Delayed Penalty (37 page)

Leo, Remy, and Callie ended up coming with me to my parents' house. My parents, always welcoming, loved the added guests for the holidays, and Ami did, too. Last Christmas, she had no family. This Christmas, she had a lot of people who cared about her.

I watched her closely Christmas morning. She smiled a lot. Leo was teasing her. I wasn't too sure about what, but she seemed entertained by it.

"That's the thing about hockey players, Ami..." Leo gave her a friendly suggestive bump to the shoulder. "...we're nasty motherfuckers and think with our sticks."

I rolled my eyes. "Not all of us are."

"Bullshit." Remy coughed. "You ar—"

He didn't finish before my fist was in his gut. I played rough sometimes. Not only had he been flirting with my sixteen-year-old sister, but he was making me out to be just as nasty as him and Leo. I could be, at times, but I also didn't want to admit it in front of my girl or my mother.

Conversation twisted again, and Callie and Leo were with my sister drinking beer. Yes, they'd convinced my parents to allow their sixteen-year-old daughter to drink beer with a bunch of hockey players. Pretty much the worst idea ever.

Leo was going on and on about something, exaggerated as always, and the obvious disgust in Callie's face made me laugh.

She punched Leo. "None of what you're saying is true. Get your facts together."

"I'm in a very vulnerable state right now," he expressed to Callie, his words slurring as he whined, his bottom lip jutting out. "I need comforting."

"Fuck off," was Callie's reply. "You're lucky I don't kick your ass right now for spilling that beer on me earlier."

With all this going on, I kept my arm around Ami, her rapt attention on them entertaining.

"Ma-an," Leo groaned, folding his arms over his chest and sticking out his bottom lip again, looking every bit the part of a pouty child.

"Well, maybe you should think before you speak with your dick next time," Callie drawled in a disinterested voice that told me she was used to dealing with Leo's whining just as much as we were.

My mom laughed, which surprised the hell out of me.

"Ouch," he said, clutching his hand over his heart as he stood. "That really hurts." He stepped over, closer to Callie, taking her beer from her. For a moment he looked like he was going to apologize, but then his smirk grew and he chugged her beer.

Leo, and Remy for that matter, had this quality about them where they purposely tried to piss you off. And just when they thought they'd succeeded, they upped their game.

"You fucking jerk!"

I tried not to smile, but these two were entertaining to be around. Some of the shit that usually came out of Callie's mouth could make Leo blush. And if you knew Leo at all, you'd know he was about as reserved as a fucking, well, hockey player.

It wasn't lost on me that Callie and Leo were kind of perfect for each other. I mentioned that to him the other day and he smiled. I had a feeling he'd eventually make a move.

Watching them, I toyed with the box for a minute and then placed it on Ami's lap. She grinned, gently taking the box in her hands and carefully removing the wrapping. She looked down at the bracelet with the charms of a stick and hockey player and then the one of a ballerina. When her hands got to the baseball glove and then the piston and shovel for her parents, she gasped. Then she started crying.

Not the reaction I was going for, but it was a reaction. I had put a lot of thought into that bracelet, and I knew she'd like it, but still, it was hard to see her crying.

Even with my family there with us, her lips suddenly found mine with an unexpected fervor....until my dad cleared his throat. "All right kids, keep it under wraps until we at least eat dinner."

Ami laughed, settling back to my side.

"So, I take it you like it?" I muttered, not bothering to move my mouth from her skin and kissing her neck.

She shivered, and then glared. "I
love
it, and you need to stop kissing me like that or we'll be testing out those Transformer sheets. I wouldn't mind setting my ass right on Optimus Prime's power sword."

I groaned as if this was crushing news. "Optimus Prime doesn't have a power sword." My glare gave way when she started laughing at me and then followed with a smirk. "You feel that?" I groaned, grinding against her at slightly as my family and friends moved from the living room to the dining room for dinner.

She choked out a breathy laugh and tightened her grip, gnawing at my lower lip. "It's kind of
hard
to miss."

"Then stop teasing me," I growled, pushing into her hard, slamming her against the door to the bathroom. "You did that, so what are you going to do about it?"

"Take care of it?"

"Bet your ass you are." I promised, lifting her up and taking her into my room to show her Optimus Prime did not have a power sword. I did.

Later that night, lying on Optimus Prime with Ami, I had a lot to be thankful for. This time, this year, we were a family.

If morning never came, I knew in my heart, I saved this girl and I loved her. To me, that was all that mattered this Christmas.

I'll never be anything more than what I am right now, what I've always been. A hockey player playing with his heart and soul.

My point? In hockey, we don't give up. It doesn't matter if we're tied, winning, or down by three. Hockey players are in it no matter what, giving their heart to the game. Being with a woman, being in love, same deal for me. Every goal you snag at the crease, there's two ways of getting it: the easy way, when the goalie isn't paying attention, and the hard way, when he's playing the fucking pipes for all he's worth.

That was me. I played the pipes. I crossed the line and stood up for what I believed was worth it—the goal I wanted. This girl.

There are times that you never want to cross a line. Maybe fear holds you back, but there's something important about crossing a line. You'll never know what side to be on until you cross it.

You'd be surprised to see what could be waiting for you on the other side of the blue line.

The action on the ice continues with the next book in the Crossing the Line series this winter…

Offsides: A player on the attacking team enters the attacking zone before the puck does.

I'm used to being the player.

I'm cool with it. I'm Leo Orting, the goofy center and team captain for the Chicago Blackhawks that no one ever takes seriously.

Being the star front-man of the team, I'm involved in every play. My lifestyle, much like any professional athlete, has its perks, and mostly between the legs of countless puck bunnies.

One girl, my favorite regular, Callie Pratt, has been on my mind for a while. It wasn't like I was in love with her, but I did think of her a lot. That's a lie. I thought about her all the time and found every excuse I could to call her, send an inappropriate text, or be around her in some way. She was cool and never played into the crap I spewed, but part of me wanted her to see what I was really about under the crude jokes.

Trying to cure my mild obsession with her, I took her home after a playoff game to satisfy that urge.

Well, that one night created a surprise we never saw coming and we found ourselves offsides, trying to avoid a penalty.

The boy – You, just you! You see everything I don't, and when I least expected it, your gestures help me see it.

Honey girl – I'm not pleased that you learned to spit. Please stop that and we can go back to throat punches and dropkicks. Love you, baby girl.

Callie – I fucking love you. Yes, it's true. And I think you've always known that. Thank you so much for our hockey lunch dates that never really kept on subject and pushing me to think outside the box and socialize. I can't stay in the woods all day. You've proven that!

Maxann – Thank you for everything you've done for this novel and pushing me along the way to help me see what Evan and Ami needed to make their love come alive. Oh, and your love for Leo!

My sister – Go Blackhawks!

My parents – Thank you for always allowing me to be me.

I have to thank Sarah for the cover and her love for the Blackhawks!

Madison – Thank you for the extra eyes on the story and helping me see where I tend to repeat myself.

Kari, Laura, and Judie (The Hooker Hood) I love you girls. Thank you for always being there for me. I hope as you read this you are curled up with your JAR hoodies!

The original Gearheads, Tara, Danielle, Heather, Dianna, Megan, Tanya, Portia, Barb, Shanna, Dee, Traci, Brooke, Brenda, Kari, Laura, Bree, Michelle, Judie, Denise…I know there's more but these are the one who have been there from the beginning and I appreciate my pit lizards so much!

I also have to thank some of the girls who pimped Delayed Penalty before it was out: Tara, Kim, Tray, Liliana, Melissa, Brooke, Kari, Laura, Judie, Callie, Megan, Heather, Christine, Barb and Kim.

To the hockey players who let me bombard them with questions, thank you boys! Couldn't have done it without you and you know who you are so no names will be mentioned. I promised.

And the bloggers who make my books shine: Shh Mom's Reading, The Book Hookers, Stick Girl Book Reviews, Totally Booked, Smardy Pants Book Blog, Kindlehooked, Romantic Reading Escapes Book Blog, Sugar and Spice Reviews, Chris' Book Blog, The Book Avenue Review, Flirty and Dirty Book Blog, Reading Is My Breathing and Up All Night Book Blog.