by Lily Harlem
“Time to sing happy birthday to Uncle Rick,” Hilary called.
The kids whooped with delight then launched into a very noisy rendition of Happy Birthday. Hilary walked slowly across the kitchen, carefully balancing the cake, the lit candles sending flickers of light over her face.
I joined in the singing as Rick knotted his fingers with mine. When the cake was set before him and the song finished he leaned over it.
“Make a wish, make a wish first,” Elliot shouted, jumping up and down on the spot and clapping.
“Okay.” Rick screwed up his eyes for a second then opened them and blew out the candles in one sharp puff. He grinned at the three small boys.
“What did you wish for?” Ted asked.
“Yeah, what did you wish for, Uncle Rick?” Elliot demanded.
“I can’t tell you that, it will stop it coming true,” Rick said, feigning mock horror.
“Ah, he always wishes for the same thing,” Jack said, nodding confidently and crossing his arms over his skinny chest.
Rick looked at him, surprised. “I do?”
Jack shrugged. “Yeah, you always wish that you could score the winning shot for the Stanley Cup.”
Rick laughed, a real hearty, deep guffaw. “Ah, you got me there, kid, I usually do, but this year, no…” He lifted my hand to his mouth, turned it over and kissed my palm. “This year I wished for something entirely different.”
Chapter Eight
Sitting in the Lexus the next day, heading toward the rink instead of my office, I couldn’t quite believe how Rick had persuaded me to skip work. I didn’t skip work. Ever. I always went into the office. It was my office. My business.
Oh yeah, I remembered how he’d gotten me to agree. My legs had been wrapped around his hips before I’d even opened my eyes that morning, and until I’d promised to take a whole day off I wasn’t getting any of what I wanted.
It had been underhanded, conniving and manipulative. It had worked extremely well!
A quick call to Maddie, who now had her cousin Cassie helping out, to tell her I was taking a day off had been a breeze. There was more than a hint of “tell me later” in her voice but I could live with that.
“Practice is only an hour on a Monday,” Rick said, “We don’t overdo it when there’s a Tuesday game. After I’ll take you to that Italian place I was telling you about.”
“Sounds fun,” I said, resting my hand on his thigh. I couldn’t stop touching him. It was as if I’d never get enough. Never fill the need to have him close, with me— in me.
The outside of the Vipers’ home rink was painted red and had huge emerald-green snakes with black forked tongues painted above each entrance. Rick parked around the back next to several other expensive cars and a bright orange motorcycle. He keyed the number into a security door and as we stepped inside the cold hit me. The air even smelled different, icy and fresh with a hint of nachos and beer.
“Put your coat on,” he said, grinning at me when I shivered.
“Oh yeah,” I said, remembering that he’d told me to bring it and I was holding it in my hands. “Good idea.” I slipped my arms in and zipped it to my chin as we wandered toward the huge slab of ice.
Through the Plexiglas I could see half a dozen guys racing around like darts, chipping the puck backward and forward and zipping to either end of the rink at ferocious speeds. The noise of their skates sliced through the air and the deep bellows of their shouts rattled up to the rafters.
“Carly’s over there,” Rick said, gesturing to a lone woman in a navy-blue coat sitting in the stands near the tunnel. “Why don’t you go and sit with her?”
“Oh, yes, I will. Actually I have some things to run over with her about Saturday.”
“Ah, the Roman party.” Rick raised his brows. “Can’t wait to see you in a toga. You’ll be naked beneath it, right?”
I frowned. “I’ll be working, remember.”
“Mmm, I’ve heard that excuse before.” His grin was particularly devilish as he leaned down and kissed me, hard and hungrily.
I held on to his biceps and let myself get lost in him, in his taste, his touch, his scent, everything about him. It was as though he was designed especially for me.
“Hey, Ramrod, get your ass on the ice.”
We broke apart and I turned to see a player with deeply tanned skin banging his stick on the Plexiglas. I recognized him from Carly and Brick’s house the week before.
“Shut up, Raven, remember who’s your damn captain,” Rick shouted. “I give the orders around here.”
Raven grinned, revealing perfect white teeth. “Yeah, I bet you do what she tells you.” He winked at me. “I would.”
Rick shook his head and turned back to me. “I give up,” he said. “Trying to get respect out of a bunch of boneheads is like getting blood from a stone—ain’t gonna happen.”
I smoothed down the wrinkles on his T-shirt my grip had created. “You’d better go, the sooner you do, the sooner we can eat.”
“Always thinking of your stomach,” he said on a grin.
I twitched my eyebrows. “Well, I’m getting extra exercise. It’s making me hungry.”
“Expect to be ravenous by this evening.” He winked, scooped up his soft gym bag and turned. I indulged in a moment of studying his delectable rear. Today his jeans were dark denim, a little tighter than yesterday’s, and the way they stretched over the curve of his butt was nothing short of beautiful.
He disappeared from view.
Damn!
I sighed and made my way to Carly.
“Hi,” I said, climbing up the steps toward her.
She looked bemused for a split second then her face lit with recognition. “Dana, hey, how are you?”
“Good.” I rubbed my hands together and took a seat. “Cold.”
“Here.” She handed me a pair of thin pale-green gloves. “I always have spares in my pocket. I keep asking them to turn up the temperature in here but for some reason they won’t.”
I smiled and gratefully wriggled my fingers into the gloves.
“Why are you here?” she asked, tipping her head. “I’m guessing it’s not to update me on Saturday.”
“No.” I smiled. “Rick made me a deal. If I sit through practice he’ll take me to some little Italian restaurant he knows.”
“Oh, Ciao, yeah, it’s awesome. Brick and I go there all the time, in fact we were going later… Ah.” Her eyes widened. “So you and Rick are…”
I couldn’t keep the beaming smile from my face. “Yeah, we’re seeing each other.”
Her face softened. “Oh, I’m so glad, I guessed there was something going on when he dashed out our front door to talk to you last week. But I had no idea you even knew each other.”
“Well, it’s all new, we only met at Mae’s wedding.”
Carly tipped her head, as though remembering something. “Oh, right, of course.”
“And I wasn’t really in the mood for dating. I’ve been so busy with work and that.” I shrugged. “So it took a while for him to persuade me.”
“Rick can be very persistent and very determined.” She shrugged. “But let’s face it, you don’t become captain of the Vipers if you’re not.” She paused as three more players whizzed onto the ice. It was hard to tell who they all were when they were so padded up. But Rick was easy to spot, simply because he was the tallest and the widest. “He hasn’t had much luck in the love department. I probably shouldn’t say, but he’s been on his own a long time. I’m not talking about a lack of available women, there’s always plenty for him to choose from, what I mean is someone nice, someone…normal.”
I laughed. “I’m glad I come under the normal heading.”
Color rose on her cheeks. “Oh, I didn’t mean it like that, I think you’re lovely, beautiful, and clearly you’re also very determined and very focused. Just look at the success you’ve made of Best Laid Plans.”
I rested my hand on her forearm. “I know what you mean,”
I said with a smile. “And yes, he’s had a rough time lately, especially with…” I hesitated, unsure whether or not to mention Laurie Sharp.
“Ah, you mean his mad stalker woman.” Carly shivered and pulled down the corners of her mouth. “She’s a nutjob. It’s given all the guys a wake-up call to see some of the awful letters she’s sent.”
“They’ve seen them?”
“Well, not all of them, but Brick was there when Rick found one on his windshield last month. He told me if he hadn’t already met me it would have scared him off women forever to know they can think up stuff like that.”
I wrung my gloved fingers together. “Yes, she’s a psycho, but the police picked her up yesterday so she’s off the scene, thank goodness. Perhaps they’ll send her to rehab or something, I don’t know.”
Carly smiled. “They picked her up and charged her. That’s great news, great news all around for Rick. He’s a wonderful guy, he deserves to find happiness. Been living in that big house on his own for too long with just his nieces and nephews for company.”
“You know him well, then?”
“Yeah, he’s been a good friend to Brick. Well, him and Phoenix both have. I guess they’re that bit older, took him under their wing.” She glanced at me, wondering if she’d said something wrong by mentioning Rick’s age.
Smiling I said, “He’s been talking about what to do when his hockey days come to an end. Sounds like he’s got plenty of ideas.”
“All to do with hockey, no doubt.”
“Yes.” Looking over the rink I spotted him dragging his stick between another player’s legs to scoop up the puck. “I can’t imagine he’ll ever not be involved with hockey.” He spun in a microsecond and raced along the ice, dodging several eager defenders.
“So how are we set for Saturday?” Carly asked, taking a white knitted hat from her pocket and tugging it over her sleek, black hair.
“Great, not far off at all. I found a gold-painted chariot complete with armored horse and I’ve primed the photographer to take a shot of everyone, in couples, standing on it as they arrive. I thought, and this is up to you of course, that you could give the photographs out in frames when you send thank you cards for any engagement presents you get.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh yes, that’s brilliant. It’s always so hard to know what to get people, but I bet not many have a picture of themselves standing on a chariot all dressed up.”
The feeling of having made the right call grew warm in my belly and I began to tell her about the other details of the party. The catering was organized, the security company booked to man the gate and several huge urns of flowers would be delivered in the morning.
Before I knew it the guys were heading off the ice and an hour had gone past.
“We’re going to Ciao’s, too,” Carly said. “Perhaps we can eat together.”
“That would be real nice,” I said, standing. “I’m going to head to the restroom first, though.”
“It’s just down there. Come on, I’ll show you.” Carly stood and together we made our way down the steps. As we reached the corridor, her cell rang to the tune of Strawberries and Screams. “Sorry,” she said, grinning. “That’ll be Brick. It’s our song.”
I waved not-to-worry and headed through a door printed with a picture of a woman in a short flared skirt holding a hockey stick.
Ducking into the first cubicle, I quickly relived myself then stepped out. After washing my hands in foamy, anti-bac soap I dried them and reached for my lip balm. The thought of lunch with Carly and Brick was nice. I was kind of hoping it would just be Rick and me, but there were going to be times I’d have to share him and maybe it was time to make some new friends.
I leaned forward and studied my reflection. My mascara hadn’t dribbled and my hair was still fluffy and neat despite the cold atmosphere. A sudden movement over my right shoulder caught my eye. My gaze shifted in the mirror. Behind me stood a woman with lank, greasy blonde hair.
My heart rate picked up.
My breath hitched in my chest.
The crazed look in her brilliant blue eyes sent a chill to the very core of my soul. I spun around, lip balm in hand.
She raised her arm and directed a small silver gun at my chest.
Suddenly my entire world slipped into slow motion. Fear coursed through my veins, adrenaline flooded my system. The lip balm fell to the floor and rolled away. I felt as though my feet had been taken from under me.
“Hello, Dana,” the woman said, in a steely, sarcastic voice as one side of her mouth lifted in a sneer. “It’s so nice to meet you.”
“What…what do you want?” I managed, unable to take my gaze off the round black eye of the gun staring straight at me.
She took a step closer.
I pressed back into the sink and gripped it hard.
“What a stupid question,” she said with a snarl. “As if you don’t already know.”
I swallowed, but it was hard to, my throat had constricted, my mouth was bone- dry. “I…I don’t…know. Who are you?” Any moment now she was going to pull the trigger, a bullet would pierce my chest, take my life. The end was here.
“You know who I am.”
Yeah, I have a pretty damn good idea it’s Laurie Sharp pointing a gun at me.
She took another step toward me and the smell of fetid body odor combined with sickly sweet perfume filtered up my nostrils.
“I want what’s mine back,” she said through gritted teeth. “He was just starting to realize what a fool he’d been to let me go, he was on the verge of calling me, begging me to get back with him and then you…” She paused and scanned my body, her nose wrinkling, her eyes narrowing. “Then you waltz into his life in your slutty skirts and your long curly hair and made him forget all about me…again.”
“I’m sure he hasn’t…forgotten all about you.” My voice was so shaky it vibrated through my mouth, chattering my teeth. She was mad, crazed. I could see it in the wild flashing of her eyes. They were glacial blue but the whites were shot with blood and broken capillaries. She wore too much black eyeliner and it had seeped into small lines beneath her lids and into her crow’s feet—I would never forget her eyes, they were the last thing I was going to see before I died.
I don’t want to die. Life has just gotten so damn good!
“What…what do you want me to do?” I asked, gasping as she stepped so close the gun was less than an arm’s length away from me.
“I want you to go away, disappear. I don’t want you to ever be able to come into his life again.” She leaned forward and bared her teeth. Her lips were as cracked as peeling paint. “And I want you never to be able to touch him again. He’s mine, you’ve been trespassing. You’re a thief, nothing but a common whore and a thief and I want you removed from this world, from the universe. You will be punished.”
The restroom door swung open.
“I already spoke to Dana. Yes, they were going there anyway…I know, it will be great, I’m just going to powder my nose and I’ll meet you at—” Carly appeared, cell at her ear.
She stopped in her tracks. Her gaze fixed on Laurie aiming a gun at my chest.
Her eyes widened, her face paled. She dropped the hand holding her phone to her hip. “What the hell is going on?” she said in a loud voice. “Why has that woman got a gun pointed at you, Dana?”
Laurie lunged at me. Clasped her arm around my neck and spun me to face Carly. Cold, hard metal rammed into my temple. I was only seconds away from death.
I tried to scream but the noise never materialized. I wanted to fight her, get away, but what could I do? She had a gun pressed into my head. There was a live bullet with my name on it only inches away. My whole body buzzed with terror, blood raged through my veins. How could this be happening?
Carly stepped forward, palms up in a gesture of surrender, still holding her cell. “Hold on,” she said in a slow, steady voice. “Keep calm, nobody is going to get hurt in the ladies’ restroom.”
&nb
sp; I kept my arms at my sides. I wanted to try to pull Laurie off me but it wasn’t worth the risk. Moving wasn’t worth the risk. I hardly dared to breathe. Breathing wasn’t worth the risk.
“I’m going to kill this bitch,” Laurie snarled by my ear. “I’m going to splatter her brains all over the place, it’s what she deserves.”
“No one deserves that. No one,” Carly said. “Why don’t we talk about it without the gun? Put the gun away.”
“No.” Laurie jabbed it harder into my head and my neck wrenched to the side. “There’s nothing to talk about. I warned her to stay away from Ramrod but she didn’t listen, so now it’s time for her to pay the price. She’s going to get what she deserves.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. Prayed it would be quick. Quick and painless. I hated to think how it would be for Carly to see me murdered so brutally and for Rick to think it was all his fault. A sob gurgled up from my chest, a tear spilled from my eye.
“What the fuck is going on?” Rick’s voice suddenly echoed around the restroom.
I flicked open my eyes. He stood in the doorway, hair dripping and wearing only jeans which were not quite done up. Behind him was Brick holding his cell. Though he was dressed he was barefoot. Both men were breathing hard.
I lifted my hand up, reaching out to Rick. But my arm was shaking so much I had no real control over it. My body no longer felt like mine.
“Laurie, what the hell are you playing at?” Rick stepped forward, putting himself between Laurie and me, and Carly.
“I’m doing it all for you, for us,” Laurie said in a sickening, simpering voice.
He shook his head. “What you’re doing is not for me. What you’re doing is a terrible, manipulative thing.”
“No, no it isn’t,” she snapped. “It’s what I have to do.” She removed the gun from my head and waved it toward him. “To make you notice me. You’re so busy being captain of the Vipers you don’t have time for me, don’t have time to see what’s in your heart.”
