Game Plan

by Camellia Tate

  Connor couldn’t help laughing, seeing Ashley reluctantly wrap her arms around the giant blue teddy bear, hoisting it against her hip. “Smile for the cameras,” he teased, draping an arm over her shoulders because people were indeed snapping pictures left and right.

  Ashley did smile for the camera, but she also bumped the head of the bear against Connor. “Thank you, baby, it’s all I ever dreamt of,” Ashley announced loudly before turning the bear to have it look at her and then back to look at Connor. “I’m going to name him Banshee,” she informed Connor. “Because they howl. Get it?” Ashley certainly seemed very pleased with her own joke.

  Connor squeezed his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in a little closer. “You’re a natural,” he teased. He certainly didn’t think any of his former girlfriends had ever progressed to the level of making hockey jokes. It was nice . Unexpected, but it made it easier to act as though they’d known each other for months.

  “Come on, shall we take Banshee to the haunted house?” Connor suggested. “Seems appropriate.” And, not that Connor felt he could say so in a crowd of fans, it would be nice to have a break. He couldn’t help wondering if Ashley was the kind of girl who’d like being scared, whether perhaps she would cling to him a little bit.

  “Alright, but you have to carry her,” Ashley informed Connor handing the bear over to him. It was huge, but it did also look a lot smaller in Connor’s arms than it had in Ashley’s. Holding the bear meant that Connor couldn’t also hold Ashley’s hand, but they probably had done enough of that for someone to take a picture of.

  When they got to the haunted house, Ashley led the way in, answering Connor’s question about whether she’d be scared. “What are you afraid of?” Ashley asked. “I don’t like heights, so I doubt they’ll scare me here.” It was a very confident proclamation, one which would probably come to bite Ashley in the ass.

  “I’m not scared of anything,” Connor answered, without even thinking. From the look Ashley gave him, it was clear she wasn’t convinced. Connor paused to actually consider the question. As a hockey player, Connor wasn’t used to admitting he was scared. That was an easy way to get shit from your team for at least a year.

  As they pushed through the door, and the shuttered windows blocked out the light from outside, Connor found it easier to say, “I know it’s stupid, but I don’t like needles. Obviously, I have to let them take blood tests and shit. I’d never voluntarily go anywhere near someone wanting to stick a needle in me.”

  “Lots of people are scared of needles,” Ashley offered with a smile. “One of my friends is afraid of dead chickens, including those rubber fake ones? So needles seem pretty sensible.” That made Connor laugh and it was weirdly nice to have Ashley assure him it was fine rather than tease him about it.

  They took a turn that led down a dark corridor. “I will scream if something jumps out at us,” Ashley warned Connor.

  “What happened to there being nothing here that would scare you?” Connor asked, amused by how quickly Ashley had changed her mind.

  He didn’t want her to feel bad, not when she’d been so sweet about his fear of needles, so he added, “It’s a haunted house. I think they’ll be offended if we don’t scream.”

  Lights flickered on to either side of them, illuminating a creepy-looking painting on one side, and a skeleton on the other. Connor had to hand it to them, it was spooky, and he moved away from the wall, his arm brushing Ashley’s shoulder. “I’ll protect you if anything jumps out,” he promised.

  “And who’s going to protect you?” Ashley asked, and even in the dark Connor could see her raising an eyebrow at him. “Besides, I’m not scared. Just jumpy.” And as if on cue, something did jump out at them - a zombie by the looks of it.

  Ashley did scream, but only a small startled scream. “Ugh,” she groaned as the zombie departed. “I didn’t feel very protected.” The accusation was definitely said in a joking tone, though Ashley did reach out to tug against Banshee. “I might have to carry her instead.”

  For a moment, Ashley’s lack of faith in him did sting, before Connor reminded himself that she was only pretending to be his girlfriend. It didn’t matter if she didn’t think him brave and strong enough to defend her from whatever might be lurking. Still, Connor didn’t let go of Banshee quite that easily.

  “We can all protect each other,” he insisted, trying to sound as light-hearted as Ashley had. “Maybe Banshee’s actually the brave one. I bet she’s not scared of heights or needles.” In the dark, with no fans around them, there was no need for Connor to move closer, but he did, helping Ashley hold Banshee out ahead of them.

  The next time they turned a corner, there was a flash of light bright enough for them to see the double-take as the actor in zombie make-up came face to face with a giant stuffed bear. Connor laughed so loudly, his shoulders heaving, that the actor had to shush them.

  “I’m sorry,” he muttered, between breaths. “I think maybe I ruined that experience. You want to get out of here?”

  Ashley laughed, too, and it was a nice sound. “Yeah, we can go for lunch,” she nodded before giving Connor a smile over the big bear. If Connor hadn’t known better, he would’ve said that this felt like a real date.

  Connor had to hand it to Ashley, it took almost no time at all for pictures of the two of them sharing Banshee to hit twitter and, from there, the papers.

  “What the fuck is this ?” was his greeting as he walked into the locker room the next morning for training. “You’ve been holding out on us! And she’s hot!” Glancing at the picture being waved in his face, Connor could only think that Ashley looked even better in person.

  “I’ve been keeping it quiet,” he said and didn’t have to act sheepish. “You know, because of the whole -” He waved a hand at his arm, where he continued to wear a sticker over his soulmark, despite it being an entirely pointless level of protection. Glancing around, it was Hayden’s eye that Connor caught, and he almost winced at how somber the man looked. Given how private Hayden was about his own girlfriends, this was probably his worst nightmare.

  “Is she really your soulmate?” Henry asked. “What’s it like?” He had confessed once, after a few too many tequila shots, that his soulmate’s name was so rare he’d literally never met anyone who used it. Connor couldn’t imagine was e asy , not if you actually believed in finding the one right person.

  “It’s… a lot,” Connor answered, hoping the pause didn’t sound like he was desperately trying to make something up. “I’ve met a lot of Ashleys, and she’s met a lot of Connors, but I’ve never met anyone I match with before.” Even with names as common as theirs, it was rare. “She wasn’t hiding her mark,” Connor explained. “So I knew before I even asked her out.”

  It was hard to imagine what Connor would’ve done, had he met Ashley under different circumstances. Ignored it? She’d made it clear that she didn’t care for the idea of dating just because they had one another’s names written on their bodies. Nor did Connor, not really.

  “She knows nothing about hockey,” Connor admitted. It would get it out of the way and teasing him about that would distract the team from asking more questions. “She’s learning,” he promised, “and she’s coming to our next game.”

  “I hope you don’t mean she’s learning from you ,” Angie joked. “You need to get a real player to explain the rules.” Everyone laughed, except Blake, who’d been oddly quiet since Connor had walked in.

  “And how many penalties did you have to sit last season?” Connor quipped back, causing Angie to flip him off. “I’ve explained the basics, shown her a few games. She’s catching on pretty quick.” He smiled, remembering the kinds of questions Ashley had asked as he’d been talking her through it. “She’s way too smart for me,” he admitted. “She’s doing a Master’s .” Everyone ‘ooh’ed.

  “Brains and beauty,” Angie teased. “Are you sure it’s you she’s after, Lewis, and not someone more on her level?”

  It made Conno
r briefly see red, and he scowled. It was fine when he said it, but he wouldn’t have Angie making jokes like that, not about Ashley.

  “Cut it out, McLeod!” Hayden was already calling across the room. “Her soulmark says Connor, right? Not Angus.”

  “Lucky thing, too,” James joined in easily. “Imagine walking around with a name like Angus tattooed onto your body.” Angie laughed, louder than any of them, and it broke the tension immediately.

  “But come on, Connor, you’ve hardly told us anything about her,” Henry urged. “The paper says you’ve been seeing her for months.”

  Put on the spot, Connor tried to think what he would’ve said about any previous girlfriend. Somehow, despite the fact they’d only met three times, he seemed to have a far harder time choosing what to say about Ashley. “Like I said, she’s smart, she’s funny. She gives me shit, but only when I deserve it.” He coolly ignored whoever disguised an ‘always’ as a coughing fit.

  “She’s… different,” Connor carried on, and the room seemed to quieten. “She thinks about why people do things, so she could play games, but she doesn’t. If she wants something, she just tells me .” Connor felt quite sure Ashley could have communicated in hints and indirect ways. She would probably have succeeded far better than most of the women Connor had dated. It was nice that Ashley didn’t . “I guess what I mean is, she’s got integrity. She’s not just a good girlfriend, she’s a good person .”

  Whatever the response to that might’ve been, Coach interrupted it by shouting through the door to ask why the hell his team wasn’t out on the ice where they belonged. In a rush of elbows and grunts, most of the players hurried off, leaving only Connor, who’d barely managed to get his skates on, and Hayden.

  “I understand why you didn’t tell anyone,” Hayden said, giving Connor’s arm a shove. He was rarely as boisterous as the rest of the team - except, perhaps, with James. “It’s obvious you really like her.”

  Connor felt like someone had poured cold water over him - again , though this time in an unpleasant metaphorical flood. Connor had always thought of himself as honest, no-nonsense, and it was weird to discover he could lie , and lie well.

  “Yeah,” he agreed because it was too late to go back now. “Yeah, she’s great.”

  Chapter Four

  By the time Connor’s next game came around, they were well on their way to creating a PR story in which Ashley and Connor were soulmates. There were pictures of them together - the amusement park visit had done a great deal for that. Ashley had given Connor a list of talking points he could mention when someone asked about his soulmate. Things that didn’t sound too committal but also wouldn’t arouse any suspicion. It was... quite exciting actually to see someone use her PR suggestions.

  Ashley hadn’t really known what to expect from this ‘pretend to be my girlfriend’ thing, but she had to admit it wasn’t... terrible. Connor was funny, kind of sweet and unexpectedly nice . More than once, Ashley caught herself with her mind drifting, often towards the shape of Connor’s shoulder, or the way his arms looked in a tight t-shirt.

  It was a dangerous game and Ashley stopped herself from having those thoughts whenever they occurred. This wasn’t real . Connor was attractive, sure, but he wasn’t interested in dating, at least not her. Nor was Ashley interested in dating him . Dating someone who matched her soulmark seemed like a stupid thing to do. People tended to assume they were right for each other and quickly stop trying . Ashley had little interest in that.

  As it was, Ashley found it much easier to concentrate on their pretending . Part of that included her at the Howlers’ home games. This wouldn’t be the last time she’d have to come to a game, but as far as first experiences go, this was... oddly exciting.

  Connor had done his best at explaining the rules to Ashley, and they hadn’t seemed like very hard rules. Yet, Ashley was still constantly failing to spot exactly which player was Connor just because the game moved so fast . At least she didn’t fail to spot when the Howlers scored. It almost surprised Ashley, the gusto with which she jumped up to cheer.

  The Howlers won the game, which was good because Ashley and Connor hadn’t actually talked about what they were going to do after the game if the team lost . Ashley might not have ever dated an athlete before, but she knew you didn’t jinx a game with such talk.

  Instead, they had agreed that Ashley would come out with the team. Honestly, she was a little nervous. Maybe even very nervous. She did remind herself that all she had to do was be Connor’s girlfriend and it’d be fine. It seemed unlikely that the team would quiz her on her relationship with Connor, so mostly it was just the same sort of anxiety Ashley might’ve felt at meeting her actual boyfriend’s friends.

  As it turned out, she hadn’t really had anything to worry about. The guys were nice, friendly, and very excited to meet Ashley. She was squeezed against Connor in one of the booths at the club, listening to the guys chirp each other. They were half-discussing the game, half-complaining about the calls of the ref. There was a strong sense of comradeship that Ashley found sweet.

  She also didn’t exactly object to having Connor’s hard body against hers. Apart from the fact that he did make it quite warm .

  Shifting in her seat, Ashley reached to pull off the hoodie she was wearing. When a sudden silence fell around the table, Ashley assumed it must’ve been because she was still wearing Connor’s jersey, but the way the guys were staring at her arm quickly told her that wasn’t it. Their eyes were focused on the way ‘Connor’ was splashed over her skin.

  Never really bothering to cover her soulmark intentionally, Ashley was used to stares. She was just less used to them whilst her body was pressed into someone called Connor.

  One of the guys - James, Ashley reminded herself - cleared his throat. “Connor said you wear your mark openly,” he remarked and it didn’t sound like a question but Ashley nodded anyway. “It’s pretty rare. We don’t even know each others’ and we get naked together every day,” he explained startling a laugh from Ashley.

  She did also spot the way some of the guys glanced at Connor, clearly thinking how actually they did know his soulmark now. Not wanting Connor to dwell on that, Ashley bumped his chest with her shoulder.

  “I was raised to not consider the soulmark something that defines me. My parents intentionally called me a common name, they’re not soulmates.” That, as it always did, earned a small gasp from somewhere, though most of the guys just nodded. It was a lot more common these days for people to settle down with someone who didn’t match their soulmark.

  “But you still met Connor,” someone else whose name Ashley couldn’t remember pointed out and she shrugged.

  There Ashley had to be careful because her first instinct was to point out how he wasn’t even the first Connor with ‘Ashley’ on him she’d ever met. But they were soulmates, as far as Connor’s team was concerned, so Ashley couldn’t say that. She couldn’t be dismissive of it even if her upbringing made her really want to.

  Thankfully, Connor interjected first. “And I was so charming, she couldn’t resist,” he teased, making the rest of the team laugh and scoff, in roughly equal measure. As much as they teased each other, there was obvious affection there, in a way Ashley wasn’t quite used to seeing with groups of all-guy friends.

  “Are you going to wear yours openly now, Connor?” someone asked, even though Connor’s t-shirt was currently short enough to show he was still wearing a sticker.

  “I thought about it,” Connor admitted, but he sounded like he wasn’t entirely convinced by the prospect. “There’s no reason to keep it covered, I know that, but I’m just so used to it, and the idea of letting everyone see…” He trailed off and then turned, unexpectedly, to Ashley. “Do you mind that? I never thought to ask.”

  “No,” Ashley answered easily. Yeah, sure, people did stare, but because she had never bothered to cover her soulmark up, Ashley was quite used to people looking. Maybe if the name had been rarer or stranger, but ‘C
onnor’ was a fairly common name. It did sometimes lead people to approach her, telling her they were a Connor, or their son was, their brother, but that, too, Ashley was used to now.

  “I think we, as a society, ascribe too much meaning to soulmarks,” Ashley said truthfully. She wasn’t terribly surprised to see some of the guys frown, unsure what she meant. “People hide them, so the soulmarks seem even more significant, secretive,” she explained and someone gave a nod, which at least was reassuring.

  “But everyone wants to meet ‘the One’,” another guy piped up and Ashley shrugged.

  “That’s one way to look at it. I think most people ascribe the label of ‘the One’ to people who match their soulmark just because they’re so keen on meeting ‘the One’.” Ashley really didn’t believe that such a thing existed, mostly it seemed that people just used that as an excuse to not bother more in a relationship.

  The discussion was clearly not something the guys had expected, but at least a few of them seemed genuinely interested. Ashley was a little surprised by that. She’d kind of assumed that none of them would give much thought to soulmarks, but that was almost definitely her own prejudice about sports players.

  “But don’t you think it just clicks with the right person?” Nilssy asked, and Ashley did remember his name because he was the Captain - and as far as she was aware, one of the few people on the team who had met his soulmate.

  Ashley had to tread there carefully. She realized that despite what she might want to say, what every part of her screamed at her to say, she’d just have to lie.

  “Yeah,” she said giving a smile before turning to press a kiss against Connor’s cheek so she wouldn’t have to say more . Except instead of his cheek, her lips landed against Connor’s.

  Ashley could feel Connor’s intake of breath against her lips, the way he jerked his head almost to move back, and then seemed to reconsider. Her mouth felt like it fit somehow, against his, and the whistles of approval around them faded into nothing.