Playing for Hearts (40 page)

She even daydreamed about how they could make a relationship work. They could make their home in Cottage Grove. He could use a charter plane to get to practices and games. Or she could hire a manager at the B & B, and stay in San Jose with him during the season.

“Oh my God,” she whispered. Why was she planning a future with him?

Dominic approached her. “Hey.”

Since meeting him, she hadn't wanted to stop living life to the fullest. She wanted to experience everything. And she wanted to do it with him.

“What's going on?” He caressed her cheek with the back of his hand. “You look upset.”

She grabbed his hand. “We're going to Julia's with your teammates.”

He frowned. “I thought we'd go home. Maybe finish what we keep starting and getting interrupted doing.”

“We have time. Tonight, I want to experience your life, what you do when I'm not here. Let me see how you celebrate a win.” She leaned forward and kissed him quickly. “Please?”

He studied her. “Okay. Sure.”

“Great.” She wrapped her arm around his waist. “Good game, by the way.”

“Thanks,” he mumbled, taking her hand and leading her out the door to the car. “Are you sure you don't want to go home? I was looking forward to celebrating the big win and finally having you underneath me. Nothing is going to stop us tonight, I promise.”

She kissed him. “The night's not over, big guy. We have time. That I promise you.”

On the way to Julia's bar, Dominic pulled over at a gas station. He took off his seatbelt, leaned over, and kissed her. She almost changed her mind about going out with the other guys on the team.

Six blocks later, Dominic stopped the Porsche on the side of the street, next to the Pancake House. She was out of her seat and sitting on his lap, the steering wheel pressing into her back as she returned his kiss.

For the remaining two blocks, they rolled their windows down, because they'd fogged up the windows while making out. She fanned her face with her hand, smiling at Dominic who stuck his head out into the night air.

She laughed herself silly, remembering this moment. No longer was Dominic too serious. He'd joked, he'd laughed, and he'd gone crazy. Spontaneity suited him.

In the parking lot, Dominic paced the outside length of the car. She smothered her laugh, holding her purse over her arm.

“This isn't good for my health.” Dominic paused, looked down at the front of his jeans. “Give me another minute.”

She couldn't hold her laughter in any longer, and cracked up. He glared, but the skin at the corner of his eyes crinkled.

“This is your fault. You and your smart idea to get me all worked up in the car.” He stretched and jogged in place. “My idea of going back to the condominium would solve all my problems right now.”

She nodded, laughing. “Big problems.”

“Yes.” He stalked toward her. “Enormous problems.”

“World record breaking kinda huge problems.” She leaned into him.

He kissed her. “Now you're being funny.”

“Yeah.” She pulled him to the bar. “Let's get going, so I can take care of your problem later.”

The party room at Julia's Bar and Grill held every member of the Sharks team, plus all the women who came with their significant other. Dominic rested his hand on the chair beside him and lifted the mug of beer to his mouth. Diana stood a couple yards away, throwing a dart toward the board, after Joel Greene, the Sharks forward, challenged her to a game.

She squealed as the dart hit the board. Dominic smiled. His cheeks ached for how much he found himself grinning around her. She delighted in everything she faced, whether it was learning to skate, dancing, or going toe to toe with the meanest of his women fans. She was fearless and compassionate. An irresistible combination. One that he found himself addicted to and wanting to keep to himself.

He went to bed every night craving to know more about her, to know every part of her, and to know how to put a smile on her face. Then in the morning, he repeated the cycle, hoping this was the day he'd have her completely to himself.

That'd all change tonight. Everything was going smoothly. Life couldn't be so cruel to take this time away from them again.

Tired of always being by himself, he found her company better than he ever thought. She put every one-night stand to shame. He even enjoyed her pushiness and struggle to stay away from him. Hell, he respected her for that alone. She had guts.

His mother would love her. His father would slap him on the back and nod in approval. She'd love visiting Russia, and experiencing a whole new set of firsts for her.

“Dom. Come and see this,” she called.

He rose to his feet. She called him Dom. No one but his family ever used the shortened version of his name.

She snaked her arms around his waist and leaned her cheek against his chest as if it was the most natural movement and they'd been doing it for years. He wrapped her in his embrace. “Did you win?”

“No, but I hit the twenty-five spot. That's really good.” She tilted her head. “Can I borrow a dollar?”

“Sure.” He dug in his back pocket for his wallet.

She stepped back. “I'll pay you back when we get home.”

Home. That was twice she'd referred to his condominium as home. He'd never once called it home, but he liked the sound of it.

He gave her the money. “You're not paying me back, don't be ridiculous. It's a dollar.”

“Yes, I will.” She handed Joel the dollar. “Thanks for the game. You won fair and square.”

Joel shook his head and laughed before plucking his win out of her fingers. “You've got a competitive girl there, Chekovsky. Better hold on to her tight, because she's quite the woman.”

Dominic waited until Joel walked away, and directed his attention to Diana. “Can we go back to the condominium now?”

She nodded, giving him a secretive grin. “Let me tell everyone goodbye first.”

“Really?” He rolled his shoulders. “Can't you talk to them the next time you see them?”

Diana hesitated, and finally ended shaking her head. “No. I'll be quick. I swear.”

While she went around to the tables to talk with the others, he went to the front and paid their tab. For the first time, he realized not one woman bothered him tonight. Not the waitress, not the players' girlfriends, and not the hostess. He hadn't even noticed, because he was concentrating on Diana and thinking about what they'd be doing later.

He leaned against the counter. “Hi.”

“Hi.” The hostess smiled politely, and counted out his change. “Here you go. I hope you enjoyed your evening. Congratulations on the win tonight. From the sounds coming from the room, it was an exciting game.”

“Thank you.” He remained in front of her, waiting. When she turned away to straighten the menus, he moved along the counter, following her. “What's your name?”

“Melinda,” she spoke softly.

She was cute with straight brown hair, almond shaped eyes, and a shy demeanor. He looked at her nametag, because he'd already forgotten her name.

“It's nice to me you, Melinda. I'm Dominic.” He flexed his shoulders.

She nodded. “I know. You're part of the team.”

Something was wrong. He rubbed his jaw. Maybe he wasn't close enough. He leaned over the counter, bracing his elbows on the glass. He was going to have to kick it up a notch. “What time do you get off work?”

She ducked her chin. “I'm sorry. I don't date the customers.”

He straightened in surprise. “Really?”

Diana's laughter behind him caused him to flinch. He turned around, feeling guilty. Yet under the guilt, the confusion of what was happening left him wondering if he'd been hit in the head during the game and was experiencing an out of body experience.

“Did I really catch you asking another woman out, while I'm living with you?” She planted her fists on her hips and tried to appear stern. She failed. There was no mistaking the laughter lighting her eyes.

He hurried over to her, grabbed her hand, and hustled her out of the door. Outside, he stopped. “Did you see that?”

“Yep.”

“She blew me off,” he said. “Not even a flicker of excitement over talking with me, Dominic Chekovsky.”

“She treated you like road dust, baby.” She grinned.

“Shit.” He let her go of her and shoved both of his hands in his hair, while walking around in a circle. “You did it. You solved all my problems. I can't believe it. The women are ignoring me.”

“In less than two weeks too.” She shrugged. “You paid for the best, and I am pretty damn good, don't you think?”

He stopped pacing and stared. “Yes. You're brilliant.”

Before now, he never gave a thought of the expense he'd paid to have her help him. Maybe because he knew deep down in his soul, asking her to live with him for two weeks was an excuse to get to know her better. Had she pretended her attraction to him was real to get the money?

The thought that the money came first to her left him chilled. “I don't quite know what to say. Thank you doesn't seem to express what I'm feeling right now.”

“It's a shock, I know. You might not even like how boring your life could become when you're not running away or hiding from everyone.” She dropped her gaze. “You might even wish that you never hired me and want your old world back.”

He blew out his cheeks and let the air out slowly. His chest constricted. Everything was happening too fast. He had to slow things down and get a good grasp of what was going on with them. With him. With her.

She'd turned the women off him. He was free. No one would bother him and yet, something wasn't right. He should be more excited. She'd helped him save his career, his happiness. Maybe it'd take time to understand how huge this change was. Right now, all he could think about was Diana and what this meant for her staying with him.

“Let's go home.” He held out his hand.

She clasped his fingers and squeezed. “Can I drive?”

“Yeah, you can drive the Porsche,” he said.

Right now, she could have whatever he had. He glanced down at her, taking in the wrinkled brow. He wasn't imagining something going on between them. Diana's determination to come to Julia's Bar seemed like a last minute decision. But she'd been hot for him in the car. So why would she need to come out with the guys? Why was she pulling away from him now when they should be celebrating their success?

Dominic's arm hung over Diana's shoulder. She opened the garage door leading into the condominium, while he talked on his cell phone. Inside the kitchen, she motioned to her room. He nodded in acknowledgement, and kept talking to the assistant coach.

She stripped out of Dominic's Sharks sweatshirt, entered her bedroom, and shut the door. Maybe a shower would snap her out of the doldrums that plagued her on the car ride home. She should be happy. Everything worked out perfectly.

Solving all of Dominic's problems before the deadline was what she wanted. Now she could go back to Cottage Grove and purchase the Ferriday house. She turned on the water in the shower, stripped out of the rest of her clothes. But there was a definite funk in the car on the way back to his place.

There was definitely unfinished business between them. She could not go home without experiencing being with Dominic completely. No longer concerned about her place in his life, she wanted all of him. Maybe then she could go back home and not regret how stubborn she'd been with keeping her distance. All because she was afraid of getting hurt. She was going to hurt regardless if they slept together or not.

The warm water steamed the room, and she stepped under the spray. She hung her head, letting the muscles in her neck stretch. They should be celebrating, and she was in here soothing away her sadness.

What started out as getting Dominic to leave her alone and earning money to move on with her life had turned out to be the best time of her life. Not only had Dominic turned into her friend, she genuinely liked him. Their rapport exceeded any physical attraction and that was saying a lot, because more than anything she wanted to be closer than two people could get. She wanted to be a part of every aspect of his life, and if she left without having sex with him, she'd always wonder and regret it the missed opportunity.

She soaped her body, rinsed off, and stepped out of the shower. After wrapping a towel around herself, she squeezed the ends of her hair semi-dry. She wanted to pout or call Shauna and Kate and bitch about how much she hated her life right now.

She never should have taken the job offer. Underneath all the attitude and denial toward Dominic, she knew he had the capability to break her heart from the moment he first asked her out on a date in Cottage Grove. She'd told him as much the other day and yet she'd continued going further with him.

“Hey, Diana?” Dominic rapped on the door. “Can you come back out?”

“Yeah. Give me a second.” She searched her room looking for something to wear, and spotted his hockey jersey.

It was a sign.

She dropped her towel.

If there was one thing she was positive about it was that nothing came free. She'd have to go after what she wanted, and the man standing outside her bedroom was everything she dreamed about.

The cool mesh material slid over her naked body. She shivered in anticipation. If the phone rang, she'd throw it across the room. If someone knocked on the door, she'd make it impossible for Dominic to get up to answer it. If his coach demanded he come to practice, she'd … she'd go with him and screw Dominic on the ice while everyone watched.

But she wasn't going to allow it to go that far. Tonight was her night, dammit.

She swung open the door. Dominic raised his gaze. She stepped into his arms and kissed him. There was no more fooling around.