Seraphina glanced at the dainty watch she wore on her right wrist she inherited from her grandmother after she died. Phil Bambridge was twenty minutes late and she looked like an idiot waiting for him in a white gown with her hair up and out of her face like she was some trophy. She had already seen the team make their way to one of the three nightclubs located in the casino area of the hotel and she did her best to try and avoid them as best as she could. They didn’t need to see how ridiculous she looked. It certainly couldn’t top how ridiculous she felt.

Once they were out of sight, she came back to keep looking for Bambridge. Katella had googled him just so Seraphina could see what she was dealing with. Besides being a decent-looking guy in his mid-thirties, there was nothing special about him. She actually felt slightly uneasy based on the way he smirked in his picture. It made a shiver slide down her back and she almost called him to call off their meeting tonight.

It was a meeting, right? Not a… date.

Not a date.

“Hey.”

Seraphina jumped and a familiar chuckle crawled down her spine and settled on her skin.

“Hey,” she said with a smile as her eyes took in Brandon. “You look…” She let her voice trail off, her cheeks turning pink. “Um, right. I thought the team was already at, you know, the clubs. Or wherever you guys are going.”

Brandon’s smile grew wider with each passing second and every word out of Seraphina’s mouth. The problem was, he looked amazing. Sure, it was just a pressed white collared shirt and charcoal slacks that fit him in all the right places, the small amount of stubble gracing the lower half of his face. Also, his brown hair was messy – it was always messy – but God, he looked beautiful.

“Yeah, they already left,” he said. “You look…” He pushed his brows up as he took in the sight of her without being skeevy about it. “As well. I’m surprised you’re still here, though. Wasn’t dinner a half hour ago?”

“Twenty minutes, more or less,” Seraphina corrected. “But yes, Bambridge is late. To be honest, I’m kind of hoping he doesn’t show up and I can go back to the room.”

“You could always come out with us,” Brandon pointed out.

“To be honest, I’m surprised you’re actually going out,” Seraphina said, feeling the discomfort being around Brandon alone start to leave her. “I know you don’t typically go out. Not that you’re a hermit but-“

He laughed, a genuine sound that forced Seraphina’s lips to turn up on their own.

She had heard the sound of his laughter before, most recently on the plane, and she basked in the sound.

"I'm trying to expand my horizons," he said. "Also, Ryan and Negan have been on my case about it all season. I figured Vegas was the perfect to place to go out." He shrugged. "At least it will get them off my back for a little while." He pulled his green eyes from her and glanced around. "Isn't what's-his-name supposed to be here by now? The plan was for you to be gone before we made our appearance on the floor."

Seraphina laughed. "Probably a smart thing," she agreed. Once again, she glanced at the slender wristwatch on her left wrist and shook her head. A small frown tugged her lips down and she couldn't stop herself from rolling her eyes in annoyance. "Yes, he was. If he's not here in five minutes, I'm leaving. I feel like an asshole, standing here and waiting for the last twenty minutes."

"To be honest, I can't believe you wasted twenty minutes on him," Brandon pointed out, pushing his brows up to emphasize his point. "I know how much you hate wasting your time."

Seraphina cocked her head to the side. He knew that about her? She wasn't sure if she should feel flattered or nervous that he paid attention to her when she didn't realize. What else did he pick up on? That she still bit her nails? That she still ate hot cheetos at her desk like she was some kid in elementary school? That she never wore a pair of matching socks?

"You know," he said, sliding his hands into his pockets and glancing at his black loafers before looking up at her. "You should come out with us."

Seraphina felt her heart flutter. It almost sounded like a date but with a bunch of other people. People that she liked. People she knew wouldn't judge her for socializing with her employees. 

For a moment, she let herself think about that. About what it would mean if she said yes. They would get into whatever nightclub together. He would offer to buy her drink. She would ask for a wine. He would tease her about drinking wine at a nightclub. Katella would force her on the dance floor even though she hated dancing. Brandon would join their group. But then, the group would start to disappear leaving the two of them alone. He would look at her, she would look at him. And then, then perhaps, if the moment was perfect and the gods were smiling down on them, he might lean towards her, never breaking eye contact and then, and then she would tilt her head up and...

"I can't," she finally said, forcing herself to pull out of this daydream. Her heart wrenched, as if she was physically pulling away from him. "Trust me, I want to but-"

"But somehow you can go out with some guy who's an actual asshole," Brandon said, "but you can't go out with your team. You can't celebrate being in a new city with your team. I just don't understand that, Sera. Wouldn't you rather be with us?"

"Of course I would," she said with a hiss, her eyes narrowed and her body tense. "Of course I would, Brandon. I would love to hang out with the team socially but that would send the wrong message."

"What, that our boss is down to earth and really cool and just a reminder that we play for an excellent organization in the best hockey town out of every place there's a team?" Brandon asked, slight attitude in his voice. The sarcasm dripped like the cubic zirconium did from her chandelier earrings and she felt herself continue to tense under his smartass remarks. "Don't you think other GMs do team bonding activities and events? Not just the charity events but actual events that are exclusive for our organization."

"Brandon," Seraphina said, her eyes flashing a crisp blue, the gold ring around her iris shining brightly, like the sun in the sky. "What do you want from me here? What can I do to make you happy?"

Brandon clenched his jaw and looked away. It looked as though he wanted to say something, like he wanted her to know something, but he was holding back.

And that was when the word vomit continued to spill out of her like a broken sprinkler to the point where she couldn't stop herself if she tried.

"You talk a lot, Brandon, but God forbid it's thrown back at you," she told him in a dark voice, her eyes narrowed. "God forbid you're required to speak. Sure, have an opinion on my choices and decisions. Have an opinion on my thoughts and my values. But when you're asked to share something about yourself, you clam up. You don't want to talk when it's about you. For once, why don't you take your own advice and do what you want without being held back by anyone or anything. Don't worry about the consequences, just do it!"

At that moment, Brandon's eyes snapped back to hers, and without a word, he strode to her. His long legs only needed two steps before he reached her, and then his hand were in her hair, his other cupping her cheek and tilting her head back so he could kiss her deeply.

It took a moment before Seraphina's eyes closed on their own accord and she was leaning into him, kissing back with all she could muster. He was kissing her. He had kissed her, completely on his own and it was magic, glorious, everything she had ever imagined it would be but more.

A long, low whistle pierced the air and Seraphina ripped herself away from Brandon, even though it was the last thing she wanted to do. She gasped for breath but, from the corner of her eye, she saw Brandon straighten and give the whistler a cold, stoic look. He didn’t look affected by the kiss at all. Which was crazy because Seraphina could barely stand straight let alone hold herself together the way Brandon was. She had absolutely no idea how he did it.

Maybe he didn’t think the kiss was anything special?

That couldn’t be it. He specifically said he wanted to kiss her. It just didn’t get to the point of being passionate because someone had interrupted them.

And that someone was Phil Bambridge.

Phil Bambridge was six foot, lean and fit. Handsome in a preppy sort of way. He had slicked back brown hair and blue eyes, a chiseled jaw, and high cheekbones. He wore a suit that looked tailor-made and strode through the lobby like he owned the place. And who knew? Perhaps he did.

“Seraphina Hanson,” he drawled in a long voice, looking her up and down. “Don’t you look like a sight for sore eyes?”

She cleared her throat and averted her eyes, taking a step back from Brandon. If Phil was focused on her, he would be less likely to notice she had just been kissing her star goaltender. If he didn’t notice that, it would be… It would be like the kiss hadn’t existed. Because no one saw it. Even though it was the most real thing she had felt in years.

However, one look in his eyes and she knew very well that he had seen it. There was a sparkle in his eyes as they roved up and down Seraphina’s frame. It was almost as though the kiss had given Phil permission to look at her like she was some kind of piece of meat just for him. Like she would let anyone kiss her. The sad truth of the matter was, she hadn’t been kissed in over a year and now that she had, the entire world looked different. More colorful. She had a new pair of eyes. Her sight had somehow transformed. Before, she would have let Phil look at her that way, rolling her eyes internally and dismissing the behavior as what she had to endure being a woman in a man’s world.

But now, she didn’t feel quite so forgiving.

“Are you ready to go?” he asked, keeping his eyes fixed on her and completely ignoring Brandon standing there, tense and intimidating.

Seraphina turned to Brandon – almost as if she was forcing Bambridge to acknowledge his presence – and gave him a smile. Hopefully, he would understand what it meant – that she would be okay and that she wanted nothing more than to stay with him instead of be anywhere near Bambridge, and Jesus Christ, he was an amazing kisser – before following Bambridge out of the lobby.