Chapter 7
Robbie
Olivia.
I haven’t been able to stop thinking about her since that night two weeks ago at my brother’s restaurant, The Arcadian. After a game, I usually grab some food and head home to my two cats. My house is only a ten minute drive north of downtown and by the time I shower at the arena and pick up the food, the highway is nice and clear.
I didn’t expect to see her there, and I definitely didn’t expect to start a conversation with her either, but I felt this pull that I could not ignore. Her hair was in a braid that was resting on her shoulder, and she had wisps of wavy hair around her face. She was wearing only the littlest bit of makeup and she looked ethereal. Her green eyes were so piercing, I felt like she was seeing right down to my core.
Not only is she incredibly attractive, but she’s smart too and I love that she isn’t intimidated by me. Most people are, due to my size and the fact that I play a fairly violent sport. If anything, I should be intimidated by her. She seems tough as nails and she asserted herself with poise during the game. Some of the players on the Foxes team kept snickering and making small comments about her being a woman, but she shut them down immediately by reminding them that she is a game official and has every right to throw someone off the ice if they are being disrespectful.
In the past two weeks, we played five games, three at home and two away. The second away game was in Cleveland and I saw Olivia again.
During the game I said hello to her a few times but only got a nod in return. She was most definitely ignoring me and my attempts at making friends. I’m still not sure why she’s so averted to it. Maybe it’s because she thinks it’ll be perceived as favoritism, but I can’t say I’ve ever had that issue with any of the refs I am friends with. If anything, they crack down on me even harder when I’m being a dickhead and make stupid mistakes on the ice.
After the game, I decided to skip the shower and head straight to the hotel as I was feeling more tired than usual. While Ash, Eli, and Jordan decided to go out, I was in need of a bed. It was pouring rain the whole trip to Ohio and my right knee was flaring up like crazy. I left that part out when I told the guys I was headed back to my hotel room. The last thing I needed was for Ash to make even more fun of me for being old.
Drenched to my bones after making the awful decision to walk the five minutes to the hotel, I entered the hotel lobby only to run into the back of someone. I must have knocked into her pretty hard because she started to fall, but at the last second, I put my arms around her torso and pulled her back into me. Her bag fell off her shoulder to the lobby marble floor and we both stood there for a moment. My arms were still around her and I slowly pulled them away. “Are you okay?” I asked.
“You smell really bad,” she mumbled.
When she turned around I was met by Olivia’s scrunched up face and a panicked gleam in her eyes, like she couldn’t believe she just said that out loud. She relaxed a bit when she realized it was me. And yes, I did smell really bad since I forgoed the shower. I also probably looked like a wet dog after my encounter with the rain.
I gave her a lazy smile and looked at her more closely. She looked sweaty too, like maybe she didn’t shower either after the game. Her hair was in a low ponytail and her green eyes were roaming all over my face.
“You don’t smell that great either. Did the ref locker room not have a working shower?” I teased her with a smile.
She rolled her eyes and bent to pick up her bag from the floor before saying, “I usually skip the locker room showers, or wait until all the guys leave.”
I never thought about the fact that she has to share locker rooms with other guys. I grimaced my apology and she smiled. She actually smiled. Not more than a pull of her lips to the side, but it was perfect. And it was for me.
She looked like she was about to leave so I did my best to keep the conversation going, “Sorry about running into you like that.”
“It’s fine, I was kind of just standing there, distracted by my phone.”
“Are you staying here as well?” I moronically asked.
“As opposed to what? Sleeping under the bridge?” she quipped with amusement in her eyes. I could get behind this feisty Olivia.
“You never know. I don’t like to make assumptions.”
She shook her head but asked, “Are you headed up?”
I nodded and took this for what it was. An invitation to ride the elevator together.
Once we got in, all I could hear was the water dripping off of me and the buzzing of the panel. For the first time in a while, I felt nervous. I didn’t want to say something dumb and spook her away. By the time I figured out a topic of conversation, the elevator dinged, letting me know we were at her floor. She stepped out and said over her shoulder, “Goodnight, Robbie.”
“Goodnight, Olivia.”
Tonight is another away game, this time against the Vermont Vortices. I always despise playing against them. They are a bunch of meatheads, and that says a lot coming from another meathead. They always start fights for no reason at all and fake injuries left and right to draw out penalties against us. It’s ridiculous.
On the bright side, Olivia will be here tonight. For some unknown reason, I want to impress her and show her I’m not only good at my job, but that I am a decent person too. And maybe, just maybe, I can get her to be my friend.