Page 17 of Slapshot Summer
“The Colorado Blizzard.Know anything about them?”
She recalled the name from office talk.“A little.Hockey?”He nodded.“Do you get to spend time with him?”She found herself wondering how often he came to Colorado.
“We catch up once in a while.He’s a widower with a couple of kids and recently got engaged.His plate’s pretty full.”
His tone was wistful, and she felt a tug of sympathy.“Is he a goalie too?”
He stared down at her, the ghost of a smile on his lips.“A professional jock, you mean?”
Ouch.“I’m sorry for the snark.Sometimes my mouth spews before I can get ahead of it.”
“It’s all right.I thought it was kinda funny.Plus, it’s accurate.And yep, my buddy’s a goalie too, althoughhestill has a job.I don’t.”
She sensed a need simmering inside him.“But you still want to play?”
He squeezed her waist as they swayed.“I do, but my team didn’t extend my contract, and no one’s picked me up.”
“That sucks.”She’d never spent time around pro athletes, but being cut loose had to hurt them as much as it would hurt a regular human.
The light in his eyes became a flame.“It does suck because they never explained why they didn’t want to extend, even though I’m in my prime.”
“Prime?”
“Most goalies don’t hit their best years until they’re in their late twenties, early thirties,” he explained.“I’m thirty-two, and now I’m not sure where—or if—I’ll be playing in October.”After a beat, he said, “Maybe a good time to change the subject.”
More tugs on the heartstrings, though from the little she knew about him, he’d hate knowing she felt sympathy.“Tell me more about your mom.She sounds wonderful.”
A thousand-mile stare shone in his steely grays, and his thumbs absentmindedly circled her hips.“She’s great.She raised us by herself.Worked her ass off, but she was always there for us.She’s a rock star.”
A knot unexpectedly formed in Lexi’s throat, and she cleared it away.“And very smart to make you take dance lessons.”She laughed, trying to lighten the moment.Her mouth twisted in a wry smile.“I bet it’s done wonders for your social life.”
“It hasn’t hurt.”So much was packed into that statement that Lexi didn’t want tounpack.More confounding was that it bothered her, like a thistle caught between her toes.She didn’t care what Josh did or didn’t do with his social life, so why didn’t the comment simply roll off her back?
He went on.“Lately, though, I haven’t had much of a social life, so it feels good to be out here dancing with you.”
And just like that, her emotions rubberbanded back to a happy place.
Around them, people danced together, alone, or in groups.The music, the lights, and the festive air lifted her spirits even higher, and she let herself get caught up in the fun.
Her eyes circled the dance floor, taking in everyone having a great time.Some people danced at the fringes, in the sand and the shadows beyond.On the far edge of the dance floor, a familiar frame snagged her attention.An inadvertent gasp escaped her, and she came to a standstill in Josh’s arms.He followed her gaze, and thunderclouds formed in his eyes.Neil was chest to chest with a curvy woman, his hands squeezing her butt as they moved to the music.
Sothat’swhy he ran off like his undies were on fire and never bothered to come back.
Without warning, Josh swung her around so her back was to the couple, as if protecting her bruised ego.His full mouth curved into a sinful smile, and his dark brows bounced.“Do you still want to make him jealous?”
It took a few beats for his words to penetrate her shock bubble.Oh, did she ever!She nodded, giddy with revenge—revenge over what, she wasn’t exactly sure.But Josh didn’t hesitate, guiding them through dancers to within an arm’s length of Neil and the woman.The surge of excitement that had been coursing through Lexi evaporated, and her timid self rose up in protest.Was Josh going to confront him?What would he say?What if he humiliated Neil—and her—in the process?She’d end up avoiding them both and the awkward dynamic for the rest of her vacation, and God, would that suck up a lot of energy.
You’re overthinking again.
The music switched to an up-tempo beat perfect for booty-shaking, but Josh wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, his thighs pressed against hers, his body barely rocking.He leaned down to her ear, murmuring, “Follow my lead.”
With his powerful arms banding around her and his masculine scent assailing her senses, she moved willingly, as if under some kind of Josh Wylder spell.Eagerness and uncertainty twisted together in an unlikely coupling inside her.She trusted him.She didn’t trust him.She didn’t trustherself.
“Pretend you’re into me,” Josh urged in a husky, hypnotic timbre.
Still reeling from what she’d seen, knowing she was within feet of the man she’d thought she wanted who was holding someoneelse, she was overcome by a quiet calm.Of their own volition, her hands slid up Josh’s firm chest, skimming the soft fabric of his T-shirt, and linked together behind his neck.
He maneuvered them a few steps closer and seemed to lose his step, bumping his shoulder into Neil, who gave them an annoyed glance.Neil’s dark eyes landed on Josh, then moved to Lexi.They went round as realization dawned.
