Page 5

Ten hours later, Matt stared at the naked woman next to him, trying to remember if her name was Jessica or Jane.

Concentrating, he frowned. He turned over first one name, then the other in his head, and he still couldn’t recall it. Groaning, he squinted and reached for his cell phone on the strange nightstand, quietly and carefully, so Jessica – or Jane – wouldn’t wake up.

This wasn’t good. Only assholes forgot the name of the woman they’d spent the night with.

He usually boasted that he wasn’t one. He was happy to leave that to Leon and Dax.

Dax, however, was happily taken now, and Leon hadn’t done anything stupid for weeks…

Shit, maybe he’d been overdoing it lately.

He rubbed his eyes, propped himself up on his elbows, and texted the person he always texted when he had a problem.

The waitress from yesterday, was her name Jane or Jessica?

Maddie’s answer came within seconds. You’re not serious?

He grinned because he imagined her giving her phone dirty looks. She always got a deep crease between her eyebrows, looking like a Disney character made to represent the emotion ‘anger.’

Yes, kind of , he texted back.

I despise you so much right now .

Yeah, you do that, still, you could multitask and tell me her name while you’re at it!

I have no idea, Matt! What name did you moan last night?

He frowned. I don’t moan names. I’m not a porn star .

No, you’re the worst!

Yeah, maybe. Today, yes. Well then, I’ll just give one a try. Fifty-fifty chance.

He was about to put the phone down when the screen lit up again.

Don’t you dare! Look at her clothes. Yesterday, she was wearing a name tag. On her blouse .

Ah, right. Man, Maddie was smart.

Checking , he replied hastily and carefully slid out from under the blankets.

Next, he slipped into his boxer shorts and tiptoed across the cold oak floor of the cramped apartment, searching for the uniform he had peeled off Jessica or Jane’s body yesterday.

As Maddie had predicted, there was a nametag pinned to it.

It said Jennifer . Well, he’d been close.

Found it , he wrote. Thanks!

Don’t thank me for that…and why are you still in the waitress’ apartment? It’s almost half past nine!

Oh. He hadn’t even looked at the clock.

Fuck , he typed and hastily pulled on his pants before putting the phone away.

He had training at ten and their coach, Parker Gray, didn’t like it when anyone was late.

Plus, he wanted to stop by the dry cleaners to pick up his clothes.

Some said it was a waste that he never did his own laundry, but Matt had grown up with four sisters and had done laundry every day of his youth.

What good was all that wealth if you had to wash your own boxers?

Exactly. Nothing.

Cursing quietly, he pulled on his shirt and was about to leave the apartment when he paused.

Seriously, Matt? First, you forget her name and then you leave without saying anything? his conscience whispered, which sounded a hell of a lot like Maddie.

Groaning, he turned and found a piece of paper and a pen on the table in the hallway.

Thanks for the great night, Jenny. It was fun .

She wouldn’t hold it against him that he had left.

She wasn’t looking for anything serious any more than he was.

Otherwise, Maddie would never have brought her to his attention.

She made an effort to make sure he only slept with women who wouldn’t end up getting hurt .

Besides, the waitress had invited him in on her own accord with the words, I live right around the corner and I have whipped cream.

No, she wouldn’t take the message the wrong way.

He didn’t care what Maddie said, women usually took him home to do dirty things with him, not for interior design tips. She was the exception.

He didn’t quite know how it happened, but apparently, he was now the furniture-rescue hotline. At least, it sure seemed like Maddie called him every time something needed to be moved.

Oh, it was only fair.

He sprinted down the stairs, squinting against the hazy November sun, and jogged down the street to his BMW, which was still parked in front of the Ice Lounge.

Yesterday, he had been at the L.A. Hawks’ local bar with Maddie and a few of his teammates.

He hadn’t been drinking – Coach Parker would rip his head off if he got drunk during the season – so thank God he was able to drive to the nearby arena.

As he got in, he wondered if he shouldn’t be somewhat celibate for the next few weeks, slow down a bit and concentrate more on the game again. He simply had too much free time he wasn’t using wisely. It was all because Dax had hooked up with Lucy and was madly in love. What would his –

He stopped because his cell phone rang and Mom flashed on the screen.

Speak of the devil. Groaning, he tilted his head back, slid the cell phone into the holder on the dashboard, and activated speaker phone.

He had forgotten the name of last night’s conquest, so he couldn’t ignore his mom, too.

That would be too much asshole for one day.

“Hey, Mom. How are you?” he asked, glancing over his shoulder and pulling out of the parking space.

“Matthew, you still haven’t responded,” his mother immediately stated. Sandra Payne was a woman of few words.

“Responded to what?”

“The invitation!”

He frowned. She’d have to be more specific.

He had four sisters, all of whom had gotten married, had children, or received promotions in the last few months.

He was invited to some important family function weekly: A baptism, an engagement party, a first day at school, a bowling tournament, a theater performance…

It was impossible to keep track of it all.

“The invitation,” he said slowly.

“Matty. Your father and I are celebrating our silver wedding anniversary at the end of the month,” his mother reminded patiently.

Oh, right!

“Honey, I truly don’t want to bother you. I know you’re busy and you tend to forget to put things on your calendar, but it’s important to your father and me that you’re there.”

“Of course, I’ll try to come,” he replied immediately. He might be an idiot sometimes, but he knew how to distinguish important from unimportant. “I just need to check if I have a game that weekend.”

“Hm.” His mother sounded extremely dissatisfied. “Can’t someone else play your position?”

He stifled a laugh. “It doesn’t work that way, Mom. But I promise I’ll check today and text you.”

“You better promise you’ll come! Even if it’s only for the evening. The celebration lasts from Friday to Sunday. You should be able to manage one evening. And we haven’t seen you in ages.”

He let out a burst of air. “Yes, yes. Definitely.”

“So, you’re coming?” she asked hopefully.

It would make her happy if he said yes right now… “Yup.”

“Ah, wonderful! Nell, he’s coming!”

“Well, it’s about time,” his eldest sister’s voice rang out in the background.

“I only ever see the idiot dancing across the screen like he’s all that, flaunting his millions just because he’s pretty good at hitting a piece of rubber with a stick.

He desperately needs a reality check, so he knows he’s nobody special. I’m happy to help.”

He rolled his eyes and smiled. He knew his family was damn proud of him, no matter how often they made fun of his job.

“Oh, shush. Enough already,” her mother scolded her. “If you’re always so mean to Matt, he’ll stop coming…and, Matty, you are welcome to bring someone with you,” she continued innocently as he pulled into the Hawks parking lot. “A steady girlfriend, perhaps?”

Yup. His mom was subtle. “There is no steady girlfriend.”

“That’s because you work too hard,” his mother enlightened him reproachfully. “If you had a normal job, you would have been married long ago.”

He snorted. He doubted that very much. He just wasn’t good at maintaining a relationship for long.

“Maybe,” he replied vaguely. It wasn’t worth discussing the subject with his mom. “But my job is my job.”

“Yes, and you’re doing a great job, honey,” his mother replied dutifully. “Okay, so no girlfriend.”

“He should bring Maddie!” Nell’s voice sounded muffled. “He’s more bearable when she’s around!”

“Oh, yes,” his mother said, jumping on the bandwagon. “Bring Maddie! We always enjoy seeing her.”

He rolled his eyes. It had been a big mistake to introduce them to each other.

Maddie, however, had once laughed in the background while he was on the phone, so he had had to explain quickly that he wasn’t hiding a relationship from his family.

Afterward, Nell and his parents attended one of his hockey games where Maddie was also present…

yes, it had been a no-brainer. Naturally, they liked Maddie; everyone liked Maddie.

“I’ll ask her, but she’s pretty busy,” he replied vaguely.

“Nonsense. She works so hard, she needs a break — and where better to take a break than at a winery in Napa Valley?”

Well, she had a point. “I’ll ask her,” he repeated.

“Wonderful. We’re looking forward to it.”

“Yep, me too. Anyway, I have to go now, Mom. I have to get to practice.”

“Oh, then I won’t keep you any longer. Say hello to everyone for me.”

Matt grinned. His mother always did that: greeted everyone. It didn’t matter if she knew them or not. “Sure. You too, okay?”

“I will. See you then, Matty. Remember, I’m counting on you!”

He sighed and hung up. He knew he wasn’t visiting his family enough. It was a seven-hour drive and his schedule was impossible! Still, somehow he would make certain he didn’t miss their silver wedding anniversary.

He got out of the car and grabbed his hockey bag out of the trunk when his cell phone rang again. Good God, she couldn’t be serious!

“I’m coming, Mom!” he answered, irritated.

“Ugh. Is that really something your mother should know?” Maddie asked.