Page 55 of SlapShot Sweetheart

The team’s goalie.

“WHAT IN THE ACTUAL…” the goalie screamed angrily, glaring at Aimee as she blinked in shock, unable to believe what was happening. Why was he here? Was he the mystery man? How was she going to get rid of him politely for Madeline’s sake and still be able to visit Theo at the arena if his teammate was the one making all these ‘plays’ for her attention.

“WHERE IS IT?” Theo snarled angrily, interrupting the man’s tirade.

“Right here, ya’ big twit –and if she scratched my car then you’re paying for it!”

Aimee stood there, looking at the two men glaring at each other as Theo accepted a brown paper bag from Lafreniére, who promptly gave him the finger and squealed his tires as he drove off.

“Merci beaucoup!”he bit out, giving the car’s taillights the same gesture – to which Aimee promptly yanked his hand down.She was completely confused. Something was not right about this whole thing, and her head was spinning.

“I don’t know what is going on, but I think I need to sit down.”

“Lafreniére doesn’t listen…”

“What did you tell him?”

“To put it on the front porch.”

“Wait,” she hesitated, shaking her head, dismayed that she was right after all about her musings. “Lafreniére is actually my mystery guy? Why did I have to be right about that thing – and why couldn’t I have the lottery numbers instead?” she whispered distractedly, putting a hand on Theo’s arm as she rubbed her forehead.

“No. I told ‘im to put this on the front porch.”

“Maybe he didn’t because another mystery guy was there leaving the flowers?” she whispered, completely flabbergasted. “Surely not. Maybe it's a pheromone or the soap I started using a month ago. Something is seriously wrong and…”

“C’est moi,”Theo snapped, looking at her in frustration. “C’est moi!It’s me, Aimee. There’s no mystery man, but me. I was looking for this!”

“There’s no mystery man?” she repeated, confused but intensely relieved. “You were looking for a bag?”

“No.”

“But that’s a bag.”

“Yes, it is.”

“But you just said… okay. My brain hurts, and I’m completely confused.”

“Come with me,” Theo began, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her toward the front door of the house as she tried to unravel everything aloud.

“So you aren’t killing Lafreniére, because he’s not the mystery guy.”

“No.”

“But you were – up to a point.”

“Yes.”

“But you aren’t now.”

“No?”

“No… as in ‘No, I am not’ or ‘No, I’m not sure?’… because there is a difference, Theo. I’m trying to keep up with all of this.”

“Lafreniére is not your mystery man – that was me. It was always me.”

“But who brought the roses?”

“That was me too.”

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