Chapter Ten
When I return from our road trip, I step into the entry hall of my house, drop my bags on the floor, and let out one long, relieved sigh.
Yeah, it’s good to be home.
For a beat, I forget I no longer live alone. But I’m quickly reminded when I catch sight of a raven-haired whirlwind that’s—shit!—about to slam right the fuck into me.
“Whoa, Ellie!” I grab her elbows as she skids to a stop in front of me. Steadying her, I chuckle and say, “Someone’s in a hurry.”
She takes two steps back, and my hands fall to my sides.
Breathing rapidly, she gasps, “Oh my God, I am so, so sorry. I almost took you out.”
I chuckle. “No, I’m fine. But that was a pretty solid almost-check there, my friend.”
Now she’s laughing right along with me as she says, “Bet you weren’t expecting that enthusiastic of a welcome back, huh?”
I know she’s kidding, but a part of me wishes she really were that excited to see me return.
Dismissing that thought, because it’s ridiculous, I tell her, “No, I can’t say that I was.”
“Well…” She smiles at me. “Welcome home, Nils.”
“Thanks.”
Since I finally have a chance to really take a good look at her, I do.
First, she’s looking as hot as ever. Even though she has on simple black pants and a black polo shirt, her body is bangin’.
But I do have to wonder why she’s dressed the way she is. Her outfit is definitely something a server at a restaurant might be wearing.
And then I see the logo.
Brow creasing, I cock my head and ask, “Did you get a job at Applebee’s?”
She nods. “As a matter of fact, I did. And actually”—she holds her phone up to check the time—“I hate to run, but I’d better get going or I’m going to be so late. That’s why I was in such a hurry and almost ran into you.”
I have so many questions, like why did she get a job so quickly? But it’s really not my place to ask. I guess I was just hoping to spend some time with her today. It’s only noon, and it’s really nice out. I was going to suggest that we hang out by the pool in the back of my house for a while.
Fuck, okay, I admit it—I’m dying to see her in a bikini. And yeah, I decided over the past few days that even though I can never have Ellie in any kind of sexual way, I can certainly still fantasize about her.
Not that I could stop myself from doing so anyway.
Yeah, that ship has sailed.
Trying to hide the disappointment in my voice, I say, “Oh, okay. You’d better go. I don’t want to keep you.”
Even though hanging by the pool is out, we still have this evening. Maybe she and I can spend some time together then.
In an even tone, seeing as I don’t want to sound completely desperate, I ask, “What are you doing later tonight? We could watch another movie here at the house if you’re not working too late.”
Her turquoise eyes light up, and I swear my heart skips a beat. “Ooh,” she says, “I’m definitely up for watching a movie. I’m done at six, so maybe we can plan for around seven?”
“Seven works for me,” I say with a smile.
“Cool. See you then.” She starts toward the door, but then she turns back. “Oh, and if you want to order pizza this time, I’d be cool with that. I didn’t have time to eat anything for lunch, so I know I’ll be starving after work.”
“Sure,” I reply. “I’ll probably be grabbing a bite after you leave, but I’ll be sure to skip dinner. By seven, I’ll be nice and hungry too.”
“Awesome, then pizza will be perfect.”
“It will be,” I agree.
She walks out the door, waving. “See you later, Nils.”
I give her a little wave back. “Yeah, bye. See you tonight.”
She leaves, and the house feels empty. I never cared or noticed how quiet it is around here in the past. But Ellie has such life to her. She has a way of filling the entire room with her presence and positive energy.
Letting out a sigh, I pick up my bags and take them upstairs. It’s time to not only put my shit away, but also to table any further thoughts of Ellie.
As the day passes, I’m moderately successful in not thinking too much about the woman I’m sharing my house with. I must confess, though, that when I do spend some time out by the pool, I keep imagining her lounging next to me, clad in a skimpy bikini that matches her turquoise eyes.
I wonder if she has one in that color.
I should ask her when she gets home, which should be any minute now.
Yeah, like that would be a good idea, perv.
I focus instead on the time. It’s after six, and as I promised Ellie, I’m hungry—like really fucking starving. I skipped dinner, and the thought of a nice cheesy pizza has my stomach growling.
We have practice tomorrow morning, so I’ll easily burn off all the excess carbs and calories. Plus, I got in a light workout in my home gym about an hour ago.
I’m now showered and up in my bedroom, pulling a black tee over my head and zipping up my jeans.
As I pad out into the hall in my bare feet, I hear the beeping sound of the alarm being disarmed downstairs.
Yes! Ellie is home!
Quit getting so excited about her, dude. You’re worse than some teenage kid with a crush.
I try to squash my enthusiasm, but as I start down the stairs, I accept that I obviously do indeed have a crush on Ellie. And it’s a big one at that. Hopefully, it’ll go away at some point and we can just be good friends.
That’s a relationship Arden would approve of.
And I’ll win my bet with Finn for sure, then.
I’m smiling at the thought of victory when I reach the base of the stairs.
Ellie, peering over at me with a smile of her own, quips in a teasing tone, “Well, it’s not quite the ‘welcome home’ I gave you this morning, but a smile is always nice. Did you miss me?”
“Actually, I did,” I just flat-out admit. “It was too damn quiet around here all day.”
Clearly pleased with my admission, her smile widens. “Aww,” she coos, “I think you just made my day, Nils.”
As I rest my hand on the wooden newel post, I raise a brow and ask, “How was work? Was it rough…or not too bad?”
She shrugs. “It was all right. Not too hectic, but busy enough that I pulled in some decent tips. Still, I’m definitely looking forward to chilling tonight.”
Hmm, if she wants to work, that’s great. But I don’t want her thinking she needs to pay me anything. Even though we discussed it before, I feel compelled to bring it up again.
“Hey, Ellie,” I say.
“Yeah?”
“You remember how we talked about you not owing me any rent or anything like that for staying here, right?”
Shifting from one foot to the other, she says, “Yes, I remember.”
“Well…” I blow out a breath. “I meant that. I truly don’t want anything.”
Except for maybe one night with you, my traitorous dick chimes in.
“Shut up,” I grumble super softly so she can’t hear.
But Ellie catches my murmuring and asks, “What was that?”
I try to refocus her on the first part of what I said. “Oh, I was just reiterating that you don’t owe me anything.”
I swear, the way she cocks her head and the knowing twinkle in her turquoise eyes tell me she’s catching on to my raging internal battle.
Nodding, she says, “Yeah, I heard that part. And okay, but I still plan to buy some food and pay for a few pizzas along the way. In fact, I’ve already decided that I’m covering the tab tonight.”
Thank God, it seems my redirection is working.
Keeping her on track, I make a big show of giving in, sighing and rolling my eyes. “All right, you can treat, if you really want to.”
“I do,” she says, “but before we get started…” She gestures down to her black server clothes. “Do you mind if I grab a shower and change first? I feel like I smell like a cornucopia of foods over here.”
I can’t smell anything from where I’m standing, but she’s probably right.
Chuckling, I say, “Sure, of course.” I point down the hall. “I’ll wait for you in the entertainment room. Take your time, though.”
“Okay.”
I walk out into the hall, and she heads past me and up the stairs.
Once I’m settled on the sofa in the entertainment room, I turn on the TV and tune in to a sports channel so I can get caught up on any hockey news.
There’s nothing groundbreaking, so I kind of zone out. I’m expecting to be waiting a while, as I know some women take forever to get ready. But it’s not long at all before I hear Ellie padding down the hall.
I sit up straighter and turn toward the doorway so I can watch her as she walks in.
Holy shit, she’s so damn pretty.
Does she always have to look so good?
Or maybe it’s just me?
No, she looks fantastic. Her long dark hair is flowing over her shoulders, the soft curls at the ends bouncing lightly as she walks toward the sofa. And damn, the ripped jeans she has on are just snug enough to show off her long, lean legs and slim hips. Then there’s her V-neck top. It’s not the bikini I fantasized about earlier, but it is turquoise and brings out the color of her eyes as much as I imagined a swimsuit in that color would.
As she plops down on the sofa—close to me, but not as close as I’d like—my eyes are drawn to her cleavage. Only a hint of her perfect, rounded breasts is visible, but it’s enough to make my dick twinge.
Okay, settle down, boss.
I quickly pick up my phone and say, “How about we order that pizza? I’m fucking starving.”
For you, I think but wisely don’t add.
“Sounds good to me.” She slips her phone out from her jeans pocket. “Where are we ordering from? I’ll pull up their menu too.”
I tell her, and together we scroll through the options on our respective phones.
I like the way she kind of leans toward me on the sofa as we discuss whether to go for thin crust or thick—thick wins—and what kind of toppings we want.
“I’m good with just about anything,” I share. “Just no pineapple.”
Scrunching her pert little nose, she agrees, “Yeah, no pineapple for me either. Yuck.”
We ultimately decide on a pizza with extra cheese, pepperoni, and mushrooms, along with two bottled sodas. I don’t put up a fuss when Ellie insists that we place the order on her phone so she can use her Apple Pay.
“Okay, all right,” I say. “But I’ve got us next time.”
She agrees, and then we make a joint decision to wait to start a movie until the pizza arrives.
After the order is placed, we put away our phones, and she shares with me, “I’m so happy you like mushrooms. Arden hates them, so growing up, and even now if we order pizza, I can never, ever get them.”
“You don’t have to worry about that with me,” I reply. “I love ’em.” And then teasing, I look over at her and deadpan, “I guess you could say I’m a real ‘fungi.’”
“Oh, God.” She rolls her eyes, but she’s chuckling too. “You did not just say that.”
Shit, I’m turning into a true nerd around her.
But I don’t even care, as my corny line made her laugh.
Shrugging, I admit, “Yeah, I totally did.”
She shakes her head, then sits up straighter.
Running her hands down her jean-clad thighs, she says, “So, while we’re waiting for the pizza, tell me more about you.”
I nod. “Okay. What do you want to know?”
“Hmm…” She thinks it over, then says, “Let’s start with the basics. Like, where did you grow up, and do you have any siblings?”
“Those are easy enough. I grew up in a little suburb just outside Minneapolis, Minnesota. And as for siblings, I don’t have any.”
“Lucky you,” she snorts. “Bet you could always get mushrooms on your pizza if you wanted to.”
I laugh. “Yeah, I guess I could have.”
Sighing, she says, “Since Arden is your friend, I think you know my answers to those questions.”
“Yeah, I do,” I admit. “You grew up in Toronto, and Arden, the mushroom hater, is your only sibling.”
“Yep, you got it.”
I decide to get a little personal and ask, “What about boyfriends? There’s no guy pining away for you back in Chicago, is there?”
I kind of know there’s not, but I’m curious to learn if there’s ever been anyone she’s been in love with.
Scoffing, she says, “Nils, I wasn’t even in Chicago long enough to meet the freaking mailman, let alone someone to date. But prior to that…” She blows out a breath. “As an undergrad, there were a couple of guys over the years who I was involved with. Nothing ever got super serious, though. I was always too busy with school and work. No one wants to be, like, your third priority, you know?”
“That’s true,” I agree. “I think that’s why I haven’t settled down. There have been a couple of serious girlfriends over the years for me, but those relationships always fizzled out. Hockey is my primary focus, and they just weren’t okay with that.”
She nods. “I totally understand. I know once I decide what I want to do school-wise and career-wise, I’ll be putting everything I have back into those things.” She sighs softly as she glances over at me. “Guess we definitely need partners who can understand that, huh?”
I catch her gaze and hold it. “Yeah, I think we do.”
Silence descends, but it’s a comfortable one as we share something with our eyes. Like, maybe we’re a lot alike. And maybe we’re the type of people we’ve both been looking for.
And maybe, just maybe—
Riiinnnggg!
Huffing, Ellie looks away. “That must be the pizza,” she murmurs dejectedly.
“I’m sure it is.” I stand as I let out a sigh. “I’ll go get it.”
The fucking doorbell has broken whatever spell we were falling under.
But maybe that’s for the best.
No, it definitely is.