“She’s a really nice girl, but isn’t there history between you guys?” Flynn narrows her eyes on me.
“Yeah, there is.” I rub at the scruff on my chin.
Fuck. Sierra must have told her the story, which means she told Sloane, too. For some reason, I get the vibe Myles and Oli aren’t in the know. I prefer it that way. It’s one thing to play the field and another to be a total asshole. I was definitely the latter to Sierra.
Myles gives me a questioning look.
“It was a long time ago. I was a jerk. I just tried apologizing to her, but it didn’t go over well,” I explain.
“Man, I don’t know what happened between you two, but I know that look. I saw your face as you watched her leaving and you didn’t even hear what I was saying.”
“Cut that shit out. I’m not pining for her or anything. She’s just a blast from the past. I was wrapping my head around seeing her again is all.”
“Right,” Myles says.
“What’s going on?” Oli walks over and asks.
“I think Sierra is a good option for Nils,” Myles says to him.
“Fuck yeah. Totally man.” Oli gives me a fist pump. I leave him hanging.
“No, not happening. Trust me,” I say. No way am I explaining what happened and why.
“I don’t know. You were pretty mean to her but maybe it could work,” Flynn says.
My eyebrows raise. “Are you kidding me?”
“Look you need to stop doing stupid shit. What you pulled last night was gross and you seriously need to get yourself tested.” She cringes, and I do, too.
“I just got tested. Clean as a whistle.” Leave it to Flynn to say what’s on her mind.
“But honestly, I don’t think you’re a cruel guy. You’re a good friend to us. You care for your teammates on and off the ice. You just need to tone the anger down and stop being so douchie.”
“Gee, thanks.” My lips twist with mock offense. “I’m headed for anger management therapy.”
“That could be a good thing, man,” Oli says. “It’s not something I advertise but I did therapy when I was trying to win Sloane over. I had issues and she was slipping between my fingers.”
“What?” Flynn asks, her eyes widening and her mouth falling open. She’s Oli’s twin sister and probably thought she knew everything about his life.
He looks to his sister and shrugs with a guilty look on his face.
“Thanks, man. I’m kind of hoping to deal with some shit from the past,” I admit. I was always an angry kid and had a temper. Playing hockey was a good way to relieve tension.
“Of course.” Oli shrugs. “You need to clean up your act. None of us want to see you booted from the team. You got a lot of good years ahead of you in the NHL. Don’t go fucking it up.”
“Truth,” I agree, nodding. I just hope my attorney will convince the DA not to press charges.
“You had to see how he was checking her out,” Myles says to Flynn, his lips tugged up at the corners. Asshole is enjoying this.
“Really?” she says excitedly.
For fuck’s sake.
“I can hear you. You know?” I stare between them and Flynn giggles. They may have a point. I’ve always had the hots for Sierra. I’ve just burned that bridge down. There’s no way I could build a new one.
“Man, she’s had a rough week. Sloane said she got fired from her job and smashed her car, so don’t do anything to upset her,” Oli says.
“Sorry to hear that, but I don’t want her,” I reassure him, feeling like I need to make a better argument to convince this crowd. “I just feel . . . I don’t know . . . guilty?”
“Amen. That is a start, ” Flynn chimes.
Myles gives her a quizzical look.
“What?” she says innocently. “I know what he did. You don’t.”
“Whatever he did is in the past,” Oli answers his sister. “If he wants her today, then I was going to suggest volunteering at the AMHA offices. Sierra volunteers there, and if you’re looking to clean up your image, it’s a really good place to start. See? Two birds, one stone.” Oli shakes his head. “I swear I hate that expression.”
I laugh. “Wait. What is AMHA?”
“America’s Mental Health Association. I hung out there for a day when I was trying to get into Sloane’s good graces, and here we are,” Oli says with a wide smile.
“Yeah, man, thanks for the tip. It’s not a bad idea to volunteer, but I sure as hell am not trying to get into Sierra’s good graces. I don’t want to end up at my own rehearsal dinner,” I say, looking at my three friends who are each in a relationship and very much in love. I get the feeling they are not understanding where I am coming from.
“Karlsson, just get your image cleaned up.” Myles claps me on the back. “Don’t worry about falling for someone, because when it happens, you’ll have no control anyway. Peace.” He takes Flynn’s hand and presses a kiss to her lips. “Let’s go find our kids.”
Oli shrugs. “He’s right. I’m damn happy.” He smiles wide. “I’m going to find my future wife.” He turns and walks away.
I’m left standing alone by the dessert table. I turn my head and a woman with wild hair is piling cake onto a plate. Sierra was sitting beside her. I think she’s Sloane’s long-lost mom or something. She reaches into her shirt and pulls out a joint. My eyes grow wide. She lifts it in the air. “Wanna share?”
“Uh . . . no thanks.” My voice is a little high pitched. I dash away from her like the place is on fire. I don’t need any more bad press or rumors being spread.
I head over to sit beside Matt. “I’m really sorry about last night.”
“No worries. I told you I needed a night out. My bad judgement is on me,” he says.
“Thanks, man.”
“So, what are you going to do about your situation? Do you think you’ll be charged?” he asks.
“My attorney is optimistic, and I’ve got some ideas up my sleeve to clean shit up.” I press my lips together the weight of my actions feel heavy on my shoulders. I reach for a bottle of whiskey on the table, then pull my hand away. “I have some bad habits to break.”
Matt laughs and shakes his head. “I’m not babysitting you anymore. You’re on your own.”
“Don’t I know it.” I quickly glance at the next table and notice Sierra is seated beside the wild-haired woman again. Sierra’s lips are moving and the woman’s hands are flailing animatedly. Sierra pushes her red-framed glasses up her nose. It reminds me of a time when she used to tutor me in college. She would explain something and her glasses would slide down her nose. She would push them back up, and I would stare at her pretty hazel eyes. Sometimes, she would catch me watching her, but she never called me on it. There wasn’t anything to call me on anyway. She was just different for me, interesting.
She turns her head and our eyes lock. I quickly look around the room hoping to seem nonchalant but something tells me I’ve failed terribly. Why am I drawn to her like a moth to a flame? What is it about her? And why the hell didn’t she come to me if she needed help with money? Holy shit, that’s it. I get up and walk over to her table. This may be the dumbest idea ever, and she may slap me in the face, but it’s a no brainer. Now I just need to convince Sierra of that.
Six
Sierra
I glance over to Mata again. Her eyes are bloodshot, her pupils are dilated and she looks spacey. “Are you okay?”
Her head lolls as she turns to face me. “Totally. Just smoked another joint. Feeling good.”
Nils walks toward us. Shit! What does he want now?
He stops behind my chair and leans forward. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”
“Uh, sorry. I’m just hanging with Mata here,” I answer, even though we clearly aren’t conversing since Mata looks like she’s staring into space.
“I’m good. Go ahead.” She turns to look at me, her chin tilted down, her face lingering too close to mine.
Just great. She chooses now to talk.<
br />
“Okay for a minute,” I say, pinching my lips.
Nils smiles, his full lips tilting at the corners. His eyes are clear blue, like the sky on a sunny day. He holds my chair out for me then extends a hand for me to go first. I’m surprised he’s such a gentleman. The Nils I remember was all brute force.
I walk a few feet away from the table and stop. I look at him expectantly.
“Maybe we can go out to the lobby to speak,” he suggests.
“Okay.” I shrug. My hands tremble. I hate that he makes me feel so nervous. I still can’t believe he apologized, or said he cared about me. Why does that cause excitement to bubble inside me? I feel like a traitor to myself.
He walks beside me, and when we reach the corridor where there is a couch and coffee table he pauses, and stares at my face intently. It’s unnerving. “I’ve got a proposition.”
I snort-chuckle. “You’ve got to be kidding me?”
“Just hear me out,” he says, tucking his hands into the front pocket of his pants.
“Why do I feel like I need to take a seat for this?” I take a seat on the couch. Nils sits, too, keeping a cushion space between us.
He watches me like I’m a wild animal getting ready to run, or maybe it’s just my mind jumping to conclusions.
“I’m not going to sugarcoat it,” he begins, and I shift in my seat. “I messed up with that sex tape and now I’m on probation with the team. I may be accused of public misconduct, which means I could face suspension from the NHL. I need to clean up my act.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, but I don’t know what you want from me,” I retort.
“The senior managers want me to find a girlfriend and settle down to clean up my image. There is no way I can find a girlfriend so fast. You would be perfect. I want you to be my fake girlfriend.” His blue eyes gleam, his lip quirks on one side and his nose slightly scrunches.
“You’ve got to be freaking kidding me.” I shoot to my feet. “We tried this before and it worked out terribly.” I place my arm on the arm rest and stand. I take one step.
“I’ll pay you,” he says loudly, stopping me from taking another step. I stare into his eyes. “I’ll pay you,” he repeats. “You can treat it like a job. I messed up in the past, but I’ve learned from my mistakes. I don’t plan on having a repeat, and honestly—you would be perfect, Sierra. You are beautiful and smart. My fans would eat it up.” He continues waving his hand in the air. “Just picture the headlines . . . badass Nils Karlsson gets tamed by architectural student Sierra Cole.”
“How do you know what I do?” My brows pinch together.
“I asked Sloane.” He shrugs with a cocky smirk.
“Why not just find a girl you like, Nils? Wouldn’t that make more sense?” I cross my arms over my chest.
“No, it wouldn’t. I don’t meet the right women. Honestly, the women I meet in bars or clubs are puck bunnies. They treat me like I’m a piece of meat. They don’t have feelings. They have dollar signs in their eyes when they see me. I haven’t been a saint, but this really does make sense, Sierra,” he says, looking at me with puppy-dog eyes.
For crying out loud. Why does he have to be so adorable and persuasive? And damn, the way my name rolls off his tongue is pure seduction on its own.
“I see your hesitation, and I don’t want to sound like a jerk, but I heard you lost your job.” He scrunches his face.
I want to tell him to fuck off, but then I wonder how much he would be willing to pay me.
“How much would you pay?” I ask, trying to sound nonchalant.
“I’ll give you two grand a month. Hopefully, we can pull it off for at least three—maybe four—months. Enough time to get Coach off my back and this horrible sex tape forgotten.” He sighs.
“Three grand a month, and no kissing this time,” I counter.
His right brow arches and his blue eyes gleam. I can’t believe I’ve agreed to do this, but I’ve lost my income and messed up my car, and that kind of money is sounding super appealing right now. It could be the answer to all my problems.
“Yes to the three grand, but we’ll need to kiss. I have to post pics of me and you on all my social media sites,” he explains. “That part can’t be negotiable.”
“Fine, but just closed-mouth kisses and make them quick. No lingering,” I demand.
He chuckles and shakes his head. “I gotta say, this negotiation is very different from last time.”
“I’m not the same broken girl,” I say.
“I never thought you were broken,” he answers softly. “If anything, I was an idiot.”
His words cause a tumultuous wave to rise inside me. “We keep this professional, Nils. Seriously, there have to be boundaries. I have my schoolwork to do,” I explain.
“Four dates a week, and you come to some home games,” he says.
“Three dates a week and yes to the home games.” I smile. After all, I love hockey.
He laughs. “When did you become a ball-breaker?”
“When I realized you have to be tough in this world or you get walked all over,” I answer.
Darkness clouds his eyes. He nods, showing me he understands my meaning.
“Tomorrow is our first date. I’ll pick you up around noon,” he says.
“It’s Friday. I have a class in the morning and need to get some work done,” I answer. I had planned to do some job hunting, but now I can put it off for a little bit.
“I have practice in the morning. Maybe we can start with lunch? Give me your cell number and address,” he says.
I don’t move. He’s being a domineering a-hole assuming I’ll clear my schedule for him.
I cock my brow. “I said I was busy.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me. You’re my employee,” he argues, rightfully so.
He has agreed to give me way more money that I could have made working part time.
“Now please give me your cell number and address; that’s basic info,” he says.
“You haven’t paid me yet.” I raise my brows and stare him down.
His lips quirk on one side. “Give me your email address. I’m wiring the first payment now.”
Holy shit. Butterflies swim in my stomach.
I give him my email and he types some stuff on his phone. Within minutes, I get a notification on my screen that a transfer has been sent. This. Is. Happening. Inside, I am squealing. I won’t need to look for a job right away. I can pay to have my car fixed. This is gold.
I get to work transferring the funds to my account.
I look up to Nils, unable to hide my smile. I actually feel like kissing him I am so excited, but I keep my cool.
“Now give me your phone number and address, and please, do not tell anyone about this business deal. The last thing I need is more bad press,” he says.
“So, you want me to act like your girlfriend at the wedding this weekend? Our friends will know it isn’t real,” I say.
“We aren’t going to act like we are totally in love. Things have to progress. We can start with some dates before we make it official and I make you my girl,” he answers. His words cause my blood to warm.
His girl.
But would he even know how to treat a woman? The man is volatile.
“I see your mind running off with you. If you’re thinking I don’t know what to do, I do. I was there when Myles fell for Flynn and Oli fell for Sloane. I can imitate what they did,” he says.
“Okay, if you think you can, that’s fine. I don’t mind helping you out with some tips. I love chocolate and flowers.” I wink playfully.
“Got it.” He nods.
“I was joking,” I say.
“Well, it’s still good to know,” he says, and his words cause my tummy to clench as I think of a clean-shaven Nils picking me up for a date with chocolate and flowers. Oh, no. I cannot be thinking of him in that way. This is a job, Sierra.
“Okay, so what now?” I ask.
“Just don’t go falling
in love with me.” He raises and lowers his brows.
I snort. “Not in this lifetime.”
“Goodnight.” He stands and looks me in the eyes. With his close proximity and the spicy scent of his cologne, my breath catches.
“Good night, Nils.” I step on my tip toes and lean up to press a kiss to his cheek. It’s a bold move for me, but I want him to see that I am up to the task and that he doesn’t affect me at all.
When I pull away from him, I can’t read what he’s thinking, but he definitely seems surprised.
I head back to the hall. Most of the guests have left.
I take my phone and open the Uber app. Nils is still standing beside me. “I can give you a ride home. This way I can see where you live. And I still want your phone number,” he says.
“A ride would be great. Thanks,” I say. Then I give him my number.
I say good night to Sloane, Oli, and Flynn. Nils and I head out together. Sloane looks at me like I’ve grown two heads, and Flynn looks just as confused, but I am grateful they don’t call me on it.
I follow Nils to his SUV and get into the passenger seat. The spicy scent that wafted my way when I kissed his cheek is all over his car. He smells so good, big trouble because I realize I’m attracted to Nils.
Seven
Nils
“The DA is dropping the charges.” My lawyer’s voice comes through the phone.
“YESSS!” I shout rubbing a hand over my mouth. “Thank you so much.” I just stepped out of the shower and I have a white towel wrapped around my waist but it doesn’t stop me from placing the phone on the counter and flossing.
“Nils, are you there?” His voice is loud enough to be heard without it on speaker.
I pick the phone back up. “Yes, sorry. It’s just such a relief.” I breathe easy for the first time in days.
“Stay out of trouble now,” he says.
“Will do.”
We end the call and I scream at the top of my lungs. What a fucking close call. I could have had a criminal record. I’m still on probation with the team, but as it stands now, I won’t get suspended from the NHL. Which means, I’m staying on the straight and narrow.
Dirty Swedish Player: A Big Stick Novel Page 5
