Page 27 of Not in the Plans (London Lightning #1)

Chapter Twenty-Three

OLIVIA

I ’m nervous. I shouldn’t be, but I am. After my emotional night with Tag, well, where I dragged him to do something adventurous with me, things have been off.

I don’t like the feeling. It’s unsettling. And tonight? I don’t feel any better because the girls and I are heading to the game.

Mask perfectly in place, I stand outside the rink to await their arrival. Having my girls here will make it easier.

I like Tag. I more than like him, if I’m being honest. But confessing those feelings to him is something I haven’t quite figured out how to do.

“You look fab, babe,” Imogen calls out as she struts toward me, looking radiant herself. A white, oversized puffer coat is zipped up to her chin with her blonde hair spilling out of a chocolate-brown hat.

“Thanks.” I tug at the bottom of my thick wool peacoat. It’s a plain black and matches my own black hat. I left my hair down for tonight and decided to curl it. I’m not fussy about makeup and only put a light coat of mascara on .

“C’mon. Let’s wait for Sienna inside.”

Our tickets get scanned as we push through the turnstile. Groups of people linger on the concourse, buying merch and snacks before the game starts.

“Do you want anything to drink?” Imogen asks, pulling her wallet out of her bum bag.

“Can you grab me a Coke, please?”

She winks at me before queueing. I stand off to the side, keeping an eye on the people entering to find Sienna. As the crowds start to thin, I get anxious as the puck drop draws near.

“Sorry I’m late.” Sienna bursts into the arena with a harried look on her face. “The Tube was delayed and I got all out of sorts getting here.”

“It’s alright,” I tell her as she makes her way towards my spot at the same moment Imogen reappears.

“I promise I left on time,” she tells me.

“Sure you did.” Imogen laughs. “I would like it to be known that I was on time tonight.”

“Will we get to meet this man of yours tonight?” Sienna asks, linking her arm with mine and leading us in the direction of our section.

“Maybe.”

Finding the seats Tag reserved for us, we’re a few rows behind the glass. The players are finishing warm-ups, but my eyes aren’t focused on them.

They’re focused solely on the man in the suit behind the boards.

Tag .

A man should not look as good as Tag does in a suit. It’s dark grey, paired with a light blue shirt and a navy tie.

Damn. I didn’t see him today with work and heading home before the game, but he looks good.

Really good .

“How come you’ve never brought us to games before?” Imogen asks.

“I’ve asked you if you’ve wanted to come to games before, but you’ve never wanted to.”

“I think what Imogen means is you’ve been holding out on us.”

“And why is that?” I grab a piece of popcorn from the bucket and pop it into my mouth.

“Because these men are hot .” Imogen mocks fanning herself as the puck drops.

“Well, you two should know better. I shouldn’t have to tell you where the men are.”

“Listen to her.” Imogen ignores me, turning to Sienna. “She’s grown up so much since she started dating Tag.”

“I can’t with you two some days.” I laugh, turning my attention back to the ice.

Before Tag, I doubt I ever would have come to one of the team’s games. Work was my life, but I was only interested in the business side of things. Now? Now I’m branching out and doing things I never would have done before.

The players change positions as Tag leans down to talk to one of the players. It’s nice to see how crowded the arena is. With the team’s record improving, more and more people are flocking to the games. Something I know from spending all my time with Tag.

“Why does the redhead look familiar?” Imogen asks, leaning closer to me.

“You mean Alfie?” I follow her eyes as she checks him out.

“Yeah. Him.”

“He was at the bar the night I met Tag.”

“That’s right.” Her eyes widen. “You wouldn’t let me talk to him. ”

“No,” Sienna interjects. “She said she could talk to Tag on her own.”

“You’ve definitely been holding out on me.” Imogen ignores her. “You’ll have to introduce me to him. He’s a snack.”

I snicker, grabbing my drink and taking a long gulp. I love these two women, but once they get going, they don’t stop.

I turn my attention back to the game as Wagner, the center, steals the puck and takes off down the ice.

A thread of tension travels through the crowd as everyone gets to their feet in hopes that he puts the puck in the back of the net.

And that’s exactly what he does. The red lamp lights up as fans start cheering.

“Well, that was exciting,” Sienna says. “I don’t know why I’ve never been to a hockey game before now.”

“You’re always welcome to come with me.”

Feeling a set of eyes on me, I look around and connect with Tag. He wiggles his fingers at me before play starts.

My heart catches in my chest.

What is he doing to me? I am completely undone at this man. One look from him and I’m a puddle of goo.

“You are so fucking cute. I can’t even stand it,” Imogen says. “Seriously, that man looks at you like you’re better than a Christmas pudding.”

“Are you two going to be spending the holidays together?” Sienna asks.

“The holidays?”

I’ve been so swept up in my own thoughts that I haven’t paid much attention to the upcoming holiday.

Crap. We haven’t discussed it. It sends a fissure of panic sweeping through me. Why didn’t I think to discuss the holidays ?

It’s not like I can take him home to my parents’. And with such a short break between Christmas and New Year’s games, it’s not like he really has time to fly home.

“Stop spiraling,” Sienna says, resting a hand on my shoulder.

“Well, you asked a question that feels weighted, and I don’t know how to answer it.”

Grabbing my soda, I take a sip. The cool, effervescent bubbles help to calm my racing thoughts.

It’s still too early to be worrying about these things.

The team is doing well, but there is still no guarantee Tag will be sticking around after this season.

It was a one-year deal. I saw the paperwork.

Is he going home at the end of the season?

And if he is, does that mean he wouldn’t be going home over the holidays?

These are so not the thoughts I wanted to be having tonight. A blinding light is now flashing across my future with Tag.

“You know, you can ask him. It’ll solve your problem.” Imogen elbows me in the side.

“It won’t be too forward?”

“No. You should do it so you don’t spend the holiday all on your own.”

I spend the rest of the game fretting about it. It’s hard to enjoy the win because I’m worrying myself ragged thinking about it.

“C’mon, Livvy. Let’s go see the guys. Introduce me to Alfie. That’ll take your mind off things.”

Not that Imogen needs my help. By the time we make it back to the locker rooms, the guys are already funneling out.

Sienna and Imogen flag down Alfie and Jack as I await the head coach. The minute he spots me, he heads my direction .

“Hey, baby.”

“What are you doing for Christmas?” I blurt out before I can get another word out. I groan, dropping my head into Tag’s chest. Why can I not be more cool around this man? Not that I’ve ever been that cool to start with, but still.

“I don’t know. Do you have plans for the holidays?” he asks. Cupping the nape of my neck and tilting my head back, he forces me to look him in the eyes.

“No.”

Not that I ever have plans, but again, not something I want to tell this man that I’ve been seeing for the last few months.

“Well, my sister was going to try and come for a visit, but I don’t think that’s going to happen anymore. And with the games, I can’t really go home.”

“So that means you’re not doing anything?”

I wrap my arms around his waist and pull him closer. Not that he wasn’t close before, but I find that when I’m in reaching distance of Tag, I like being able to touch him. He calms me in a way that has never happened before.

“Olivia, do you want to spend the holidays with me?” The corner of his mouth quirks up into a soft smile.

“I would love to spend the holidays with you, Tag.”

“Good.” He presses a warm kiss to my lips and I sink into his hold. Tag makes me feel all fluttery and ooey gooey inside. I find that I want to feel this more and more.

“Shall we do it at your place or mine?”

“Do you have a Christmas tree?” I ask him. “I have a sad excuse for a tinsel tree that doesn’t necessarily need to be seen by others.”

“Considering I couldn’t get one in my suitcase and I wasn’t going to pay to ship it, I actually don’t have one. ”

“Well, maybe that means you and I can go tree shopping beforehand. Maybe spruce up your place a bit.”

“I think that sounds perfect, Olivia. Spending my first holidays here with you.”

He says it like it’s the beginning of a lot more. It has my heart swelling in my chest, burying all the messy feelings that I’ve been feeling lately.

Because I can’t wait to spend this special time with the man who has captured my heart.