Page 15 of Breakaway to You

“I just have a lot on my mind,” I tried to explain. I didn’t want to be a grump to her. It wasn’t her fault she was stuck with helping a man who was past his prime. “I don’t mean to be rude.”

“That’s something no one has ever called you in your career,” she commented. “You’ve always been known as the nice guy.”

I sat up straighter, a smile stretching across my face. “You follow my career?”

Her cheeks turned pink, and I realized I’d never get tired of making her blush. “As much as all the other hockey players,” she waved her hand dismissively. “My dad was really into hockey and passed the love of the game on to me.”

Something about her comments made me think she knew more about me and my hockey career than she was letting on. And the thought of that sent a thrill through me.

“What team?” I asked, curious to know what team she and her dad had cheered for over the years.

“The Minnesota Wolves, actually.” She took a small sip of her drink. “I’m from Saint Paul.”

“I’m from Minnesota too, but from a small town called Glacier Grove.” Most people from Minnesota hadn’t heard of it.

“I know,” she said matter-of-factly, before her cheeks turned pink again, realizing she’d shown just how much she knew about me.

“Of course you do.” My grin grew wider. “Just like all the other hockey players.”

That had her chuckling. “Oh, shush.” She playfully hit my arm, and I laughed too, the loneliness slowly starting to depart. “My younger sister might have had a crush on you, so I may know some things about you.”

“Just your sister?” I raised a brow, not able to keep the cocky grin off my face. She was a horrible liar.

She suddenly became really interested in her drink. “Uh-huh.”

“For some reason, I don’t believe you.”

This had her throwing me a haughty stare. “I was more into Crew Anderson.”

“Whoa. Choosing my childhood teammate over me?” I asked, pretending to be wounded by her admission. “I actually just got off the phone with him.”

Her eyes widened. “Really?”

“Okay, calm down there, Fallon,” I admonished. “I thought you were teasing me about being more into Crew, but now I’m actually offended.”

She laughed. “No, you’re not.”

I shrugged. “Well, either way, Crew is taken.”

“I saw that,” she said. “He got back together with his high school sweetheart. That’s so cute.”

“Yeah,” I nodded. “Their story is like something out of a romance novel. He’s always been the happiest with Addie at his side.”

“And what about you?”

I quirked a brow. “What about me?”

“Any high school girlfriends waiting back home for you?” she asked.

“Nope.”

She nodded, taking another drink. “I only know this because of my sister, but you haven’t ever had a serious girlfriend since entering the NHL. Why is that?”

“I’m glad your sister keeps tabs on me.” I’d let her keep using her sister as a scapegoat.

She was right, though. I hadn’t had a serious girlfriend since Anna, and we’d dated in college. Thankfully that whole disaster had happened before I’d become a professional athlete, so no one knew about that humiliating story.

“The words ‘serious’ and ‘girlfriend’ have never sounded appealing to me.” I answered as truthfully as I could. Even if nothing was ever going to happen between us, it was good for her to know I wasn’t the relationship type.

---