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tyler

I waited outside the bedroom door for Halle to emerge. It was time for the charity dinner. The looming event made my mouth dry. Halle wasn't nearly as bothered. I didn't understand how she was so collected. The event would mean people that would be scrutinizing her every movement just because she was with me. Tayler wouldn't have the same pressure. Dylan wasn't the leading league scorer.

I knew for a fact my coaches and the general manager would be watching how we interacted. They needed to make sure I stayed focused. That I didn't make stupid mistakes, like the fight in October. I needed to control myself and work like a well-oiled machine. For that to happen, Halle needed to act like a dumb blonde who was just eye candy. Like she was something I brought along to show off. The thought pained me considerably.

As Halle emerged, I whistled lowly. She definitely fulfilled the eye candy part. The dress she was wearing was longer, down to her knees. The expensive material was black as night. A slit ran up from her knee to a little higher than mid-thigh. It hugged her figure perfectly. When she moved, I saw the faint shimmer from the fabric. Her hair was down, long and dancing around her mid-back. The loose curled hairstyle contrasted sharply with the dark dress. It was stunning, but like with everything she wore, it threw untimely thoughts into my head.

"You look hot." She stuck her tongue out at me.

"I know. That's the point. You told me to dress like a trophy wife. Here I am." Her tone was light hearted, but I still felt guilty.

"I didn't put it like that."

"No, you said 'the men that run the team are complete pigs and don't believe women have intellectual thoughts, so they think every WAG should be as dumb as a sack of bricks. I'm sorry to ask you this but please don't give them any material to rag on me for.'" She stepped forward to kiss my cheek lightly. "In my books, that translates as 'be a silent trophy wife who is only there to make you look good.' Normally, I'd be annoyed to hell by that. But I'm too nervous to care right now. So you get your wish, buddy. I'll be a good little blonde for you." I narrowed my eyes at the lethal grin she flashed me. She stepped forward, close to my ear. "But I promise you'll be paying for this later." The whispered threat made my involuntarily shiver. What could she mean by that?

"I'm sorry Halls. This stuff is serious. They know we haven't been together long, and if they think you're a distraction or you're making me have less passion then they'll pull my play time. Less play time might affect my salary. The wives get off easier since they've been around for a few seasons."

"I know, I know. I get it. It's just a little inconvenient."

"It's really only for first impressions. When I have to do fan stuff you can go to Tayler and the rest of them. They won't watch how you interact with them." I tried to lighten the situation. Halle shrugged.

"Ok. Ready?" I nodded, holding out an arm for her to place her hand on.

The drive to the venue was longer than normal. There was plenty of traffic from the holiday. Halle was quiet, her fingers with the clasp on her clutch for most of the ride. I navigated through the cars on the main road until we finally reached the place. Immediately, I spotted Pat and Amanda. I knew Amanda had gone through the exact same thing Halle was about to. As if she read the stress on Halle's face, the taller woman fell into step with her. She squeezed her arm gently, murmuring to her. I caught the words.

"Chin up Halle. You got this." Halle offered her a small smile. Amanda dropped to walk at Pat's side.

Halle looked up at me, her face set. After a moment of concentration, a brilliant smile spread across her face. I could tell it was forced, but it was still stunning. Her hand loosely found my arm, relaxing into an easy model-esque stance. I dipped my head, silently telling her that her demeanor was perfect.

We continued forward until we reached the doors. An attendant pulled them open for us. With Pat and Amanda at our backs, we entered the building. Immediately, I was greeted by the sight of my teammates. They were lined up, waiting for the picture wall. I steered Halle that way. The whole thing felt like we'd arrived at a red carpet event. As I watched Tayler and Dylan against the wall, a camera flashed brightly.

Connor and Kris went, then Andrew and Chaunette. When Halle and I were up, I swallowed heavily. My hand gently found her lower back, steering her into place again. I found the camera, giving it a fake smile. As soon as the flash went off, my eyes found the team owners and the general manager, both watching us with interested eyes. When we walked into the crowd, it was them who approached us.

The general manager, Stan Bowman, held out a hand towards me. I knew what this ruse was. They wanted to talk to me, and only me. Halle had two safe choices. Either stand there and smile like she didn't know anything, or leave and find Tayler. Either way, Stan would ignore her like she didn't exist. I squeezed Halle's waist with the hand that was still wrapped around it. I was silently telling her which option I preferred.

"Evening, Tyler. How was flight home yesterday?" I took the hand he was offering me.

"It was good. I like the new accommodations." Stan's smile was sly.

"Good, good." He nudged the man to his left. "See? Told you the team would like the new plane. Good purchase." Before his eyes returned to me, I saw the way they flashed over Halle. I tried to prevent the anger from showing in my face. Halle handled it like a pro. She widened her brilliant smile, directed at him. Stan looked back at me. "You come to my office soon, okay kid? We should talk about marketing. Ads and the like. You could be bringing in extra millions, eh?" I dipped my head.

"Course, Stan. I'll be down whenever you're free."

I relaxed slightly as he walked away. I looked down at Halle, who was swirling an elegant champagne glass in her hand. My eyebrow rose. Where had she gotten that? In response, Halle jerked her head to a waiter who was carrying trays around the room. I nodded, understanding. None for me, as usual.

We mingled for awhile longer before we were called to sit down. At the long table, I pulled Halle's chair out for her. She graciously smiled at me as she lightly slid into it. My eyes studied the set placed in front of us. The plates had our names on a card. Halle's had an extra card, which was in an envelope. One look around the table told me all the women had one. I would've dwelled on the mystery more if I didn't spot Kirby.

He was seated next to a skinny blonde girl, who was looking around snootily at everyone. My eyebrows shot up. Halle nudged me with a knee under the table. I could tell she was thinking the same thing. Who was that girl? Obviously she was with Kirby, but was she a girlfriend or just a date to the event?

Halle shrugged slightly at my questioning eyes. Neither of us had any idea who she was. Throughout the dinner, my eyes continued to find Kirby and try to catch his attention. He never looked at me. Something told me I was being ignored. I felt snubbed. Sure, there had been times I didn't tell him everything. But for him to bring someone none of us had ever heard of was a little rude.

I caught Dylan's eye, motioning down the table to Kirby. Dylan shrugged as well. Obviously Kirby had told none of us about who his mystery date was. Not a single person knew who she was. By the time the rounds of food were gone, more than half the team had noticed Kirby's plus one. Tayler and Halle had been shooting eyes at each over the table for minutes now. We dispersed for the silent auction part of the event, allowing the fans to finally enter.

The wives and girlfriends stepped to the side to allow the players through. I relaxed as the attention shifted from Halle. She would be able to settle back and blend into the background for awhile now. The focus would be on those of us that were presiding over the silent auction. Especially when we would move around the room to sign things.

I didn't miss how the girl Kirby had brought with him stood away from the rest of the women. Her arms were crossed stiffly, and she glared at almost everyone. I hadn't stumbled upon the chance to talk to Kirby yet and ask who she was. My curiosity was still peaked.

I walked around the room, looking at the various donated items. A cruise here, a selection of golf items there. There was a jersey from every player, signed with our unique signatures. Other team items like signed sticks and pucks were also available. Everything had generously been given to us by various companies and sponsors. All money put forward would be going into purchased meals for those who couldn't afford thanksgiving dinner.

The fans wandered around just like we did, bidding on items and finding their favorite players. I repeatedly was stopped and asked for autographs or pictures. At one point, I looked up to find Halle's eyes on me. I grinned at her. When I turned to the left, I was disconcerted to find another pair of eyes on me. The blonde Kirby had brought. I immediately pulled my eyes from her, I didn't like the way she was looking at me. It was too hungry and dangerous. Not something I wanted to see from any other person besides Halle.

The mingling continued for another hour and a half. When it was finally time to announce the winners of the silent auction, I joined Halle along the outside of the room. She had another champagne glass in her hand, the movement of her sips showing off the bracelets I'd gotten her for her birthday. The diamond-encrusted silver bands dazzled in the lower lights of the room. When she moved, they clanged together in a light melody. They brought attention to her tan and toned arm. I let my hand find her lower back again, hovering over the slit in her dress lightly. I let out a silent groan as Stan made his way over to me, holding a microphone.

"Speech time, Captain." I nodded, accepting the microphone. Before I started to talk, I cleared my throat slightly.

"Alright, welcome to the first annual Blackhawks Thanksgiving Benefit Dinner. Thank you to everyone who came out and placed bids. The team appreciates your support for this cause. Good luck to everyone, hope some of you win some awesome stuff." My mini speech earned cheers and claps, particularly from my teammates. I shook my head as I handed the microphone back. The words hadn't deserved the feedback, but the team always overreacted.

Halle smiled up at me. I was glad to see that this time it was real.

"Good job, Captain." I knew she was trying to hold back a smirk. It still shone through a bit. I tapped her back lightly, smirking.

We watched the auction progress. I was pleasantly surprised when my autographed and game-worn jersey went for just over one thousand dollars. I'd been expecting less. The winner was a small older woman, who proclaimed the sweater was for her grandson who was my biggest fan. I made a point to stop the woman before she left.

When I found out that the woman's grandson had never been to Chicago, let alone gone to one of our games, I pointed her to a staff member. I made sure they jotted her name and contact information down. I promised her solemnly that we'd send her and her grandson free game tickets, as well as cover the plane fee. I couldn't do anything less for a kid that loved our team.

After she'd given her information, the woman showed me pictures and videos of her grandson, Jackson, skating around. She explained how he had mild Asperger's, and hockey was the thing he loved the most. She explained how all he watched were videos of my skills, and he worked to recreate the moves every day.

Finally, the woman ran out of things to say. I promised her the team staff would contact her about coming to a home game. I had another idea brewing in my mind to go along with my first plan. I'd have to do some pushing on my end, but I was sure I could make it work.

When I returned to Halle, I was surprised to find that the room had mostly emptied out. She was relaxed now. Her grin greeted me.

"You're an amazing person. Did you know that?" I shrugged sheepishly.

"I just want people to have awesome experiences."

"That's why you're awesome. You could not care and just play the game and come home. But you're better than that." I smiled at her, holding out a hand.

"Because I know what it's like to not have those experiences. Come on Miss Finch. You ready to go?"

"Yep." She daintily took my hand and followed me out. When we'd passed the doors, she whispered up to me. "The girl Kirby brought is named Hannah. We tried to talk to her but she didn't want to stand with us. Kinda rude."

"She seemed a little standoffish. Did you find out anything about why she came with Kirby."

"Nope. She didn't give us the chance." Halle shrugged. "Oh well. Maybe you can bug Kirby tomorrow." A dreaded thought jumped into my head.

"Oh no. What if she goes back to the apartment with him?"

"Oh. Damn, I didn't think of that. Then we ignore them. Because I have something in mind for you, mister." Her smile was back. I didn't like the dangerous glint in her eyes. She let go of my hand and held her opposite hand out. "Keys, please."

"What?"

"You heard me. I want to drive home." I worked my jaw, confused.

"But you're in heels."

"They come off. Let's go, hand them over."

"You drank champagne."

"Non-alcoholic." I groaned, running out of reasons to resist. Reluctantly, I dug the key fob out of my pocket. When I dropped them in Halle's hand, she dazzled me with a smile and a wink.

"Do you even know the way home?"

"Nope. But GPS exists." Halle's walk back to the car was more confident. I watched her sashay in front of me. Again, the thoughts from before the event jumped into my mind.

I found Halle wasn't the most stellar city-driver. It was hard work to keep my mouth shut. If I said something to her, I'd get yelled at. She made two wrong turns, but we still somehow made it to the apartment. Halle pulled into the back entrance of the lot. She'd visibly relaxed once we were off the streets. I hid my smile as she backed into my empty spot.

Halle didn't turn the keys over as she hopped out of the car. She locked it, then turned for the building. I followed a few steps behind, confused at the way she hadn't looked at me. I found out why in the elevator.

Her hand's found my shirt, grabbing the front and pushing me back. She studied my face for a moment before leaning up to kiss me. After a moment of surprise, I kissed back hungrily. My hands lifted to grab her waist and turn her around. Halle instantly pulled away.

"Ah, nope. Payback, remember?" Her eye glinted with a sly look. I narrowed my eyes.

"How so? I don't see this as a punishment." Her lips danced dangerously.

"Would a trophy wife do this?" I let out a strangled gasp as her hand grasped the front of my pants. I bit my lip, glaring down at her.

"No. Don't tease me, Halls."

"Then don't make me go through that again."

"I won't!" I whined as she tightened her hold slightly. It was torture in the best way possible. "I promise it'll be different from now on. You just had to pass the first test." Halle winked up at me as the elevator doors opened.

"Still not satisfied with that." She let go and turned away from me. I followed her to the apartment. I groaned when it was already unlocked. That meant Kirby was home. Halle didn't look back at me.

I was right behind her as she walked to the bedroom. I got one killer look before she was all over me again. Her hands pulled at the buttons on my shirt, prying it open. When she finally had it off, she pushed me back until I hit the bed. She settled with her knees on either side of my legs.

"My pace, ok?" I could only gape up at her. Was this the Halle I knew? It didn't feel like it. She was confident and obviously in control. It was kind of hot.

Her hands reached around her dress to unzip it. I knew she would've let me help her under different circumstances. When the zipper was down, she pushed me back again so that I was laying flat on the bed. I watched her hungrily as she pulled the dress over her head, letting the material fall to the floor besides the bed. She leaned back down, pulling her hair to one side she she could kiss me without interference.

Her touch was intoxicating. I never wanted her affection to end. Especially when her hands ran over my bare chest like she couldn't get enough of me. When her fingers tangled in my hair and tugged lightly, I couldn't hold back the groan that escaped my throat.

Before we could go any further, the door swung open.