Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

OLIVER

NOAH: How's operation #HOCKEYGODDESS going?

ZOE: Ooh!! I like it. Nice, Noah!

OLIVER: Are you two sitting next to each other texting?

EDEN: …

NOAH: …

ZOE: …

EDEN: At least I'm in the kitchen getting more lemonade. Ollie, updates, please. Still passing notes?

OLIVER: She left a note on my Jeep after practice. Smiled at me when she passed me in the hall.

ZOE: Another note? Not a passing note, but a note note?

NOAH: Like, a love note note? Also, don't get pissed at me when you don't score on me.

T hese three were making me dizzy.

OLIVER: Yes. A note note. With her number. And I'm going to score. I know your weak spots.

NOAH: *scoffs* I have no weak spots, Cyclone. Can we add her to the chat?

ZOE: Down boy. We don't want to scare her away.

MIKAYLA: I like a girl who makes the first move!

Wait, now MIKAYLA is in the chat?

OLIVER: Who added Mikayla?

EDEN: I did. #HOCKEYGODDESS might be her future sister-in-law.

ZOE: And it saves you the extra text convo. Work smarter, not harder.

NOAH: We got you. Now, have you texted her yet?

MIKAYLA: Love you, Ollie. Tell me all about her. And are you going to…you know?

OLIVER: Mikayla Jayne.

NOAH: It's not like we all don't know, Cyclone.

EDEN: I think it's sweet.

ZOE: SAMESIES

OLIVER: SO DONE. NOT TALKING ABOUT THIS.

NOAH: Agreed. Less talking, more doing.

ZOE: Lots of doing. Do all the things.

EDEN: SO MANY THINGS. Be safe!

I let out a groan. But before I could respond, Hale, the Revenge Goalie, called.

"I've never been more happy to get a phone call," I said as I answered, pacing the kitchen island. The chat blew up, but I ignored it as I circled the island.

"Rookie, I know this might be a long-shot, but any chance you're looking for a new friend?"

Feet, don't fail me now. "Are you…asking, cause I kinda thought going to hot yoga meant we already were?" Was he asking to be my friend or something else?

"Don't get all tangled up, Sutton. My neighbor's dog had puppies, and you're new in town. The building is pet friendly." He let out a breath and covered the phone. I couldn't make out a word he said, but after a minute he added, "And she needs to find home for one more. She's the runt, and sweet."

A puppy? "Um, don't take this the wrong way, but-"

"I can't take her. Allergies," he said, voice tinged with sadness. "And Lucy is kinda special. I don't trust any of the other guys with her. Kas thinks Daisy would disown him."

I'd heard Holken talk about the cat like she was his daughter. In fact, I'd been so confused at first that I thought she was his daughter.

"You'd be doing me a huge favor. And if I could bring someone over to see her once in a while…"

Holy shit. Did Hale have a kid?

He didn't live in the building, like most of the single guys did. But I'd never heard a word about him being a dad. "I'm not sure I'd be able to give her-"

"Lucy."

"-Lucy," I amended, "the attention a puppy needs."

The red-haired goalie let out a sigh. "I'll set you up with a doggie daycare when you're on the road, and they'll help train her, too. I wouldn't ask," he paused, "if I wasn't desperate. Can't keep her, and it'll break…someone's heart. And I am done with people doing that. I'd owe you, Sutton. And she's the cutest fucking thing you've ever seen."

I glanced around the apartment, the place I'd call home for the foreseeable future. I'd never had a puppy because my parents divorced, then my dad remarried. I'd been so busy with hockey and school, that pets weren't a part of the equation.

"Can I meet her?" I stammered, because I sounded like a kid, "Just to make sure she likes me?"

Hale laughed, and when he spoke again, he sounded relieved. "I'll bring her over tonight."

"Tonight?" Didn't puppies need…food? A bed? Or even a squeaky toy?

"And all her things, too. Crate, food, puppy pads, her stuffed dragon, bed-"

"Puppy pads?"

"She has a lead and collar, and treats. Oh, and the water dispenser. She loves fresh water." He paused. "I owe you, Sutton."

The big goalie sounded so sincere and grateful that I couldn't bring myself to protest. They call it puppy love, don't they? How hard could a little puppy be?

"Lucy. Looks like I got a new roommate."

Lucy, it turned out, was as cute as she was rambunctious. At least, in spurts. One second she was playing tug of war, then the next she was curled up at my feet or on her bed, fast asleep.

And ‘runt' for a black lab wasn't small, either. Either way, Lucy stole my heart as soon as I opened the door and Hale thrust her in my arms.

She wiggled and made puppy noises and I couldn't look away from her big brown eyes. Next thing I knew, there was a crate, a bed, some fancy water contraption, puppy toys, a stuffed dragon, and a huge bin of puppy food, plus five containers of some fancy concoction in my refrigerator.

Jacob stayed for a bit, telling me her habits, setting up the puppy pads (not too happy about that, but it was better than dog pee on the hardwood floor at 2 am), that crating her when I was gone eased her and let her feel safe, and how she rang a bell when she needed to go outside.

"I owe you, Sutton. I don't think you realize how much. Talk after the series about the visits, ok?"

After he left, I settled in on the couch and turned on Netflix. Lucy curled up on my lap. Snoring.

I pulled out my phone.

OLIVER: Is it bad I miss your notes already?

I stared at the screen, willing her to answer. When the three dots jumped, I fist pumped once, much to a sleeping Lucy's dismay. Thankfully, she made little puppy noises and went right back to sleep.

COREY: What? Missing my tips and tricks already?

OLIVER: I'm missing a lot more than that.

The dots jumped, stopped, started and stopped three more times before she responded.

COREY: I'm not sure this is a good idea.

OLIVER: Well, it's a good thing that I am, then. For the both of us. It's just one date.

COREY: Is it?

OLIVER: For now. And shhh. You'll wake up Lucy.

I snapped a quick pic of the puppy asleep in my arms and sent it to her.

COREY: She's the cutest thing! When did you get a puppy, rookie?

OLIVER: Since an hour and a half ago. Long story. Boring.

OLIVER: I'll pick you up at six tomorrow.

I waited for her to tell me no, or to say she had plans.

COREY: Six it is.

Early the next morning, I took Lucy for a walk. Dropped her off at the doggie daycare Hale recommended, and paid for through the end of the season. Headed in for a workout. An hour on the treadmill, legs, and somatic exercises. Between those, and hot yoga, the after game routine I'd had since high school became almost nonexistent.

By the time I finished, showered and had Lucy back home, it was before five. A quick check of the apartment and I put Lucy in her crate with a promise to play with her as soon as I got home.

If I played my cards right, I wouldn't be alone.

MIKAYLA: Take her somewhere with cupcakes, Ollie, for dessert. Trust me.

OLIVER: If this is some weird sex thing, M.

MIKAYLA: Sharing the love, lil bro.

If anything, having a stepsister like Mikayla who was protective yet overshared meant I knew more about sex than any virgin should. When Halley Richards gave me a blow job after my college team won our division, she was the first person I called. Even before Noah.

Not that I didn't want to have sex. No one caught my eye enough to risk my career. And the blow job was great, but I found out after she hit up the entire second floor of the house we lived in.

No thank you. Mikayla made me go get tested, and warned me against all the puck bunnies and threatened to kick any girl's ass that messed with me.

Which was the reason Noah added her to the chat, no doubt. Between the chat and Mikayla messaging on the side, my phone blew up every fifteen minutes. In three days, the Seattle Revenge faced the Montreal Triumph in the playoffs. Noah and I would finally play against each other for the first time in our professional careers. Our families already bought up an entire section for every game. Talk about nerves.

"Call me, maybe? One date.

C"

I reread her note, the song by Carly Rae Jepsen playing in my head. Cheesy, but I blamed Noah and his damn playlists. The guy had one for every occasion and was a music tyrant unless you bribed him with Airheads.

Sugar rush Noah was even worse than his usual. Luckily, I kept a supply on hand when we were roommates and already had Kas help me get a boat load sent to the visitor locker room during our series.

I mean, if he got a rush, he'd have to crash, right?

My hand didn't even had time to knock on Corey's front door when she appeared, wearing a blue strapless jumpsuit (Mikayla made me go shopping with her and I knew way too much about women's clothing) that made her blue eyes stand out even more. I opened my mouth, shut it, then grinned. "Hey."

She glared playfully at me. "One date, Sutton. Your reset is done, and we're square."

"We'll talk about that later. You're beautiful, Blue."

She cocked her head to the side. "Blue?"

"The first time I saw you at the game, all I saw were your eyes." My cheeks flushed, but I held her gaze, refusing to look away. Her full, pink lips parted, but I kept going. "When I was younger, my dad and I used to play on this pond in the winter. And the sky was this," I sighed, "gorgeous shade of blue that you only see when the sun is high. The way the air is crisp? Some of my favorite memories growing up were skating outside with my dad." I opened the passenger door and held her hand as she climbed in. I waited until she buckled her seatbelt, and made my way around to the driver's side.

I loved the way she looked in my Jeep. My very own passenger princess.

The radio played Noah's playlist, because he, Zoe, and Eden made me promise to play it, but I lowered the volume.

"My dad used to take my brothers outside when he'd get home from practice when I was little, but I was too young to go with them. As soon as I could, I put on my skates and surprised them. And fell and fell until I didn't." Her smile lit up her face. "My brothers and I loved those moments. But my mom hated it." That smile faded. "I think she didn't realize how much the game took away from their time together. Then we took even more. Every night, he'd study tape in his office, and I curled up next to him and we watched every frame. Hours. He'd tell me every weakness and strength he saw. And I loved every second."

The notes. Every tip and trick she sent me.

She shared a part of herself and hadn't even realized it.

Or maybe she did.

Lights sparkled as we pulled into the parking lot. I shut down the engine. "Thank you."

She tilted her head. "For what?"

"Sharing that."

Her brows pulled together. "I don't think I ever told my ex-husband that."

I preened, and she scoffed. "What? I'm already more special."

Those beautiful blue eyes rolled. "Calm down, rookie. You succeed, the team succeeds."

"Uh, huh." She reached for the door handle. "Wait." I jumped out and made my way around the back of the Jeep. She watched in the rearview mirror, tracking me until I came around to the passenger door. When I opened it, Corey hesitated, eyeing the hand I held out. I arched a brow, and she narrowed her eyes but took it.

Hell yes. The moment our hands touched, the electricity that simmered beneath the surface went live-wire.

So did my dick. Center ice, drop the damn puck.