“Am I cleared for the game tonight?”
The doctor gives me a stern look, ignores the question, and sits down on the stool in front of me. “It’s healing nicely. A couple more weeks and I think you’ll be back to full mobility.”
“So, I’m not cleared for tonight?”
“I know how much you want to be back out there, but this early in the season, your coaches don’t want to risk you reinjuring it and being out for the playoffs.”
I already knew he was going to say no, but I’m still frustrated as I let his words sink in. Another week watching the game instead of playing it.
“Can I at least start practicing again?” I’m dying to get back on the ice. To do something.
“Keep meeting with Shane and let’s chat next week.”
“So that’s a no?” I ask, mumbling the question as I get to my feet.
He stands and cuffs me on my good shoulder. “Soon. I promise.”
I thank him, stop by to let Shane know next week’s schedule is the same for my physical therapy, and then head to the locker room. My teammates are just finishing up their morning skate.
Leo spots me first. His eyes are wide and hopeful, but when I shake my head, he lets his mouth fall into a straight line. “Sorry, man.”
“Still not cleared?” Tyler asks as he tosses his gloves in the cubby above his locker.
“Another week sitting on my ass.” I plop down in my stall and let my head fall back against the locker. “This fucking sucks.”
“Ah, cheer up, buddy,” Johnny Maverick calls. “I think I met the perfect girl for you.”
Well, that has my attention. But I’m skeptical. “You met my perfect girl?”
An image of Bridget pops into my head. It’s been more than two weeks since I gave her my number and I haven’t heard from her. That’s probably my sign to move on, as much as I don’t want to.
“Yep.” He runs a tattooed hand through his dark hair. Maybe I need some new ink. I’ve been wanting to get something on my forearm or maybe across the top of my hand.
“Who is she?” Leo asks. Like a good friend, he squares off with Mav to make sure he’s not trying to set me up with some weird rando.
“She’s Dakota’s doula,” he says, mentioning his wife. They’re expecting their first baby.
“I’m sorry, a what?” I ask, even more skeptical.
“It’s like a doctor who delivers babies,” Mav says.
“That’s an obstetrician or midwife,” Leo clarifies. “A doula is more like a coach. They give emotional support during the pregnancy.”
“Yeah, that sounds right.” Mav snaps his fingers and points at Leo. “Pregnancy coach. She sends Dakota these really supportive texts about listening to her body and eating nutritious food, which pisses Kota off, but I swear Harmony is magic because my wife does everything she says.”
“Scarlett and I met with one of those when she was figuring out her birth plan, but they mostly just asked her how she was feeling and talked about her fears and shit.”
The guys continue going back and forth. Even Declan pipes in at some point. What in the world is happening?
“Can we get back to me? Not that I don’t want to hear about your wives shooting out babies and all that.”
Mav laughs good-naturedly. “She’s cool, pretty, single, and she’s coming to Wild’s after the game tonight. You’re welcome.”
Jack walks into the locker room, fresh off the ice, and takes a seat next to me. “Just heard, sorry, man.”
“One more week,” I say more to myself than him. Hopefully. And because I don’t want to talk about my shoulder, I add, “And Maverick wants to set me up with his wife’s pregnancy coach.”
Jack’s brows rise, then his gaze slides over to Maverick.
“It’s a real job. She’s cool. You’ll all see tonight.”
“Wait, wait. Tonight?” Jack asks, sitting forward.
“Yeah, she’s coming to Wild’s after the game. Is Meredith coming?”
“Yeah, and she’s bringing her friend Kennedy for Ash.”
“You both set him up on the same night?” Declan covers his smile with a fist over his mouth. “Oh man, and to think I was going to skip the bar after the game tonight.”
I side-eye my buddy. “What in the hell?”
“She’s really cool,” Jack says. “She does PR for the Twins. And she doesn’t know we’re setting her up, so don’t say anything.”
“I don’t need any help picking up girls.”
“Says the guy that hasn’t been out with one in…” Tyler trails off.
“I admit, it’s been a bit, but I’ve been a little preoccupied.”
Leo snickers. “And by preoccupied he means sitting around feeling sorry for himself while binge-watching Ted Lasso for the millionth time.”
“It’s the greatest show of our time!”
They all chuckle.
Something loosens in my chest, sitting here, going back and forth with my teammates. Fuck, I’ve missed this. Weeks of not traveling or practicing with them, and I’d forgotten how much this part of the game means to me. Playing hockey is my first love, but these guys are a close second.
“What are we going to do about Harmony and Kennedy?” Maverick asks.
“Harmony? You want to set him up with a girl named Harmony?” Jack scoffs.
“Didn’t you date a girl named Denim a few months ago?” Declan asks him.
“One date.” He cracks a smile. “And no, she did not wear denim on our date. In fact, she made it a point to let me know she never wears denim.”
“Riveting stuff. Hard to imagine why you only went out once,” Ty quips.
“I like the name Harmony,” Maverick says. “It’s very Zen. And Ash being all deep and shit, I thought he’d appreciate it.”
“I don’t care about names. Although admittedly I’d have a hard time telling people I was dating someone named Denim. But I can’t go on a date with two girls at the same time.”
“Meredith and Kennedy won’t be at Wild’s until eleven or so. They have some fashion event beforehand,” Jack says.
“Meredith isn’t coming to the game?” I ask him.
“Nah.” He shakes his head like it’s no big deal. Maybe it’s too soon for that kind of thing, what do I know. I’ve only met Jack’s newest girl once at the party he threw for her at his house. She seemed all right.
Mav crosses both tattooed arms over his chest. “Harmony already mentioned she had to get home early tonight for an early client meeting, so I think with some careful seating, we can pull this off.”
“I don’t know…” Even if I’m not the one that set up these meetings, it feels wrong to hang with two different women back-to-back.
“You gotta get back out there,” Jack insists. “What’s the harm in meeting one super cool chick and a random weird one that Maverick found for you?”
“She’s not weird!” Mav calls over his shoulder as he heads to the showers. “You’ll see.”
I watch the game from the press box. Despite Jack having a good night and some sloppy mistakes from Boston, we still end up short. It’s infuriating not being able to help my team out of this funk.
Wild’s is a short walk from the arena. I leave my truck and head over with the girls. As soon as we arrive, Dakota pulls me over to the bar to introduce me to Harmony.
She’s pretty. Long brown hair and big hazel eyes. I’m not sure what I expected her to be like exactly, but I know she’s different. I offer to buy her a drink and then we go over to a quiet table in the corner to talk.
“I love your tattoo.” She leans forward and touches the edge of my butterfly tattoo on my left bicep. “Does it have some special meaning?”
I hesitate and take a sip of my beer before responding, “Would you think less of me if I said no?”
“I have a random heart on my hip from spring break my freshman year of college, so I’m in no position to judge.”
“Any other tattoos?” I ask as I scan her visible skin in the tank top and jeans she’s wearing. I don’t see any, but she proceeds to give me a rundown of a few that are out of sight and then I show her the only other one I have.
From tattoos, we talk star signs, where we grew up, and a dozen other topics.
Maverick walks slowly behind the booth, eavesdropping on us where Harmony can’t see him, and gives me a thumbs up and a smile. Like I didn’t already feel like a kid being chaperoned.
We talk about lots of stuff, but when Harmony glances at the time and says she needs to get going, I don’t really feel like I know that much more about her than I did when we sat down.
That might be on me. I can tell she’s cool, but I’m not sure I feel any type of connection with her, and I mostly answered her questions instead of asking my own. Basically, I was a terrible date. The team’s in a funk and so am I.
“I enjoyed talking with you. I wasn’t sure about being set up with one of Johnny’s friends,” she says.
“That’s fair.” I chuckle.
She takes a pen out of her purse, then grabs my hand. “I’m giving you my number. If you ever want to hang out again, give me a call.”
I stare down at the red ink along the top of my right hand as she gets to her feet. “Let me walk you out.”
She waits for me and the two of us make our way through the busy bar. I spot Jack and Meredith sitting at the bar, and a redhead with them that I can only assume is Kennedy. My buddy waves at me. His girl and her friend don’t see me, and I wave awkwardly back, still tailing Harmony. This whole thing is beyond weird.
“You have a ride?” I ask as we step outside.
“Yeah. I think that’s me right there,” she says as a red car pulls up to the curb.
The driver rolls down the window. “Are you Harmony?”
“Yep. One second.” She turns back to me and then steps forward. We exchange a nice, short hug that is incidentally the closest I’ve come to a girl in a really, really long time. My dick doesn’t not notice. And it doesn’t care how connected I feel to Harmony. It’s ready to do this thing. For two seconds, I consider chasing the car and asking if she wants to come back to my place.
I don’t, but only because it feels too pathetic and misleading. I stand outside a few moments longer. Fuck, I need to get laid. I need to do something, anything to stop moping around.
With that in mind, I head inside and go directly to Jack so I can meet Kennedy and get this night over with.
“Hey, you made it,” he says like I just got here. Only the smirk on his lips gives him away. He turns to the girls. “This is my buddy, Ash.”
“Hey.” I tip my head to him in greeting and then let my gaze fall to the girls sitting beside him.
“Hey, Meredith,” I say to the blonde sitting closest.
Her smile is friendly, if not a little practiced from all the on-camera work she does. “Hey, Ash. I heard you’re still out with the injury. How long until you’re back?”
“Uhh…”
“Sorry.” She laughs and that fake ass smile is replaced with a real one. “Off the record, of course.”
“It’s doing good, but I’m not sure yet when I’ll return.” That’s as much as I’d give anyone outside of my team, and I don’t wait for a follow-up before I move on to Kennedy.
She looks up at me with dark green eyes framed with thick black lashes. Her mouth is pursed, lips wearing this almost humored expression I can’t quite make out.
“Hey, I’m Ash,” I say to her.
“Kennedy.” She offers me her hand. The ring on her middle finger reminds me of Bridget and how she had on multiple that night of the game.
Kennedy already has a drink in her hand, so I ask the bartender for a water and take a seat to her right.
“We’re going to play darts,” Jack announces, sliding his arm around Meredith’s waist as they both stand.
I shoot him a glare. He’s deserting me and couldn’t be more obvious about his intention to leave us alone together.
“You good, Kennedy?” Meredith asks her.
“Yeah.” The word comes out with a quiet laugh. “I’m fine.”
When they’re gone, she shakes her head and says, “Being set up is the worst, right?”
“You knew this was a setup?”
“Please. They’re not at all subtle. Jack must have slipped you into conversation a dozen times over the last hour before you just so happened to show up. I know more about you than the last three guys I went out with combined.”
“Oh, good.” A deep chuckle rumbles in my chest. “I don’t have to worry about coming up with interesting and fun facts about myself then.”
“Nope.” She takes a sip of red wine and angles her body toward me.
She’s in a tight green dress almost the exact shade of her eyes that molds to her curves.
“It seems I’m at a disadvantage. I barely know anything about you.”
“I’ll give you three questions.”
“Only three?”
“The thing is, if I give you an unlimited number of questions, you’ll ask a bunch of random things and we’ll pass the night by going back and forth sharing random tidbits, but not really getting to know each other at all.”
“You’ve done this before.” One side of my mouth pulls up into a smile.
“Is that a question?”
“Shit. No. Let me think.” I take a drink of water and then wipe the condensation off my hand by running my fingers over my thigh. “What is the last series you binge-watched on Netflix?”
Her expression shows her surprise at my question, but she thinks for a moment and then says, “Unsolved Mysteries. I watched like five episodes in a row and then couldn’t sleep for a week without the light on.”
“Do you live alone?”
“No, I have a roommate, but she travels for work a lot.” She holds up a single finger. “One question left.”
“I think I’ll save it for later.”
“Good, because I have one for you.”
“Something you don’t already know?”
She nods and then leans forward like she’s telling me a secret. The angle gives me a clear shot down her dress before her long hair falls forward. She’s beautiful, no doubt about it.
“Why are you still single?”
I laugh at the unexpectedly direct question.
She pulls back, smiling. “I mean, you’re a rich, good-looking guy. So far, you seem to be able to hold a conversation and you’ve looked at my chest just the right amount.”
Just the right amount? When my brows lift, she explains, “If you didn’t look at all, I’d think you weren’t interested in me. And if you looked too much, I’d think you were only interested in getting me naked. So, are you the kind of guy, like Jack, who isn’t interested in more than casual dating or is there some other reason you’re single? Waiting for the right girl? Pining over the last girl?”
“Uhhh…” I run a hand over my jaw and glance over to where Jack and Meredith are playing darts. He looks pretty happy with one hand resting on her hip possessively, but he does have a reputation for hopping from girl to girl. That’s not me, but pining over the last one? My mind automatically goes to Bridget, but I can’t even count her as the last girl. The last girl I seriously dated was Talia and that was more than a year ago. Aware I still haven’t answered, I finally say, “Somewhere in between, I guess.”
“Hmmm…” She studies me for a beat, then stands. “Look. This doesn’t have to be more than tonight, or it can be, your call, but I think you should use your final question now and ask me to either go on a real date or go back to your place.”
My brows shoot back up. I was not expecting that.
Her laugh chimes in the air again. She clearly enjoys catching me off guard. “I’m going to say goodbye to Meredith and give you time to think about it.”
I watch her go, still in a state of shock as she sways her hips across the bar.
Goddamn. I turn back to the bar and chug the rest of my water.
“Sooo…” Mav slides into the chair that Kennedy just vacated. “What’d you think of Harmony? Are you going to call her?”
I glance down at her number still on my hand. “She was nice.”
Jack’s deep laughter announces his presence. “Nice? I told you he’d like Kennedy better.”
They bicker back and forth for a minute before Jack nudges me. “Don’t leave us in suspense, which one are you picking?”
“No pressure, but I am about to have a baby so I really need the money,” Mav says in a loud whisper-voice.
Jack rolls his eyes. “Oh, please. I’ve seen the nursery. You couldn’t fit another baby gadget in there if you tried.”
“Better than the overpriced liquor you’re likely to buy with it.”
I rub my forehead with two fingers.
Of course, they bet on this. I’m not even surprised. I’m sure I would have done the same thing.
“So?” Mav asks me. “Which one is the perfect girl for you?”
“Perfect girl? I’m just trying to get my boy back in the game.” I’m sure there’s another eye roll with the snort that comes from Jack, but I spin in my seat and look toward the dartboard where Kennedy is standing with Meredith.
“Thank you both. I know you meant well, but—”
“You’re still hung up on the nurse, even though she turned your ass down like a dozen times?” Jack asks with a smirk.
Mav has an equally annoying smirk on his face as he adds, “And the more time you spend with other girls, the more you realize that the connection you had with her was unique?”
Jack snorts again. “I so don’t get that.”
“You will someday,” Mav tells him.
“No,” Jack says, like he can keep himself from falling for someone that easily.
For a second, I get lost remembering Bridget’s turquoise eyes and the dimples that are only present when she smiles for real. I’ve never been so emo about a chick before. I’ve always felt like if things didn’t work out, then it was for the best. But I can’t seem to shake off Bridget.
“First of all, she turned me down twice. Not a dozen times. And secondly, I don’t know if what I felt for her was unique or if I’m just not in a good head space to date right now. Harmony and Kennedy were both cool and maybe I’ll see them again, but tonight I am going home alone.”
“Fair enough.” Mav places a hand on my shoulder and gives it a reassuring squeeze. “The best love is self-love.”
“But if you had to pick, which one did you like best?” Jack asks.
Laughing, I stand and watch as Kennedy heads toward me. “You two are idiots.”
I walk Kennedy to her car and grab her number with a promise I’ll text to make plans next week. I’m not sure about a lot right now, but I know that it’s time I got myself out of this funk. Joking around with the guys today was the most fun I’ve had in weeks. I need to get back out there and stop sitting around feeling sorry for myself.
When I get in my truck, I start it up as a notification pings on my phone.
LITTLE SHARPIE
My new roomie is all moved in! Thanks for passing on my info to Bridget. She seems great. How’s the shoulder? Any word on when you’ll be able to play?
