“Oh yeah? And what’s that?”

“His tenth objective of the season,” I reply.

“Pah, and he thinks that is a motive to have fun? Properly, Emma, you may in all probability need to drink rather a lot tonight. As a result of this season, I’ve already scored fourteen targets.” Parker clenches a fist and proudly factors his thumb at his chest. After which, as in the event that they each need to declare me, they transfer nearer to me. I really feel trapped, I can really feel the warmth from their our bodies.

“So, Emma, what would you prefer to drink?” the Canadian inquires.

“You dimwit, she already has one thing.” Parker gestures to the whiskey glass in my hand.

“Child, you actually do not perceive girls, do you?” Durand alerts the approaching waitress that he’d prefer to order. Then he turns to me. “What’ll it’s, my magnificence: champagne, wine, or maybe a cocktail?”

“I might truly favor a glass of orange juice.” My reply makes Parker burst into laughter.

“Sure, Durand, you are an actual girls’ man,” he teases him. However the Canadian stays undeterred, orders the OJ for me, and one other whiskey for himself.

“I see you are tattooed,” he says, as quickly as he is positioned the order. Durand’s finger casually traces the spot on my knee the place the flower vine tattoo ends. The contact is innocent, but shamelessly sensual. It stirs a refined ache in my decrease stomach, which I ignore, preserving my composure.

“Sure,” I reply casually, “I am into physique artwork.”

“Alright, now we have one thing in frequent then.” With a sly half-smile, he watches me together with his finest flirtatious look. For the span of a heartbeat, I am hypnotized by his eyes, paying homage to melted chocolate. Little question, this man is aware of the way to use his appears to be like. I guess he is had dozens of women falling for him with that face.

“What number of tattoos do you’ve, in the event you do not thoughts me asking?” Parker redirects my consideration to him. I see that his gaze rests on my left thigh, the place beneath the hem of my costume, feather suggestions of a dreamcatcher are seen. The tattoo is one in all my bigger ones, masking three quarters of my left buttock and most of my thigh.

“A couple of,” I reply evasively. He does not have to know what number of tattoos I’ve.

“I guess you are pierced too, aren’t you?” The gleam in Durand’s eyes when he asks that is evident. He is hoping for a ‘sure’. Properly, I might inform him that I’ve two nipple piercings and three genital piercings – I eliminated the stomach button ring as a result of everybody and their cat has one – however I will spare my breath. His psychological cinema might be working full throttle already. No have to feed him extra info.

“Right here come our drinks,” I divert and smile on the waitress. As she supplies us with orange juice and whiskey, I really feel Durand getting stressed beside me. From the nook of my eye, I see him lick his lips and stare upon my naked legs. I do not have to be a genius to know what is going on on right here. The Canadian is scorching for me. Whereas he might need discovered me interesting earlier than, now he is obtained me in his sights for certain. Caleb’s warning and request to not become involved with the gamers involves thoughts. Possibly coming right here wasn’t such a good suggestion in spite of everything. Nonsense, I simply have to preserve him at arm’s size, I resolve.

“So, this is to your ten targets,” I say, elevating my orange juice and clinking it in opposition to Durand’s glass. Earlier than he can reply, I flip to Parker. “And to your fourteen targets.” He grins, toasts with me, clearly pondering I am partaking in dialog with him. However as an alternative, I flip again to Toby. Fortunately, he occurs to be trying in my course, and I handle to catch his gaze. “And to the perfect goalie!” I toast him and obtain a joyful smile in return.

“Wait, wait!” I hear his voice muffled by means of the disco noise. “We have to toast correctly.” The red-haired large stands up, comes over to me, squeezing himself between Durand and me. “Make some room, child, I have to toast with the fortunate attraction,” he grumbles on the Canadian. Judging by his expression, he is seething with anger, however he doesn’t dare confront the Swiss. Aggravated, he turns away and joins Byers and the 2 ladies sitting with him. “To the perfect goalie,” I echo Parker’s phrases from earlier and clink glasses with Toby. “Now, inform me, what brings a European to Portland?”

“The love for the game, I might say.” Whereas Toby shares his life story, I exhale and sink again into the sofa. As candy as my two admirers are total, their intrusive habits is beginning to get to me. Parker remains to be sitting subsequent to me, however he does not enterprise nearer as a result of each time he edges nearer, Toby provides him a warning look. I study that our goalkeeper was born and raised in Switzerland, moved to London at 18, and performed for a famend hockey staff there. Mr. Flake found him throughout one in all his stays in England and recruited him straight for the Devils. Together with his measurement and deep voice, Toby may be intimidating to many. However when you get to know him, you notice he is a very nice man. Not less than I do. He is like the large brother I by no means had. We speak for some time about his ardour for hockey, and I let him persuade me to attempt a Lengthy Island Iced Tea. Finally, we get onto the subject of ladies. To his remorse, he is solely had one severe relationship in his life.

“And you actually solely had one girlfriend?” I ask, elevating an eyebrow. It is exhausting for me to imagine. In spite of everything, he is probably the most outspoken of all of them.

“I am not precisely pleased with that,” he says, scratching his neck in embarrassment. “At twenty-nine, that is fairly pathetic, is not it?” Abruptly, I really feel a deep sympathy for him. There is a ache on his face that hits me unexpectedly.

“Could I ask why you have not been with extra girls?”

Toby shrugs his broad shoulders. “I do not know, I discover it exhausting to method them.” He appears to be like at me, realizing that I do not fairly perceive what he is making an attempt to say. He sighs and explains, “You realize, once I’m with the fellows, it is simple for me to make a silly comment. However once I’m alone with a woman, then…”

I perceive. “… You lack the security of the group.”

The goalie twitches his vast shoulders, indicating I hit the nail on the top. When he approaches a lady alone, he is susceptible. And each rejection, each brush-off is straight geared toward him. Regardless of being a mountain of a person, he is internally a wimp, I feel to myself, however preserve my ideas to myself.

“However proper now you are additionally speaking to a lady alone, to me.”

“That is straightforward…” He waves it off, and earlier than he finishes his sentence, I do know what’s coming. It is simple for him to speak to me as a result of he does not need something from me. “… you are not precisely my sort”. The phrases are barely out of his lips when he realizes what he is stated, and his eyes widen in shock. “Oh, shit, that is not what I meant!”

“It is okay.” I smile reassuringly.

“It isn’t since you’re not handsome. You are lovely. However you in all probability already know that.” His lips kind that very same embarrassed line once more. “I simply occur to essentially go for blonde girls. Ideally with blue eyes and… lots of wooden in entrance of the hut.”

“Lots of wooden in entrance of the hut? I am not aware of that expression.” Have to be one thing European.

“Properly, a great quantity of this,” he explains, elevating each arms and indicating ample breasts.

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