Page 16

CHAPTER 16

ANNA

I t’s been a few weeks since Ollie and I officially crossed that line from friends to…well, whatever this is. Reason or season or not.

And honestly, it’s been amazing.

At first, I thought it might be weird—dating someone who knows all my quirks, who’s seen me ugly cry over bad reality TV and eat an entire pizza in one sitting. But with Ollie, it’s different. Easier. Fun.

We’ve been doing all kinds of things together, from low-key movie nights to events he drags me to for his team. At every one, he’s charming and confident, but when we’re alone, there’s this softness to him, a quiet attentiveness that makes my chest feel tight in the best way.

And the kissing. The kissing . It’s like every time his lips touch mine, I lose track of everything else. He’s so…sexy. Like, unfairly sexy. Freaking stupidly sexy. Not just in the way he looks—though, let’s be real, those broad shoulders and the scruff on his jaw aren’t hurting—but in the way he moves, the way he talks, even the way he looks at me sometimes, like I’m the only person in the room.

It’s not just physical, either. There’s this connection that’s been building between us, for years, and I’m starting to realize it’s been there for longer than I want to admit. Maybe I’ve always felt this way about Ollie, but I just wasn’t ready to see it until now.

A few days ago, before he left town for a road game, he stopped by my apartment with a record tucked under his arm. It was a copy of the Miles Davis album we’d been listening to. He said it reminded him of me, and now I can’t stop listening to it. It’s one of those old-school, heartbreakingly beautiful albums that feels like it was made for lazy Sunday mornings and late-night overthinking. Every time I play it, I can’t help but imagine him here with me, lying on the couch, his arm slung around me as the music drifts through the room.

“Hey!” Ben, who is on a video chat at the moment and in upstate New York with the team, snaps his fingers at me as Molly’s laughter fills the air. “Earth to Anna. Did you hear me?”

I want to shout “no because I’m thinking of kissing your star defenseman” but instead I simply shake my head.

“Sorry, I was distracted.”

“There’s a lot of that going around River City, and this team, at the moment.” His eyes narrow as he looks at me. “I was asking if you could make sure to drop off our travel documents to the travel agent so she can make sure the guys are all good to cross the border to Canada.”

“You got it. Though why anyone would have issues getting into Canada is beyond me.”

“They’re a little stricter there than the USA,” Ben says. “I had a bus stopped years ago because one of our guys had an old DUI on his record. They didn’t want him to come in, wanted us to turn around and go back.”

“Seriously?” I ask, looking at Molly, who nods.

“He tells the truth.” She turns back to the camera. “Do you need anything more from Anna, or can I send her out now to do some errands?”

“I’m good. Thanks, Anna,” he adds as I hop off the stool and grab the folders from the counter, shoving them in my messenger bag. “Oh, almost forgot, Molls—Travis is coming by to drop off some contracts for me to check out.”

I love it when he calls her Molls, even if Molly hates it. “Why are you looking at contracts—” she starts to say but stops. When I look at the screen, Ben’s shaking his head. I take this as my sign that not only am I not supposed to know what is up, I need to go now so he can talk to her about it.

“I can take a hint,” I sing as I head to the front door. I make it out to the driveway and am about to get into my car when I hear someone call my name. I look toward the street to find Travis hopping out of a cab.

“Hey,” I say, waiting in the drive for him to join me. I incline my head toward the house. “Molly’s expecting you.”

He holds up a stack of his own folders. “Yeah, Ben’s got me on a crusade, but never mind.” Travis grins at me. “Looks like he’s got you on one, too?” he asks as his eyes land on the files spilling out of my messenger bag across the passenger seat.

“I’m making a drop at the travel agent, then to the executive offices to pick up Ben’s mail there. He tries to steer clear of Jimmy.”

“Yeah,” Travis snorts. “That seems to be a pattern. He’s not a popular guy.”

“Honestly, I wish Sutton was in charge. Or Gavin, but no one knows when or if he’ll come back to the family business.”

“This is why I like being an agent,” Travis says with a sigh. “I don’t have to go to an office, I can be out here on the frontlines fighting for my guys and what they deserve.”

The way Travis’s eyes light up when he talks about what he does is impressive. “You really enjoy it, don’t you?”

“I’ve seen players get screwed over in this business, and I don’t like it. These guys put themselves on the line for a team, their bodies take the brunt, and they take hits that affect their physical and mental balance on a daily basis.” He shifts his weight from one foot to the other. “I sleep easier at night knowing I’m helping them set themselves up for when the time comes after the games end—when youth fades, bodies don’t recover, and the crowds stop cheering.”

“You make it sound both devastating and poetic.”

“Because it is.” He holds up the stack of folders again. “I’d better get inside. Nice seeing you again. Tell Ollie I said hi.”

I watch as Travis disappears inside. It’s cool how much he likes what he does, it’s inspiring. I like knowing that there are people like him out there, safeguarding the guys he can. Just seeing him makes me think of Ollie and I grab my phone, buoyed when I see a missed text from him.

There’s a photo of him standing outside a record shop.

Want anything?

Who’s buying?

Dixon.

I’d like one of everything.

Done. Records will be delivered to your doorstep tomorrow. :) But seriously, want anything?

I think for a moment; I could be bossy and pick something out, but I want Ollie to pick it out.

Surprise me.

I wait, watching the dots pop up telling me he’s busy typing a response back.

No problem there. I enjoy surprising you.

My tummy does a tap dance. We’ve texted pretty much non-stop since he left for this stretch, and even though he’s back in a couple of days’ time, I’ve gotten used to seeing him every day. If not at the arena, per usual, then it’s when we hang out when he’s off the ice and I’m off work. Things have pretty much only escalated a few notches between us, the benefit of being friends already, but it’s a welcome escalation, that’s for sure.

I definitely didn’t mind when our normal catch-up lunches turned to dinners, then dinners lengthened into long conversations about wants and hopes and fears into the wee hours. Or meeting for an early coffee before he sneaks into the arena to do drills ahead of the team practice that day, then meeting up after to debrief over breakfast.

And all of it is complete with a guy who listens to me, asks questions about what I’m doing, what I want, and someone who likes to pull my chair out and open my car door. It’s all so very chivalrous and endearing. And romantic. It’s totally romantic and I’m getting sucked right in, because let’s face it: a girl could, and will, get used to this.

I start to text something back. Something snappy or witty, but I stop myself. Instead, I put my phone back in my purse and leave it there. Something washes over me. A feeling, a thought, maybe instinct? It’s telling me to remember why we’re here. I’m feeling things, and he’s made it clear he is, too, but Ollie was right when he said we need to make sure we’re doing it all for the right reasons.

I don’t want to reply right now, but it isn’t because I’m playing a game or want to be coy or trying to be hard to get. It’s not even out of protection.

I just want to sit in this feeling of knowing that there’s someone out there who likes surprising me, who is waiting to hear from me, and is on my side.

Because it feels amazing.