Chapter 21

After their away game in Winnipeg, the last game of the regular season, the Aces had only three days before the first round of playoffs started. They would face Minnesota in the first round. They were playing the first two games in Chicago, so they had the advantage of resting up at home for those few days. Coach knew everyone was banged up in some way so he was easing up in practices, telling them instead to take care of nagging injuries—get some PT, massage, rest, and sleep.

Coach had talked to them. One of the things he’d warned about was distractions.

Nick didn’t have the distractions of family. Other years he’d told himself it was a plus…he didn’t have to worry about a pregnant wife or screaming kids or parents showing up to stay with him. He’d told himself he was happy to not have to worry about those things.

This year…there was a beautiful, warm, honest woman living in his coach house. Along with an adorable curly-haired mini-teenager.

He smiled ruefully as he headed over to Jodie’s place for dinner with her and Zyana that night, remembering how annoyed he’d been about them moving in a couple of months ago. Now he was happy they were so close.

Jodie’d made an awesome chicken stir-fry with rice. Nick knew Zyana well enough that as he served her dinner, he separated the chicken and the carrots and broccoli on her plate. She liked all the components of the stir-fry but would only eat them separately. He followed Jodie’s lead on this. She didn’t make a big deal out of it or force Zyana to eat it as it was cooked, just shrugged and said in an aside, “She’ll grow out of it.”

Not only did he like spending time with Jodie, Nick had fun with Zyana too. They weren’t afraid of each other anymore. No, wait. That wasn’t totally true. She was completely unafraid of him. In fact, he was fully aware she had him wrapped around her little finger. He, on the other hand, was at times completely in awe of her. Jodie was right—she was the smartest kid in the world. Sometimes it scared him.

And he liked the time after Zyana went to bed. When he was there she liked him to read stories to her, and he was happy to do it. In fact, it made him proud that she wanted that. Then he and Jodie got some alone time.

“So. Tomorrow’s a big day,” Jodie said when he came back downstairs.

“Yep.”

“You’re all ready?”

“I hope so.” He grimaced and ran a hand through his hair. “Could be a crazy couple of months. But first we need to focus on one game at a time. In fact, we need to focus on one shift at a time. Stay in the moment. It’s been a few years since we went all the way and won the Cup, and some of the guys on the team have never been through it. They have no idea what to expect.”

“But you do.”

“I do, some,” he admitted. “We’ve been talking about it a lot, trying to help them understand how to handle all the emotions. The distractions. The attention from the media. They’re used to a handful of press hanging around after games—once we’re in the playoffs, it will be a fucking madhouse. The pressure is incredible. I’m feeling it already.”

She rubbed his back. “You’ll do great. And Zyana and I will be cheering for you.”

He eyed her. “You know, I have to commit to this. That means hockey’s going to be everything for the next…who knows how long.”

She nodded, holding his gaze. “I understand.” She leaned over to kiss his cheek. “I’ll be here for you when you need me—anything you need—and cheering for you in the background the rest of the time.”

His heart turned over in his chest, full of gratitude and affection.

It occurred to him that this wasn’t the ideal time to be starting some kind of relationship. Because what was happening between him and Jodie was a relationship. He wanted to be with her all the time…but he had to focus on hockey.

Once again he felt that doubt…that uncertainty that what was happening between them was the right thing to do. He was going to have to be a selfish bastard for the next few weeks as he focused on one thing and one thing only. Was that fair to her?

Other guys did it. They had girlfriends, wives, kids. Pregnant wives, for Chrissakes. He’d always considered himself lucky he didn’t have those distractions but now…it was fucking weird because, looking back, it seemed…lonely. Not lucky.

They watched some TV and talked more, and it was nice and relaxing, even though he couldn’t keep his hands from wandering over her…touching her thigh, her shoulder, her hair. He always wanted to touch her…always wanted her.

Jodie yawned, and he shifted away from her. “Tired, babe?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll head home.”

“You don’t have to.”

He met her eyes.

“Maybe this isn’t the best time. You probably want to get a good night’s sleep in your own bed. But I want you to stay,” she said softly.

His heart crashed against his ribs. “Fuck,” he muttered. “Really?”

She bit her lip and nodded. “I’m okay with Zyana knowing we’re together.”

This felt big. Important. Awe-inspiring.

The fact that she trusted him, that she had faith in him and wanted him to be part of their lives was both humbling and terrifying. Because he had no idea if he was worthy of that.

But he wanted to spend the night with her so much. Every time they had sex and one of them had to leave, it annoyed him. He wanted her in his bed with him, against him, all night, like the night of their first date. He kept thinking about waking up with her and having hot morning sex, and he wanted that again. He wanted that every damn day. And life was about to get crazy. “Let’s go to bed, then.”

“You sure?”

“I know I’ll sleep great with you in my arms.” He kissed her forehead.

They turned out the lights and climbed the stairs. Jodie opened Zyana’s door and peeked in to check on her daughter, then eased the door shut again. She led the way into her bedroom, pulling her T-shirt off over her head.

Nick closed the door behind them and watched as Jodie turned on the lamp beside the bed. Light gleamed on her bare skin. She reached behind her back to undo her bra, sliding the straps off her shoulders, then pulling it off.

“You’re so beautiful.”

“Thank you.” She smiled.

He pulled off his own shirt and stepped out of his jeans. He bent to pick them up and lay them over the arm of the floral-print chair. When he looked up again, Jodie was slipping on a long white cotton tank. It skimmed over her curves, hitting mid-thigh.

“Be right back,” she whispered, and disappeared into the connected bathroom.

He slid into bed, the sheets cool and smooth, that fresh flowery scent that was Jodie filling his head as he breathed in.

Her bed wasn’t as big as his, but it would work, especially since he wanted her close to him.

She returned moments later, flicking out the light so the room was in shadows. She climbed in next to him, and he drew in a sharp breath at the feel of her, soft and warm, her hair silky on his arm. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. His heart thudded and his throat thickened. “This is fucking amazing.”

Having her in his arms and staying there all damn night…it was amazingly satisfying…and breathtakingly erotic. It was also a relief. He’d wanted this so much, for so long, but it made him feel vulnerable. Exposed. She made him want more in his life. She made him crave something, and he didn’t know what it was. She was amazing and brave and strong, and he didn’t deserve her.

She pressed against him, twining her legs with his, kissing his jaw. “It is. So…special. To sleep with you.”

“How tired are you?” He rolled her to her back and moved over her, finding her mouth with his for a long kiss. When he lifted his mouth he saw her smile in the dark.

“Not that tired.” She held on to his shoulders as he kissed his way down her chest, lifted up her tank, and found her perfect breasts with his hands and his mouth.

---

The Aces lost the first two games.

This was the hard part—the frustration of playing hard and still losing. They’d had a couple of unlucky bounces of the puck, a goal disallowed because they’d been a millimeter offside, and a shitty call by a ref that cost them a goal and the game.

These were the things Coach had warned them not to get distracted by. “Don’t let the frustration take over,” he admonished them. And he reminded them they couldn’t blame anyone for their losses but themselves. “Stick to the game plan,” he told them. “Trust in it. Trust in each other.”

After a third loss in Minneapolis, the mood was bleak. Rico and Bomber tried to lighten things up with their wisecracks on the bus back to the hotel, but the laughs they got were strained. If they didn’t win their next game, they were done for the season. Not the outcome they’d all been hoping for.

Back in his room, Nick found his phone. Jodie should still be up—at least they were in the same time zone. He texted her. You up?

Yeah. Sorry you lost.

It sucks. He lowered his phone briefly then typed, We have to win 3 in a row if we want to stay alive now.

I know. You can do it.

Wanna FaceTime?

Sure.

He loved seeing her beautiful face on his phone screen. Not nearly as much as being with her though. He stretched out on the bed. “Talk to me.”

She grinned. “Seriously?”

“Yeah. Talk to me about anything. Your latest sex toy invention. Zyana’s latest amazing accomplishment.”

“Well, I think I’ve made a breakthrough on the lube project.”

He smiled. Only she would tell him something like that. “That’s fantastic.”

“Yeah! We’re all pretty pumped about it. And Zyana…oh my God, she cracked me up at dinner. We went over to Kendra’s. After she ate half her dinner, she asked, ‘What is this meat?’ with a frown on her face. Kendra said, ‘It’s shrimp.’ Zyana stared at her plate and then said, ‘Well, I have never had that before and now my life is ruined!’ ”

Nick burst out laughing. He could just picture Zyana’s little outraged face and hear her voice saying that.

Family didn’t have to be a bad distraction—it could be a relaxing distraction.

Wait, what? Family?

What the fuck was he thinking? They weren’t family.

Whatever. Talking to her was comforting. She made him feel so good, and that was even without sexy touching.

---

The next morning they got more bad news—Chaser had gone home to Chicago because he was injured. They were down another veteran player.

“Jesus Christ.” Nick shook his head, holding the big cup of Starbucks coffee he’d picked up before leaving the hotel for their practice. “Another one down?”

“He’s having surgery on his wrist,” Coach told them. “It’s been bothering him for a long time.”

Ah fuck. Now it made sense—Chaser’d been playing shitty for months, off and on, not scoring goals. Nick knew how frustrated he’d been.

“We’ve got our Black Aces,” Coach said. “Ryan Scott will start tonight with Bomber and Tannu.”

Teams were allowed to call up extra players from the AHL when they made the playoffs, and these guys were known as “Black Aces” for every team, not just for the Aces, which made it kind of funny how fitting the name was for them.

“He’s not even here,” Bomber said.

“He’s on his way.”

The guy’d been sitting in Chicago waiting in case they needed him. They must have called him last night after the game and told him to get his ass on a plane. They wouldn’t even get to practice with him before tomorrow night’s game. But he was probably thrilled to get this chance.

But man…another new guy. Nick closed his eyes and slumped on the bench in the dressing room. This really made their chances of moving on to the next round seem slim.

Had to think positive though.

“Okay, guys,” Duper, the team captain, spoke up. “Let’s not panic. Things go wrong, but if we panic, it just makes things worse. There are always obstacles…it’s how we overcome them as a team that matters, right?”

“Right,” they all answered.

“What’s your phrase?” He pointed at Brick.

“Drive the net.”

“What is it?”

“Drive the net!”

“Benny?”

“Finish my check!”

“Pacman?”

“Square!”

Duper went around the room. They’d all come up with positive reminders to keep in their heads. Nick’s was “I can do it.”