Page 5 of One Goal in Mind

A horny D-man, a bubbly birthday girl, a grumpy goalie, and an off-limits woman… What could go wrong? If Beav wants to go home with them, that’s his business, but I’m not about to spend the night flirting with a taken woman. “I’m staying here,” I announce, gripping my burger with both hands and taking an obnoxiously large bite of it.

“Same.” Scarlett orders the same burger as me, and asks, “Could I have extra onions?”

I try to hide my smirk, but fail. Fuck, she’s cute. Why does she have to be Coach’s sister? And where the fuck is her boyfriend? I could’ve sworn Rachel said he was here.

As Beav and Rachel place their to-go orders, I keep my attention on the game highlights. We played well today, but I have a nagging feeling if I don’t step things up, I’ll be forced into retirement. Once their food arrives, Beav hops off his stool and offers his arm to Rachel. “Shall we?” he asks with a dimpled grin. None of it should surprise me; he said himself he was coming here to bring someone home. She links her arm with his, and he guides her away from the bar, calling over his shoulder, “Nice to meet you, kiss cam girl,” leaving me with the last person I should befriend right now.

CHAPTER 3

SCARLETT

Iwill not flirt with the hot goalie.

I will not flirt with the hot goalie.

I will NOT flirt with the hot goalie.

With our friends gone, I can’t stand the awkward silence. “So…”

“So,” Russ grumbles.

This is going well…

I blow out a long breath and take Rachel’s seat. “I didn’t have a chance to thank you for earlier.”

“There’s nothing to thank me for.” He takes another bite of his burger, effectively silencing me.

I thought he’d be friendlier than this, especially with how he was acting at the game. I swear he was flirting. Maybe he has a girlfriend? It isn’t as if I could seriously date someone like him, and there’s no way in hell he’d be interested in me. Guys like him have beautiful women chasing after them. He could have anyonehe wants. Still, there’s no harm in a little friendly conversation between two burger-loving people.

I try again. “You played well today.” Did he play well? For all I know, he is a mediocre player on the verge of being traded.

He wipes his mouth with his napkin as he finishes chewing. “What was your name? Red? Sorry to disappoint you, but I only came out tonight for a burger and a beer. I’m not in any mood for small talk.”

“It’sScarlett, and I was just trying to be nice,” I groan. “I didn’t want to be out either, but Rachel insisted and it’s her birthday. Oh, and in case you didn’t notice, she left me here and I’ll have to track her down in the morning.”

He rakes his hand through his hair and sighs, “I’m sorry. I’m on edge because you’re one of my coach’s sisters.”

“Why does that matter?”

Finally looking at me, he replies, “Because if you weren’t, I would…”

“You would what?”

“Nothing, it doesn’t matter.”

“Why don’t we start over? I’m Scarlett. I don’t watch hockey, and Iove blue cheese.”

A smirk tilts his lips, drawing my attention to his strong jaw. “I’m Russ. I play hockey, and I also love blue cheese.”

“See? That wasn’t so hard.” I lift my burger in a toast. “To friends who love cheese.”

He taps his burger to mine before taking a bite. “To cheesy friends.”

I sink my teeth into the greasy goodness and can’t help the moan that escapes me. This burger is better than sex—or at least sex by myself. I glance over at the hockey hero, who’s choking on his burger mid-bite. “Fuck! Are you okay?’ I manage through my mouthful.

After a few coughs and sipping his beer, he laughs, “Yeah. Just, uh, went down the wrong way.”

We continue eating in comfortable silence, but I’m ravenous, devouring my fries well before he does. This man—this beast of a human—gives me half of his without breaking away from watching the game highlights on the television above the bar. Certainly he needs the calories more than I do. As much as I will the butterflies in my stomach to calm the hell down, they refuse.

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