“Yeah.” I roll out of bed, keeping my back to her, because the stiffy in my boxers is enormous. “It just happened. I’m gonna jump in the shower.”
And whack one out.
It feels so damn good, leaning against the tiled wall, water streaming down on me, my hand gripping my cock and tugging rapidly until the pressure builds and builds, and my groan as I come is lost in the spray of water.
I stay like that in the cloud of steam for a moment, catching my breath, my thighs quivering.
When I played in Philly, one of the players was screwing around with another player’s wife for months. Everyone else knew about it but him. Until they day he found out. The two of them got in an actual fight during practice. They both ended up in trouble, and it affected the atmosphere in the room for months. We lost game after game, and I still think that was part of it. Things only got better when they traded Baxter away.
I don’t want to cause something like that in Chicago. I can’t cause something like that. I don’t even have a contract signed yet, for Chrissake. There’s no way I can even think about touching Molly.
Okay, it’s not like anything actually happened. We were just snuggled up together. Two people wanting…connection.
Bullshit. But I’ll keep telling myself that.
“You’re sure he’s away?”
“Yeah.” She frowns. “That’s what Grace said.”
“I don’t want to come in there and run into him.”
We’re at Chucky’s place so Molly can pick up some things, including her car and apartment keys. We just flew in, and it’s late Tuesday.
“You can wait here if you want,” she says. “I’ll go up and get stuff.”
I’m tempted, but I should at least help her. If I run into Chucky, well, we’ll deal with it. “No, that’s okay. I’ll come up.”
We leave my vehicle in the loading zone out front and she uses her code to access the elevator then his condo. I’ve been here before, many times, but it’s weird walking into a teammate’s home with him not there.
Molly’s chin is set determinedly as she moves around gathering things up. She finds a big suitcase and fills it with clothes, toiletries from the bathroom, and a few framed pictures of her and her friends sitting on a shelf in the living room. She leaves the pictures of her and Chucky. Then she picks up a trophy and buries it among the clothes.
“What’s that?” I ask.
She rolls her eyes. “I was on the Top Team in high school. It’s a national trivia game show. In senior year, we won the championship.”
“I know what it is. I’m impressed.”
She stands in the middle of the living room and looks around. “I guess that’s it for now. I can get the rest of my things later.”
“What’s left in your apartment?”
“Nothing.” One corner of her mouth hitches. “I was trying to sublet it. I got rid of anything I didn’t take with me here.”
“You’re coming to my place, then.”
Her eyes expand. We haven’t discussed this. “I can’t do that.”
I sigh. “Molly. You begged me to take you there the night of the wedding.”
“I know, but…” She swallows.
We both know things are different now. We’re both not going to address that.
“Okay.” She blows out a breath. “I could go to my parents’ place, or maybe Grace’s, but…”
“We’re flying to Winnipeg on Friday morning. It’s no big deal to stay with me a few days.”
She nods, not meeting my eyes.
“It’s fine, Molly. We’re friends, right?”
Her head bobs again. “Right.”
I help her carry things down. We put some in her car, some in my SUV, then I drive home. The air feels flat and stale after ten days away. First thing I do is turn down the air conditioning, then slide open the doors onto my balcony to get some fresh air in.
Molly arrives a few minutes later with another suitcase. I carry it into the spare room she stayed in last time we were here. “I don’t have much food. We can order something in. Pizza okay?”
“Of course.”
“We’ve been eating mostly restaurant food for a while. I’d like something home-cooked, but since I’m leaving again, it’s not worth going grocery shopping. I’ll pick up a few things in the morning though.”
Molly goes into the bedroom, leaving the door open a crack, while I order a pizza. I hear her moving around in there, but I want to give her privacy. I’m sure it’s hard being back in town and back to reality.
It’s hard for me, for fuck’s sake.
Molly
I’ve been to my parents’ place and talked to them. They were worried sick about me, despite my phone calls and text messages assuring them I was fine. I feel guilty for disappearing like I did, but I don’t regret it. It was just what I needed. I apologized for that and for the scene I made at the wedding. Like Jax, they think I should have talked to Steve first, but they understand and are totally supportive of my decision. So that’s good. They also were glad that I’d been in contact with Katelyn to deal with wedding cancellation issues.
I get together with Grace and Brielle. My third bridesmaid Allison has gone home to New York.
My bridesmaids were the only ones who knew what I was going to do at the wedding. The fallout from that didn’t surprise them. What did surprise them was me disappearing.
“Okay, where did you go?” Grace demands. We’re at her house. Her fiancé has gone out, and we’re drinking cocktails and eating appies for our girls’ night in.
“I went to California.”
“Ooh, good choice.” She picks up a crab Rangoon. “Why there?”
I bite my lip and look from Grace to Brielle. “Okay, I’ll tell you, but you guys have to swear secrecy about this.”
Eyes widen. They exchange glances.
“Swear,” Grace says, and Brielle nods.
“I was there with Jax.”
They both freeze, enormous eyes staring at me.
“Jax?” Grace says carefully. “Jax Wynn?”
“Yes. He came to check on me while you were all beating up on Steve. I asked him to get me out of there. We went to his place. He was leaving the next day to go visit family in California, and I begged him to take me with him. I couldn’t face anyone, especially Steve.”
“Wow,” Brielle breathes.
Grace gulps down her strawberry Moscato cocktail.
“We’re friends,” I add. “You know that.”
“Right.”
I grin. “We even did a trivia night there. We won.”
“Of course.”
“He’s a great guy,” I say. “But seriously, don’t say anything to anyone. If this gets back to any of his teammates—especially Steve—there could be problems. I don’t want to cause him any trouble when he was just helping me out.”
“Oh yeah, there could be problems, all right.” Brielle slides her head from side to side. “Wow.
“Nothing happened between us,” I say, ignoring the fact that we woke up snuggled together our last morning there. Ignoring all the times I wanted to kiss him or touch him or… “Nothing.”
“Okay. We won’t say a word.” Grace picks up a paper napkin.
I tell them about what we did, and the time I had to think about things. “I know I need to talk to Steve, and I will. He’s not here anyway.”
Grace wrinkles her nose. “Yeah…about that.”
“What?”
“He’s been posting pics on social media. It seems like he’s not alone, but there aren’t any pictures of him with anyone.”
Brielle clears her throat. “I think if he was with a friend, like a teammate, they’d show pictures together.”
“Shit.” I stare down at my pink drink. “You think he’s with Claire?”
“We don’t know for sure. But it seems like, yeah.” Brielle pushes out her bottom lip. “He’s scum.”
“Why didn’t you tell me that before I agreed to
marry him?” I ask.
Their faces all register surprise.
“I’m kidding!” I add hastily. “I’m not blaming you all. I should have known he was scum.”
“I didn’t think he was scum, before the wedding,” Grace says glumly. “I feel like I missed a hell of a lot, too.”
Brielle flashes me a guilty glance. “I knew he was scum. He hit on me once.”
My jaw drops. “Shut up!”
“Yeah.” Her mouth twists into a sardonic curve. “I should have told you. But…I thought I was doing the right thing by not telling you. You were so happy.”
“When did that happen?”
“Just before you got engaged, when we were all at Orion. I shut him down right away and told him to never say anything like that to me again.” She sighs. “I’m so sorry, Mol.”
My shoulders slump briefly. “Our whole relationship was a lie.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Grace replies softly. “I’m sorry this happened to you. I’m sorry you got hurt. We’re here for you.”
“Thank you. I know.” I straighten and toss back the rest of my strawberry Moscato. “I’m okay. Really. I’m sure I’ll learn something from this.” I make a sound of dry amusement. “Actually, I already did. Love isn’t real and marriage is stupid.”
“Oh no.” Grace shakes her head in dismay. “Don’t be like that.”
“Sorry, I know your love is real and your marriage will be perfect. I just mean for me. That’s one thing Jax and I have in common. He feels the same.”
“Mmmm. Okay.” Grace’s eyes slide sideways to Brielle, then quickly back to me. “I hate it that you’re so cynical. Don’t give up on love because of one asshole.”
“Eh. We’ll see.” I pick up a stuffed mushroom. “I’m going to go away again for a while, since Steve isn’t here.”
“Where to now?” Brielle asks.
“Canada. With Jax.” Seeing their expressions, I hold up a hand. “We’re just friends! Again, he was planning to go there anyway, and I didn’t want to hang out here waiting for Steve to show up—” I pause. “With Claire,” I add disdainfully. “So he asked me to come with him.”
This is all met with silence and poker faces. I eat my mushroom.
“What? It’s fine. This is delicious. I want the recipe.”
“Well, good for you,” Brielle says. “Have all the fun. Why not?”
“I’m not sure I agree.” Grace glances around. “The more time you spend with Jax, the more chance there is that something will happen.”
“So what?” Brielle asks. “What if it does? They’re both single. Neither of them is looking for a relationship. He can be your rebound,” she adds, looking at me.
My eyebrows shoot up. “Rebound?”
“Yeah. The first relationship after a breakup is always a rebound.”
“Hmm.” I consider that. “Well, I’m not even looking for a rebound.”
“I suppose that’s true,” Grace says slowly, apparently unconvinced. “I just wouldn’t want you to get hurt again.”
I roll my eyes. “I’m not getting hurt, because it’s not like that. I’m going to a lake cabin to commune with nature and relax. It’s summer, I’m on vacation, and I didn’t get to go to Europe. Unlike Steve.” I screw up my face.
“That’s true.” Grace smiles. “You do whatever you want and have fun.”
“Thanks.”
14
Molly
I’m doing what I want, and I’m going to have fun.
I survived another flight and we’re in Winnipeg.
All I know about Winnipeg it that it’s the home of the Jets. Jax laughed at me when I asked him if I needed warm clothes for this trip. Then he admitted that I would need a sweater or hoodie for at night, as it gets cool up at the lake.
And sure enough, it’s a beautiful day as we leave the airport in another rental car, warm and sunny. Jax’s first stop is visiting his grandparents.
“I don’t need to meet your grandparents,” I tell him. “Maybe you can drop me off somewhere. A shopping mall or something.”
He eyes me. “You sure?”
“Yes. The fewer people who know about me being here, the better.”
“Huh. I guess that’s true. Okay, there’s a new outlet mall not far from them. I’ll leave you there and pick you up in a couple of hours.”
“That sounds good.”
Not that I need to do more shopping. I’ve reclaimed my belongings and now have ample clothes, toiletries and my beloved Kindle. But I can hang out there and grab something to eat.
He points out the modern new condo building where his grandparents live as we pass it, then turns into the parking lot of the mall. We make a note of which entrance we’re at and he says he’ll pick me up at four o’clock. Apparently it’s about a three-hour drive to the lake.
I pass a couple of hours easily, with a stop at Starbucks and an impulse purchase of a pair of shoes that are fifty percent off at Saks Off Fifth.
Jax smirks when he sees my shopping bag. I toss it in the back seat and climb in. “What’s so funny?”
“You like shopping, don’t you? I could tell that day at Target.”
I pull my seatbelt down and across my body. “Yes, I admit it. But we’re going into the wilderness, and I won’t be able to shop, right?”
“Um…not exactly.”
“There’s a shopping mall at the lake?”
“Not a mall, no. But there are shops.”
“Oh. Cool! Now I’m even more excited.”
He laughs and pulls out onto a wide street heading west. “I don’t know if they’ll be your kind of shopping.”
We pass the drive chatting and listening to music. I gaze around in fascination as we cross the prairie, flat and open, the sky enormous above us. Farmland stretches out on either side of the highway.
Jax turns off the Trans-Canada Highway to head north on what is called the Yellowhead Highway, and we pass a town called Gladstone. There’s the cutest statue with the name “Happy Rock” painted on it.
“Get it?” Jax asks. “Happy Rock? Gladstone?”
“Ha ha. Hilarious.” It is funny
Then we arrive at Neepawa.
“Are you hungry?” Jax asks.
“Yeah, I am.”
“Good. There’s a drive-in here we can stop at.”
It’s also cute. Jax orders a ton of food including a hamburger, perogies and onion rings. I stick with a burger and a milkshake, but I pilfer one onion ring. We eat at a picnic table on the small patio, then climb back in the car.
“Are we almost there?” I ask plaintively.
Jax laughs. “Yeah. Not much father.”
This part of the drive is a change of scenery, with huge rolling hills and valleys, and more trees. Finally we arrive at our destination—Riding Mountain National Park.
“We have to make one stop before we go into the park,” Jax says, turning off the highway and into the parking lot of a hardware store. “We need booze.”
“Um, at the hardware store?”
He grins. “Yep.”
We pick up beer, wine and tequila, then we’re back on our journey and entering the park. We actually have to wait in a line of cars at the booth, where Jax purchases a seasonal pass. In a moment, we’re cruising through a quaint little town with shops and restaurants and log cabin structures. Not what I expected!
“This is Wasagaming,” Jax tells me.
We round a curve and drive along the lake. It’s now evening, but still fully daylight with lots of people strolling the beach and walking the sidewalks.
“That lake is amazing!” I gaze at the incredible blue in awe.
“Clear Lake,” Jax replies. “The town name, Wasagaming, is a Cree word meaning clear water. We’ll see more of it.”
We progress a couple of blocks, and Jax turns left into a driveway and rolls to a stop. Made of logs, and with a big fieldstone chimney, the cabin sits nestled among tall pine and aspen trees. On one side, Cra
ftsman-style tapered columns with fieldstone bases support a wide porch. It’s old-world picturesque, like nothing I’ve ever stayed in.
Jax carries our suitcases to the door of the porch and fishes a key out of his pocket. After unlocking the door, he pushes inside with the bags and I follow behind. Through another locked door, we enter a big living room. Here I see the fireplace the chimney is attached to centered on the wall, built of the same fieldstone. A big window on one side and sliding doors on the other side look out onto a deck, and beyond that the lake. The walls, ceiling and floor are all wood, out of date but charming.
“The place is a little old fashioned,” Jax says apologetically.
The furniture is clearly well-used—upholstered sofas and chairs, antique tables and a worn rug on the floor. It’s clean and cared-for, though. The kitchen is open to the living room, with an antique hutch, a round dining table surrounded with pressback chairs, and cabinets that probably date back to the 1950s.
“It’s amazing.”
“My grandparents don’t get up here much anymore, and neither do my mom or her sister, but they don’t want to lose the cottage. These things are passed down for generations here in the park.”
“I can see why.”
“There are three bedrooms, like I promised.” He grins. “You can have the master bedroom.”
“No, no, you take it. You’re family.”
“There’s only one bathroom, unfortunately.”
“We’ll survive.”
He wheels my suitcase into a small bedroom with lots more wood paneling. A pretty quilt covers the bed, and a bookcase holds tons of books. “I love it.”
“The sofas in the living room all make out into beds, so this place can hold a lot of people when needed.”
I run my hand over the white dresser and admire the framed photograph of a sunset over the lake on the wall. “That must be Clear Lake,” I say, nodding.
“Yeah. I took that, years ago.”
“Oh, really?” I look closer. “It’s beautiful.”
“Thanks.”
Now I notice there are a lot of nature photos which are all probably Jax’s. “I’m sure you want to take a lot of pictures while you’re here.”
Game Changer Page 13
