by Alley Ciz
“Nah man, it’s cool. But thanks.” He clapped his friend on the back. Tuck always had his back, time wouldn’t change that.
The girls made their way over to the bar to watch the excitement taking place in the Yankee game. Maddey pointed in their direction and Jordan sent them all a glare that could turn a person to stone.
“Umm, I think we should go sit down unless we want to suffer the wrath of Jordan when they come back up,” Jase stated after Jordan’s death stare.
“I think you’re right,” Ryan agreed.
The guys made their way over to the couches by the railing and settled in. A few moments later they were joined by a few puck bunnies and Tucker fell into full flirt mode.
“Nice, the Yanks look like they have a chance to take the lead,” Jake said pointing to the game.
Just than Matthews drew a walk to load the bases. “Aww, man,” Ryan complained.
“What’s wrong? That’s awesome, bases loaded with Johnson coming up and only one out, it’s like the ideal situation,” Jake said.
Ryan watched the game feeling torn between what he wanted to happen. “It’s not that… it’s just who I’m playing in our fantasy league has Johnson and I’m only up by a few points.”
“Well if he just hits two runs in they will tie the game and you’ll still win.”
“Yeah, that’s true.”
Then Johnson hit a grand slam, putting the Yankees up by two runs and costing Ryan is fantasy baseball game. Jase burst out laughing and all Ryan could do was hang his head in shame.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Jordan and Maddey made their way up the stairs to the VIP section. As they got to the top Jordan made sure she introduced Maddey to Don, the bouncer that usually worked the VIP section, she didn’t want Maddey having any issues getting in on her own.
As they made their way past where the guys were sitting, Jordan cringed at the company that the guys kept. Her reaction didn’t go unnoticed. Maddey looked over to see that girls were practically hanging off the guys and her own hackles rose.
“Who are they?” Maddey asked, she was so unfamiliar with most of Ryan’s friends she didn’t want to get defensive for no reason.
Jordan rolled her eyes. “Puck bunnies.”
Maddey almost gave herself whiplash as she turned back to look at the girls. They were scantily dressed in dresses so short they could have passed as t-shirts and hung all over the guys like vines on a trellis.
“Do I have anything to worry about?”
She stopped walking and went to put her arm around Maddey’s waist in comfort. “No, there’s nothing to worry about. When it comes to puck bunnies it’s more of an annoyance than a problem.” She paused and looked the girls over. “I’ve seen them around before but you probably wouldn’t have paid much attention to them. I’ve been dealing with their kind for years so I can pick them out of a crowd. Don’t worry we can handle them.”
They approached the bar and Skye was grinning at them. “Great game right?” She said pointing to the TV.
“Yup, we won our fantasy game too,” Maddey replied.
Skye paused mid pour of the drink she was making. “Wait,” she held up a hand for emphasis, “weren’t you guys playing Ryan this week?”
“Yup,” Jordan answered.
“Oh that’s rough.” Skye reached down and pulled a beer from the cooler. “Here he’s going to need this.”
The girls shared a laugh. “Make it six would ya? We’ll bring all the guys one.”
Skye placed five more beers on the bar and went to go help actual customers. She and Maddey each picked up three of the beers and made their way over to where the guys were sitting.
The VIP section was almost full for the night. Most of the hockey team was scattered throughout as well as other people with VIP wristbands. The lounge couches where their guys sat were the largest of all the couches and surrounded a long coffee table. But looking at how the puck bunnies were sitting in reference to the guys one would have thought they were sitting at the smallest of the couches because they left no personal space between themselves and the guys.
As they made their approach, they received glares from the puck bunnies. She rolled her eyes and cast a quick glance to Maddey, she was used to how the puck bunnies acted but Maddey wasn’t, she just hoped her friend didn’t let them get to her.
She went to sit on the arm of the couch next to Jase and handed both him and Jake a beer. When Jake reached out to take his beer his fingers brushed hers. She felt a jolt of heat from his unintentional touch but his wink proved it was deliberate.
After Maddey handed Tucker and Ryan a beer she remained standing. Jordan caught the look she sent Christine who sat obnoxiously close to Ryan.
“What’s this all about?” Ryan asked.
“We figured you might need one,” Maddey said with a smile.
“Oh yeah and why’s that?”
Jordan answered. “You did just lose your fantasy game to your sister and your girlfriend, so we thought you could use a drink.” She tipped her beer in his direction trying to goad him.
Beside her, Jase burst out laughing and clicked his beer with hers. They nudged each other and shared a silent conversation.
“Damn that’s gotta hurt man,” Tucker said around the puck bunny in his lap, barely keeping his own laughter in check.
“Yeah yeah yeah. Laugh it up.” Ryan noticed how Maddey still stood while she watched the girls with trepidation. He reached out and grabbed her gently by the wrist. “Come here.” He pulled her onto his lap and she settled in with a giggle. The action pushed Christine away.
“You’re in more than one league Ry?” Jake asked. He was surprisingly impressed by Jordan and Maddey’s baseball knowledge to not only be in a fantasy league but to also win.
“No just the one.” Ryan mumbled from where he nuzzled Maddey’s neck.
“Come on just because I’m ok with you dating my best friend doesn’t mean I want to be subjected to your PDA,” Jordan groaned.
Tucker looked completely lost in the fantasy baseball conversation. “Wait so that would mean you guys are in our fantasy league?”
“Yeah and you’ve all played us,” Jordan supplied.
“So what team are you guys?”
“The Virginia Jays.”
“Why would you pick Virginia?” Jake asked.
“Because if you shorten it, it’s the V.A. Jays.”
“As in vajays,” Maddey added.
The guys just looked completely lost. “As in vajay jay because we are girls… come on it’s not that difficult to put together.” She shook her head for emphasis.
“Wait that’s what it stands for?” Ryan asked.
Maddey laughed and patted Ryan’s cheek. “You are so lucky you’re cute.” Sometimes guys could be so clueless.
AS SOON AS the guys settled into their usual couches, they were joined by a group of puck bunnies. Unfortunately for Jake the group included Tabby.
The chick was like a damn cold sore always popping up. He wasn’t the only one brushing off advances, Ryan was also the recipient of unwanted attention with Christine trying to sit practically in his lap.
When Jordan and Maddey rejoined them, the atmosphere charged with hostility. The guys shifted their attention to them, their closeness evident.
“Wait a second, I lost to you guys two weeks ago.” Tucker said looking up from his phone.
Jordan let out a laugh. “It’s okay BB3. The only team we haven’t beaten is Jake’s.” She looked over in Jake’s direction.
Jake made eye contact with Jordan at her comment and electricity sparked between them. He made sure he smiled big enough to reveal his dimples, he could tell they affected her.
“I guess I’m the only one man enough not to lose to a couple of girls.” He took a long swallow of his beer.
Tabby ran her hand over his bicep. “I’ll say you’re man enough alright.”
He visibly flinched at Tabby’s touch. “Thanks, Tabby.” H
e reached over and removed her hand from where she was feeling him up.
Tabby was a cute girl and they had gone on two dates, however there was no spark for him. He told her so the week before at the party at the hockey house. She was always touchy feely but she seemed to turn it up a notch when Jordan and Maddey arrived. Normally he could brush it off as an annoyance but now he didn’t want Jordan to get the wrong impression. Like things weren’t complicated enough already.
As much as it pained him to miss out on an opportunity to spend time with Jordan, he got up to hang with some of the guys across the room.
Jordan watched, with growing irritation, the girl Tabby, who if she remembered correctly Jake had dated, constantly put her hands on him. To his credit he tried to avoid her as much as possible. But now she had officially reached her limit.
It was bad enough being around him and her brothers, especially with him looking like a Greek God spread out on the couch, but having to watch some girl hang all over him without her being able to do anything about it was downright cruel.
She needed a break. She got up and went to see Skye at the bar. Skye caught the pained look on her face. “What’s wrong?”
“Puck bunnies,” she answered on a sigh.
Skye breathed out a sigh of relief, she knew she was used to dealing with puck bunnies. “Is that it? Geez you had me worried for a sec. You’ve been dealing with puck bunnies for years I’m sure you can handle these bitches.”
She laughed, leave it to Skye to make her smile. “Yeah the only difference is the last time I had to deal with an obnoxious puck bunny, I had a right to stake my claim and say back off but now I can’t do that.”
“You’re referring to Jake, aren’t you?”
“Bingo!”
“So what are you going to do?”
“I have no idea.” She shook her head for emphasis. “But for now I’m going downstairs, I just have to get away from all this for awhile.”
She made her way away from the bar and toward the stairs leading to the main level. Before she could make it down a step Jase called out to her.
“JD, where ya going?”
“Just downstairs for a little while.”
“Do you want me to come with you?” Maddey offered.
She could tell Maddey still wasn’t sure how to handle the puck bunnies, as much as she would like the company she couldn’t create stress for her friend.
“No. I’m gonna see if Aunt Ei needs help with anything. I’ll be back soon.”
As she turned to face the stairs, she instinctively looked in Jake’s direction and instantly regretted it. Tabby followed him when he moved earlier and was trying to trail her hand down his chest. She steeled her expression against the boiling jealousy she felt and practically fled down the stairs.
Aunt Ei was easy to find, with her short black hair spiked in funky angles, and her referee style staff shirt, one could say she stood out.
“Hey Aunt Ei,” she yelled over the increasing music.
“Hi Sweetheart.” Her aunt enveloped her in a huge hug. “What’s up?”
She leaned against the bar next to her aunt. “Oh nothing, just getting away from Tweedledee and Tweedledum for a while.”
Eileen nodded knowingly. “I have some stuff I have to get done in the office, so I’ll see you later.”
“Okay, bye.” They kissed each other on the cheek and Aunt Eileen set out toward the back of the bar where her office was located.
She looked over the dance floor and the people that filled it. When she caught sight of the hottie in the blue shirt, she let out an inward groan. Her feelings and attraction for Jake clouded everything else, normally she would go over and flirt with him but all she wanted was Jake. It was infuriating.
Still not sure how she was going to handle things, she made her way to the restrooms to splash water on her face. On her way there she walked past a couple making out, jealous of their public display of affection.
A few minutes later she emerged from the restroom, head down in concentration. Without warning she was pulled back by her ponytail and slammed into the wall behind her. Before she could react a hand came around her neck in a chokehold and she got her first glimpse of her attacker. Her eyes widened in shock. “Tommy!” She gasped out.
“Hey Sweetness.” Tommy said with a sadistic smile right before his lips came crashing down onto hers.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Jake, finally free of Tabby, was able to rejoin the guys and Maddey. Currently they were laughing at a story Maddey told from when she, Jordan, Sammy, and Skye were at NYU. He was taking in everything he could learn about Jordan so he could use it to his advantage.
As if he heard them talking about him, Sammy came running toward them. “Hey Sammy.”
Taking in Sammy’s panicked expression Maddey could tell something wasn’t right. “Sammy what’s wrong?”
“Where’s Jordan?”
“Downstairs, why?” Ryan asked.
Jake watched Jase tense as if he got an unsettling feeling in his gut— something wasn’t right. His friend turned to look over at the dance floor below but didn’t see his sister.
“Okay, I know this is going to sound crazy and all,” Sammy paused. “But I could have sworn I saw Tommy.”
The group immediately came to attention.
“Are you sure?” Ryan asked.
“As sure as I can be. I’ve only ever seen pictures of the guy but still.”
Ryan and Jase were already up and moving toward the stairs as they spoke. “It’s not good if he’s here, he’s supposed to be banned from the premises. We have to find Jordan before he does.”
“We’re coming to help,” Jake said as he moved toward the stairs with Tucker.
“Me too.” Maddey said.
Ryan whirled in Maddey’s direction. “No, absolutely not.”
“And why not?” Maddey placed her hands on her hips. “She’s my best friend, and I know what this asshole did to her. I want to help.”
Ryan’s fierce expression softened at Maddey’s explanation. He walked over to stand in front of her and lifted a hand to cup her cheek. “Babe, I need you to stay up here, please?”
“Why? I could be an extra set of eyes.”
“I can’t go looking for Jordan while I’m worried about something happening to you.” He stopped her when she was about to interrupt. “You and Jordan look so much alike. What if he goes after you thinking you’re her. I can’t worry about that. Please, stay up here.”
“He has a point,” Jake added.
“Okay fine, but hurry up,” Maddey relented.
“Thank you.” Ryan breathed out a sigh of relief and with a quick kiss the guys headed down the stairs.
They decided to split up into two teams. Jake went with Ryan and Sammy. Jase and Tucker made up the other group. He was grateful Sammy joined in the search instead of going back to the DJ booth. It was always good to have a guy of his size on their side in a fight.
Jake’s main objective was to find Jordan and make sure she was safe, once he did that then he could deal with Tommy Bradford.
He heart felt like it was going to beat right out of his chest from the adrenaline pumping through his system.
He had to find Jordan and make sure she was okay. She was his, whether or not she admitted it out loud, there was a bond between them and he’d be damned if he was going to let anything happen to her.
Jordan, where are you?
JORDAN STRUGGLED AGAINST the hold on her hair. Before she had time to react, she was slammed into the wall behind her, the breath knocked from her body. She tried to get her bearings. Once she was able to see who threw her into the wall her heart fell out of her stomach.
Tommy!
Oh shit how did he get in here?
After what happened two years ago Tommy was banned from Rookies, so his presence in the bar was not a good sign. Proven by the fact he now had her pinned against the wall and looked at her with an evil look in his eyes.
She struggled against Tommy’s hold; he had her lower body pinned with his legs and his right hand around her throat. She fought against his attempts to shove his tongue down her throat.
Tommy was currently running his free hand over her torso painfully groping her. She tried to push him off of her but due to his size and her current lack of oxygen it was like trying to push a brick wall.
She needed to think and regroup. How did he get into Rookies? She was seriously in danger of passing out if she didn’t get oxygen into her lungs ASAP. Trying to break his chokehold was unsuccessful, but if she could just get her mouth free… she bit down on his bottom lip with all her might and didn’t let up until he pulled away and she could taste blood.
Her small triumph was quickly deflated when she caught the sadistic look lurking in his eyes. He touched his fingers to his lips to wipe away the blood. “Sweetness, if I knew you liked it rough like that, we could have had some fun.” He squeezed her left boob for emphasis and she cringed in pain.
She looked around for anyone who could help, but his tight hold on her throat barely allowed for breathing let alone screaming. She cursed Tommy’s evil brilliance to attack her in one of the few blind spots in Rookies. A person would have to be actively looking around to find them.
She had one last fleeting thought and it was of Jake. Maybe if she’d had the courage to say something to her brothers and started dating Jake, she wouldn’t be in this position. Oh god Jake I’m so sorry I was an idiot.
As if thinking of Jake summoned him, she could have sworn she saw him in the distance. Still struggling against Tommy’s hold on her throat, she craned her head to the left to try and see better.
Jake! Oh my god it really is Jake.
She wondered why he wasn’t coming over to help her and realized he couldn’t see her around Tommy’s assault. She made one last feeble attempt at pushing Tommy off and prayed Jake saw.
JAKE FRANTICALLY LOOKED around the bar for Jordan. The only blonde with a ponytail he saw was making out with a guy by the bathrooms and he knew that couldn’t be her. He ran his gaze back over the dance floor hoping to catch a glimpse of her, but no such luck.
