“That it is, Greg. And it’s great to see Tome’s play tonight. He actually looks like the player we all loved the last several years. As you know, he’s been struggling this season, ever since the holidays. Let’s hope what we’re seeing tonight isn’t just a fluke.”
“Especially with the playoffs coming up, Joe. And that wraps up the second period of this game here in Buffalo, with the Banners leading 3 to 2. We’ll be back with some player interviews, and see if the Banners can hold onto their lead in the third.”
Val swallowed back the disappointment she felt at missing the actual play. At least she’d seen parts of it in replay. It sounded like maybe Justin really was having a good night, like he had told her earlier. She wondered if his headache was any better, if it was giving him problems. Probably not, considering even the announcers were complimenting him tonight. She wondered if Justin would have a chance to see that later. Probably, considering a lot of the players recorded the games to watch. And if he didn’t…well then, he could watch it at her place, since she recorded the games, too.
Darrin stopped in front of her, sliding a tall glass of water and lemon toward her. He nodded, his dark shaggy hair falling over his forehead, then stepped away. Val didn’t miss the look he tossed toward the hostess stand, where Jodi now was. And she didn’t miss the flash in his dark eyes before he turned away.
So maybe paradise wasn’t really over. Maybe it just needed a small break. Yeah, and maybe she just needed to mind her own business. She had her own issues to deal with.
Like the one with the player who’s face took up most of the television screen. Justin was being interviewed, and she couldn’t hear a word of it.
“Darrin, quick, turn it up.” Val leaned across the bar, trying to reach the remote. Darrin beat her to it, adjusting the volume before handing it to her. Several of the customers sitting at the bar winced at the sudden increase in volume but Val ignored them, her attention focused solely on the man on the screen.
He looked tired, a little worn out. A red crease ran across his forehead from his helmet, his blonde hair even darker, wet with sweat. His face shone in the light from the camera, looking a little pale. And he was breathing heavy, no doubt from just coming off the ice.
Her heart sped up, tripping over itself before slowing to a steady pounding beat. Justin was tired, sweaty, worn out. And he looked sexy as hell, filling up the giant television screen.
She was in so much trouble.
Val watched closely, chewing on her lower lip as the reporter asked him a question. She missed the question but saw a flash of impatience in Justin’s dark eyes just before he started answering. His right eye twitched, just the smallest bit, and he raised his hand to the back of his neck, rubbing as he spoke.
“I can’t look back at the last few months, Tom. I just need to focus on this game, then the next and the next. One game at a time. That’s all we’re doing, moving forward.”
“The Banners won the Cup last year and you’re heading to the playoffs in a few weeks. Do you think you have what it takes to get through the post-season and bring the Cup back here for the second year in a row?”
“Absolutely, Tom. We’ve got a great bunch of guys, really working hard to get where we’re at. The coaching staff is great and we continue to work together, following the game plan and moving forward.”
Way to deflect the reporter’s real question, Val thought. There was no doubt, in her mind at least, that the question had been intended to be more personal. About Justin specifically, not about the team. But Tom didn’t seem to notice the deflection, or decided to just go with it and moved on to the next one.
“So what’s next?”
“You know, just staying focused as a team, staying on course. One step at a time, starting with a win tonight.” Justin smiled, that dangerously boyish half-smile that showed the briefest glimpse of a chipped tooth. The smile that made her melt into a puddle and lose all common sense.
The reporter chuckled and said something else, something Val wasn’t paying attention to. No, she was trying to do her best not to sigh and melt right there on the barstool.
Justin laughed at whatever the reporter said and nodded toward the camera. And then, just before he turned away, he looked straight into the camera, smiled that boyish half-smile, and held up his right hand. The fingers were curled down, all except his index and middle fingers. Those two were extended out, spread about an inch apart.
It was the universal peace symbol.
Or the letter “V”.
Val gripped the edge of the bar to keep herself from falling off the stool. She had to be seeing things. Or reading into things. Surely it didn’t mean what she thought it meant. No, Justin couldn’t have meant it as the letter “V”, couldn’t have meant it for her.
She was reading too much into it. She had to be.
Val grabbed the remote and turned the volume down then grabbed the glass of water. Was it her imagination, or was it suddenly warm in here?
She drained the water in several long, indelicate swallows, refusing to acknowledge the sudden pounding of her heart. Just like she refused to acknowledge the tiny thrill shooting through her, warming her from the inside.
No, she was reading too much into the gesture. She had to be.
Because if she wasn’t, she was in so much trouble.
She was in trouble either way.
Chapter Seven
Val glanced at her watch for the tenth time in as many minutes then blew out a deep breath of impatience. Not because Justin wasn’t here yet, but because she kept looking at her watch, wondering when he was going to show up.
That is, when she wasn’t looking over at the hi-tops that had been shoved together close to the bar. She should have known Randy would be here tonight. Not just Randy, but a few of the other players, too. Mat, Brad, Kenny, Derek and his new girlfriend, Bridget. Even Alec was here with his wife, AJ, though why they would be here if they had a night’s break from their five-month-old son when they could be somewhere else, she didn’t know.
The Banners were certainly well-represented tonight, no doubt about it. Val frowned and tapped one long nail on the smooth surface of the hostess stand. Randy being here could certainly make things awkward when Justin showed up. Then again, maybe he wouldn’t notice, not with so many of the other players here.
That is, if Justin showed up.
No, she was being silly. Of course he was going to show up. She had said “late” dinner but never mentioned a time. It was just now going on eight o’clock. Maybe his definition of late was different than hers.
Maybe she should have been more specific. Or maybe he really wasn’t going to show up. Maybe he changed his mind, or decided to make other plans. Or maybe—
Two couples entered the restaurant, smiling and laughing as they approached her. Val’s gaze slid to the door, to the dark Spring night outside and the slice of empty sidewalk just visible through the closing door. She swallowed back a sigh of disappointment, smiled brightly at the two couples, then led them over to one of the few empty tables. The path led her straight past her brother and his teammates and she didn’t miss Randy’s curious gaze when she walked by.
Sure enough, he stopped her when she passed the second time, his hand snaking out and grabbing her elbow. Val turned, knowing he’d only follow her if she didn’t stop now. For a big brother, he could be amazingly astute. And stubborn. And hard-headed and—
“Are you okay?” His voice was pitched low, but not so low that a few of his teammates didn’t turn to look. Val smiled and tilted her head to the side, going for a look somewhere between vacant and innocently confused.
“Me? I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be? Do I look like something’s wrong? You’re just seeing things.” And okay, judging from Randy’s scowl, maybe that was going just a bit overboard. He watched her for a few long seconds, his scowl getting deeper the longer he looked. Val shifted, trying not squirm under Randy’s intense scrutiny, never letting her smile falter.
He opened his mouth, no doubt to ask her if maybe she’d hit her head or something, but Mat cut him off.
“Hey, there’s Justin. I didn’t know he was coming tonight.”
“Neither did I. He said he had something else to do.” Kenny turned in the tall chair, his gaze sliding to the front door behind Val. “Shit. Why is he all dressed up? And is he carrying flowers?”
Val looked over her shoulder, her bright smile turning into a real one. Justin stood just inside the door, his gaze sweeping the restaurant from left to right. That boyish smile lifted one corner of his mouth when his gaze landed on her, warming her even from this distance. He was dressed differently tonight, in a pair of dark dress jeans and a button-down shirt a few shades lighter than the dark tan sport jacket he had on. Val looked down, smiling when she saw the dressy cowboy boots on his feet. And yes, he really was holding flowers in his hand. Not a bouquet, not really. Just three long-stemmed roses, the petals a rich creamy peach.
Val turned back to Randy, yanking her elbow from his loose grip. “I think Alyssa was looking for you. In the kitchen. I have to get back to work now. Bye-bye!”
She spun on her heel and hurried back to the hostess stand, ignoring Randy’s confused sputtering. As an exit line, she could have done so much better, but seeing Justin standing there, in dress jeans and a sports jacket, holding the roses in his hand as he smiled at her, short-circuited her brain waves.
She reached the stand just as Jodi did. Val gave her friend a bright smile, opened the small door of the stand, and pulled out her small purse. “Thanks for covering. Gotta run.”
Jodi didn’t bother to hide her laughter when Val moved toward Justin. She didn’t even wait for him to hand her the flowers, just reached down and took his free hand in hers and led him right back outside.
He looked a little stunned, stopping just long enough to try to hand her the roses. “I thought you might like—”
“I do. Thank you. They’re gorgeous.” She took the flowers from him and kept on walking, trying to hurry him along the sidewalk so they could at least turn the corner before—
“Valerie!”
—her brother came after them. She stopped and groaned, muttering to herself about meddlesome big brothers before turning around to face him. And she had to give Justin credit, because he just followed her lead, not saying a word, his hand still wrapped warmly around hers.
And not looking at her like she had suddenly lost her last shred of sanity. That in itself deserved a kiss. A nice long kiss. Which she’d give him, right after she got rid of Randy.
“Yes?” Val tried for the bright smile again, but it only made Randy scowl even more. She rolled her eyes and relaxed her face as he closed the distance between them, not stopping until he was only a foot away. She should have figured he’d go for the intimidation routine. His dark gaze dropped to their joined hands for several long seconds. Then he gave Justin a dark look before turning the same glare on her. Please. Like that worried her. He’d so have to do better than that.
“What’s going on?”
“What do you mean?”
A muscle twitched in his jaw and impatience flashed in his eyes. He glanced at Justin, then back at Val. “Can I see you for a minute?”
“How about tomorrow? We’re really in kind of a hurry and—”
“Now, Val.”
Randy growled the words between clenched teeth. Literally growled. Val rolled her eyes again then gave Justin a bright smile. “Don’t go anywhere.”
He looked like he wanted to say something, whether to her or to Randy, she couldn’t tell. But she didn’t want him to say anything so she leaned up and gave him a quick kiss—and yes, she was pretty sure Randy growled again—dropped his hand, then grabbed her brother by the arm. Hard. Too bad he probably couldn’t feel it, not beneath his sweater and all that muscle.
She dragged him a few feet away in the opposite direction, past the restaurant door and out of Justin’s hearing. Then she dropped his arm, placed her free hand on her hip, and gave him her best furious scowl. “What is your problem?”
“What the hell are you doing?”
“We’re going out to dinner. Or at least trying to. Why?”
“Out? With Justin?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Why?”
“Why what?”
“Val, I swear, if you don’t stop playing dumb I’m going to—”
“What? Sit on me like you used to do when we were kids? You can’t do that anymore. I’ll tell Mom and she’ll—”
“Jesus Christ, Val. Knock it off.” Randy ran a hand through his dark hair, scowled at something over her shoulder—probably Justin—then muttered something she couldn’t hear. He took a deep breath, held it to the count of at least five, then let it out with a slow hiss. “Why are you going out with a Justin?”
“Because he asked me.”
“And when did this happen?”
“Yesterday afternoon, before your game.”
“So he just, what? Called you out of nowhere and asked you out?”
“Um,” Val cleared her throat and looked away. She should have seen that one coming. “No. We’ve been talking and stuff and then he called to ask me out.”
Randy’s jaw clenched so hard, Val swore she heard his teeth grinding. “Talking?”
“Yes, talking.” She cleared her throat again and willed her face not to turn red. “It’s not like I don’t know him, you know. I know all of your teammates. You guys are always in here and—”
“Enough. I don’t want to hear it. And that’s just the point. He’s one of my teammates. What the hell is up with that?”
“Watch your mouth.”
“Holy shit, Val. Stop already. Teammates are off-limits.”
“Excuse me? You’re living with my best friend! Did I say anything when you started dating Alyssa? No, I didn’t. So Justin’s your teammate. Big deal. You make it sound like I’m going out with all of them. It’s only Justin. Dinner. One date.” Well, technically it was just one date. Randy certainly didn’t need to know about anything else.
“Val, Justin has issues. He’s a drunk.”
“No he’s not.” She really believed that, too, despite whatever was going on with him the last few months. But she didn’t think it was a permanent thing, she really didn’t.
“Val, listen to me. He has issues. You can’t make him one of your projects, thinking you’re going to fix him.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” She waved off his comment and tried to laugh but it sounded forced, even to her. “He’s not a project. It’s dinner. Just dinner. Not a big deal.”
“Val, I’m telling you, this is a bad idea. You don’t know—”
“Dinner. That’s all. And I’m hungry, and you know how I get when I’m hungry, so I’m leaving now. Okay? Good.” She didn’t wait for Randy to say anything, figuring his frown said enough. She heard him muttering as she walked away but didn’t pay any attention. Sometimes the best way to handle her big brother was just to ignore him. And in this case, that’s exactly what she intended to do.
She reached Justin and offered him a smile, a real one this time. “Sorry about that. All set?”
“Val, maybe this isn’t—”
She reached up and placed her fingers across his mouth, cutting him off. She knew what he was going to say, that going out wasn’t a good idea, that he changed his mind. She didn’t want to hear that, didn’t want him to even think that.
Maybe she was doing everything backwards—no, she knew she was. Especially after the other night in her office. But she liked Justin, wanted to get to know him better. And no matter what her brother thought, she wasn’t making him one of her projects.
Val moved her hand away from Justin’s mouth, placed it in the middle of his chest. Her palm warmed from the heat of his body and she could feel the beat of his heart under hand. Strong, steady.
“I’ve really been looking forward to this since yesterday, so could we just ignore my brother and go
have dinner?” The softness of her voice surprised even her, completely different, almost too serious, too needy. Val wanted to laugh, to shake it off and make a joke about it, but Justin’s eyes warmed as he watched her. His mouth curled into a small smile, lighting his brown eyes, turning them to the color of warm chocolate. His hand closed over hers and he brought it to his mouth, dropping a quick kiss on the tips of her fingers. Then he lowered their clasped hands to his side and laced their fingers together, squeezing gently.
“I’d like that.” He squeezed her hand once more then headed toward the parking lot behind the restaurant, stopping when they reached a large truck painted a shiny metallic black.
Val stopped when she saw it, then started laughing. Justin looked a little surprised and she quickly shook her head, trying to reassure him. “I’m not laughing at you, honest. I’m just surprised. I don’t know why, though, because this is so you.”
“Well, I hope that’s a good thing.”
“Trust me, it is.” Val gave him another smile then studied the truck.
Shiny black with chrome accents, the truck was a special edition recent model. Val didn’t know much about trucks, but she’d seen the commercials for this particular model and knew it was a limited edition, that only a few hundred had been made. It sat high, on some kind of lift with oversized tires and custom bumpers. Looking at it, it probably had a lot more than just custom bumpers. She also knew it came with a hefty price tag, despite its understated looks. And it fit Justin, the exact kind of vehicle she had imagined he’d drive.
Justin opened the door and helped her in, his hand brushing against her thigh as she settled herself in the soft leather seat. Sitting up high as she was, Val was actually looking down at Justin, his face level with her chest. She didn’t miss the flash of hunger in his lingering gaze or the faint flush that suddenly tinged his cheeks pink. He cleared his throat and looked away, then shut the door and walked around to the driver’s side.
He started the engine and the truck rumbled to life, the powerful engine throbbing beneath them. Justin turned in the seat, his brows lowered in a small frown, discomfort and indecision creasing his face.
Delay of Game (The Baltimore Banners Book 6) Page 6
