Page 63 of Stick Side
“I really am sorry about this,” he voiced.
Melody gripped his forearms in a way that grounded him and helped him to shed some of his discomfiture. When she spoke, her tone was slow and deliberate. “It’s completely fine, Ben. I know exactly how to get home from here. It’s easy. The L-train is great. With the traffic out there today, odds are it will get me home faster than a car would.”
He lifted a hand to brush the hair back from her face, savoring the way the silky strands felt as they slid between his fingers. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.” She imbued enough conviction into her words for him to finally feel confident she meant it.
“Now go slaughter St. Louis,” Melody continued. “But not really, since I’m sure they’re lovely people. Maybe just kick their butts?”
Ben smiled appreciatively as he recognized the words she’d texted him before he went on to score four goals against San Jose.
“Thanks, beautiful.”
Melody reached up onto her tippy toes and placed a soft kiss on his lips. “Now, go!” she said as she lowered her heels back to the ground.
Ben was sure he wore a goofy smile on his face as he rushed out of Escapism. Thanks to Melody, he was certainly feeling lucky again.
Chapter 30
From the texts of Ben & Melody
Melody:Knock-knock.
Ben:Who’s there?
Melody:Jokey McJokerson.
Ben:Jokey McJokerson who?
Melody:Why was the magician so good at hockey?
Ben:Hmmm . . . Because hockey is magical. No joke.
Melody:Because he always has a hat trick.
Ben:ROTFL. Aren’t you punny?
Melody:What can I say? Sometimes, my humor is magical.
Ben:Ba dum chhh *drum emoji
Melody:*graduation cap emoji*cookie emoji
Ben:You know that isn’t how you tell a knock-knock joke, though, right? Ms. Smart Cookie.
Melody:You liked it, didn’t you?
Ben:I did . . .
Melody:Well, then. I think I told it just right. :-)
Ben:Okay. I’ll give you that one, but you know I didn’t score a hat trick tonight, right?
Melody:You scored two goals.
Ben:I did, but as I’m sure you know, a hat trick means scoring three goals in a single game.
Melody:True, but my magical powers tell me you would have scored a third goal had you been forced to go into overtime.
