Chapter Three

"Here." Ben handed me a plastic cup of steaming tea, the bag still floating. "Careful, those machines make it scalding hot." He frowned, full of concern.

"Thanks." I took it carefully.

"She could do with stronger," Eduardo said. "A nice claret, or maybe a benedictine."

I wouldn't have said no to something stronger, but instead blew on the tea and hoped it wouldn't spill as the coach rattled over a few bumps in the road. Tea would have to do…for now.

"What's going on…oh fuck!"

Another face appeared, then another. Handsome men springing up like testosterone-pumped meerkats, and they were all peering at me.

"Who is this?"

"What the…?"

"Is she wearing a wedding dress?"

"What the hell are you doing here?" A guy with a face way too pretty for such wide shoulders asked.

"Hey," Dylan said, holding up his hand "She's having a rough day. Give her some space. A little respect."

"But who in the Lord's good name is she?" A guy wearing a red cap with a snake logo held up his hands.

" Chto, chert voz'mi ?" a man with super-short white-blond hair said gruffly and stared at me.

I took a deep breath.

"Leave her alone." Theo frowned at the new curious faces. "We're just figuring it out. Making sure she's not hurt."

"I'm okay," I said, but I wasn't, not really. Right now I should be posing for photographs with Steven, sipping champagne, celebrating my marriage with good friends and dear Aunt Mary.

"I'm Gina," the woman sitting next to me said. She watched me sip the hot milky tea. "And I'm in charge of this rabble of players."

"Players?"

"Hockey players." She smiled.

"Yeah, we're The Vipers. You've probably heard of us," Brick said, pressing his hand to his chest and grinning.

"Er. No, sorry." I wasn't exactly up on hockey. I'd played it at school, hated the mud and the bullies who didn't aim their sticks at the ball but went for shins instead.

"Oh." His face dropped a little.

"You're only famous in your world, Brick." Eduardo laughed. "Not every chick has heard of you."

Brick shrugged. "Didn't see you on the cover of Hockey Today , Eduardo."

"Didn't see you on the cover of Men's Health ." Eduardo held up his hands. " Et pourtant nous sommes là ."

"Come on, guys, she needs a moment." Gina stood and gripped the back of the aisle seats in front of her. "None of us are strangers to the odd relationship catastrophe, so let's give…" She glanced at me.

"Pippa," I managed.

"Let's give Pippa some privacy." She smiled at me. "We'll take you to Cardiff if that suits you. I'm guessing you want to be as far away from him…or her…as possible."

"Him, and yes, as far away as possible suits me very well. Thank you."

She kept her attention on me for a moment. "Have we met before?"

"No, I don't think so."

"It's just…you seem familiar."

I managed a weak smile.

"Oh well." She shrugged and touched Tall Stubbled Guy's forearm in a way that hinted at intimacy. "Come on, let's rest up, it's going to be a long day."

"Sure is, we might even have to go to bed before this evening's event." He chuckled, slipped his arm around her waist, and led her from the back of the coach.

"I'll leave you to it," Brick said. "My Whopper is repeating." He pulled a face like he was holding in a burp. "I need to sleep it off." He disappeared from view.

"Don't mind Brick," Dylan said when his teammate had disappeared. "He's a jerk."

"What kind of name is Brick?" I asked.

"It's an affectionate term; he's a brick wall on the ice." Ben was still looking at me from over the seat in front. He'd run his hand through his blond hair, and it stuck up from his brow in several thick curls

"Ice?" I said.

"Yeah, the ice." Ben repeated.

I shook my head. I had no idea what they were on about.

"Ice hockey," his brother Theo said rolling his eyes. "She thought it was grass hockey, douchebag."

"Grass hockey?" Eduardo made a scoffing sound. "That is sissy stuff, just for girls."

"Not true." I frowned. "And you can't say things like that."

"But it is true. Grass hockey is for girls, ice is for men."

"So girls can't play ice hockey?" If this Frenchman wanted a debate about equality, today was the day I could give it. I was overdosed on indignation. Fired up. Ready for a fight.

"Hey, Pippa. I can call you that, right?" Dylan scooted closer again, and the scent of some richly spiced aftershave washed over me.

It was so different to the light citrus one that Steven wore, and I breathed deep, hoping to rid myself of the memory of my ex-fiancé's smell.

Ex.

I had an ex now. An ex-fiancé.

"Sure." I frowned at Eduardo who was grinning at me. "You can call me Pippa."

"We're sorry your Big Day hasn't turned out as you'd planned." Dylan pulled his thick dark eyebrows together, and his eyes seemed to bore right into me.

"Yeah, we really are," Theo said. "Sucks. Big time."

Ben nodded. "Hate that this has happened to you, Pippa."

"Thanks," I muttered.

"We're not going to quiz you on details," Dylan went on in his gruff, gravelly voice, "but if there's anything we can do to help, just let us know. Anything at all."

"Why?" I asked, looking between the four men. "Why would you help a stranger?"

Eduardo shrugged. "We are gentlemen." He pressed his hand to his chest. "Not so much on the ice, no, then we are not gentle, but off it, oui , we are gentlemen, and if we can help a damsel in distress, we will."

"I am not a damsel in—"

"A person in need," Dylan said quickly and gesturing to my wedding gown. "As you clearly are, and we are here to help."

I swallowed. I was in no position to turn down assistance. "Thank you. I appreciate it. And getting to Cardiff will be a start."

"A start to what?" Ben asked, raising his eyebrows.

"A start to moving on from a lying, cheating bastard and a best friend who clearly is not a best friend at all and…" I couldn't finish the sentence and closed my eyes, hating the fact my lower lids were prickling. I sniffed and pressed my hand over my mouth, trying to contain emotions.

"Shit, that's bad, sorry," Ben said with a frown.

" Ma choue! Oh no," Eduardo added. "Your man and your best friend. Putain ."

"He's an idiot," Dylan said.

Theo huffed. "I hate him already."

For a moment they were all quiet, then Dylan spoke again. "Your phone is going nuts, you know. It's been buzzing this entire time."

"I know." I nodded and left it sitting in my lap.

"An entire congregation wondering where you are, right?" Ben said.

"I suppose so."

"Did you tell anyone you were leaving?" Theo asked. "Your parents?"

"My aunt, that's enough…for now." I opened my eyes and looked out of the window. The sun had come out, and the patchwork of fields we were trundling past glistened yellow and green. There were a few sheep dotted about.

"You should get some rest," Eduardo said, "A stressful event is very tiring, no?"

I nodded and placed my forehead on the cool window. "I could do with closing my eyes."

"Then take a moment," Dylan said and very lightly set his fingers on my forearm. "And know that you are not alone."

Much to my surprise, I slept on and off for the next few hours. I guessed a combination of being super busy on the lead-up to the wedding, a work trip to Paris combined with the kick to the guts I'd had completely wiped me out.

I woke as the coach was parking up beside a tall white hotel set against a bay bobbing with sailboats.

"Hey, Pippa," Dylan said. "We're here."

"Here?"

"Cardiff. We're at the hotel."

I cleared my throat and glanced at my suitcase. "Hotel. Right." I'd be able to get out of this goddamn dress now. Even if I just changed in the lobby restroom then headed off.

Didn't Cardiff have an airport? I was sure it did, not that I'd ever been. In fact, I'd only ever been to Wales once before and that was North Wales to do a shoot with the mountains in the background.

The bus was suddenly a hive of activity. Hoodies being pulled on, rucksacks hoisted onto backs, and a rising hum of conversation.

"We've got company," Theo said. He was standing in a stooped position so as not to bang his head. He gestured out of the window.

"Always good to see the fans," Ben said. He waved at a couple holding a sign that read ‘Wales welcomes The Vipers'.

Vipers. That was it. Hockey team. It all came flooding back to my addled brain. "You're over from America, right?" I said, purposely not looking at my phone screen. I didn't want to know how many missed calls and messages I had.

" Oui ," Eduardo said, reaching for my case. "We have been on a six-week tour of Europe, playing hard and winning easy." He laughed. "And this is our last stop then back to Florida."

"Florida. The Sunshine State. Nice." I nodded.

"It is." He gestured to the case. "You okay with me carrying this for you or will it be against the damsel rules?"

"That would be great, thanks." I smiled. I felt a little guilty for snapping at him earlier, but hey, I was having a shit day.

He winked and hoisted it up like it weighed nothing.

"So what you gonna do now?" Dylan asked, gesturing for me to walk ahead of him.

"First things first, I need to get out of this bloody dress."

"Mm." He paused. "I'm no expert on bridal gowns but I've undone my fair share of dresses, and this one appears to be particularly complicated."

"Yes. But I'll cut the damn thing off if I have to."

"No," Gina said, suddenly popping up from where she'd been sitting halfway down the coach. "That would be a crime, that dress is worth thousands, tens of thousands."

"It's also seriously jinxed."

She grimaced. "Fair enough."

A particularly broad guy studied me. A flash of recognition crossed his eyes. I'd seen it before, people wondering where they'd met me. Truth was, most of them hadn't, they'd just come across my image in an advert or a magazine, or maybe a catwalk.

"Dustin," Gina said. "I upgraded us to a suite here, it's a great hotel apparently."

"Yeah." He slapped on a Vipers cap. "Can't wait to see it."

I stepped down from the coach. It wasn't easy in my long tight gown. Ben held out his hand for me to take, and Eduardo was waiting with my case.

"Thanks," I said, breathing in the fresh air that held the thick scent of rain on earth. It was good after the stuffy coach.

The bustle of men around me was as intense. They were all big and wide with deep voices. They jostled for luggage.

A chant set up from a small group of onlookers.

"Vipers! Vipers! Vipers!"

"We should go say hi," Theo said.

"Of course." Ben nodded at me. "I'll find you. Go into the hotel."

"Okay." I took my case from Eduardo. "You go, too. I can manage this."

"But this is heavy for you."

"It's not really, and I'm perfectly capable."

"I am sure you are." He waggled his eyebrows and laughed.

For a moment I forgot about the shit day I was having. His bright smile, balled cheeks, and infectious good-humor was easy to lose myself in. But only for a moment; the second I stepped forward and my gown hindered my stride, I was reminded again of Cheryl's and Steven's passionate clinch.

For God's sake, I'd been only meters away as they'd snogged. They were the biggest bastards ever.

I went through the revolving doors of St. David's Hotel, nodded at a doorman who was clearly surprised to see a bride in amongst a gaggle of hockey players, then made my way to reception.

"Hi," I said to the pretty girl behind the desk. "Can you tell me how far it is to the airport?"

"Sure, it's about half an hour in a taxi, no more than that."

"Great. And do you know if British Airways fly from there? I was hoping to exchange a ticket; usually I find it easiest to talk to someone face to face."

She twisted her mouth. "Er, not sure about that."

"No, I don't think so," said the young man next to her who had been tapping away on a keyboard. "There's hardly anything there."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"There's only four gates, a handful of flights a day."

My heart sank. "A handful of flights a day?"

"Afraid so."

"Would you like me to do a search for you?" the girl asked.

"No, it's fine, I can do that." The chances of me finding anywhere worth flying to today were slimmer than I'd anticipated. "But perhaps I'd better have a room for the night. Do you have any vacancies?"

"I'm not sure." She clicked her tongue on the roof of her mouth. "With The Vipers in town we're pretty full."

I closed my eyes, a long blink, as she peered at her screen. What the hell was I going to do? The sense of flailing, searching for the right path to take, was discombobulating. I was used to being in control, moving forward, plans in place. But this…this was horrible.

"There's nothing," she said.

"Oh, bugger, okay."

"But give me a minute." She flicked open a notepad. "I think we might be getting a cancellation on one of the accessible rooms on the ground floor. I can check, but it will take me a moment or two."

"That's fine. Thank you. I appreciate it." I looked around the lobby. The players were pouring in through the doors now, the noise level rising with their deep voices and heavy footsteps.

To the right was a ladies' restroom. I'd go and wrestle with my dress, get changed. Perhaps Gina would help me.

I spotted her by the elevator, her man, Dustin, at her side.

Hoisting my dress up a few inches, I pushed through the crowd of staff, fans, and players.

But when I reached the elevator it was too late, she'd gone. She was clearly eager to get to bed before the evening kicked off. And I'd put good money on the fact there wouldn't be much sleeping, not with a hunk of a player like that on her arm.

I held in an expletive. If only I'd gone for a white jumpsuit. I'd been tempted on one with Swarovski details and a plunging neckline. It would have made life a damn sight easier right now.

"Problem?" Ben was at my side.

"I need to get out of this dress," I said. "I feel like it's crushing me, literally. I can't breathe in it."

"No problem." He pressed the button on the elevator. "Come up to my room and I'll help you."

"What? No…I can't just…"

He held up his hands. "I agree, you shouldn't, you don't know me, but I promise I'm a decent guy. I'll help, nothing more. No crazy shit."

I glanced around. Dylan and Eduardo were at the reception desk. I couldn't see Theo. A few players were watching me with obvious curiosity, as were a few fans who unfortunately had phones out.

"They…they are trying to find a room for me," I said as the elevator door opened.

"That'll be good, you need some time and space to get your thoughts straight." He looked at me seriously. His brown lashes were long, a fraction too long for a guy, and it softened his masculine features. "I swear on my brother's life." He pressed his hand to his chest. "That I only want to help. I'll be an utter gentleman helping you out of that dress."

"I don't even know if you like your brother." I narrowed my eyes at him.

He laughed, a soft chuckle. "You strike a hard bargain, you know that? But yeah, I like Theo, a lot. In fact, I think he's fucking awesome. Best brother in the world." He held out his hand, indicating for me to step into the elevator.

What the heck? Ben seemed like a decent bloke, and I'd met enough creeps in my business to be able to sniff them out. I'd go to his room, let him help me, and then I'd get on with the rest of my life.

My single life. My life without Steven.