Page 6 of Stick Side
“Jesus, Logan!” Eric exclaimed as he turned around to address the man who had just spoken. “I don’t know what type of code you lived by in the City of Brotherly Love, but here in the Windy City, a guy doesn’t go implying that another guy might have crabs. Not cool, man. Not cool.”
Melody spun around to look at the man Eric had just reproved. She was sure his wide-eyed expression mirrored hers. They shared a look of amusement before they broke into simultaneous laugher.
“Seriously, what gives, Logan?” Eric griped. “First, you suggest I have crabs, and then you laugh about it?” He reflexively stroked the underside of his chin. “Despite whatever impression Mel might have given, I assure you the girl at the sports bar didn’t give me crabs.”
Her laughter had been starting to wind down, but that got her going again.
“Sorry, Cassidy,” Logan got out between chuckles.
“For someone with four sisters,” Melody explained once she’d gotten her laughter under control, “you sure didn’t catch a good Disney reference.”
That caught Eric’s attention. “What?”
Melody turned puzzled eyes his way. “Don’t you rememberThe Little Mermaid? It’s what Sebastianthe crabsays to Flounder once they have swum Ariel up to the surface after she makes a deal with Ursula to turn her into a human for three days.” She stared at him pointedly. “Sebastian is suggesting that King Triton is going to kill him for allowing his daughter to get roped into one of the sea witch’s schemes.”
Melody glanced over at Logan. He wore a warm smile and a look that suggested he was impressed by her recall. She could feel her cheeks starting to warm as she took in the sight before her.
She prided herself on being an articulate woman, but in that moment, words failed her. Logan—or Benjamin Logan, she imagined, based on the team’s roster—was quite possibly the sexiest man she’d ever laid eyes on. She’d seen pictures, of course, but they didn’t do him justice. He was a pro athlete, so it didn’t come as any surprise that he would be fit. But there was fitness and then there wasthis.
Broad shoulders. Toned, well-muscled arms.
She wondered how much time he must have to spend in the gym to get such perfect washboard abs. Was that eight distinct portions of muscle she was seeing?
As a physical therapist, she knew an eight-pack was achievable, but they were so rare that it was easy to forget they were possible. Unless the genetic and lifestyle stars aligned, a six-pack was the best most people could hope for. Melody barely held back a groan as she resumed her inspection.
His sculpted abs tapered down into narrow hips. She was eager to see more, but a nice pair of fitted trousers prevented her appreciative gaze from taking a full inventory of his impressive attributes.
Melody’s face flamed when she realized what she was doing.Please, God. Don’t let him have noticed how closely I was checking him out.The man might be sexy as hell and dangerous to any girl’s equilibrium—clearly—but he wasn’t man meat.
Awareness rippled through her body as she lifted her eyes to meet his.Damn.If the questioning look in his expressive hazel eyes was any indication, he had definitely noticed her checking him out.
Oh, God. Mortification, thy name is Melody.
There was nothing for it. She squared her shoulders and marshaled her courage to introduce herself.
Chapter 3
Ben
Therewasnodoubtabout it. Melody McGuire was enchanting.
After almost a decade in the NHL, Ben was used to having women run their eyes over his body with clear admiration in their gaze. He spent more hours than he cared to think about working his body so that he could stay at the top of his game. It wasn’t by dumb luck that he was still killing it on the ice when other players his age were slowly being replaced by younger, hungrier upstarts. He’d fought for his place with long hours of leg lifts, bench presses, crunches, and cardio.
So, no, female appreciation was nothing new to him. Whatwasnew was seeing a woman display clear signs of embarrassment for having been caught checking him out.
Ben enjoyed the way Melody’s eyes had seemed to widen as she slowly took him in. His abs, in particular, had seemed to give her pause, as though she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. But that wasn’t what had really affected him. What had sent an uncommon buzz of sensation coursing through his body was seeing the potent flush that had stolen up her cheeks.
Unless appearances were incredibly deceiving, Melody McGuire wasn’t the type of woman who made a habit of gawking at half-clothed hockey players. Despite her father being a long-time professional hockey coach, she appeared wholly unused to seeing such a display of naked muscles. Ben couldn’t help the way his smile broadened.Or she wasn’t used to being so transfixed by what she was seeing.
Ben was definitely enjoying this. There was something refreshing about a woman who liked what she saw, but didn’t feel it was her right to claim his body as part of her due for being a loyal fan.
He smiled at the way Melody appeared to gather herself before lifting her gaze to meet his. Chocolate brown eyes connected with his as words formed on her lips. God, it was like a whole world existed beyond the veil of her eyes. A whole new world of depth and intrigue that he found himself eager to explore.
“Hi. I’m Melody McGuire.” Her smile was bashful, but genuine. Ben loved it.
“Benjamin Logan,” he returned as he reached for her hand and gently pressed it between both of his. He rather thought of it as the modern-day equivalent of kissing the back of a woman’s hand. Warm and intimate, but not too forward. “Ben.”
Ben held her hand between his for a hair’s breadth longer than necessary, but not nearly long enough to cause alarm. Still, he heard her breath hitch. Because he was watching for it, he also detected a slight increase in the tempo of the pulse at her neck.
