Chapter 16

Saturday night, Lovey, Jillian, Leigh, and Dior all went to the game. The Aces lost yet again. Lovey watched carefully, not that she was an expert or anything, but it was clear to her that Dale Ronson was playing terribly. He’d turned the puck over several times, missed passes, and took stupid penalties.

She could feel the frustration of the team and watched as Coach Brad Wendell bent down to talk to Dale. Well, it was more like yell at him. She couldn’t hear what he was saying but he appeared frustrated too.

Her eyes kept returning to Marc, observing him both on the ice and off. He was trying so hard. Her chest got tight and her stomach knotted as she watched, feeling for him as the Islanders scored again and again.

Duncan and some of the guys were going out after the game again, and Lovey had been excited to take her new friends and introduce them to the guys. But after playing so crappy and losing, she had a feeling the atmosphere wasn’t going to be so much fun.

But they went anyway, to the Sin Bin. The atmosphere was kind of subdued, but not as bad as she’d feared. These guys had a pretty impressive ability to leave their work at the rink and forget about it. She guessed they had to be that way.

She kept watching for Marc to arrive, eyes continually flicking to the entrance. Now that she knew about his work with sick children, she knew he would be going up to the suite after the game to see them.

Finally she had to conclude he wasn’t coming tonight.

Where was he? Had he gone home? She edged closer to Duncan. “Hey. Where’s Marc?”

Duncan shrugged. “No idea.”

“Can you text him?”

“Why?” He gave her a narrow-eyed look.

“I’m…” What could she say? She was concerned about him, but Duncan wouldn’t want to hear that. Shit, why hadn’t she gotten Marc’s phone number?

She knew how badly he’d been feeling about things and tonight wasn’t going to help that.

“I’ll text him,” she said. “Give me his number.”

Duncan grumbled but pulled out his iPhone and gave it to her. She sent a text, then pretended to participate in a conversation while she waited.

Her phone buzzed and she quickly read the message. At home.

She nodded slowly. She wanted to be with him. Make sure he wasn’t beating himself up.

She slipped off her stool and walked to where Jillian and Leigh were talking to Jared and Brent. “Hey, everyone. I’m heading out.”

“Already?” Jillian tipped her head to one side.

“Yeah, suddenly I have a killer headache,” she lied. “Sorry to bail. You guys stay and have fun.”

She quickly found a taxi outside and was soon home, using her key to enter the condo. Marc was sitting on the couch, the TV on but muted, reading a book in the light of the floor lamp.

She dropped her purse on a table and walked to him. “Hey.”

He looked at her. “Hi.”

She sat beside him on the couch. “What are you reading?”

“Extraordinary Athletic Performance.”

She pursed her lips. “Is it good?”

“It’s interesting. It talks about how some skills that we assume are innate, like a goalie’s fast reflexes when he’s stopping a puck, really aren’t. And some things that you’d think are voluntary, like how strong an athlete’s will to train is, might be innate. Kind of that nature versus nurture debate.”

“That is interesting.” Weirdly. For her. “Are you trying to learn something?”

“I’m always trying to learn something.” His smile went wry.

“Did you go see your sick kids after the game?”

“Yeah. They were awesome.”

“Why didn’t you meet us at the Sin Bin?”

He lifted one big shoulder. “Wasn’t in a mood for it.”

“Marc.” She leaned her head against his shoulder. “Remember? Live. Laugh. Love.”

He set down the book and his hand came up to her face, touching her cheek. “I remember. I was living and laughing with those kids. They help put things in perspective. Like, how important is a stupid game when someone so young is battling cancer?”

“Yeah. You’re right.”

“Battling cancer and can still smile and laugh. Now, that’s inspiring.”

She tipped her head to smile up at him. “It definitely is.”

“You didn’t come home with Duncan?”

“No. He’s still there. I…” She what? She wanted to see him? Wanted to make sure he was okay? That wasn’t really what this was about. This was about sizzling chemistry and hot sex. “I thought maybe some sex would cheer you up.”

He choked on a laugh. “Christ, Lovey.”

She met his eyes. “Well? Would it?”

His head moved slowly from side to side, his eyes nonetheless fastened on hers. “Yeah. It would.”

She rose and took his hand. He left his book on the couch and they walked down the hall and into his bedroom.

—

Sunday morning Lovey slept in and loved every minute of it. Even though she didn’t have a job where she left home to go to work every day, she’d been working hard at her blog and Big Cheese Media, forcing herself to stick to a routine where she got up every morning and worked.

So it was eleven o’clock before she emerged from her room. She and Marc had exhausted each other last night. She smiled.

She glanced at the open door of his room, which was apparently empty. Duncan’s door was closed. She hadn’t heard him come home last night. Must’ve been late because he still hadn’t been home when she’d crept out of Marc’s room and into her own.

Marc was pushing his arms into his black leather jacket, standing near the kitchen.

“Morning,” she said with a yawn. Marc looked at her and as usual, the air changed and went charged as their eyes met. Lovey’s skin tingled. She reached for a mug in the cabinet. “Where are you off to?”

“Meeting with Coach.”

She nodded slowly. “Are you going to talk to him about Dale?”

“Yeah. This shit can’t go on.”

She smiled. “Good.”

“What are you up to today?”

She wondered at his question. “Yoga class at one. After that, I don’t know. I may wander into some shops. Take some pictures. Pick up something for dinner. Are you here for dinner tonight?”

“Roast beef?” he asked hopefully.

She laughed. “No. I was thinking about making lasagna, maybe.”

“That sounds good.”

“Okay. I’ll…see you later.”

He nodded, looping a scarf around his neck. “Okay.”

They stood looking at each other for a long, wordless moment. Lovey still held an empty mug in her hands. She wanted to kiss him. Was he thinking the same thing?

He broke eye contact and lifted a hand as he headed out.

Lovey turned to the coffeemaker. Thoughts and feelings were jumbled up inside her. A weird sort of longing. A confusing mix of happiness and sadness. Even a hint of worry. What was that about? About Marc’s discussion with his coach, and how that was going to go? Maybe.

While she drank her coffee, she tossed some ingredients into the blender—coconut milk, spinach, pineapple, and a banana—and whirled it until it was smooth. She poured it into a glass and dropped a wide straw into it. She wandered with her smoothie over to the windows to study the view.

Overcast day, pale gray sky. Dull and a little gloomy. She sighed. Her mood needed a pick-me-up. Maybe she should ask Marc about doing some volunteer work with sick kids. If it helped him keep things in perspective, maybe it would help her. She’d done volunteer work back in Madison, so she should find something like that to do here. Getting outside yourself was a healthy thing to do.

She changed into her yoga clothes and went to class. That helped with her mood. She felt a little more settled when she left there. She explored some shops in the neighborhood, delighted to find a stationery shop that was full of pretty things…adorable desktop organizers, lovely journals, scented candles and unique holders…she spent a good while looking around and selected an irresistible butter-cream scented candle in a cute jar. Then she paused at a section devoted to games and studied the black boxes of Cards Against Humanity. She’d heard people talking about it and how hilarious it was.