Page 11 of Here Be Dragons
Despite the pressure, Ava couldn't help but smile as she headed down to the hotel bar to get a drink and some dinner. She liked the pressure, especially when she was holding a few aces.
In the past few days, she had finally made some headway on health care for the players and their families. The salary cap was still a mess, but the lawyers started to debate the signing bonus policy that was suggested by the players so that was better than nothing. Both sides had also come to an agreement on concussion protocol, which meant there was at least one thing completed as part of the contract.
For all of that, Ava thought she deserved a nice glass of wine and a burger. It would be relaxing to just sit somewhere and stare out over the water as she let her mind try to think out the next steps in negotiations.
But as she walked towards her favorite booth by the windows, she saw someone sitting in the one next to it. Shane Taylor. He was looking out over the water with a beer in his hand and some sort of salad in front of him. She had to admire his dedication to sticking with a somewhat healthy diet and hitting the gym even if he technically wasn't playing right now.
She definitely appreciated his workouts, at least she did that night in his hotel room. But things had changed once he found out she was a lawyer for one of the owners. Ava knew it would happen and it was partially her fault for not being completely honest with him, but it still kind of sucked.
She remembered the fire in his eyes when he confronted her in her room. She also remembered that searing kiss on her lips. That man had the kiss of a devil. It tempted her in a way that she would do whatever he would ask of her if she could have a kiss like that again.
It didn't help that since that night, there had been several times when she actually had to work with him, which only made him hotter. She and Neil, one of her few allies among the owners' lawyers, had taken the role of sitting with the players to negotiate some of the issues in person. They found it worked better than sending notes back and forth, which is what the lazy lawyers had been doing before Ava showed up. But as they sat there talking in that boring conference room, she couldn't help but be impressed with the way Shane negotiated. He was smart and came prepared. He took his leadership role for the players seriously.
There were definitely a few times when Ava wished she could clear the place and have her way with him on the conference room table.
Now, as she walked closer to his table in the bar, he turned and saw her, that fire from the night in her room returning to his eyes. In the board room, he was no-nonsense and his features never betrayed his feelings. But here, out in the wild, he wasn't such a good actor.
Shane immediately turned around and looked back out over the water, trying his best to ignore the fact that she was sliding into the booth behind him, his back almost up against hers. Ava could practically feel the heat coming from him, or perhaps that's just how she felt knowing he was right behind her.
To be fair, she did that on purpose. She wanted to be close to him even if she couldn't fully explain it. After all, she was a professional lawyer who enjoyed having her way with men in board rooms and bedrooms. So what was it about Shane that made her think differently of him? Why did he not seem as disposable as those other men? Because sure, there was nothing wrong with disposable. She never had any problem with men that only held her interest for a night or two. But she had a problem with the idea that she could only hold Shane's interest for that one night. She wanted more.
"Did you really have to sit there?"
His voice was low, his tone bitter. And no, she couldn't really explain why she had to sit there, but she wasn't going to get up now.
"What can I get you, ma'am?"
Ava turned to the waiter at her table, trying her best not to scowl at the young man who called her "ma'am" even though she was in her thirties. She gave him her order -- a burger and merlot -- and quietly handed the menu back to him. Behind her, she could hear the waiter ask the bartender for the wine and Shane's beer bottle hitting the table behind her with a little more force than necessary.
"So you're not going to answer my question," he said.
Ava sat up a little straighter and looked out the window. "This is my booth, and I've been sitting here for the past week. Not my problem if you took the one next to it."
Shane growled. It wasn't loud or malicious. It seemed like one of those instinctive things a man would do when he gets really frustrated or aggravated. The one thing Ava knew for certain is that she had heard it before and it made her hot. That was not the reaction she needed to hear from him as she sat on the other side of this bench, her back to his, trying to untangle the jumbled mess of thoughts in her head about her personal and professional life.
Her waiter came over and placed the glass of wine in front of her before checking on the customer behind him.
"Could I get the check?" Shane asked.
An uncomfortable silence fell over her as the waiter walked away. Shane was still there and she could hear his fork hitting the bottom of his bowl. She wished this was different. She wished she was sitting across from him at that table and could actually see his face, could actually see him smiling at her. Maybe they could be sharing a pitcher of beer and laughing about the latest crap some of the other lawyers were trying to pull. They could even be working together on how to get this deal done.
Working together? Ava's mind began to put some pieces together. She now knew that Bay City's owner was up to something and if she could find a way to have the players help her out, both sides could use it to negotiate a real deal. The hockey season could still be saved. This plan could work. But in order for her to start putting the pieces in place, she would have to act soon, and Shane was giving her the perfect chance to do that.
She could hear him thank the waiter and a few seconds later, drop the tray with his check on it on the edge of his table. She could hear him start to slide out of the booth behind her. This was her only chance.
"Wait," she said quietly.
Shane stilled behind her and she turned so she could see his reflection in the window. His head was down and he looked like he was trying really hard to stay in place. The tension in his biceps was mouth-watering.
"What do you want?" he asked.
"Meet me in my room in an hour."
Shane scoffed at her. "I don't think so."
"I'm not asking you."
"So you're ordering me?" he asked bitterly.
