Page 34 of Stick Side
After a nice dinner with her mom, she’d come home just in time to catch the start of the game. And what a game.
Growing up with a father who lived and breathed hockey, it was little wonder she was a fan. She wasn’t such a diehard that she freaked out if she missed a game here or there, but she liked to watch when she could.
Watching her dad’s teams play had always made her happy, but watching the Challengers play had taken on an added element of enjoyment now that she’d worked with and befriended a number of the players. But tonight, her inspiration had been a little different than normal. Tonight, she’d wanted to watch Ben play.
As crazy as it might sound, she’d never fully realized what a sexy sport hockey could be. But good lord did he make it sexy and then some.
Watching Ben outskate other players and generally demonstrate what an exceptional athlete he was had really done it for her. She was glad she’d declined her mom’s offer to spend the night. Feeling her libido activate every time she caught sight of him on the television screen wouldn’t have been particularly comfortable with her mother sitting beside her.
Since the game was being played in California, the puck hadn’t dropped until 9:30 p.m. Chicago time. That meant it had been close to midnight by the time the game was over.
Her adrenaline had still been running high by game’s end, so she’d decided to take a soothing soak to help relax her muscles and calm her mind enough to get some rest. It had taken some time, but she was now feeling relaxed enough to climb into bed and hope to get some quality sleep.
Her cellphone vibrated softly as she felt herself starting to drift off. A yawn escaped her lips as she reached for her phone. She blinked her eyes to bring the words into focus.
Ben:Hi, beautiful. It’s after midnight your time, so I imagine you’re already asleep, but I just got into my hotel room and was wondering how your day went. I hope you managed to get all your laundry done and then proceeded to enjoy a lovely day in Garfield Park and an equally nice evening with your mom.
Melody smiled. Someone had been paying attention.
For the barest of moments, she considered waiting to respond until morning. She had a full workday ahead of her and only about six more hours of potential rest, so she needed to sleep. Still. Her fingers itched with the urge to respond. Eagerness won out and she started to type.
Melody:I think you took me seriously and tried to slaughter San Jose after all.
Ben:Hey! You’re still up. You saw the game?
Melody:I did. I got home just in time to watch the puck drop.
Ben:What did you think?
Melody:What did I think? Seriously? Ben, that game was amazing! You guys were phenomenal tonight. And you scored FOUR goals!
Ben:I think you might be my new good luck charm. Maybe you can continue to wish me luck before all my games. :-)
Melody smiled.
Melody:You hockey players are a superstitious lot, aren’t you?
Ben:We are that. But you wouldn’t want to mess with a good thing, would you?
To this, Ben added three emojis: a smile, hands in prayer, and fingers crossed.
Melody chuckled.
Melody:No, we certainly wouldn’t want to mess with a good thing. :-)
As much as she wanted to continue this conversation, she was fading fast.
Melody:I hate to cut this short, but I need to get some sleep before I turn into a pumpkin. I have a full day of patient visits ahead of me, but I wanted to respond when I saw your text. :-)
Ben:Of course. Rest. I’ll talk to you tomorrow?
Anticipation sizzled through her body, as her face heated with one of the blushes only he seemed capable of inspiring.
Melody:Sounds good. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.
Ben:Good night, beautiful. Sweet dreams.
Melody:Sweet dreams, Ben.
