More Than a Game
Authors: Goldman,Kate
Published by Kate Goldman
Copyright © 2016 by Kate Goldman
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems – except in the case of brief quotations in articles or reviews – without the permission in writing from its publisher, Kate Goldman.
Table of Contents
1
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“Which one is he?” Leslie asked, scanning the players as they skated wildly across the rink below.
“How should I know? I’m just here for the free beer and pretzels,” Sonya replied.
Leslie gave her best friend a mock scowl and went back to trying to read the names on the back of jerseys. She should have looked up the player online before coming here. Of course, with the uniforms and helmets, it was doubtful she would be able to pick him out even knowing what he looked like. Several players rounded back toward the opposing goal and she was able to see the name on the back of their jerseys.
“There he is! He’s a big guy compared to the others. Hard to miss!” she told Sonya, pointing toward a player arguing with a nearby official. There seemed to be some sort of heated disagreement and then the man was sending him to an enclosed box on the side of the rink. The overhead projection displayed the word “Penalty” in huge red letters then faded to a screen showing her player’s name and bio.
“Penalty box in the first ten minutes of the game. He’s going to be a fun one to talk to,” Sonya quipped.
“I don’t care how he plays the game, I just need to understand how it is supposed to be played,” Leslie told her.
“Only you would take a job developing a software app for a game you know nothing about,” Sonya replied.
“I didn’t know I’d be developing a hockey app. Seems the guy that was supposed to be doing it got fired for spending all this time chatting to some girl in Canada and was six months into dev without any real progress. It sort of fell to me and what could I say?” Leslie replied.
“How about if you had told them you’d never even been to a hockey game, much less knew enough about it to develop an app?” Sonya suggested.
“I couldn’t. It was my first day and I wanted to make a good impression. I got called in and handed the assignment. I’ll figure it out,” Leslie told her.
Their conversation was interrupted by a loud thud that sounded thickly in front of her. Both she and Sonya snapped their heads forward, watching as a player pushed another backwards. He was pinned to the Plexiglas barrier that separated them from the carnage of the game. For just a brief moment, the pinned player’s eyes seemed to lock onto hers. Even through the helmet’s shield, she could make out a shock of red hair and bright green eyes. There was a hint of a smile as he brought back an elbow and knocked the player behind him backwards before skating away.
Leslie looked at the back of the player’s jersey and smiled. O’Hannon had apparently made it out of the penalty box, but was headed right back in if his ensuing argument with yet another game official was any indication. Sure enough, she was not surprised to hear the penalty announced as it was displayed once again on the overhead screens above center rink.
“Hmmm, might need an armed guard for the interview,” Sonya observed. No doubt she had noted the name on his jersey, as well.
“I seriously doubt he’s going to show that sort of aggression toward me outside the game,” Leslie replied.
“I was referring to him having a guard,” Sonya laughed, a sly smile on her face.
“Oh, stop!” Leslie said, blushing despite herself.
“Come on. I saw that look. How long has it been since you broke up with Ben? Time to get back in the saddle, cowgirl,” Sonya teased.
“Don’t be absurd. This is strictly professional. He agreed to help me with my knowledge of hockey in exchange for being featured in the game. Nothing more,” Leslie said.
“We’ll see about that,” Sonya replied, still smiling knowingly.
The game continued. Leslie’s only understanding of hockey was that the object of the game was to get as many pucks down the ice and into the opponent’s goal as possible and to prevent them from doing the same. Despite her confusion about most of the game, she still found herself enjoying rooting on O’Hannon’s team as if she was a lifelong fan.
“Well, I’m off to do some serious clubbing now,” Sonya told her once the game ended. “Enjoy your interview.”
Leslie made a clucking noise in her direction as she winked and headed down the corridor toward the exit. Leslie turned and made her way toward the locker area, showing her pass to a guard and waiting outside the doors for Shane O’Hannon to appear. She immersed herself in a game of Jewel Jam on her cell phone as she waited, oblivious to the throng of sports reporters that had gathered around her to talk to players as they exited the locker room after their showers.
“Miss Thornton?”
The sound of her own name had never sounded quite as odd to her as it did when spoken in the thick Irish accent of O’Hannon. She looked up, finding herself once again drawn into the green eyes of her would-be tutor. For a moment, she was speechless, finally finding her voice.
“Yeah, um, yes. That’s me. Please, call me Leslie,” she half stammered, trying to regain her composure.
“Okay, Leslie. Call me Shane. Shall we head out?”
“Out? I thought we would be meeting in one of the rooms here at the coliseum.”
“We could, but I’m starving. I thought we’d grab a bite to eat while we talk.”
“Oh. Okay,” she replied nervously.
“Are you sure?” he asked, noting her hesitance.
“Yes. Absolutely. I could stand a bite myself,” she said.
“Great. I have a car waiting out back,” he replied, gesturing for her to follow him.
Leslie walked down a dark corridor toward a small exit door, her heart thudding heavily in her chest. Shane towered over her, making his presence even more overwhelming at this proximity. She realized as they made their way out into the night that it wasn’t fear she felt. It was far more primal, instinctive even. It was pure, old-fashioned attraction. Her inner monologue began babbling at her to focus on what she needed to learn instead of the broad shoulder gingerly opening the door for her as she stepped out into the rain-kissed alley behind the stadium.
Though Shane had done his best to get her to the car without getting wet, the rain had caught them just before they stepped inside the covered garage. She was sure she must look like a wet dog as they sat in the middle of the absurdly upscale restaurant and though she wasn’t usually a vain person, she found that she was completely self-conscious sitting there in what she imagined was a disheveled look, at best.
“Shane, if you will excuse me for a moment, I’m going to visit the ladies room.”
“Of course. I’ll order us an appetizer and something to drink while you are gone. Any preferences?”
“Just water to drink. I’ll leave the appetizer up to you. I’m easy.”
“Good enough. Don’t sneak out the bathroom window on me.”
“I only do that on dates,” Leslie teased.
Shane laughed as she made her way toward a nearby server and asked quietly where the restroom was located. Following the short hallway past the kitchen, she was relieved to find that it wasn’t overflowing with a line of others waiting. A glance in the mirror made her feel much less enthusiastic. Her normally smooth, dark curls were frizzy and unkempt from being out in the rain and her makeup was faded from an evening in the crowded hockey rink. She quickly touched up her makeup, brushed her hair as best she could and smoothed down her clothes.
“That’s better,” she said to her reflection in the mirror. It wasn’t perfect, but she looked considerably better than she had moments ago. If there was one blessing in her life, it was that she didn’t require a lot of makeup and had a naturally athletic, petite frame. Shane’s six-foot-two frame made him look like a giant next to her barely five-one stature. It occurred to her that she was thinking about him as if he was a date and he wasn’t. Cautioning herself to keep it to business, she made her way back to the table and sat down.
“I was beginning to believe I was going to have to go stand under the window to catch you when you jumped out.”
“Sorry about that. I looked like a wreck after being out in the rain.”
“I didn’t notice. I was too fascinated with your beautiful face. You have the most amazing blue eyes I have ever seen.”
Leslie blushed at the unexpected flattery and thanked him awkwardly. She had never been very good at accepting compliments. Reminding herself that this wasn’t a date and to keep it to business, she tried to quickly regain her composure, thanking him politely and changing the subject.
“So, Felix told you what I need?”
“He said you need to understand the rules and how to play hockey for your work. What is it that you do exactly? Tell me you aren’t a sports reporter.”
“I am not a sports reporter. I’m a software developer and I’ve been tasked to create and develop a mobile hockey app.”
“Why wouldn’t they assign such a chore to someone who understands the game?”
“I am new and just drew the short straw. The guy that was supposed to be developing it blew it off and so it is now way behind schedule. So, not only do I have a tight deadline, but I’m clueless about hockey.”
“Wow. Alright.”
The conversation hit a lull for a few minutes as the server brought their drinks and a large plate of crab claws for them to share. He asked for their entrée choices while he was there. Leslie realized she hadn’t even looked at the menu and gave it a quick once-over while Shane ordered what sounded like a mountain of food. She selected a salad and the waiter disappeared to get their food in process.
“No wonder you are in such great shape. You eat like a bird or maybe a rabbit.”
“How on earth do you stay in shape if you order meals like that this late at night?”
“High metabolism, a lot of practice and game hours. I burn it off pretty quickly.”
“Felix said that you could get me up to speed pretty quickly. How long do you think it will take?”
“There really isn’t that much to it. Come to a few games and practices and we’ll talk about the particulars before or after. We’ll start tomorrow after practice.”
“Tomorrow? Not tonight . . . now?”
“Negative. It’s late. I’m wiped out from the game. We’ll get a fresh start and I’ll tell you everything you need to know.”
“I guess that will have to do,” Leslie said, feeling disappointed. She had really hoped to jump right into things.
“Don’t worry, Leslie. I’ll make sure you have everything you need to knock their socks off with whatever game you develop. I owe it to Felix.”
“You do? How do you know Felix? He never told me.”
“When I first came here to try out for the team, I stayed with him as part of a room exchange program. Basically, we were strangers that agreed to let one another stay in our spare rooms for free. I stayed with him while I was in the States and he stayed with me a few months later when he came to Dublin on travel. We got to know one another pretty well.”
“So, you didn’t make the team when you first tried out?”
“Yeah, I made it, but I had to go back to Dublin to apply for my visa and wait for its approval. They time tryouts so that people from other countries have time to do just that before practice for the next season begins. How do you know Felix?”
“We went to the same university. He was in sports medicine and I was in software development, but we lived in the same building and somehow kept ending up in the same core classes. We just became friends and have kept in touch after graduation. When I found out about the app, he was the only one I knew of that might be able to help me. I had expected that he would just explain the game to me, but he said he would do me one better and see if you would be willing to help.”
The server arrived with their main courses. Shane had ordered a large ribeye steak, steamed vegetables and roasted potatoes. It was accompanied by two large crusts of bread. It dwarfed her tossed salad with strips of salmon on top. Talking a bit more between bites, Leslie found that Shane wasn’t some Neanderthal hockey player, as she had anticipated he would be. In addition to his good looks, he was quite charming and intelligent. All the more reason to stick to business.
After dinner, he returned her to her car at the stadium, waiting until she was safely inside and pulling away before heading in the opposite direction. Despite her admonishments to not read too much into how easy he was to talk to or what seemed like an obvious attraction to one another, she felt a little giddy at having spent the evening with him.