Page 70 of Sin Bin

“Haven’t you ever heard of contact lenses?”

Meadow frowned. “I wear them sometimes.”

“Not often enough.” Wendi tsk-tsked her. “Just because you have a high IQ doesn’t mean you have to look the part. You need to start playing up your assets, young lady. Let your hair down more often, experiment with makeup and start wearing contacts regularly. Just by making those small changes, you’d be amazed how many heads you’ll start turning.”

“I think she turns heads now,” Trish interjected, winking at Meadow. “Guys love the naughty-librarian look. It turns them on. And Meadow is one of those rare women who can pull off sexy without really trying.”

This was news to Meadow. “I am?”

Trish laughed. “See, that’s what I mean. Your innocence is alluring, Meadow. I bet you already have some poor guy eating out of the palm of your hand and don’t even know it.” She smiled, tucking a wisp of Meadow’s hair behind her ear as she added in a stage whisper, “Wendi means well, but she doesn’t know everything.”

Wendi pursed her lips in annoyance.

Ignoring her, Trish playfully nudged Meadow’s arm. “By the way, I heard Denver has one of the hottest hockey teams in the world. They’re so hot that some fans started a petition to get the star players cast in a third Magic Mike movie, and almost a million women signed it.” She waggled her eyebrows at Meadow. “If you happen to run into any of those yummy Rebels, feel free to pass along my number.”

Wendi laughed, shaking her head at Trish. “You are such a cougar. And just where exactly do you expect Meadow to meet any of those boys? She’s not a hockey fan or a groupie. She has a better chance of meeting the Dalai Lama than a professional hockey player.”

Meadow just smiled and quietly finished her wine.

Before Wendi could say more, Trish pointed across the yard. “Isn’t that your client who’s in the market for a new home?”

“Oh, yes! I almost forgot he was here. And his divorce was just finalized, too.” Wendi grinned and grabbed Trish’s wrist. “Come on, I’ll introduce you.”

As they started from the deck, Trish winked at Meadow behind Wendi’s back.

I owe you one, Meadow mouthed gratefully.

Trish grinned and gave her another conspiratorial wink.

Seizing the opportunity to make her escape, Meadow ducked inside the house and beelined for the family room, where she grabbed the remote and turned on the huge flatscreen television. After promising to watch Logan’s game, she felt guilty for missing most of it.

The Rebels were up by two at the start of the third period. She pressed the button on the remote to pull up the game stats. When the players’ names appeared on the right side of the screen, she was thrilled to see that Logan had scored a goal.

Before she could celebrate, a fight broke out on the ice. It was between Logan and a New York defenseman.

She bit her lip anxiously, her heart beating too fast as she watched the two players go at each other. It amazed her how these guys could fight while balancing on razor-thin blades. Logan made it look way too easy as he swung his fists like a trained boxer, pounding his opponent’s face with a series of savage blows. The other guy never really stood a chance.

Just when Meadow feared the poor defenseman would be knocked out cold, the referees finally separated the two brawlers. The New York player had a bloody nose and a busted lip. Logan barely had a scratch.

Raging like a bull, he hurled more insults at his opponent before skating off to the penalty box and slamming the door behind him.

Meadow found herself pacing back and forth while muttering agitatedly to the television.

“Since when do you watch hockey?”

Startled, Meadow whirled around to see her father standing in the doorway with an amused expression.

“Uh…hey, Dad.”

His hazel eyes twinkled. “Hey, yourself.”

She gestured awkwardly toward the television. “I was just, uh…well, I was—”

“I can see what you were doing.” Harris grinned as he wandered into the room, watching her with a knowing look. “Your sudden interest in hockey wouldn’t have anything to do with Logan Brassard, would it?”

Her mouth fell open.

Her father laughed. “I just got off the phone with your aunt. She told me everything.”

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