“This is definitely on the opposite side of the tracks from where I live,” I murmur in awe as we drive past Brienne Norcross’s mansion. It’s lit up with white lights and wreaths trimmed with silver bows in every window, all the bushes drenched in sparkling strings of bulbs. It might be the most magical thing I’ve ever seen.
Hendrix finds a spot a block down, and we walk to the house arm in arm, bundled against the cold. It’s time to make merry with the team and celebrate Christmas, Titans’ style.
Hendrix got back in the early-morning hours from an away game in Vegas, so he spent today catching up on sleep, doing laundry, and paying bills. That means I haven’t seen him in a day and a half, and it’s felt like a month. I don’t ever want to unlink my arm from his.
Yes, it’s been a whirlwind romance, but there’s nothing flighty about my feelings for Hendrix. They are deeper and more grounded than anything I’ve ever felt for another human, except for my father.
I feel it in return. Hendrix is a man who isn’t afraid to be open about his emotions, and he’ll say what’s on his mind.
The only problem with us growing closer is that my fear of abandonment sometimes flares. The more I feel for him, the more I know how hurt I’ll be if he leaves me. It’s times like these I have to be logical because deep down in my gut, I know he’s not that type. He’s looking for a solid, committed relationship, and I’m ready to give it to him.
But if a mom can leave her little girl, then…
“… to get your dad a gift.”
“What?” I say, glancing over at Hendrix and realizing I zoned out, lost in my intrusive thoughts.
“Is it appropriate for me to get your dad a gift for Christmas?” He unlinks our arms as we approach the grand porch and grabs my hand. “I don’t want to make it weird for him, and I don’t expect anything back, but I wanted to give him a ten-pack of Titans’ tickets.”
“My dad would love that,” I assure him. “And he’ll totally be weirded out, wondering if he should have gotten you a gift, which he won’t. He’s not good about stuff like that, but if it helps, he really does like you.”
Hendrix laughs and squeezes my hand. “That’s good enough for me.”
We trot up the porch and step into Brienne’s house. We’re about ten minutes late, and the party is in full swing. The first five minutes, we walk around, my jaw hanging open at the grandeur of the place. Crystal chandeliers, high-end art, beautifully carved furniture. Stunning silk rugs grace every room, and the trim molding has intricate patterns hand-etched into the wood.
At one point, Hendrix actually puts his fingers under my chin to nudge my mouth closed.
I laugh and whisper, “Never in my life did I think I’d date a professional hockey player, and now here I am surrounded by them, in the home of one of the richest women in the world.”
“But your favorite part of all that is dating me, right?” Hendrix asks.
“By far,” I say with a firm nod.
“Good.”
Hendrix and I grab drinks from a bar and check out the food stations set up throughout the house. We decide to eat after we mingle.
It’s funny, because I know some of the tighter bonds run right down the lines on which the guys play. Hendrix is on the second line with Foster Macinnis, Liam Nicholson, Darius Cermak, and Camden Poe, and that’s who he usually pals around with in off-hours.
But tonight, we seem to be congregated around the female bonds on the team.
I’ve been invited in and made one of them. Brienne hosted us all in the owner’s box for the game, and there’s apparently a monthly lunch get-together they want me to join with them. I’m standing with Brienne, Harlow, Tillie, Jenna, and Sophie.
And with these women, so go their men—Drake, Stone, Coen, Gage, and Baden. Three players and two coaches, all the lines blurred as we’re gathered in friendship and Christmas cheer.
“There’s the man of the hour,” Gage says, and we all turn to see Coach West walking toward us, holding hands with his girlfriend, Ava. I have yet to meet either of them, although the other ladies clearly know her as they move in for hugs while Coach West shakes hands with everyone.
He reaches us, and Hendrix introduces me. “Coach… this is my girlfriend, Stevie.”
We shake and he says, “It’s great to meet you, Stevie.”
“It’s really great to meet you, Coach West.”
“Cannon,” he says sternly, then grins. “At least when we’re at Christmas parties.”
I’m pulled over to the ladies and introduced to Ava, then the men filter back into our group. We break off into smaller conversations, make plans to get together, and eventually decide to get some food.
Hendrix and I fill our plates, refresh our drinks, and tuck ourselves into a corner with Tillie and Coen.
“We’re thinking of coming to your bar after tomorrow’s game,” Tillie says.
“Oh, that would be awesome. I’ll reserve you a table.”
“Tired of the crowd at Mario’s,” Coen says, and Hendrix nods. “They’re great and all. The fans are amazing, but it’s also just…”
“Overwhelming,” Hendrix supplies. “Sure, if we were single dudes wanting to party under the accolades of the masses, Mario’s is the place to be.”
Coen takes up where Hendrix leaves off. “But since we have our smoking-hot women taking up a hundred percent of our attention, we like the atmosphere at Jerry’s. More laid back.”
Tillie and I exchange a glance, and she snorts. “You guys are whipped.”
“I am,” Hendrix admits, leaning over and kissing me softly. And just… my heart melts over his naked admission in front of his teammate. No shame at all in baring his feelings.
“Good thing I’m whipped too,” I murmur.
“God, you two are sickly sweet,” Coen mutters in disgust.
Hendrix shakes his head. “Oh, no you don’t, dude. We had to listen endlessly about Tillie when you came back to the team. Suck it up.”
“Well,” Coen says slyly, hooking his arm around Tillie’s shoulders and drawing her in, “you’ll be hearing lots more. I’ve finally convinced her to move to Pittsburgh.”
“What?” I exclaim with delight. “That’s awesome.”
I’d talked to Tillie about her long-distance dilemma with Coen, and it’s been causing quite a bit of heartache living apart. It’s hard enough having a relationship with someone who travels so much, but then add on living three and a half hours away.
Tillie’s smile is like sunshine. “I found someone to help me teach my classes, and I’ll coordinate my schedule for the longer road trips to go back to Coudersport.”
“I thought this was inevitable.” Hendrix laughs.
“Fuck, I hoped it was,” Coen says, and my heart trips on Tillie’s behalf. Like Hendrix, Coen lays it out there when it comes to his woman. The difference is that Coen was closed off before, and this is strange behavior for him. I obviously didn’t know Hendrix before we met, but I’ve learned enough through being with him and talking to his Aunt Rory to know he’s always been open with his feelings.
After we finish eating, we mingle some more until everyone is called to congregate in the grand foyer. While the house is massive, the foyer is the best place to accommodate everyone as the rooms to the left and right have wide entrances. There’s a grand staircase that rises up from the foyer and then splits to the left and right in sweeping arcs. Once everyone is gathered, Brienne Norcross walks up about five steps so everyone can see her.
She turns, clasps her hands, and beams a smile. “Our first Christmas party.” She looks around, letting that sink in. It’s not the first Christmas party the Norcross family has thrown for the Titans, but she means the first Christmas party for this brand-new group. “I have to be honest… when I took over this team, I was scared shitless.”
That produces quite a few chuckles. “I didn’t think I had what it takes to put this team back together. Adam was the one who knew hockey inside and out. I barely understood what icing was. I knew I had to rely on the one thing our father taught both Adam and me, and that was to work hard until you get the job done.
“But hard work only goes so far if you don’t have good people working with you. So I made sure to surround myself with the best. A lot of the reason we’re all standing here is because of Callum Derringer and his very wise choices—in all of you—to help build a superb team.”
A huge round of applause erupts, and I lean over to look at the general manager. He lifts an acknowledging hand but looks almost embarrassed.
Brienne scans the crowd. “Where’s Cannon West?”
He’s actually standing to the left of Hendrix, so when he raises his hand, Brienne’s attention comes our way, and her eyes glitter with bemusement. “Now, we didn’t have a great start with our first head coach.” Many more laughs because the first coach, Matt Keller, was a hot mess, and pretty much everybody hated him. Hendrix told me Keller made a horrible comment about Jenna’s scars, and Gage went apeshit. Keller was fired within moments of that happening, and it makes me respect Brienne all the more.
She continues. “Coach West was the last piece of the puzzle we needed to become a championship team. And I think our record this season speaks for itself. We have twenty-three wins, eight losses, and fifty-three points. We’re second in our division, and only three points separates us from first.” A roar of approval reverberates through the foyer, and Brienne grins as she motions with her hands to quiet down.
“Just one more thing… I want to use this gathering to announce officially that I have formed the Adam Norcross Charitable Foundation, and its main goal will be to aid dependents of professional athletes who have either died or become incapacitated and can’t play anymore. This is a global charity and will cover all professional and semiprofessional sports. We’re all too aware of how the plane crash left widows and children behind. It’s incredibly hard… the struggle to figure out how to navigate life alone when a family member is ripped away. I want to take a moment to introduce Danica Brandt, whose husband Mitch was our second-line left-winger and was on the plane. Danica, come up here.”
My head whips to look at Hendrix. He’s on the second line now and was when the plane went down. He stares at me, eyes dark with sorrow, and whispers, “He was a good man. They have a son, Travis.”
“Oh no. Poor kid.”
“Yeah,” he murmurs, eyes going back to Brienne. “I’ll introduce you to Danica. You’ll really like her.”
My arm slips around his waist as we watch a petite young woman with long brown hair walk up the stairs to stand beside Brienne. She lost her husband ten months ago, and I can’t even begin to imagine her pain. Yet she smiles confidently at the crowd.
Brienne slips her arm around Danica’s waist. She reciprocates, and it’s clear they’re good friends. “So, Danica and I are in a small support group formed for those who lost loved ones on the plane. I watched her struggle after Mitch died, not just with her own grief and that of her son, Travis, but how to go on as a single mom without a source of income. And she’s just one example of the many women—and men, because there are professional female athletes—who have to pick up the pieces and figure out how to navigate life after loss. I’m proud to announce that Danica will be the director of this new charity named after my brother.”
There’s applause, subdued due to the nature of the announcement, but you can feel the emotion in the room.
“I would love for each of the players who have not met Danica to introduce yourself. You’re going to see a lot of her as I’ll be throwing the full weight of the team into helping raise money whether you like it or not.” She smiles devilishly, and someone from the back yells, “We like it!”
“Okay, everyone,” Brienne says to the crowd. “Eat more food, drink more alcohol, and leave your keys at the door if you’re drinking. I’ll call you an Uber, and you can pick up your cars tomorrow. Thank you all for coming tonight.”
Brienne and Danica walk down the stairs, and the crowd disperses when someone calls out, “Wait up.”
I recognize Stone’s voice, and next thing I know, he’s trotting up the stairs so everyone can see him. I glance over at Harlow, easy to locate because of her bright red hair. She looks utterly confused to see him up there.
But I know what he’s doing. I’ve been waiting for it.
“You all know I used to be a grumpy son of a bitch and didn’t particularly care for any of you.” Everyone laughs at the jab he takes at himself. I’ve gotten to know Stone through Harlow the last several months, and I’d never know it, but according to Harlow, he had a massive chip on his shoulder when he came to the team. “But there was this sexy redhead who lived just across the hall from me who gradually coaxed me out of my shell. Her name is Harlow, and you all know her. You also know that I love her to the depths of my soul.”
Stone reaches into his pocket, and before he can even pull out the ring box, everyone is chattering with exclamations of delight and surprise.
Hendrix leans down and whispers, “Did you know this was happening?”
My gaze pins on Harlow, her mouth wide open in shock. “Sort of. I knew he was going to do it soon, but not exactly when or how. Look at her… I think her eyes might bug out of her head.”
“Harlow,” Stone says, and I turn my attention back to him. In his hand, the black velvet box is open and the diamond ring twinkles. “I’ve been trying to think how to do this for longer than you would believe. I finally decided to do it here… in front of my teammates, not because we play hockey together but because they’re part of my family. They’re part of your family, and I want them to share in my joy as I ask you to marry me and be my wife. Make my Christmas dreams come true, Harlow, and say yes.”
Stone lopes down the steps, and the crowd parts so there’s no one between him and Harlow. He takes her hand, dropping to one knee. Tears sparkle in Harlow’s eyes, and mine sting in response.
Hendrix’s arm comes around my waist, and he squeezes.
Stone slides the ring onto Harlow’s finger without receiving a formal answer. She barely looks at the ring, instead jerking him up with her hands at his shirt collar and slamming her mouth to his.
“I take it that’s a yes.” Hendrix chuckles.
Stone picks Harlow up and spins her around, his face buried in her neck. If there’s a single person in this house not swooning right now, their heart must be made of Pennsylvania coal.
For the next hour, Hendrix and I separate. I go immediately to Harlow to see the ring up close, along with most of the other females in the house. I meet Danica and more of the players, and then I end up in a discussion with Callum Derringer about my bar. He’d heard about it and wants to come check it out. Apparently, a little-known fact about him is that his dad was a biker, and Callum owns a Harley. We made loose plans for him to come by and meet my dad and maybe go on a ride together.
I’m looking around for Hendrix, but he finds me first. His hands are at my hips, and he presses into my back and puts his mouth near my ear. “Got something to show you.”
“What?” I ask, but he has my hand and pulls me down a hallway to a music room. A handful of guests mingle about.
In the corner sits a beautiful ebony piano, and Hendrix leads me that way. He draws both of us down onto the bench seat and angles us toward each other.
I cock an eyebrow at him. “What are you doing? I know you don’t play piano, and you know I don’t as we’ve already had the ‘do you play any musical instruments’ conversation.”
Hendrix grins and points upward. Hanging from a chandelier right above our heads is a sprig of mistletoe bound with red velvet ribbon. “Thought we could make out.”
I laugh and give him a playful push, but he grabs my wrists and pulls me to him. His lips are featherlight, a mere brush before pulling slightly back. “I was thinking…”
“That’s good, because my brain is mush when you kiss me.”
Hendrix laughs. “I was thinking of staying here Christmas Eve and heading home the morning of Christmas Day. But I didn’t want to assume you’d want me to stay with you. So I thought—”
“Yes!” I exclaim, leaning in and kissing him back. I have to work Christmas Day, so Hendrix planned to go home Christmas Eve since it’s not a long drive, but I like this idea a lot better. “I’m cooking dinner for me and my dad, and I’d love for you to be there.”
Hendrix grins and kisses me hard. “It’s a date, then.”
