Kassie
Kassie was trying to answer a text from Alison and was not looking where she was walking when she ran into a very hard body. Her large, iced, green tea slipped from her grasp. The drink and ice splashed everywhere. Ironically, she had originally fumbled with getting the lid on, and now that same lid lay on the ground beside the puddle of her drink, mocking her.
“Oh my gosh! I’m so sorry!” Too embarrassed at her klutziness, she couldn’t even look at the person she’d just spilled her drink all over. She grabbed some nearby napkins and started to sop up the dripping mess she’d created on the sweatshirt in front of her. A tingle of awareness shot through her. Even through the sweatshirt, she could feel rock-hard abs.
“Um, hey. Up here.” A deep male voice startled her.
Her heart thudded against her chest at her stupid move, but she was no wilting flower. Kassie took a deep breath and looked up into a pair of large, dreamy brown eyes. “Um… I… Hi. I’m so sorry. Let me get some more napkins to clean that up.”
“Hey.” His hand gently grabbed for her arm as she moved to get more napkins. “It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. It’ll wash out. It’s just iced tea.”
“Yeah, but…” Her voice trailed off into the air of the coffee shop as she watched him pull off his gold-and-gray sweatshirt, exposing a black t-shirt that clung to his six-pack and showed off other just as enticing muscles. Her eyes moved to his muscular arms and continued up to his biceps. Part of a tattoo peeked out from under his right sleeve. Realization hit her, and her eyes tore from his physique to the green-tea-covered sweatshirt in his hand. Wait, a gray-and-yellow sweatshirt? “Is that a Renegades hoodie?”
The muscular, swoon-worthy, brown-eyed guy nodded with the hottest come-hither look on his face. “Same as yours.”
Kassie looked down at her sweatshirt as if she needed a reminder as to what she was wearing over her uniform. This guy is cute. His brown hair was short on the sides and longer on top. Long enough that when he ran his hand though it, his hair responded in a sexy flow, but not long enough that it could fall into his eyes. “Yep. My brother gave it to me. He plays for the—wait a minute. I’ve seen you before.”
He nodded slowly, and a smile crept across his thin, sexy lips. “I’ve seen you, too. You were at the party the other day. You’re Kaden’s sister.”
Maybe it was her imagination, but Kassie swore he took a half a step backwards before putting out his hand for her to shake it. She reached out and took it. Maybe she was just used to guys backing off once they knew she was Kaden’s little sister.
“I’m Luc Marcella.”
“Marcella? Yeah, I know the name. You play defense, right?”
“Yeah.” Luc’s eyes dropped to the floor, and he chuckled, possibly embarrassed that she knew more about him than he did her. “Can’t say O’Conner is one of my biggest fans, so I can only imagine what you’ve heard.”
She swore his cheeks darkened. Was he admitting that her brother would be right in saying those things?
“No, nothing like that. He may have pointed you out along with some other guys at the party. I was probably playing with Kaleb at the time. Oh, I’m sorry, I never introduced myself. How rude. I’m Kassie.”
Nodding, and with a goofy grin, Luc shook her hand again. “Kassie. It’s nice to meet you. Let me buy you another drink.” He motioned towards the counter.
“No, no. I can pay my own way. Really, it’s not necessary, seeing how I was the one who walked into you.”
“Please, my treat.” He nodded to the cashier, grabbing her attention. “A large iced green tea, please.”
“With honey, please. Thank you,” she added. Kassie didn’t know why she was letting him buy her a new drink. Since he played for the Renegades, he probably got those sweatshirts for free, but she still felt that she should be offering to get it cleaned or something. And yet here he was, buying her a drink.
“Scrubs. Are you a nurse?”
“What? Oh, my scrubs.” She looked down at her pants. “Yeah. medical assistant, actually. I’m on lunch.” She had a strong urge to look at her watch, maybe try to get out of here by saying she needed to get back. However, that would be a lie. She had plenty of time.
“So, you work nearby.” Luc paid the barista for her drink, and instead of handing it to her, he carried it past her over to a table.
Maybe she knew more about him than she realized. Was he the one Kaden was always complaining about? The young gun who always flirted with the puck bunnies?
The smile he flashed her way answered her unspoken question. Pulling out a chair for her to sit down, he asked, “Do you come here often?” Shaking his head, he corrected his question. “That totally sounded like a lame line. I really just meant, since you work close by, do you frequent this establishment often? I tend to stop by after practice. More often than I should, really. I have an unhealthy relationship with their dark roast coffee with a few pumps of vanilla syrup.” He laughed and shook his head. “I have no idea why I just told you that.”
He really was cute, despite what she knew about him. Maybe Kaden was wrong. He didn’t look as cocky as her brother portrayed him. What was the harm in having a cup of coffee with him? “Well, since we’re sharing secrets, I have a thing for the iced green tea. I stop by more often than I care to admit.”
“Oh hey, Kassie.” One of the guys from behind the counter was sweeping up and waved as he walked past. “No salad today?”
She shook her head. “No.”
Luc smiled that goofy grin again. “Well that was a dead giveaway of how often you’re here.”
“If you’re here as often as you say, you can’t tell me that they don’t know you by name.”
“Have you seen anyone call me by name yet?” He looked around the coffee shop. Then with that grin still on his face, he added, “That’s cause I’m usually at the drive through wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap.”
“They probably know who you are and are just too shy or maybe too starstruck to say anything.”
“I wouldn’t count on it. I’m not as big of a deal as you’re implying. You didn’t know who I was right away.”
“True.”
“Would you be too shy, I mean, starstruck, to talk to me? If you recognized me?”
She wasn’t surprised at his sly, cocky comment, but she didn’t giggle like a little fangirl either. “Me? Shy? Never.” Then just to see if he’d back down, she added, “I don’t fangirl, nor do I get starstruck, and you’re not really my type, anyway.”
He didn’t even flinch. “No? What type is not your type?”
“An athlete.”
“Ah, spoken like a true little sister. Kaden has taught you well.” Luc took a sip of his coffee but never took his eyes off her.
Those dark eyes did things to her insides. It was as if he were looking into her soul, and it was hot. “So, Luc, do you have any siblings?”
“Siblings? Are you trying to get to know me better, Ms. O’Conner?” Luc tapped his finger softly on the table.
“Just friendly small talk. I mean, I could go home and ask my brother. I guess small talk is kind of lame.” Kassie thought it was a fine question. If he had a sister he would probably feel guilty about hitting on her, knowing she was Kaden’s sister. But he didn’t seem too fazed by the unspoken guy rule. She mindlessly looked at her watch, but before she could lie and say she should get going, he spoke up with the words she figured he’d say.
“I’m an only child.” His lips curved with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes as he added, “My parents got it right on the first try, so there was no need for siblings. It only took your parents twice, obviously.”
“Oh please! Do you practice these lines at home in the bathroom mirror? The bigger question is, do they ever actually work?” The funny part was, as lame as his pickup lines were, they were working on her.
“Sometimes. Other times the girls don’t know they’ve worked until they’re already into me. But you’re not into hockey players; that’s why they don’t work on you.” He shrugged, but there was much sarcasm in his words.
“Right.” Kassie took a drink of tea.
“You should come watch practice some time. You know, since you’re in the area.”
“With all the little fangirls? No thanks.”
“Are you sure I haven’t seen you there before?” Luc tilted his head and squinted as if he was thinking too hard.
“Nope, not me.” She didn’t fangirl.
“I can understand you not wanting to hang out in the stands and watch your brother. Boring.” Joking, he smirked. “But I think you should give me your number so we can hang out again. Grab a coffee again, or something—”
“Remember, you’re not my type,” she reminded him.
“And since you’re not my type,”—Luc grinned— “what would be the harm?”
Her brain told her not to do it, but she grabbed his cell phone anyway, and entered her number. It wasn’t like she was going to date him. It wasn’t like he was even going to call her.
“Sweet.” He nodded. “Do you always drink green iced tea, or do you ever sway to hockey, I mean, coffee?”
“Smooth how you slid that in there.” She shook her head, half amused and half annoyed. “No athletes, not even hockey. And yeah, I drink coffee, too. Depends on my mood.”
“So today is a green tea mood?”
“This is really lame small talk, hockey boy.”
“Hockey boy? Sweets, you can call me Luc.”
“All right, Luc,” she said, accentuating his name, and then looked at her watch for effect. “It’s time for me to get back. Thanks for the small talk, hockey boy.”
“No problem. See you soon.” He nodded and wiggled his eyebrows up and down once.
She turned to the exit and started to leave, but then paused to call over her shoulder. “Don’t hold your breath.”
She heard him laugh. It was evil and delicious. Damn.
The kid behind the counter asked, “Excuse me, but aren’t you Luc Marcella from the Renegades?”
So much for not being a big-deal. Kassie rolled her eyes as she left the coffee shop.
Kassie sat at the appointment desk for the rest of the afternoon, checking in patients and answering phone calls. She didn’t fall for athletes. Athletes didn’t interest her. But for some odd reason, that hockey boy stayed on her mind all afternoon. Did I make a mistake giving him my number?
She had no idea what even compelled her to do such a thing. She usually would’ve laughed at him and walked away. But for some reason she agreed, and way too easily. What was she thinking?
But then again, why did it matter? Phone number or no phone number, she didn’t date athletes. Period. And Luc was no exception.