Maggie couldn’t help the smile that bloomed on her face when she read the text.
Spencer: I wanted to let you know, if you want to come by tonight, it’s okay. I think Kirby was looking around for you after you left yesterday.
Guilt swirled around inside her stomach, not because she’d dumped her dog with a virtual stranger, but because she really wanted to see Spencer again. It was wrong to feel attracted to him when she had a boyfriend.
She put her phone face down on the table.
“It’s him, isn’t it,” Jade asked.
“Him who?”
Jade muttered something under her breath.
Maggie laughed. “Yeah. It was Spencer. He said I could come over tonight, if I wanted. That Kirby was missing me.”
Jade’s eyebrow rose. “Maybe he likes you. Because I can’t think he’s that concerned about Kirby’s feelings.”
“I don’t know about that. He might be. He’s a nice guy. He really loves his dog Lulu.”
She picked up her phone and replied, I thought you guys were flying out tonight.
Spencer: We are. Not until ten, though, so if you came soon, you could squeeze a visit in.
Maggie put the phone down again, conflicted.
“Are you going to go over?”
Pressing her lips together, Maggie nodded. It wasn’t as if it was a date. She was visiting her dog, not Spencer.
But she still thought about going home and changing clothes.
Jade sighed. “And you’re still hell bent on not taking me with you? I pinky-promise I won’t gush all over him.”
Maybe it was a good idea if Jade came along. She could chaperone. Her presence would ensure that nothing happened. Not that she thought for a nanosecond that Spencer was similarly interested in her and hanky-panky might ensue. More like Jade would help her not act like an idiot by flirting with a guy who was so far out of her league, he was only accessible by starship.
Maggie: Is it okay if my friend Jade comes along?
Spencer: Sure.
Maggie calculated the route in her head and allowed for rush hour traffic.
Maggie: Okay. Look for us around six-thirty.
She turned her phone off. “This is it. My debt is paid.”
“I can come?” Jade clasped her hands together in front of her.
“Yes.”
Jade thrust her arms up into the air so forcefully, she almost tipped backward in her chair.
As they walked up Spencer’s grand driveway, Jade’s eyes were huge. “This is literally the most beautiful house I’ve ever been to,” she said. “And I’ve been to Hearst Castle.”
“I know. It’s gorgeous. I’m kind of jealous of Kirby.”
“Kind of?”
The landscaping was lit and cast a warm glow on the lush foliage and the beautiful structure behind it. It was like something out of a magazine.
Maggie said, “Remember, stay calm. Don’t freak out. Don’t gawk. And above all, don’t ask him for his autograph. Tell yourself he’s just a guy who happens to play hockey for a living.”
“I know. I know. I’m not five. I’ll be cool. Don’t worry.”
Maggie knocked on the door and when Spencer opened it, she smiled and tried not to stare because, Lord, he was so incredibly sexy. His jeans showed off his muscular thighs and butt so well her knees went a little wobbly. He had a dazzling white smile and a lock of blond hair that insisted on falling rakishly forward. And that five o’clock shadow was dreamy too. She wanted to feel those bristly whiskers against her skin.
“Kirby!” he called. “Your mama’s here! Come on, boy! She’s here!”
The scrabbling clickety-clack of Kirby’s claws announced his approach and Maggie knelt as he skidded to a stop in front of her, his tail wagging rapidly as he pranced in place.
“Kirby, honey, I’m glad to see you too.” She submitted to Kirby’s eager kisses, rubbing his squat furry body with affection.
“He really missed you.” As Maggie stood, Spencer waved them inside. “Come in, come in. The pizza just got here.”
“Pizza?” Jade asked.
He talked over his shoulder as he walked them toward the kitchen. “You guys haven’t eaten yet, have you?”
Eyes wide, Jade mouthed, We’re going to have dinner with Spencer Corbett!
Maggie held up her finger in a violent cautionary motion. “No, we haven’t. Pizza sounds great. This is my friend, Jade, by the way. Jade, this is Spencer.”
Jade gave him a goofy smile as she shook his hand.
“Good to meet you. Sit down, have a slice of pizza. I got one barbecue chicken and one veggie.”
“Is all this for us?” Jade asked. “Are you expecting anyone else? Some of your teammates, maybe?”
Maggie slanted her friend a sharp look, which Jade ignored.
“Nah. I’ll freeze the leftovers and eat them when I get back from Florida.”
“What’s this?” Maggie said, lifting the foil on a baking dish on the counter. It looked like lasagna, except it had green sauce instead of red.
“Something my neighbor dropped over,” he said, putting it into the fridge.
He passed out plates, got them drinks and incredibly, they sat down at his kitchen table and ate dinner together. Kirby sat at her feet and leaned. His weight against her calf was familiar and comforting.
“Think you can beat Tampa Bay?” Jade asked. “Their new goalie is pretty tough.”
His eyebrows rose. “You a fan?”
“I’ve been known to watch a hockey game or two.”
“It’s always the plan, to go in and win.”
But despite the front-loaded talent, the Dragons weren’t doing well this season and from what she’d heard at the watch party, the players and the coaching staff were in disagreement.
“You know what your problem is—“
“Jade…” Maggie said in a warning tone.
“You guys need to convert on the power play.”
Maggie kicked Jade under the table. “Spencer probably doesn’t want to talk shop.”
But he shrugged. “I don’t mind. Everyone’s entitled to their opinion. Besides, our power play stats are public knowledge. What do you think, Maggie?”
“Oh, I…I don’t think I’m qualified to say.”
“Come on. I really want to know.”
“Okay, honestly? There’s never anyone in front of the net and you’re…” She bit her lip. “You guys play like you’re a better team than you are.”
Even Jade turned to her in shock at this, but Spencer looked amused.
“What I mean by that is it seems like you’re always holding out for that gorgeous shot and that there’s something distasteful about those gritty goals that you have to scramble for. And oh my God, the drop passes. Can I tell you how frustrating it is to watch you all do that time after time when no one is there to receive it? Sure it looks super cool when it works, but it seems to me that one moment of cool isn’t worth it if you turn over the puck. If you were back-to-back Stanley Cup Champions, like a certain annoying Pittsburgh team I won’t name, maybe you could get away with that, but you’re not. So please, stop choosing style over substance.”
After a moment’s silence, Jade said, “Dayum. You’ve got guts, sister.”
Maggie felt her face burn hot. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry, Spencer. I shouldn’t have…I don’t know where all that came from.”
Despite the fact that she’d just verbally excoriated his team, he was still smiling. “Don’t be sorry. I appreciate your honesty. Really. Which reminds me,” he said, laying his big hand over Maggie’s. “I’d appreciate it if you kept what you heard the other day at my house to yourself.”
For a moment, Maggie couldn’t respond. As before, Spencer’s touch made her tingle all over, especially down below. She had to pull her hand away or risk lunging toward him in an act of desperate longing.
“What did you hear?” Jade asked, her eyes darting between Spencer and Maggie.
“Nothing,” Maggie said, brushing some crumbs off her shirt.
Spencer smiled as if he knew how much his touch affected her and Jade pouted. “Party pooper,” she said.
“So, I, ah, got you a little something to thank you for what you’re doing,” Spencer said. “It’s in my car. I’ll be right back.”
He left the room and Jade immediately did a silent squeal, tapping her toes on the floor in a rapid staccato. “Oh my God,” she whispered. “He’s so hot! And nice. So down to earth. I can’t believe I’m eating pizza at Spencer Corbett’s house.” Jade put a hand on Maggie’s arm. “I wonder what he’s getting.”
Maggie wondered that too.
Spencer came back with a fat envelope, sat back down and scooted it toward her across the table. “This is a token of my gratitude. I believe in what goes around comes around and when I can, I like to be the one to make it come around.”
As Maggie picked it up, she pressed her lips together and a wrinkle appeared in her forehead. “If it’s a pile of cash, I’m refusing it.”
“I know, right? It looks like a mafia payoff,” Jade said.
“It’s not cash.”
She drew out the stack of tickets and Jade gasped.
“It’s all the home games for the rest of the season.”
Maggie looked at him in shock as Jade took the stack of tickets from her.
“Oh my God,” Jade said. “These are…”
“On the premiere level,” he said. “Center ice.”
Maggie couldn’t believe it. “Spencer, this is…so extravagant.
“Hey, look. Lulu means the world to me and the fact that you’re allowing Kirby to stay with her in order to make the end of her life as comfortable as possible…” He cleared his throat. “These tickets are nothing compared to that.”
Maggie made the mistake of looking into his magnetic blue eyes. Her pulse fluttered erratically, like a hummingbird trying to fly in a storm, and yet everything south of her waist felt hot and full and heavy.
At last she had to glance aside. The length of time they’d been staring at each other had grown awkwardly long.
“I don’t know what to say,” she said.
“And you call yourself a teacher.” Jade shouldered her friend. “You say thank you.”
Overwhelmed, Maggie smiled. “Thank you. Thank you very much. I…I may not be able to go to all the games though. I have one more semester of classes until I get my master’s.”
“Maggie,” he said with one of his devastating smiles, “these tickets are yours to do with what you will. You can sell them if you want. It’s up to you.”
Later in the car, Jade hugged the tickets like it was indeed a bundle of cash, but she wasn’t bouncing off the walls. Maggie had expected her to be excitedly crowing about Spencer’s generosity and the dozens of games that she could potentially be attending. She’d thought her friend would be yammering about how gorgeous the man’s house was and how electrifying his smile was. But she was doing none of that. She was strangely silent.
“What’s going on?” Maggie said. “Are you sick? Did the pizza make you sick?”
“No, I’m not sick.”
“Then why aren’t you waxing poetic over Spencer’s eye wrinkles? You did notice them, didn’t you?”
Jade had a thing for eye wrinkles on a man. The guy could be an internationally-known asshat, but if he got crinkly eyes when he smiled, that was somehow a sign that he wasn’t a complete lost cause.
“Of course I noticed. But poetic waxing—while far less painful than bikini waxing—over him would violate the Girl Code.”
Maggie gave her a questioning glance and Jade scoffed.
“He. Likes. You.” Jade poked Maggie’s thigh with each word.
Maggie recoiled mentally and physically. “Oh my God, he does not. I’m at least five years older than he is. He couldn’t like me. Not that way.”
“Yes, he does. I saw it. I know what I saw. And five years is a complete non-issue.”
“What you saw was a guy being nice to the woman who is his dog’s savior, once removed. That’s all.”
“No.” Jade slowly shook her head. “I saw a man ‘in like’ with a woman. I saw him watching you when you weren’t looking. I saw something in his eyes when he handed you those tickets.”
“What sort of something?”
Jade squinted. “It’s hard to describe, but it wasn’t just ‘here’s some tickets to thank you.’ It was more like he was really…invested, I guess, in you liking the gift.”
Maggie brought the car to a stop at the red light. “You know what? Don’t. I’m already trying not to blow things out of proportion. It’s all so surreal that I don’t need you to start spinning romantic impossibilities for me. My life is not a rom-com, Jade. No one’s life is. This is not a movie and if it was, I could tell you the ending right now. When Lulu passes away, we’re all going to cry and then we’ll part ways. He might send me a token pair of tickets in the future, for old time’s sake, but that’ll be it. He’ll ride off into his sunset and I’ll ride off into mine. End of story.”
“Movie. End of movie.”
Maggie made a frustrated noise and waved her hand. “Whatever. Just do me a favor. Keep a lid on your Hallmark fantasies. I don’t want them and I don’t need them.”