lot more than that, but I won’t push her into anything unless she wants it too.
After studying my expression, looking for some kind of sign I can only guess at, she gives in. “Where would you like to go?”
Victory tastes sweet on my tongue as I try not to grin too wide. “I know the perfect place.”
Fifteen minutes later, we pull up outside a house on a leafy, residential street.
Oranges and reds already mingle with the green canopy above us as fall takes hold, and an enticing aroma of fresh oregano and basil greets us as we walk up to the small house, no different from any of the others on the street except for the sign above the door proclaiming it to be the best fresh pasta in town.
“This is a restaurant?” Daley asks as I step forward to grab the door for her.
“Mostly delivery, but they have a small dining area for special guests. I figured you’d prefer something more private rather than somewhere we might be spotted together.”
She blinks in surprise before nodding slowly. “I appreciate that.”
Inside the door, there’s a small buzzer to alert the staff in the kitchen that we’re here, and Bianca appears just a few seconds later.
The middle-aged matron of the Abbati family is barely over five feet tall, round and full of energy with the kind of naturally friendly face you can’t help but warm to.
“It’s good to see you, Deke!” Bianca reaches up to pull me down into a hug and I practically have to bend at the waist so she can kiss my cheek.
“I almost dropped my phone when I got your message. It’s true, ask the others.
It’s been too long since you’ve been to see us. And with such a beautiful guest.”
She turns to Daley, giving her a not-at-all-subtle once-over before nodding in approval at me.
“I always knew you had good taste since you like eating here so much. Welcome to Abbati’s.”
Without waiting for an invitation, Bianca hugs Daley too, kissing her cheek, while Daley lets out a startled laugh, taken aback but as charmed by Bianca as everyone is.
“Thank you. I had no idea I was coming here until ten minutes ago, but based on what I can smell, I’m excited to be here.”
“We’ll take excellent care of you,” Bianca promises, gesturing for us to follow her down the hall to where a table for two has been set up in the back room, overlooking the Italianate garden in the backyard.
It’s the only table in the room, and I hold out Daley’s chair for her before settling in my own. “What can I get you two to drink?”
I defer to Daley, who requests the house wine while I stick to water.
“No beer tonight?” she asks when Bianca has left the room.
“Not during the season.”
She lets out an impressed whistle. “That’s a long time to be tee-total.”
“There are a lot of people counting on me, people who pay me a lot of money to be at my best.”
“That’s very disciplined.”
“Discipline has never been an issue for me.”
Those words come out huskier than I mean them to, implying something else entirely, and when Daley looks down to hide the flush in her cheeks, I know she heard it too.
She’s still affected by me, just as I am by her, and before we leave here tonight, I’m going to figure out exactly why she’s so convinced we shouldn’t see where this thing between us could go.