

When

Lightning

Strikes

The Savannah Slashers Series

Book 4

April Cronin

By April Cronin

Copyright © 2017 April Cronin

Smashwords Edition

ISBN- 9781370625178

All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the permission of the author.

Cover Photo by Adobe Stock

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
To Ben Bishop, formerly of the Tampa Bay Lightning,

You will be truly missed.

And to Andrei Vasilevskiy, starting goaltender of the Tampa Bay Lightning,

You have some big skates to fill my friend!
Chapter 1

The Confession

Earlier that year;

"And now! Introducing, Mr. and Mrs. Donovan Pierce!" The DJ all but screamed into the mic, as Donovan and Lacy walked up the planks and onto the deck at Marlin Monroe's.

Everyone cheered and clapped.

It was a beautiful day, if not a bit chilly down near the water.

And today, Lacy and Donovan celebrated a year of knowing each other by tying the knot.

A year and a couple of weeks earlier marked the day, that Donovan had been sidelined and rushed to the emergency room after getting into a car accident in which his drunk ass cousin had nearly killed them both.

A year and a couple of weeks ago marked the day, that Donovan was tended to by a beautiful nurse with a viper's tongue and a terrible bedside manner.

A night neither of them would soon forget.

And here they were, a year and a few weeks later, married and celebrating with 200 of their closest friends and colleagues.

Denver didn't know Lacy all that well, but he supposed he knew enough about her after working with her these past few months, and despite her newfound happiness with Donovan and her upgraded position working with the Slashers medical team, he'd readily admit that her bedside manner hadn't improved any.

He wasn't sure how Donovan had managed to get past her crusty professional demeanor long enough to get to know the incredible woman within, but he commended him for it. Every time Lacy smiled, or something was funny enough to make her laugh, Denver could see how Donovan could fall for a girl like her.

She was amazing, and though he wouldn't say it out loud, when Lacy looked at Donovan with that love in her eyes, Denver was a little bit jealous.

But here they were, a year later. Married.

It was a quiet ceremony, a civil one. Only their immediate families had been invited, but nobody seemed bothered by that, or if they did, no one was willing to bitch about it.

Denver would bet that Lacy would have been something of a bridezilla had she wanted to go the traditional route, which was probably why Donovan had easily agreed to a simple wedding if he could have a big celebration afterward.

And what a celebration it was!

Donovan had rented out the deck at Marlin Monroes, a relaxed and overgrown tiki hut of a bar and grill right on the water of Tybee Island. It was a cheeky sort of place with great ocean views and a Marlin in a white dress as their mascot.

It was attached to a hotel also, so it was a great place to get drunk and crash for the evening, which many were doing in honor of the happy couple and the generously provided open bar.

Staying true to their casual wedding, the newlyweds had gotten married in matching jeans and custom-made Slashers jerseys that said Mr. and Mrs. and the Lord only knew whose idea that had been! They looked happy all the same as they strode up the dock holding hands and smiling like a couple of idiots from ear to ear.

"Let's get this party started!" Donovan sang, lifting his and Lacy's clasped hands in the air and giving them a good shake. "Someone get me a drink! I think I'm going to need it!" He laughed heartily, looking at Lacy as though she were the only woman on earth. Though, to him, that might be true.

Lacy just shook her head, gave him a quick jab in the midsection and swatted at his butt as he made his way over to his friends who dutifully stood guard over at the bar.

Denver's heart tightened a bit as he watched them exchange a look that only true happiness could bring.

Yeah, he was a little jealous.

Of course, it wasn't just Donovan he was jealous of.

It seemed lately, that everyone on the Slashers team was pairing off.

Well, with the exception of Andre. But Andre was still too young and busy chasing skirts while notching his bedpost to think about settling down just yet.

Everyone else though? Sure as hell seemed like they were pairing off.

The Captain of the team, Dean Kirk, had met himself a feisty redhead at the beginning of their cup winning season, and wasted no time, marrying her a few months later on St. Patrick's Day, just before the playoffs. And during the offseason last year, their star defensemen Peter Petrovic had found himself an outspoken beauty who was willing to stand by his side during a trying time as he faced down a horrible accusation.

Even veteran forward, Viktor Bortnik, had moved in with his long-term girlfriend once Peter moved out. He and Harmony having bought a place of their own together just down the road from Lacy and Donovan.

Yeah, there was love and happiness abound this past year.

Two weddings now and two babies.

Dean and Abby had welcomed a son, Tyler Alexander Kirk, into the world on the 1st of the year. And starting goaltender, Francois Baudin, and his gorgeous wife, Denise, had welcomed their own little girl, Arabella, into the world that previous offseason amid the chaos of Peter's predicament.

Maybe, "a little jealous" didn't cover it. Denver was pretty darn jealous of the fact that a great many of his teammates had found happiness, and yet, here he was, nursing a warm beer while he wallowed in his misery.

A hard slap on the shoulder shook him out of his dour mood a few moments later as Francois, or France as they called him, took a seat beside him at the bar.

France motioned for the bartender and nodded as the barkeep signaled it would be a minute while he poured another round of drinks for a couple of the guys.

"Enjoying yourself Collins?"

Denver shrugged, about to say something stupid, though it sounded witty enough in his mind, when the bartender sidled over and caught France's attention.

"What'll it be gentlemen?"

"Oh, how about a couple of stiff ones for me and my friend here..." Denver looked up, about to object, rolling the neck of the beer bottle in his hand for effect, but France didn't seem to pay him any mind. "Make mine a double, yeah?"

The bartender nodded and went off to see to it before Denver could further protest.

"That's not necessary, man." He said before getting cut off, again.

France gave him another hearty smack on the shoulder. "Oh, but it is my friend. Oh, but it is."

Puzzled by his cryptic response, Denver slugged back the rest of his beer with a grimace as he'd been nursing it for the last hour and it had gotten rather warm by that point, and accepted the tumbler half filled with an amber liquid from France.

France tapped his against Denver's and with a clink of glass, raised it to his lips. "To new beginnings," he mumbled before downing his entire drink and slamming it down on the bar in front of him.

"To new beginnings," Denver agreed, not quite certain they were toasting the happy couple as he watched France order another round. "Is everything okay France?"

France took a long pull from a beer that Denver hadn't realized he'd been holding, and turned to look at him, letting out a string of unintelligible words that had Denver cocking his head to the side.

"Stanfield asked me to waive my no movement clause." He grumbled, finally making sense.

Denver's eyes bulged, he felt like he'd just taken a puck to his midsection. "He... he what?"

France nodded. "Keep them coming," he said, accepting two more drinks from the bartender and handing one to Denver before draining his own and replying. "I'm going to be traded."

At a complete loss for words, Denver finished off his first drink and reached for the second one.

Shit. Double shit.

Hell. Traded?

They sat there in silence for a few minutes, Denver completely dumbfounded, though why he couldn't have said, after all, France's contract was up at the end of the season, and he'd be an unrestricted free agent. They were, as of now, on the outside looking in if the playoffs had started today, and even if they managed to limp into a wildcard spot, they were just too banged up to go the distance after back to back cup runs.

And everyone knew they couldn't afford to resign France, everyone knew this was more than likely his last year with the team, but staring that realization in the face somehow made it... harder... to accept.

"At the deadline?" Denver finally managed, his eyes glazing over as he sat there stirring ice around his empty glass with his finger.

France nodded, not much livelier than his companion, looking at his empty tumbler as though it might somehow refill itself. "At or before."

"Do you know where?"

France stood then, slamming his glass on the counter and startling Denver out of his shocked state.

"Don't know. Don't care." He gave Denver a quick squeeze on the shoulder, grabbing his beer off the counter and tilting his head back to finish it off before tossing it with a clink into the nearby trash can. "Let's celebrate kid."

Denver forced a smile and watched his longtime friend and mentor retreat into the crowd in search of the newlyweds.

Traded. Shit.

He wondered if anyone knew, if France had told anyone else.

Probably not.

If he knew France, and he felt like he knew him pretty well after having been his backup for the last 3 years, France wouldn't want to ruin the mood. He'd wait until after the all-star break, or hell, he might not tell anyone at all until a trade actually took place.

But he told you.

It was just like France. He probably wanted Denver to be prepared. He didn't want it to come as a surprise, he would want to give Denver the time to get used to the idea of it being HIS team now.

His team.

God, that sounded wonderful. His team.

Poor France.

Riley tilted her head back and laughed as Andre Lepowski whispered naughty sentiments in her ear while swinging her around the makeshift dance floor.

Gosh, she hadn't had this much fun in forever!

Too much work, and way too much studying! She was glad she'd accepted Dean's invitation to be his plus one tonight. It was too bad the baby was sick, she'd bet she and Abby could have caused some trouble out here tonight!

As the song ended and Andre pulled her in close to try and seal the deal, Riley laughed louder. The heat of his mouth tickled her ears, and though the things he said sounded VERY enticing, he was a bit young for her taste. But she had to hand it to him, the boy had game!

She used her hands to push on his extremely well-muscled chest and put a little distance between them before her libido forgot just how young he actually was. "Call me in a few years," she said with a wink, leaving him to stare after her as she headed for the bar.

Her head felt a bit fuzzy, her vision just a tad off, but with an open bar, compliments of the Captain, she sure as hell wasn't done drinking just yet!

Riley ordered herself a cocktail and looked around as she waited for it. There were bodies everywhere, the entire team had come, of course, as well as both the bride and groom's family and network of friends. There were lots and lots of people.

And lots and lots of hot guys.

Shame most of them were taken.

Except for Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome next to her. Riley was fairly certain he was single, and she was ready to mingle!

"Well, hey there!" she said, plopping her elbow down on the bar top and resting her chin against her palm.

Denver looked around for a second, his brows raising a bit as he took in the sight of her, and her million-watt smile.

Riley could charm the plaster off a statute with that smile, or so she'd been told. And though she was anything but graceful just now in her pursuits, she was full of liquid courage.

"Want some sex on the beach?"

His eyes widened. "Pardon?" he asked, trying to shake the cobwebs from his addled mind.

Riley held up her glass as the bartender handed it to her, "It's sex on the beach, you want some?" She asked before taking a slow sip and suggestively licking her lips.

"Oh, uh, no thanks," Denver managed, holding up his own drink and taking a quick swig from the bottle before setting it back down on the coaster.

"It's Denver, right?"

His smile was slow, and kind of lopsided, but she liked how it reached all the way up to those big blue eyes of his. "Yeah."

Riley swung her arm out from under her, her head nearly falling on the bar top before her brain could catch up with the command, but she somehow managed to pull it together in time without him noticing and held it out to him. "I'm Riley, it's nice to meet you, Denver."

He smiled again, clearly just as slow on the uptake as she was. Perfect, they were both lit.

"Are you friends of the bride or groom?" Denver asked, finally able to find his voice.

"Neither."

"Come again? What, are you like a wedding crasher?"

Riley laughed, and the sound of her husky laughter did little to settle Denver's nerves. Something about her just put him on edge.

She shook her head, her short pixie cut dark hair bouncing around her face in waves, "I'm a friend of Abby's, I'm here with Dean, his plus one if you will."

He looked a little perturbed, if not, even, a little concerned, "where's Abby? Is everything okay?"

Pulling the little sword from her drink, Riley wrapped her tongue around one of the cherries and slipped it off, catching it between her teeth and biting into it with vigor. She watched with pleasure as Denver gulped visibly, seemingly mesmerized by the display.

"Since the baby is a little under the weather, Dean asked me if I wanted to come. They live right next door though if you wanted to pop in and say hi."

Catching himself, Denver smiled a little sheepishly, "Oh yeah, I, uh, I knew that."

Riley knew she had him hooked at this point, like a little fish, just dangling on the end of the line.

It was time to reel him in.

"Do you want to get a room?"

Denver snapped his head around so fast, he thought for sure he'd have whiplash. "Sorry?" he stammered, certain he hadn't heard her correctly.

Riley's lips curved into a potent smile, "I said, they make a lovely bride and groom."

Sighing audibly, Denver forced himself to relax. He must have had too much to drink, that or his brain was too far into the gutter after watching that little charade of hers with the cherry. He was only hearing what his dick wanted to hear at this point.

"Yeah, they uh, they make a great couple," he coughed, trying to clear his throat. It felt thick like he'd swallowed his Adam's apple or something.

With a cherub-like smirk on her face, Riley nearly burst out laughing. She had to bury her face in her palm to contain it. "Oh, come on Denver," she teased, "you couldn't possibly have fallen for that."

It took him a minute, he had to sort through what he thought he heard, and what he wanted to hear, again, but he was pretty sure he knew what was going on here. "You're fucking with me aren't you?"

Riley nodded, still trying to sustain the giggles she was all but choking on.

"Wait, did you just proposition me for sex? I mean, my brain didn't just make that part up, right?"

That was her undoing. Riley pretty much keeled over at that point, holding onto her sides as they split into pain from the laughter that poured out of her.

Denver couldn't help it, her laughter was infectious, and he found himself laughing heartily along with her.

After several long minutes, when they were finally able to catch their breaths, Riley waited for what felt like an eternity for Denver to look her in the eyes again.

"So big fella... you lookin' to score?"

Shaking his head slowly, Denver sort of half laughed as he took it all in. Her, the proposition, the shitty night he'd been having, it was all quite overwhelming really.

"It's not often the goalie gets to score," he retorted.

Riley bit her lower lip, her brows rising as she admired his witty comeback. "I bet you'd be a lot of fun."

To hell with it. He was going for it.

"Only one way to know for sure."
Chapter 2

The Penalty Box

Riley and Denver stood together just outside the door to one of the rooms of the connecting hotel. With the key card in one hand, Riley smacked it lightly against the palm of the other, turning and leaning up against the door in order to see him better, God but he was tall!

"You're sure about this?" She asked.

"Just open the door, Riley."

"Alright then, let me just slide this in right here..." she crooned, slowly slipping the key card into the lock and pulling it back out quickly when it lit up.

Denver groaned, using his size to gently coax her into the room a little faster than the snail's pace she was going at. The more he thought about what was going to happen in the next few minutes, the more he wanted her.

Riley was definitely unlike any woman he'd ever met.

He'd say she was probably pretty average in height, somewhere around 5'7 or so, but that's about where the comparison to the word "average" ended. She had a pixie-like face in that it was angular, with a sharp chin and high cheekbones, but her big doe eyes really softened her features, and the whiskey color of them was absolutely mesmerizing.

Her hair was short and choppy, framing that exotic face, and her body, though slender, was full of womanly curves.

His sister would probably call him an idiot for hooking up with a woman he'd just met, and to be honest, he was a bit skeptical at first himself, but whether it was the fact that she was a friend of Abby's or because he'd consumed one too many drinks in his quest to forget France's admission, when she made the offer, well, it was one he just couldn't seem to refuse.

Riley let him back her into the room, laughing and looking around his massive frame as he kicked the door shut. Her body trembled with excitement, anticipating what she hoped to be an all-night affair.

As they neared the bed, Riley put up a hand to intercede, reaching into her back pocket and pulling out her cell phone.

"What's this?" Denver quipped, "A delay of game? I might have to penalize you for that Riley."

Riley had to quickly cover her mouth to prevent herself from spitting on him as she tried desperately to choke back the laughter that surfaced.

"I just need to text Abby really quick so she doesn't worry," she said, regaining her composure. "But depending on what a penalty entails, I might just take you up on that."

Denver blushed, surprised he'd been forward with her just now and even more shocked by her quick retort. If not a little excited about the implications of such a remark as well. "What are you going to tell her?"

Riley cocked one brow, hitting the send button on her phone and laying it on the bedside table. "I told her I was drunk and getting a room, that I didn't want to disturb the baby."

"Is that how you want to play it?"

"Oh honey," she purred in a low husky whisper as she stepped closer to him, "we haven't even begun to play."

"Careful Riley, I might have to get you for instigating a fight," Denver gasped as she hooked her fingers in his belt loops and tugged him closer.

"Mmm... yeah... penalize me," she teased. "Are you going to spank me, Denver? I might like that." Riley bit her lower lip as she stared him down, her hands inching toward the snap of his pants.

Gulping audibly, Denver reached for her hands, taking a deep breath so he could get his thoughts together. "N-no, no spanking," he mumbled, finally gaining control of the situation.

With a little effort on his part, Denver managed to get Riley on her back and himself between her legs before she could so much as take her next breath. In the next instant, as she struggled to right herself and get her equilibrium back in order, he had her completely pinned beneath him and at his mercy.

"What are you going to do to me, Denver?" She whispered into his ear, pleased with herself as she felt him tremble.

"Two-minute minor," he hissed through his teeth when he felt her tongue dart into his ear.

Still very much holding her as his captive, Denver went to work. With one hand sliding down the length of her sleek little frame, he used the other to brush the hair from her neck and lowered his mouth to get his first taste of her.

She smelled like heaven, and she tasted like sweet honey and bourbon. Bold. Spicy.

It was all Denver could do not to rip her clothes off and dive right into her. He could already picture her naked and writhing beneath him. His groin ached, and his body throbbed with anticipation.

Riley squirmed and giggled under him, just the weight of his body was enough to send her hormones into overdrive. But what he was doing to her neck, and the way his hand lightly skimmed her body, she thought she just might explode.

Denver used his teeth to punish her, and his tongue to soothe. He sucked, he nibbled, and he teased. He licked, lapped, and laved at the delicate skin of her neck and throat, not forgetting, of course, to pay special attention to her ears.

"Am I... out of... the penalty box?" Riley gasped as Denver suddenly eased up.

"For now," he replied, looking deep into that hypnotic gaze of hers and forcing himself to hold on.

Riley put her hands on either side of his face and pulled him down to her, their lips meeting tentatively at first, his breath whispering over her mouth in a warm caress. She could feel the tremors in his body, the tension of his muscles as he bore down on her.

And it drove her mad with need, with want.

Pulling back every time she tried to take the kiss deeper, Denver forced Riley to let him control the pace. Sliding the tip of his tongue gently around her mouth, and slipping it between the soft fullness of her lips before sucking the lower half into the heat of his mouth and biting down ever so lightly.

Riley's hands slowly maneuvered away from his face and wound around the back of his head, her fingers lacing into his thick dark hair as he finally stopped teasing her and took the kiss in a more passionate direction. His tongue prodding and urging hers into battle.

They fought like warriors, jabbing and thrusting, trying to overtake the opposition by sheer force and will. But in the end, as they conceded to each catch their breath, it was Riley who made the next move. With expert skill, she quickly dispatched with the buttons of his shirt, pushing the silky material off his shoulders and admiring his masculine form.

"Holy abs Batman!" Riley sputtered, running her hands along his hard-packed abdomen.

Denver chuckled, flinching a little under her touch.

"Ooh, is someone ticklish?" she grinned, moving her exploration further south. When he reached for her hands as her fingers dipped between his waistband, Riley pushed him away and wagged a finger in his face, "Uh-uh, that's interference."

"Oh no, you don't!" He growled pushing her back into the mattress as her hand clamped around him.

"Denver! That's unsportsmanlike conduct! Really! Take it like a man!"

"No way! That's holding!" Denver snapped back, groaning when she began to stroke him.

It was a painstakingly slow process, as he fought the urge to let her continue to examine his body, but Denver finally managed to pry Riley's hand out of his pants, and pinned both arms above her head with one hand, while he used the other to push her dress up above her navel.

"Two minutes.... roughing..." she moaned, when he slipped one finger between her satiny skin and the elastic band of her panties.

"I'll give you your two minutes," Denver grunted while he admired the meticulously groomed cleft between her legs.

Grabbing the small scrap of lace that she called underwear, Denver all but ripped them as he slid them over her buttocks and down her legs while still managing to keep her arms locked above her head with the other hand. He took his time letting his free hand roam back up her shapely and velvety smooth legs. The woman had legs for miles it seemed, and they were damned fine legs indeed.

Riley quivered when his hand stopped high up on her thigh, just outside of the valley between them. Little earthquakes of pleasure erupted throughout her central nervous system. It was pure torture. The way he looked up at her with those big blue eyes from beneath those long dark lashes would have been more than enough to set her body aflame, but with his fingers perilously close to her core, yet so tantalizingly far away, she thought she just might die.

Denver could easily sense her frustration, he could feel her intensity, her desire, and need. With a low chuckle, he released her hands and lifted her bottom closer to his mouth.

Riley groaned and tensed as the heat of his breath tingled against her soft womanly mound.

Parting her feminine folds with ease, Denver took her full into his mouth, catching that sensitive little nub between his teeth, then thoroughly sucking on it between the jabs and rolls of his tongue.

Riley arched her back, writhing and wriggling underneath him as he continued this onslaught of her most intimate parts. At one point, when she felt like she'd burst if he didn't stop, Riley grasped at his shoulders to pull him up.

"Uh-uh," he mocked between thrusts of his tongue. "No interfering with the goalkeeper while he's in the crease."

Panting now, Riley flung her head back into the pillows and tried to hold herself together as he took up right where he'd left off, driving her completely insane.

Denver used his mouth and hands in ways that Riley didn't even know was possible, and every time she thought she might combust he'd pull back just enough to keep her from going over that ledge. Because he laughed each time she groaned, she knew he was enjoying this torture far too much.

Just wait until she got her hands on him, boy was she going to make him pay!

As she reached that plateau again, fearing he might continue his tirade, she was surprised when he slipped a finger inside the heat of her body and forced her to face the fire. He pushed her, no, he threw her over the edge and made her climax with such intensity that her entire body was wracked with spasm after spasm of agonizing pleasure.

Denver had her dress up and over her head as well as the rest of his clothes off before Riley could even catch her breath. She still hadn't quite come back down to earth as he mounted her once more and tore open the wrapper of a condom, suiting up for battle.

Kissing her neck and shoulders as he rubbed the head of his shaft against her, Riley's head still fuzzy from the attack on her system, she had little time to regain her senses before he nearly had her worked into another frenzy.

But as Denver's soldier neared its destination, Riley rolled her pelvis and thwarted his advance.

"Whoa, whoa... watch where you stick that thing!" she squeaked.

With a laugh, Denver began to close the distance between them again. "Well you're the one who deliberately displaced the goal during a scoring opportunity!"

"Hey! You were about to make an illegal entry off a breakaway!"

"Fair enough," Denver conceded, "I guess I had a little more to drink than I thought."

"Ya think?"

Denver ended any more argument from her by capturing her lips with his in a passionate kiss while he guided his sword back to the opening of her sheath. It was a tight fit, but he forced his way in.

Riley moaned, her protest barely a decibel above a whisper as Denver all but swallowed the sound.

With slow, sure thrusts, she enveloped him, absorbing the thick length of his manhood into the core of her being. When Denver was sure he wouldn't cause her any more pain, he began to build the rhythm. He kept the tempo slow at first, luxuriating in the feel of her body wrapped around him.

She felt like warm silk, and she tasted like a fine brandy.

Riley arched into him, her fingers digging into his back, her nails scraping his flesh as he quickened his pace. She wanted more of him, all of him, she felt like she couldn't possibly get him deep enough inside her, though he filled her to the hilt.

She wanted to feel him in her soul.

As if he could read her mind, Denver's thrusts became deeper, faster, harder. He plunged into her body over and over, relishing the feel of her muscles as they clamped down on him, as her legs wrapped around his buttocks and pulled him into her.

Denver, continuing his rampage, brought her to the peak just as his own eruption was imminent. The velocity at which they came to the apex of their passions was astonishing. Though it had felt as if they had been joined for hours, it was mere minutes before Riley rode the next wave of ecstasy.

She crested over the summit and plummeted into a void of such exquisite satisfaction, and gratification that she nearly lost her mind.

And Denver wasn't far behind.

With a few more strong thrusts, he pitched over and buried himself inside of her.

Rolling over, Denver began the arduous task of catching his breath and slowing his heart rate. Riley gulped in air beside him.

"Wow... that was some goal."

Denver burst out laughing, "yeah, I guess you could say I went five-hole."

Giggling herself, Riley leaned on her elbow and looked down at him. "Well, there was a bit of a deflection."

"Did you want to try again?" Denver asked after another minute or so.

"Hat trick?"

"Let's do it."
Chapter 3

Smooth Criminal

Present Day, nine months later;

The banging in his head woke him. Like the low pitch of a bass drum, it reverberated until he surfaced through his unconscious state. There was some thought he'd been trying to grasp but it slipped back into the void as the loud thumping sounded again.

Wait, that wasn't right.

Rubbing his eyes, Denver turned and looked at the alarm clock sitting on his bedside table, 2:00 am.

The sound came once more. Loud and more persistent this time.

There was no banging in his head, but rather, someone pounding on his front door. At 2:00 am? Who the hell would knock on his door at 2:00 am?

Groaning, and climbing out of bed, Denver padded down the hall, peeking into his sister's bedroom along the way. He flipped the light switch when his eyes appeared to have deceived him.

Nope. Empty.

The bed was rumpled but completely empty.

"What the hell have you gotten into now Mia?" He mumbled to himself as he continued down the hall on the way to the stairs.

The knock came again.

"I'm coming, I'm coming." He barked, making his way through the foyer.

He opened the door just as a rather portly gentleman in uniform was about to knock, yet again.

Mia stood with her head down, sandwiched between two policemen. When Denver opened the door all the way, she shrugged out of the one's grasp and darted around her brother.

With a sigh and a groan, Denver watched her flee up the stairs before turning his attention back to the officers who had brought her home. "I uh, I guess I should thank you officer..."

"Tallon, sir, it's officer Tallon, and I'm a big fan of the Slashers Organization if I might say."

His partner, a tall gangly looking man with a bird beak for a nose elbowed him then, forcing a grunt out of the bigger man as he stepped forward and extended a hand to Denver. "Officer Saxon, Mr. Collins, I'm sorry we had to wake you up this way."

Denver rubbed the back of his neck and yawned, he was tired as hell, and definitely not in the mood for pleasantries, but knowing these two had saved him a trip to the police station, he tried to mask his irritation and put on a brave face.

"No, I appreciate you bringing her home. Is there anything I can do for you guys? Tickets or something? I'm sure you just saved me a hell of a lot in bail money."

The one officer, Tallon, seemed to drool a little bit at Denver's suggestion, but a stern look from his partner had him clearing his throat and putting on a more professional air about him. "No, no," he said, wiping his hands nervously on his trousers. "We uh, we can't accept gifts, that would be bribery."

Denver shrugged, "alright, well, thanks again." He smiled, to end the conversation so that he could tend to his sister and get back to bed.

"We uh, we weren't sure she was telling the truth when she said you were her brother," Saxon butted in when Denver began to step away from the door.

With a little half sigh, Denver nodded, "guilty."

"We found your sister down at the beach with a group of kids, they all scattered but we were able to catch up to her and her friend..." Saxon trailed off motioning with his head out to the waiting cruiser in Denver's driveway.

He followed the officer's gaze, and sure enough, there was a small form sitting in the back seat still.

"I was just about to call in our apprehension when young Ms. Collins mentioned you were her brother and you'd be in a whole heap of trouble if you had to miss tomorrow's practice because you had to bail her out of jail."

Denver rolled his eyes mumbling to himself but smiled when he locked gazes with the officers again.

"Seems your sister is already on probation, and well, she might still face some sort of punishment for this, but we'll leave that up to her probation officer." Saxon finally finished, taking off his hat and bending it in a nervous gesture in his scrawny grasp.

Denver sighed "Will you still have to report this?"

The two officers exchanged glances, and Denver could tell that Officer Tallon wanted to be sympathetic to his plight, but the stern Officer Saxon seemed to set him straight with a mere look from his beady little eyes.

"Why yes sir, we'll have to file a report and turn it into her probation officer by the end of the week. Miss Collins violated her curfew." Tallon said reluctantly.

"Alright, I understand, and again, I thank you gentlemen for bringing her home, if you'll excuse me now," he said, politely closing the door on them, "I have to see to Mia and get back to bed, as she said, I have practice in the morning."

The officers nodded and made their descent down his front steps while he closed the door and slipped the lock into place. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Denver looked up the stairs and shook his head.

Great.

Just great.

This was exactly what he DIDN'T need right now.

Taking the stairs quickly, two at a time, he turned the corner at the landing and headed for Mia's room, she hadn't even bothered to close the door. Smart girl.

"Well good morning Mia," Denver said in short clipped tones as he leaned in against her doorframe.

She'd already changed back into her pj's and looked like a child, rather than the young lady she was turning into, sitting there in the middle of her oversized bed. Mia's big blue eyes were glazed over like she was ready to cry, but Denver knew better, and he wasn't falling for any more of her tricks.

"Denver I..." She began, her lower lip trembling.

"You can drop the act Mia, I'm not mom."

She huffed, crossing her arms in front of her. This was the Mia he knew.

"They're reporting this to your probation officer you know, name dropping didn't exactly get you off the hook."

Mia turned away from him, giving him the colder shoulder, "like I care." She groused.

"You will care if Mr. Kostoff decides to send you back to court for breaking curfew."

Mia just shrugged.

Groaning and rubbing his temples to stave off a headache that was coming on, Denver walked over to the bed, sat down, and pulled Mia into his arms despite her struggling protests to get away from him.

"Mia, look at me," Denver coaxed softly, cupping her chin in his big palm. "Why do you keep doing this to yourself?

"What do you care?" she spat, yanking her face out of his grasp and turning away from him before tears, real tears this time, threatened to spill down her cheeks.

"Because you're my sister? Because I love you?"

"Because you don't want anything to interfere with your precious career?" She huffed.

"Mia, that's not fair."

"It's the truth, isn't it? I'm nothing but a burden to you. I should just go live with Dad in L.A.."

Denver stood, his heart aching, but completely annoyed and at his wits end as well. "You can't live with Dad, and you know it, like it or not Mia, I'm all you've got. Now get some sleep, you have school in the morning."

"I'm not going," she said stubbornly, "cough, cough, I'm sick."

"You're going to school Mia," he replied with a slight bite to his words, "I'll call Mr. Kostoff after practice and find out what happens next, but you are going to school Mia, I don't care if I have to drag you there myself, you're going."

Mia stared him down as he turned and walked out of the room, sticking her tongue out at his backside, and waiting until he was out of earshot before pounding on her pillows and silently crying herself to sleep.

He just didn't get it. He would never understand.

Denver just didn't understand that girl. He wasn't sure he'd ever get it. He'd never been this bad when he was her age. Then again, their mother hadn't been senile and their father had still been around.

He often wondered if this had anything to do with the fact that Mia didn't have a strong authority figure in her life. Hell, he tried, but he just didn't have it in him, that ability to be a dictator, he was going to make a horrible father one day.

Shaking his head, Denver climbed back into bed and tried to get some more sleep.

Twenty minutes later, deciding it just wasn't going to happen, he slipped out of bed and jumped into the shower, letting the hot water cascade over him and rinse away the stench of failure.

Up until a few years ago, Denver had naively thought his family was normal. He'd thought his childhood had been normal. How stupid of him to assume such things though.

Denver was 28, twelve years older than his sister Mia, and though, as a 12-year-old, he hadn't been overly excited about the prospect of having a little sister, it really hadn't changed much for him.

Growing up in Spokane, Washington, his mother had been a property clerk, and his father, a real estate investor who'd partnered with a contractor and flipped houses. They made a comfortable living and were able to provide Denver with a moderate lifestyle, easily affording the expenses they incurred in his hockey ventures.

Hockey was an expensive sport to play, but his parents never batted an eyelash at paying for gear or booking ice time. They had a nice house, in a mature, well-developed neighborhood, and he attended the best private schools in the area.

Mia was just six years old when Denver was drafted in the 3rd round by the Savannah Slashers and subsequently shipped off to college in Maine. And up until that point, Denver hadn't noticed anything wrong with his family dynamics. He'd been too busy trying to make a name for himself to care, honestly.

But after finishing college and bouncing back and forth for a few years between the Slashers and their AHL affiliate, those rose-colored glasses finally came off, and Denver realized there had been signs all along.

Subtle things of course, like money that couldn't be explained, whether present or missing. And how his father's mood seemed to shift more than a menopausal woman's.

Denver had known his mother was a property clerk, but up until she'd gotten fired his senior year of college for misconduct on the job, he hadn't known that she'd been approving building permits on properties that his father worked on, for things that had been built, without permits, and not always up to code, by previous tenants.

Nor had he'd known that his father and his partner bought houses at rock bottom prices, fixing them up with basically scrap material, paying off inspectors and selling them for two and three times what they were worth.

Then again, what could he have done if he had known?

By the time he played his first game in the NHL, Denver's entire childhood was in shambles. And, it showed in his work ethic. He was surprised he hadn't been traded early on. Lucky for him, his goalie coach seemed to realize the potential in him, even if he did let his emotions rule him at times.

As he cemented himself as the backup goaltender to France, Denver's life took yet another turn.

His mother's health declined quickly once the diagnosis came, but again, there were signs. She was a bit older when she'd had Denver, 30 to be exact, and 42 when Mia was born. But when Mia turned 13, their mother was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease, at the age of 55.

She'd been forgetting things over the years, but most people, including Denver, just chalked it up to her getting older and being out of work. With her husband's steady income over the years, immorally obtained or not, and his increasing ability to scam people out of money, she didn't see the rush in going back to work, but rather enjoyed taking Mia to ballet and gymnastics, being on the PTA, and just overall being active in her little girl's life.

Mia had flourished then. She was an honor roll student and an amazing athlete.

She was going places.

But as the diagnosis became a reality, all their lives shifted, and quickly.

Their father drained their bank account and headed off with his new mistress to L.A., leaving Mia and her mother to fend for themselves.

Of course, now that she couldn't go back to work, she was forced to foreclose on the house, and try to find an apartment that she could afford with her disability while she waited to take their father to divorce court, something that never ended up happening.

Denver had just signed a four-year contract for two million a year, and he couldn't stand the thought of his mother and sister living in sub-par housing, especially with her health rapidly declining the way it was. He decided to buy a nice two story home close to the rink, so close in fact that he could walk there if he'd wanted to.

And then he'd made the decision to have his mother and sister relocate across the country in order to take care of them.

Mia had been really excited at first, she didn't even seem to care that she would be changing schools and leaving all her friends behind, the prospect of living with her big brother was more than enough to make up for all of that.

The thought of being able to go to games, and say, "that's my brother," was exhilarating, and a little flattering to Denver.

Everything seemed to be working out in the beginning. Denver helped Mia get situated at the local middle school and began looking at doctors for his mother, intent on getting her the best care around. They traveled once a month to Atlanta, and Denver hired a home health aide as well to see to her day to day.

But by the end of last year, it was clear their mother needed more care than they could give her. Despite Mia's objections, Denver began looking for a nursing home for their mother. He didn't want to, he wanted to be able to keep her at home, but her increasingly violent and abusive tendencies were getting to be more than he could handle.

They'd already had Child Protective Services out to their home on more than one occasion due to the bruises their mother had left on Mia. Denver just couldn't stand by and watch it continue to happen. And he was gone too often to stop it.

That seemed to be the turning point for Mia.

Before picking out a nursing home, Denver had reached out to their father, for what reason, he couldn't exactly say. The man had made himself pretty clear by walking out on them a couple of years prior. But, Denver had hoped that knowing the woman he'd been married to for over thirty years, a woman he must have loved at some point, was going to be put in a nursing home, would have changed something.

It didn't.

His father told him to do what he had to do, and he certainly didn't offer to help pay for any of the expenses, not that Denver couldn't afford it. But, it still would have been nice for the old man to offer up something.

Nor did he ask what would happen to his little girl. He acted like he didn't have any children, let alone a minor that was now without a parent. Denver had let the matter go though, deciding to save that for another day.

A day that came all too soon.

Two weeks before their mother's impending move, Mia was arrested.

Shoplifting.

"Oh, she's just a teenager," and "that's normal for kids her age." Was what everyone kept saying to him. And maybe they were right, but it was just the start for Mia. And when Child Protective Services found out their mother was incompetent, and that their father was absent, Denver was forced to make yet another life-altering decision.

They had an aunt in California, and an uncle and some cousins in New York. He could have sent her to live with any of them, most were even ready and willing to take care of her, but Denver didn't like the idea of basically abandoning her as well.

So, he reached out to dear old dad again.

Strike two.

God, he'd felt like a cad lying to Mia about it too. She was so excited about the thought of maybe living with their father in L.A., "Celebrities! Real celebrities!" she had said. "I'll grow up to be an actress!" Denver had to bring her back down to earth really quick though by telling her their father wasn't financially stable enough to care for her.

Ha! Good thing he was a convincing liar!

The old man was more than financially stable enough to care for his daughter, and his wife, he just didn't care. He was living the high life, and he didn't have the patience to raise a daughter. He'd "raised his son to be a man" and as he had said, girls should be raised by their mother's.

Only, her mother was senile and often forgot who her daughter was, or the fact that she even had children to begin with.

Denver had said to hell with it and began the process of becoming Mia's legal guardian. It had taken some time, he had to get the proof of course that their mother was mentally unstable, and he had to wait for his father to get around to signing the papers giving up his own rights to her. But in the end, he didn't regret his decision, not even when Mia was picked up by the cops for criminal mischief and sentenced to community service and probation.

Not even when she started skipping school and failing all her classes. Or, when she started hanging out with a new group of kids and dressing like a miniature stripper.

Some of Denver's teammates applauded him for his efforts, while others told him he was plum crazy to deal with it at his age. Instead of going out with the guys, or celebrating wins, Denver was busy taking care of a stubborn, moody teenager.

Spending all his free time shuttling her to appointments with her probation officer, counseling, or community service while making sure to keep tabs on her so that she stayed in school, went to tutoring afterward and got her grades back in order.

As much as Mia grumbled though, she seemed to do better when Denver was around and keeping her under his thumb. It was when he had to go out of town for games that she tended to try and push the limits or veer off course.

Denver started by seeing how she did on her own, but quickly realized that Mia left to her own devices only spelled trouble. A noise complaint and a few broken lamps, the result of a party, showed him that he couldn't trust his sister to be the mature young lady he had thought her to be.

Instead, he had made arrangements with some of her friend's parents, to have her stay over with friends when he had to go out of town for any extended period of time, and on those occasions when it was just an overnight, he hired a babysitter much to Mia's dismay.

But with this newest wrinkle, he'd have to rethink things yet again. He couldn't have Mia sneaking out of the house at night. Putting bars on her bedroom window was a tempting thought, but then again, she probably just walked right out the front door, to begin with, and Lord only knew how long she'd been doing this.

Or what she was doing.

Sixteen, Mia was sixteen, and maybe Denver hadn't exactly been sexually active at her age, he'd waited until college to start experimenting with sex, but he couldn't expect Mia to do the same. The circumstances were completely different.

They, were completely different.

Guess it was time to get that alarm system installed.
Chapter 4

Practice

After seeing Mia off to school a few hours later, dropping her off himself, Denver headed to the arena for his morning skate, having made a mental note to call around about getting a top-notch alarm system installed, and check in with Mr. Kostoff, Mia's probation officer, once practice was over.

The Slashers were five games into the new season. The first two games had been at home and the next three on the road. They were currently four and one, having lost their home opener. Which, in Denver's opinion, fell squarely on his shoulders.

Nine months ago, at a beautiful celebration of love, just one day before the start of the all-star break, Denver had been told by friend and mentor, Francois Baudin, that the Savannah Slashers would soon be his team. He hadn't wanted to believe it at the time, but less than a month later the organization announced that Francois, or France as they called him, had been traded to the Dallas Stars.

Denver had wished he could have gotten drunk then like he had the night France first mentioned the possibility. Everyone knew it was coming, but nobody wanted to believe it had actually happened. In return for France, they received a goalie prospect and a couple of picks in the upcoming draft.

It just hadn't seemed right. Like it wasn't enough

But moving France was necessary to cap compliance.

That stupid fucking salary cap!

The Slashers found a way to limp into the playoffs, with Denver at the helm, and his newly recalled backup from their AHL affiliate. But it wasn't easy. Between dealing with the fact that France was no longer there, as he was a major influence on Denver, and battling with the court system and his sister, he was lucky he'd managed to get them there at all.

Only to be swept, of course, in the first round, by the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The long offseason had done them all plenty of good though, and nobody, not even their fans, were too disappointed. Changes to the roster were made, a new backup out of Canada was signed, and a couple of guys from their AHL team, as well as some prospects, filled in any remaining holes. From there, it was just about preparing themselves mentally.

Which seemed to be where Denver struggled the most.

Everyone on the team, including the coaching staff, had so far, been patient with him, but Denver knew if he didn't get it together soon, he might very well find himself benched. After all, Coach Turski wasn't afraid of showing a player how he felt about their performance. And his current backup was more than capable of handling things in his stead.

It was just one more thing he needed to worry about.

Great.

Denver had, despite himself, been top-notch in three out of four of his starts so far. That first game notwithstanding. Chalk it up to nerves, or just worrying too much about things off the ice that he couldn't control, whatever the case, his first game as the starting goaltender this season had not gone well. He was still shocked he hadn't been pulled, letting in two rather soft first-period goals in just five shots on goal.

It didn't really matter that they had been playing the Washington Capitals, one of the better regular season teams in the league, he should have been better than that. They'd lost 6-3 that game, and he put it all on his own shoulders.

He was better in his next three starts, recording a shutout in one and keeping his goals against in the other two at less than two per game. His backup, Spencer Gallagher, had taken the last start against the Penguins as it was a back to back.

They had a game tonight, and Denver wasn't about to let Mia, and this latest wrinkle get in the way. He had to shake it off and focus. You didn't bring your work home with you, and in turn, you didn't let your personal life interfere out on the ice.

Denver stayed in the locker room for the first half hour or so, warming up, while the rest of the team took to the ice and skated the length, or practiced drills. He worked on his pop-ups, did planks, squats, lunges, and rows. Overall, he just tried to get his blood pumping, and his muscles loosened up.

He and his backup, Spencer, played a friendly game of hacky sack as well while suiting up before heading to their respective places out on the ice.

Denver worked the ice in front of his goal, sliding back and forth in the crease with quick sure motions, rotating his body and working his angles before his teammates began lining up to take shots at him. They would probably scrimmage this morning and go over their lines for tonight's game as well, but Denver enjoyed the one on one shots the most.

The speed and the ability to track the puck that was required to stop some of these guys, some of the best in the league, was a challenge that Denver was more than up to. He relished this opportunity in fact because he knew none of his teammates were going to take it easy on him, they expected him to show up and play his game, they always gave him more than they thought he could handle at practice.

Today was no different.

Half the team stood in front of Denver, and the other half in front of Spencer, waiting to take their shots, most of them with cocky arrogant grins on their stubbled faces. Denver dug a little deeper into the crease, he used his big frame to eat up space, making the net seem smaller as he eyed them with stern concentration.

Defensemen Peter Petrovic skated in first. Denver tracked the puck, watching as Peter went left, then skated right, trying to fake the first attempt and get Denver out of position, instead he squared himself up to the puck and caught the shot dead center, right in the bread basket.

Noah Dunst, a kid who had been called up a couple of years back to fill in the enormous hole left during their cup winning season while Donovan had been sidelined due to an accident off the ice, was up next. After spending a little more time last year in the AHL, he'd finally cracked the roster and was looking to move up onto one of the top two lines.

The kid had a hell of a slap shot and did well on the wing, but he ached to be a second-line center and was out to prove he could do the job. Denver had played a few games in the AHL with Noah before being called up himself, and the two had an easy camaraderie, but coming at him just now, showing off his impressive stick-handling skills, he was just another opponent.

Denver watched as Noah wound up, taking a shot that pinged off the top of the goalpost and fell in front of him a few inches off to the left, where he quickly scooped it up with his glove hand, as Noah skated in, shredding the ice when he finally came to a stop.

"Nice shot man, that almost went bar down!" Denver said, commending him as he tossed the puck up, Noah catching it on the blade of his stick and skating off. Denver figured he might just break the top two lines yet.

The rest of the firing squad took their shots, Denver able to stave off most of them, only one from a rookie with a deadly backhanded shot, and Dean, the Captain of the team, pucks finding the back of the net.

After a scrimmage match followed by yet more drills, Denver skated off the ice and hit the showers. Dressing quickly, he stopped in to see his goalie coach and go over a few last-minute adjustments, tonight they played Tampa, the first of many meetings this season, and he wanted to make a strong statement after the early elimination by them in the playoffs.

Satisfied that he was both mentally and physically prepared for the game tonight, Denver stopped off at a cafe downtown to grab a quick bite to eat. He used his iPhone to pull up a list of the home security companies in the area and made an appointment with the company that had the highest overall rating, for one day next week when he didn't have a game.

He wasn't entirely sure an alarm system was the answer to all his problems, but at least it would alert him if Mia tried sneaking out while he was home. He'd still need to figure out a way to deal with her when he had to go out of town for an extended road trip, which he would be doing soon.

Mia hadn't liked the idea any of having a babysitter, so he'd been allowing her to stay with friends from school when he was away, but with her latest stunt, he was no longer convinced that her friends were good influences on her. For all he knew though, she was the ringleader.

Either way, he had to do something. And fast.

Wolfing down a protein induced lunch, Denver looked up the phone number for Mia's probation officer, he figured now was as good as time as any to get that out of the way.

Denver had just swallowed the last of his meal when a perky voice came on the line. "Ms. Andrew's office, how can I help you?"

Denver stopped for a minute, confused, he pulled the phone away from his face and looked at the number he had dialed. Yup, it definitely said Mr. Kostoff.

"I'm, I'm sorry," He nearly stammered into the receiver. "I was looking for Mr. Kostoff, I must have the wrong number."

"Oh, no, you have the right number, Mr. Kostoff is no longer with us, he retired, we sent out letters a few weeks ago." The voice replied.

"I apologize then, I guess I should check my mail a little more often."

"It's okay, really. Ms. Andrews is out to lunch though, can I take a message?"

"Yeah, um, I'm Denver Collins, Mia's brother, there was an, uh, an incident with Mia last night and I just wanted to get in touch with her probation officer about it. See where we go from here."

Denver could hear what sounded like papers being shuffled on the other side before the perky voice spoke again. "I'm sorry Mr. Collins, I don't see anything here about Mia, I can have Ms. Andrews call you back, or if it isn't urgent, we'll be calling all of Mr. Kostoff's clients in a few days to set up appointments with Ms. Andrews to help everyone make an easier transition."

"Oh, okay, yeah, that works. I'll wait until then. Thanks."

"Absolutely, is there anything else I can help you with?"

"No, thanks, that'll do," Denver said, listening to the perky voice for another minute as she told him to have a great day, and ended the call.

The cops hadn't filed a report yet, or at least, that's what he gathered from the conversation. Maybe he'd get lucky and they wouldn't file that report at all. He could only hope.

Riley walked through the front door, just barely able to set the mail down on the hall table before the scurrying of claws could be heard across the hardwood floors. A flood of loud, excited yips, soon ensued as a mop of fur headed hurriedly in her direction. Bending down to greet the small terror on four legs, Riley endured the frantic welcome home and the impromptu bath that followed.

"Dasha!" Her roommate yelled, calling to the pint-sized chow hound to no avail as she continued to lap at every inch of Riley's face.

"Sandra, no, really, it's okay," Riley assured her, pushing at the dog gently and slowly getting to her feet. "I'm used to it by now."

"Is still so rude, no? I will have to tell Viktor we need to get a crate for that dog. Honestly, she is such a pest sometimes."

"Awe, but we love her anyways," Riley cooed, picking the small dog up and rubbing her behind the ears. "Isn't that right?"

Sandra shook her head in reply, trying to hold back a smile as she picked up the mail Riley had set down, rifling through it on her way into the kitchen.

Riley set a squirming Dasha down, who, after catching sight of a wiry gray shape at the top of the stairs, took off on a new mission, sounding off along the way.

"Are you going to the game tonight?" Sandra asked, ripping a couple of envelopes in half and throwing them in the trash.

Riley went to the fridge, grabbed herself a bottle of water, and leaned over the granite counter top as she opened it and took a sip. "I uh, I hadn't given much thought to it. Are you?"

Sandra pushed a lock of blonde hair behind her ear, smiling a little bashfully. "I cannot, I have to work tonight. But I am sure it will be a good game, you should go."

Riley shrugged, finishing off her water and throwing it away, "yeah, I'll think about it." She said on her way out of the kitchen.

"You may use my tickets if you would like."

"Thanks."

Sandra nodded, turning and quickly heading off in the direction of the downstairs suite she shared with Viktor as Riley headed upstairs to her own room.

Two months.

Riley had been living here for two months now, and it still seemed awkward as hell sometimes.

Riley still wasn't sure how long this arrangement was going to last, but despite feeling uncomfortable at times, she couldn't deny that Viktor and Sandra had been doing their best to make her feel at home. They were a lovely couple, and two of the nicest people she could have ever hoped to meet, not to mention, as far as roommates went, she couldn't have asked for quieter, cleaner, more responsible people.

And the rent was cheap.

After her best friend Abby had found love with the Captain of the Savannah Slashers and moved to Savannah taking what was essentially her dream job at the Savannah SPCA, Riley was offered the use of Abby's own home in Yulee, not far from the shelter where they had both worked.

Riley had met Abby in college, near the end of her undergrad degree, and after hitting it off had agreed to intern with her at a shelter that would eventually lead them to another shelter in the area where they would both end up working for the next three years. Abby in PR, and Riley as a receptionist and sometimes legal counsel as she had her undergrad in Law.

While working at the shelter, Riley finished up her Masters in Psychology online and earned an Associate's degree in early childhood development as well. She'd been a bit of a book worm, had studied her ass off, and spent little time dating, but it was all worth it in the end.

It was during her last year of college that Riley lived at Casa de Abby, where she had initially been expected to cover the mortgage payments, an amount that was significantly cheaper than the rent she had been paying to a greedy slumlord. Dean, however, after a few weeks of badgering, finally convinced Abby to let him pay off the property, and thus, Riley could stash whatever money she made at the shelter away for a rainy day.

Like moving expenses to Savannah. And a trip to Phoenix.

Riley graduated from the University of Phoenix's online program and used a portion of her savings to fly out to Phoenix so she could partake in the actual ceremony this past June. Then in August, after two months of job applications and interviews, she landed an amazing job in Savannah.

So, naturally, she and Abby had gone apartment hunting. But not finding anything that suited both of them, because Abby's opinion mattered to her almost as much as her own, Abby suggested she keep looking and move in with her husband's teammate Viktor Bortnik and his girlfriend Sandra until she found the perfect place.

Viktor lived in downtown Savannah in a nice townhome that he had purchased with Sandra when the two of them decided to live together. He'd already been living there for a few years with a couple of his teammates, but as each of them had moved out, they had two bedrooms upstairs that were empty, and were more than willing to put Riley up, being that she was a friend of Abby's and, well, everyone loved Abby.

The location was perfect, the rent was cheap, and Viktor and Sandra were more than accommodating. It had been a no-brainer really. Riley had settled in with relative ease, and though she checked the local classifieds often, she was in no real hurry to leave anytime soon.

The more time she spent around Sandra, the closer the two of them got. Sandra, like Viktor, was from Russia, and though the two of them spoke English, it was at times broken or hard to understand, but they somehow managed to communicate effectively anyways.

And really, Sandra was a total sweetheart, as was Viktor, even if he did look like a fierce bald giant and she, like some sort of Amazonian warrior princess. And Viktor's little dog Dasha was just the most adorable little scrap of fur! She absolutely enjoyed the small dog. She couldn't, however, say the same for Wolverine, the once feral cat that she had adopted while living at Abby's place.

Dasha and Wolverine didn't quite see eye to eye and often fought over who ruled the roost. It was almost comical though really. Especially when Riley would come upon the two of them curled up on the couch together. They just weren't sure whether to be friends or enemies, she supposed.

Yes, there were many perks to living with Viktor and Sandra, season tickets to Slashers game were just one of those.

Perhaps the best one, but, being that she WAS friends with the Captain's wife, it wasn't like she couldn't have gone to just about any game she wanted to with Abby. Still, it was back door of Sandra to offer them to her. Not that she was going. Right?

It was Friday. Riley had just finished her first official week on the job, she was exhausted, both physically and mentally, and the last thing she wanted to do was go to a noisy hockey game.

Or was it?

It was true, she did love hockey, at least, she'd fallen in love with the sport ever since that first live game she'd gone to with Abby the year they'd won the Stanley Cup. Then again, hanging out with some of the players after the game might have had something to do with it too.

It's not every day you get amazing seats to the home opener of a major league team and then get to hang out with their star players afterward. Of course, now she lived with one of them, and being as her best friend had married into the Slashers family as well, she could pretty much hang out with any of them whenever she wanted to.

Maybe it wasn't such a big deal anymore. But it was still cool to watch them in person, and the club seats were pretty bad-ass. Maybe she'd call Abby and see if she was going to be there tonight, that sounded like a good enough reason to get herself gussied up and make a night of it.

Yeah, that sounded like a pretty good idea.

Riley texted Abby, then jumped in the shower, regardless of whether or not Abby was down for a girl's night, she still needed a shower, the AC in her building was intermittent at times, and she felt all sticky from sweating throughout the day.

By the time she'd washed the stink off, Abby had confirmed that she'd be there and the two decided to meet in the player's lot. Riley slipped into her beloved skinny jeans and threw on her favorite jersey, one she'd bought at the arena after her first live game and had gotten Donovan Pierce, one of the team's alternate captains to sign.

Even if Donovan was married now, it was still her favorite jersey and pretty damn special being as it was her first.

Riley poured some cat food in Wolverine's dish on her way downstairs, even though he was nowhere to be seen, and knocked on Sandra's open door. Viktor wasn't home, he'd left a few hours earlier to head to the arena for pregame warm-ups.

"Da?" Sandra called out.

"Hey, uh, you sure you don't need your tickets tonight?"

Sandra poked her head out of the master bathroom, smiling sweetly, "Net, you may have them. I am to be working late tonight. Please, take them."

Riley smiled back and waved to her, "thanks!"

Grabbing the tickets off the counter, Riley bent down and gave Dasha a quick pat before snagging a jacket off its peg in the utility room and heading out the back door.

She smiled to herself as she got in her car and thought about how much fun she and Abby were going to have tonight. She hadn't been out like this for a while, and she had yet to actually catch any of the games so far this season.

She needed this. And she was going to enjoy it!
Chapter 5

Tampa

"Fuck!" Andre Lepowski yelled, kicking a trash can, sending it and its contents flying across the locker room as the team poured in during the second intermission.

"Pick that shit up!" Someone else shouted.

Andre rewarded them with the middle finger behind his back, not even bothering to turn around while he wound his way over to his stall and plopped down.

Coach Turski made his entrance into the room quietly amongst the angry chatter, picking up the downed garbage can along the way. When clearing his throat didn't work to get the frustrated player's attention, Turski flung the empty garbage can at one of the walls. The loud clang quickly shutting everyone up.

"Now then," he said in his chillingly soft-spoken voice that was normally reserved for when he was really angry. "Perhaps we can get down to business. And Andre?" He said, pinning the star winger with a steely gaze, "pick that shit up."

"Yes, sir," Andre choked, jumping up and doing as he was told.

"I'm sorry Coach, guys," Denver suddenly spoke up, all eyes turning in his direction. "I should've been better. I'm sorry."

"What?" Dean spat, shaking his head in bewilderment along with the rest of his teammates. "Collins, this isn't on you."

"But I..."

Donovan held up his hand, effectively cutting him off, "Cap's right, this isn't on you Denver. Hell, we're all frustrated, but we're only down one-nothing, if anything, you've kept us in this game."

Everyone murmured their agreement, Coach Turski sat back in silence, letting his men dissect the game and point out for themselves the areas they needed to improve upon in the third period.

"Hell," Andre chimed in, "Denver, there's no way you could have even stopped that one goal, not with Sustr's giant ass blocking your view."

"Da!" Peter coughed, "what is guy, like, six-six? giant for sure!"

"Six-eight," Denver corrected, smiling a little sheepishly.

They were right, there was no way he would have seen that puck, a rocket by Kucherov that sailed past him top-shelf and into the back of the net. Sustr was easily the biggest player on the Tampa Bay Lightning's roster, and standing in front of Denver the way he had been, he made a very effective wall, cutting off almost all of Denver's sight lines, and making Kucherov's shot nearly impossible to see, let alone stop.

"No, this is on us." Dean went on, commanding the attention of his team. "We have to be better in our own zone and stop relying so heavily on our goalie, he can only do so much."

"Hear, hear!" Several members of the team shouted, others nodding and moving around restlessly.

Donovan stood, taking up where Dean left off. "I know this looks reminiscent of game four, but come on guys, we've got this! We're only down one, and they're starting to sit back and protect their lead, let's make them pay for that!"

There were several rumbles and shouts, words of encouragement, and mentions of various ways to get themselves back in the game, Coach Turski made some notes but remained tight-lipped, his men had this well in hand, and he felt no reason to interfere. His point had been made, even if he hadn't made it himself.

They left the locker room more fired up than they had been before the start of the game, ready to make some noise and get the crowd back into it. No way they were going to let Tampa walk away with the win. Again.

Coach Turski stopped Denver on the way out, placing a hand on his shoulder pads.

"Coach?"

"Just keep doing what you're doing, you hear me?"

Denver nodded, smiling as he put his mask on. "Yes, sir."

"Oh man!" Riley shouted above the noise. "What a freaking game!"

Abby laughed, taking Riley by the arm and leading her down into the tunnels that would take them to the locker room. "Yeah, I thought for sure we were going to lose."

Riley stopped in the hall just outside the locker room, she could hear the faint cheering from the team beyond. "No, you didn't," she said shaking her head.

Abby shrugged and rolled her eyes. "Okay, so I figured they'd find a way to make it happen. You coming?" She asked, with her hands ready to push the steel doors open.

Riley thought about it for a second, looking down at her watch and noting the time, "nah, I think I'm going to go."

Abby arched a brow. "Riley, it's only 10:30, on a Friday night, what else have you got to do?"

"I'm just really tired is all," she said, feigning a yawn and stretching her arms above her head.

"Uh-huh, right, and this wouldn't happen to have anything to do with a certain goalie, would it?"

"What? No! I don't get to set my own schedule and work from home, unlike some people I know. And I just started a new job, cut me some slack will you?"

Abby sighed, stepping away from the door, "yeah okay, I'll walk you out."

"Holy shit! that was awesome!" Noah said, smacking Denver on the back and sitting on his bench in the stall next to Denver's as he undressed.

"Yeah, that was a pretty good game."

"Pretty good? Nah, you were like a brick wall out there Collins, that was way better than just pretty good."

Denver smiled but just shook his head. He wished he still felt that giddy excitement after every win like Noah did. A win was great and all, but it was only the sixth game of an eighty-two-game season, they had a long way to go.

Then again, if he had scored the game-winning goal in the last ten seconds of the game, on a breakaway off a stretch pass like Noah had, he'd probably be pretty damn excited too.

Andre was proving he was worth that raise he'd just gotten by scoring the tying goal in the first minute of the third period, but for the next eighteen minutes and fifty seconds, it was a game of dump and chase, with little to no shots on goal from either team.

There were a couple of goalposts by each team, Denver could still hear the ringing in his ears from Tampa's last push, the damn puck came awful close to going in, but otherwise, both teams played a defensive minded type of shutdown towards the end, figuring on overtime.

Until the last twenty seconds of the game that is.

Hedman brought the puck into Slashers territory for the Lightning, passing it to Johnson, who then tried to center the puck for Kucherov, who, it seemed, was still on fire from last season. He'd barely slowed down in the playoffs before they were ultimately knocked out in the Eastern Conference Finals by the Capitals who would eventually go on to win their first Stanley Cup.

Tonight, Kucherov played as if he hadn't mised a beat, and if Peter hadn't caught the rebound after Kucherov hit the post, Tampa might have had another chance to put it in. But Peter had been there and quickly threw the puck across the ice with his stick, a long stretch pass that found Noah, who was just getting on the ice himself.

Noah was easily one of the fastest skaters on the team, even if he was a rookie of sorts, having only played a handful of games in the past two seasons. And Coach Turski still limited the amount of time he spent on the ice, though after tonight, that might well change.

Tonight, Noah had gotten himself down the ice and was setting up his shot before even one of Tampa's players could cross the blue line to help their goalie, Vasilevskiy, out. With a fake to the left, Noah managed to get Vasilevskiy just far enough out of position and slammed the shot into the opening of the right side of the net.

Game over.

There were only ten seconds left on the clock at that point. They'd come ten seconds too close to giving Tampa at least a point. Then again, Tampa was nothing if not efficient in three on three overtime, so they may have been able to come back and win it themselves.

Noah was a hell of a shot, and he was going to make a hell of a second-line center one day soon. Denver smiled again as the kid, who was actually only a few years younger than himself, hooted and hollered on his way into the showers. The team echoing him in their own celebrations. Beating Tampa after being shut-out in the last game of the first round of the playoffs felt damn good. Even if Denver didn't get that giddy feeling, Noah and some of the other young guys did, the win certainly wasn't lost on him.

By Tuesday of the next week, after an early game on Sunday against the Oilers, in which the Slashers won 3-2 in a shootout, Denver had managed to find both a temporary solution for Mia while the Slashers were gone from Wednesday to Sunday for a three-game road trip, and have a state of the art security system installed that included cameras he could view from his smartphone, and motion sensors all over the house and windows.

Mia wasn't too happy about any of it.

While Denver was gone for the remainder of the week, Mia would be staying with Harmony, Peter's fiancée, who was taking some vacation time, and assured him that they would be the best of girlfriends by the time Mia left.

And since Denver refused to give Mia the security code to the alarm system, he felt pretty reassured that Mia wouldn't be skipping class to party it up at home, not that he figured Harmony was going to flake out on him and shirk her responsibilities. She was pretty convincing when she told him she'd watch Mia like a hawk.

Denver was glad he had friends like Peter and Harmony.

No, family, they had called him family. Denver felt lucky to have so many wonderful people in his life. Now, if only he could get Mia on board, life would be perfect.

As it was, he had finally received a call from Mia's probation officer's secretary. The police had indeed filed a report, and the new probation officer wanted to make their meet and greet a two-fold, addressing the curfew issue the same day. They'd made an appointment for the following Monday. An off day for Denver before they started a four-game home stand.

Just what he wanted to do with his day off. Simply wonderful.

The Slashers would go two and one in their three road games. Winning their first against the Rangers by three on Thursday, and their second against the Islanders in a shutout on Friday, but ultimately losing to Boston on Saturday.

It was a hard-fought game, but in the end, Boston was able to come back from a three-point deficit and force overtime, where they would get one past Spencer Gallagher, as Denver had played the previous night.

And of course, no one was harder on themselves that night than Spencer. Like all good goalies, he blamed himself for letting in what he called "softies" even though Denver himself knew there was no way he could have stopped some of those goals.

Boston's players had a way of crashing the net and picking up a rebound before the goalie knew what hit him. And Rask, Boston's own tender, after being pulled in the first period for letting in three goals on just ten shots on goal, somehow managed to convince his coach to give him another chance during intermission and came out in the second period with a steel reserve, not allowing another goal and blocking more than thirty shots during the rest of the game.

Rask was probably the motivation his team needed to rally back and win the game. The Slashers were likely tired and worn out by the end of the game, but they'd played well, and they, especially Spencer, needed not to be ashamed of losing.

Boston found a way, scoring two goals in the second period and the tying goal late in the third off a fluky pass and a bad bounce. No, Spencer wasn't to blame, and on the flight home, Denver had been sure to make that clear to him.

Nobody blamed Spencer for the loss, it was a team loss. A hard-fought team loss. Coach had nothing but praises for his team during the press conference, just as he sang praises for Boston's Rask, who obviously found a way to come back and steal the game from them.

But like France had done for him, Denver found himself stepping up and letting his new, young, backup, know that he'd played well and that he should be proud of the game he'd played rather than criticize himself and get too far into his own head.

Denver, of all people, knew that once you got too far into your head, the results could be disastrous. You shook off the loss and came away from the game looking at the positives, building off those. One game at a time.

While he knew he was no Francois Baudin, Denver was confident that he could fill his position as starting goaltender well, and it didn't hurt that he had a first-rate defense in front of him. He saw a lot of positives in Spencer's game, the young goaltender who was in his second year in the NHL, having played as a backup the previous year for Toronto, and in the AHL for a few years before that.

Maybe not this year, but next year for sure, Denver figured they'd be the perfect goalie tandem, maybe the best in the league.

The Slashers flight from Boston landed in the early morning hours on Sunday, as the game, for whatever reason, had been a nine o'clock start and with overtime, hadn't ended until after midnight. Denver was beat and as it was so late, or early, however one wanted to look at it, he decided not to wake Mia but to head straight home and enjoy the quiet of an empty house.

In the morning, or, what was at least a more appropriate time in the morning, Denver called Peter and let him know he'd be picking Mia up around lunch time. To which Peter invited him to stay for lunch, and Denver, being unable to refuse, said he would pick up some beer on the way.

And so, they had a barbecue.

As it turned out, Mia was the epitome of a perfect young lady during her stay. Harmony had taken her to school and picked her up, and as Denver hadn't received any calls from the school, he assumed Mia had stayed there, and once back at Harmony's place, Mia did her homework and helped Harmony out around the house.

Something Denver couldn't even get her to do at home.

Of course, helping around the house wasn't exactly what he would have called it once they told him what it actually entailed. Harmony and Peter had two rather large dogs, one of the things that drew them to each other. Harmony came from a long line of sheep herders on her mother's side of the family, and as such her grandparents raised dogs as well.

So, Harmony had herself a beautiful sable German Shepherd of working European bloodlines whose coloring resembled that of a wolf. She had even named him after his wolfy ancestors, calling him Lupus, after Canis Lupus, the Timber Wolf.

Peter, who had taken part in a calendar photo shoot, a couple of years prior, at the insistence of Dean who was trying to woo Abby at the time, had fallen in love with the shelter dog he had been paired with, a gorgeous Belgian Malinois named Sadie who happened to be a police force drop out because while she had a high ball drive, she didn't want to give it up or cooperate in most other ways.

And it was their dogs, that had truly brought them together, and it was their dogs, that had truly captured Mia's attention and admiration over the past few days, giving her both something to do, and someone to hug and kiss and lay her affections on.

It almost made Denver consider getting her a dog of her own.

Almost.

Maybe she'd been a big help with Harmony's dogs, but Denver wasn't sure a dog was going to change Mia, he didn't think a dog was going to stop her from this downward spiral she was in. Maybe it would temporarily, but he didn't have time to take care of a dog once she got bored of it, and it wasn't fair to bring a living, feeling creature into their home for it to only know love for a little while.

Of course, that didn't stop Mia from hinting at the fact that she did, in fact, want a dog.

"Harmony said her Grandpa still breeds dogs, and that they just had a litter of Collies last month," Mia said on the way home, hoping she sounded nonchalant about it.

"Uh-huh," Denver replied, groaning inwardly as he tried to concentrate on the road in front of him.

"She even showed me pictures," Mia continued. "They're not like, the Lassie kind of Collie though."

"You don't say."

"They were really pretty Denver. There was this one puppy, oh my gosh, she was so cute, she had this weird blue patchy color on one side of her face and then patches on her back. And Harmony said her eyes will probably be blue! Isn't that so cool!?"

"Yeah Mia, real cool."

"Oh, come on!" Mia pouted, becoming frustrated by Denver's lack of, well, anything even resembling emotion.

"Come on what?"

"I want a puppy! And Harmony said she could probably get me a deal, and they're Border Collies, so they're really smart, and I could teach her to do tricks, and maybe agility, or dog shows or something, she said they were from champion bloodlines."

Pulling into the garage, Denver shut off the engine and turned to face his sister, "no way, no dog."

"But, Denver!" Mia protested, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"Don't but Denver me, Mia, I'm not buying you a dog."

"What if I work for it? Can I buy it?"

"No." He replied, not even taking a second to consider her proposal as he climbed down from the truck and headed into the house, Mia hot on his heels.

"Please Denver, I'm begging you!" And just to push the point home, Mia got in front of him and fell to her knees, clasping her hands in front of her.

"You can't even take care of yourself, and you want me to get you a dog? Mia, we have an appointment tomorrow with your new probation officer, let's make sure she doesn't plan on shipping you off to jail before we start talking about getting a dog. Yeah?"

Though he had still ultimately said no, Mia grasped that small hint of a maybe from his answer and held onto it. "Okay, so like, if I don't get in any trouble tomorrow, and like, I start doing better in school and stay out of trouble, can I get a dog then?"

Exhausted, Denver sighed. "We'll see."

With squeals of joy, Mia danced around her brother for a few seconds before scrambling up the stairs and heading for her bedroom, leaving Denver's head whirling in what he was sure was going to be a hell of a headache.
Chapter 6

Conflict of Interest

After a quiet evening where Denver ordered pizza and they both fled to the privacy of their rooms for the night, Mia seemed only too pleasant and accommodating the next morning, even offering to make breakfast, which turned out to be a bowl of sugary cereal since the girl couldn't boil water let alone cook anything without burning it.

Denver wondered what she was up to, but he didn't have to wonder long.

"I talked to Harmony last night."

"What? When?"

"Um, after you went upstairs with an entire pie and a two liter of Pepsi." She said, giving her brother a grossed out look, "anyways, she emailed me those pictures, and I wanted to show them to you. She also said I could work for her at her father's grocery store so I could pay for Callie myself."

"Wait, wait, wait, who's Callie? And what pictures? And how do you suppose you're going to get all the way over to Pooler?"

Mia handed him a printed-out picture of the little Blue Merle Border Collie puppy, holding her breath as he looked at it.

"That's Callie," she finally said when Denver set the picture down and took another bite of his cereal. "You know, like calico, because she's multiple colors. She's only four weeks old, so I must wait another four weeks, but that's plenty of time to make a thousand dollars. And Harmony said she'd take me back and forth to work."

Denver spit out his cereal. "A thousand dollars? Who the hell spends a thousand dollars on a dog? Can't we just adopt one from Abby's shelter?"

Mia looked a little distraught, "Harmony said her Grandpa's puppies sell for more than fifteen-hundred, she got me a pretty good deal, and what do you care? it would be MY money, and it's not like you couldn't afford it."

"No, no way Mia, you want to get a job, fine, get a job, but you're not wasting a thousand dollars on, on some mutt!"

"She's not a mutt, Denver, she's a purebred, registered puppy from champion bloodlines and she's worth a lot of money! And I'll do whatever I damn well please with MY money!"

"No dog, end of discussion!" Denver shouted, tired of her insolence. "Now go get ready to leave."

Mia huffed as she got up from the table, all but slamming her cereal bowl in the sink.

Fucking teenagers. Denver thought to himself.

Riley looked up at the knock on the door, "come on in." She prompted, standing and smoothing her skirt as her very first client slowly entered the room.

Her brows rose, and she immediately plopped back down into her chair as Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome himself walked into the room. The air suddenly felt thick, the room smaller, her legs utterly weak.

"Denver?"

"Riley?" He replied, sounding both surprised and genuinely pleased as a slow smile crept across his too handsome face.

Mia preceded him to the desk, taking a seat in front of it and looking from one to the other. "You two know each other?" she asked in an oddly curious voice.

Denver quickly looked down, his cheeks flushed with color as he tried to think of something to say.

Riley, despite her rapidly beating heart, saved them both from any more embarrassment. "I'm a friend of Abby's." She stated simply and calmly.

After shooting her brother another odd look, to which he just shrugged before taking the seat next to her, Mia nodded, and crossed her arms in front of her chest, taking up her usual petulant attitude.

"So, Mia, is it?" Riley asked, breaking the awkward silence that had fallen upon the room.

"Guilty." She replied with a smirk.

"Mia!" Denver scolded.

"What?"

With a sort of annoyed half laugh, he shook his head, "drop the cute little attitude, will you?"

"I didn't even say anything!" Mia whined, scooting her chair further away from Denver.

Clearing her throat to break up the tension, Riley opened a folder that sat on the desk in front of her, flipping through a couple of pages and skimming some stuff here and there before talking again. She'd already been through the folder twice that morning, but having Denver in the room made her nearly forget herself as her mind seemed to wander back to a certain night filled with twisted sheets and laughter.

It was nerve-wracking, to say the least. But when Denver kept eyeing her and blushing, she knew she wasn't the only one thinking about that one drunken night they'd spent together nine months ago.

"Denver." She finally said, trying to inject some authority into her voice, and having to clear her throat again when it came out a little huskier than she would have liked. Denver just looked up at her and smiled. It was that damn smile! Just when she thought she had herself under control! "You're Mia's..." she trailed off, flipping through the folder again.

"Brother," he supplied.

"Uh-huh, brother, okay. So that means..."

"I'm her legal guardian."

Riley's head snapped up. "Say that again?"

"Our parents are no longer in the picture. I'm her legal guardian."

Riley's heart did a little flip-flop, "oh."

Seemingly disinterested with the conversation, Mia looked down at her hands and picked the dirt out of her fingernails. For reasons she couldn't comprehend, that bothered Riley to no end. She had this sudden urge to slap at the young girl's hands. And for what? Because she was being a normal sixteen-year-old girl?

"So, tell me again, why I'm here?" Mia finally piped up, jarring Riley from her thoughts.

"Mia..." Denver warned.

Riley held up a hand, "no, it's okay." She smiled, making Denver flush just a little as the tension in his shoulders eased. "Mia, you're here for two reasons. First, because I'm taking over all of Mr. Kostoff's clients, and I'm bringing them in one by one as a sort of, getting to know each other kind of thing."

"Lucky me," Mia groaned before Riley was finished, earning her a jab in the ribs from Denver.

"And second, Mia," Riley continued with a curt smile "because I had a report on my desk last week from the police, on your behalf."

Mia rolled her eyes, "great, are you going to throw me in jail or something?"

"Mia," Denver hissed, trying to smile apologetically to Riley at the same time, "last time." He warned.

Mia seemed to shrug him off, but she must have taken him at least a little bit seriously because she unfolded her arms and laid them in her lap instead.

Riley took that as her cue to continue. "No Mia, I'm not going to send you to jail, but we don't exactly have a three-strike system here."

"What does that mean?" Denver asked.

Making a few notations, Riley closed the folder and clasped her hands on top of it. "Well, I made a note that Mia has been reminded of her curfew and that she is aware that if she breaks it again, she may have to go back to court to face sentencing for new charges." She answered, looking from Denver to Mia, "does that sound fair to you Mia?"

Mia shook her head, whispered what sounded like a thank you, though it was mostly unintelligible, and hopped up from her chair, "can we go now?" She all but cried, the tough girl façade starting to crack.

Denver looked to Riley for the answer.

"Um, yeah, I guess so." She replied, a little surprised by the emotion Mia was showing after her earlier outburst. "I guess we could spend some time getting to know each other at your regular visit next week."

"Great." Mia huffed, heading out the door.

Denver wasn't too far behind when Riley called out to him.

"Hey Denver, can you hang back a sec?"

"Sure," he said, turning, a big ole smile spreading slowly. "Did you want me to close the door?"

Riley nodded, trying to avert her gaze a little as she felt heat suddenly steal into her cheeks.

"I'll be just a minute, okay?" Denver said to Mia who sighed in response before heading off in the direction of the large saltwater fish tank in the waiting room.

Riley used the split second that his back was turned to run her hands down the sides of her head to make sure her hair was still in place. Satisfied that it was, she slipped into her serious role and plastered on what she hoped was a more professional smile.

"What can I do for you?" Denver said with an easiness that belied the tension coiled tighter than a snake in his belly.

"This isn't going to be a problem, is it?"

"What isn't going to be a problem?"

Riley tried to remain confident, but that wily smile of his was starting to get to her. "Me..." she took a deep breath. "Me being Mia's probation officer, I can have her transferred to someone else if you think this might be a conflict of interest."

Denver could tell that he was having an effect on her, and he liked it. He liked watching Ms. Cool, Calm, and Collected sweat a little. "Why would it be a conflict of interest?" He asked with mock innocence.

"Don't do this." She scowled.

"Do what? I'm just asking you why you think there might be a conflict of interest? I mean, you're friends with Abby, not me."

Annoyed now, Riley stood and put her hands on the desk, trying her best to look slightly more intimidating. "Are you really going to make me say it?"

With one of those slow lopsided grins of his, Denver nodded, leaned his heavy frame against the door, "Say what Riley?"

She gulped, "that we..."

"That we what? Say it, Riley. What did we do?"

"We had SEX!" She finally ground out. "Okay? We had sex, yes, we did, now, is this going to be a problem or not?"

With his arms folded in front of him, Denver straightened away from the door. "Nope."

He was infuriating! He seemed to have just as much fun teasing her now as he had that night! Shaking her head, Riley plopped back down in her chair and sighed out of frustration.

"Is it going to be a problem for you?" He finally asked.

"No."

"Good."

With her eyes still shooting darts in his direction, Riley managed a tight smile. "Good."

"For the record," he declared, heading for the door, "I asked Abby to reach out to you for me."

Riley waited a beat before answering him, letting him get halfway over the threshold, "I know." She replied.

Denver kind of half laughed, "huh."

"Denver I..." She started to say before he put up his hand and cut her off.

"Don't worry about it, Riley."

And then he was gone.

"What was that all about?" Mia asked on their way out.

"Nothing."

"Denver, really, what was it about?"

Denver shrugged, "she just wanted to make sure I didn't feel like there was any sort of conflict of interest." He hoped that was enough of an explanation, it was the truth really, but he'd be damned if he was going to tell his nosy little sister everything about his and Riley's past.

"Why would it be a conflict of interest?" She asked anyways, shattering his hopes of an easy explanation.

Thinking on his feet, he decided to use Riley's earlier answer, "because she's friends with Dean's wife."

"So?"

"Exactly."

Mia had to think about that for a minute, but with a mental shrug, she let it drop. "Well, she was kind of cute, wasn't she?"

"Mia," he admonished.

"What? I just said she was cute, that's all. She certainly seems a lot nicer than stuffy old Mr. Kostoff."

"I know exactly what you were thinking Mia, and you can forget it."

"I wasn't thinking anything!" Mia said with a smirk.

Denver stopped walking, grabbing her arm and forcing her to face him, "you were thinking maybe I could date her and you'd be able to get off Scot-free. Well, you can forget it, Mia, I'm not going to date Riley."

Shrugging out of his grasp, Mia mumbled something that sounded a lot like "whatever" and stalked off in the direction of his truck.

Teenagers.

Once they were well on their way home, Mia, decided it was as good as time as any to pick up where they had left off that morning.

"If I'm not in any trouble, can I get a dog then?"

"Mia..." Denver groaned.

"Will you at least think about it?" She pleaded one last time.

Beyond frustrated, and really not interested in going another round with her, Denver gave what he hoped, was just an inch. "I'll think about it. Now please, can you be quiet, for just a little while?"

Mia turned, smiling to herself as she nodded.

They made the ride home in companionable silence. For once.
Chapter 7

Abby's Opinion

Riley somehow managed to muddle her way through the rest of the day, even if she couldn't seem to get her mind off Denver and their one night stand. She wished she'd paid more attention to Mia's file, that she had been prepared to see him again. Like being hit with a defibrillator, it was a major shock to her system.

She needed to find some way to diffuse the feelings that were practically consuming her thoughts at this point, so she'd called Abby on her lunch break and asked if she'd like to get some coffee after work. Tyler was staying with Grandma for a few days, so Abby readily agreed.

She was always up for a little girl time.

Abby worked two or three days a week at her new office at the shelter in Savannah and spent the rest of her time working remotely from home, where she could enjoy being a more hands-on mother to Tyler. Dean had tried several times to get her to quit her job, as he was more than capable of supporting them, but Abby, the bleeding heart that she was, just couldn't bear the thought of "abandoning" the animals.

Riley didn't miss working for the shelter as much, she liked animals, but the smell of those places really wore on her. And she was ecstatic about finally landing her dream job. She loved kids, and she wanted to make a difference in the world, even if it was just one child.

She met Abby at The Coffee Fox, which was a four-star craft coffee house off Broughton Street in Downtown Savannah, that also served beer.

While Abby ordered some fancy espresso with a white heart in the middle, Riley opted for the beer.

"Been one of those days huh?" Abby asked licking the foam off her top lip.

Riley took a long swig, "yup," she agreed, taking another pull from the bottle before setting it down on the table, nearly empty.

"Well, you've only been on the job, what? About two weeks now? It's bound to be a little rough at first."

"It has nothing to do with the job," she replied between gulps, finishing off her beer and staring at the empty bottle as she contemplated getting another one. "At least, not really."

"Gee, that clarifies things." Abby joked, rolling her eyes.

"Sorry." She grumbled, heading over to the counter and ordering herself another beer.

Abby waited until Riley had taken a sip of her second beer, "Wanna tell me what happened?"

"Yeah, I should've kept my damn legs closed, that's what happened."

Tilting her head to the side, Abby gave her a blank sort of stare. "I'm confused, did you sleep with a co-worker or something? I thought you said you worked with mostly women?"

"What? No!" Riley snapped, shaking her head quickly as if she suddenly had water in her ears. "I was talking about Denver."

"Denver?"

Riley took another long gulp of beer, she was really slugging them down, this, her second, was nearly gone as well, and they'd only been there for about ten minutes. Abby watched her for a minute, torn between amusement and concern. She knew all about what had happened that night between Riley and Denver, every sordid detail, and it was kind of funny seeing a guy get to her this way, but at the rate she was going, she'd be drunk by the time they left, and that in and of itself was the concerning part.

"What does Denver have to do with anything? Gosh, Riley, that was what? Nine months ago? Did you run into him on your lunch break or something?"

"Mmm-mmm," Riley murmured putting a hand out to shut Abby up as she finished off her second beer. "I ran into him at work," she rushed on without taking a breath.

Abby grabbed her by the hand when she would have gotten up for yet another drink. "What do you mean you ran into him at work? What would Denver be doing there?"

"I'm Mia's new probation officer."

It took Abby a minute to digest that, and as she sat back in her chair, she inadvertently let go of Riley's hand, giving her the chance to get that next drink.

"I didn't know Mia was in trouble," she said as though talking to no one in particular when Riley finally came back with a coffee, having opted not to get completely drunk.

"Dean didn't tell you that? I thought you two talked about everything."

"What?" Abby asked, seeming to come back from whatever far off place she'd just been at. "No. Not everything. Mia's in trouble?"

"Let's focus on one thing at a time here, Abs."

"Okay, yeah, one thing at a time."

"Mia has been on a year's probation since March, for trespassing and criminal mischief, nothing serious really, typical teenager stuff. I'm really surprised Dean never told you any of this."

"We don't talk about EVERYTHING, Ry, and really, this seems pretty personal, if Denver confided in him, which I'm sure he did, it's none of my business."

Stirring some extra sugar into her coffee, Riley sat back and nodded her understanding.

Abby continued, "besides, I never told HIM about you and Denver."

"You didn't?"

"Hell no! That's none of his business!"

"Do you think Denver told him?"

Abby shrugged, taking a sip of her drink and dabbing at her mouth with a napkin. "Anyways, I knew Denver had custody of Mia after what went down with their mom and what not, but I had no idea she'd been arrested. She's always seemed like such a sweet kid when she's around the rink, and she absolutely loves Tyler!"

"Who wouldn't?" The compliment made Abby blush. "From what little time I spent with her today, I'd say she's got some underlying issues for sure. You said something about her mother, do you know what happened? It isn't exactly part of her records."

"Oh, yeah, sure. Their mom has Alzheimer's, and their dad hasn't been in the picture for the last few years, I heard he ran off with his mistress when his wife was diagnosed. Pretty shitty thing to do if you ask me."

"Ouch. Alzheimer's? Gosh, she's gotta be only what, in her mid-fifties?"

Abby nodded.

"Wow, that's gotta be tough. So, what, Mia and their mother both live with Denver?" Riley looked down briefly, hoping to hide the heat that stole into her cheeks, "I haven't done a home visit yet."

Thankfully, Abby didn't notice. "No, um, Mrs. Collins is in a nursing home in, I think, Atlanta? Yeah, that sounds right. Dean didn't tell me the whole story, but I guess there was some kind of incident back in February involving Child Protective Services, and he had to leave a game during intermission, he got custody a few weeks later."

"And then Mia got arrested," Riley mused to herself, "that actually makes sense."

"What makes sense?"

"Huh? Oh, I was just thinking the timing kind of made sense. Like, her mom gets sent away, her father isn't around, and Denver travels a lot. Probably a cry for attention."

"Wow, Riley," Abby commended, "you're really good at this."

Riley flushed, "thanks."

"You didn't know Denver was her guardian, let alone her brother, huh? Must have been a shock seeing him walk in. Wasn't it in your paperwork somewhere?"

Riley's blush deepened, "I uh, yeah, it was, I guess I just missed it. And yeah, you could say it was a shock, for both of us."

"Do you regret what happened between the two of you?" Abby asked, finally getting to the heart of the matter.

"No, not really, it was fun," Riley answered with a sly smile. "I guess I just figured I'd be more prepared for it, you know, if and when I ran into him again."

"So, what happened?"

"I'm not going to lie, it was pretty awkward, and a little nerve-wracking."

"He got to you huh?"

"A little bit," Riley admitted begrudgingly with a sigh. "We were fine while Mia was in the room."

"Naturally."

"Yeah, well, things got even more awkward when I asked him to stay behind for a minute, you know, to make sure we were going to be okay. Er, um, that HE was going to be okay with me being Mia's P.O."

Abby smirked a little, having been around all the guys on the Slashers team for the past two years now, she knew them pretty well, and Denver, he might be what one considered an "easy going" guy, but he was even easier on the eyes, so it wasn't hard to imagine what that did to a single girl like Riley's hormones. "Is he okay with it?" She asked with interest.

Riley narrowed her eyes at Abby, "oh, you're just loving this, aren't you?"

"Maybe just a little," Abby laughed pinching her fingers together to illustrate. "I told you back then, though that you should have given him a chance, you two would look adorable together, and you know how much of a sweetheart I think he is."

"I have no interest in dating Denver Abs," Riley groaned, shaking her head as if they hadn't been through this already several times before. "And I made that perfectly clear to him today. I think."

"Did he ask you out?"

"No. I didn't say that."

"But you told him you didn't want to date him? That's pretty presumptuous of you."

Riley sighed audibly, Abby could be totally frustrating sometimes, "no. That's not how it went. Nothing like that. I just asked Denver if he felt like there was going to be any sort of conflict of interest given our past."

"And what did he say?"

"You mean after he totally embarrassed me?"

Abby laughed, she could totally picture Denver trying to get under Riley's skin. "Oh no, what did he do?"

Flushing with heat, Riley wasn't sure she wanted to tell her, but this was Abby, she told Abby everything. "He made me admit to what we'd done back in January."

"Oh, God, I bet you were mortified!" Abby giggled, yelping when Riley reached over and slapped at her playfully.

"Stop it!" Riley chuckled, finding the funny in the situation herself now that it was over and she'd had a couple of beers in her.

"Sorry, sorry, I'm done. I'll stop. I take it you two worked things out?"

"Yeah, he said there wouldn't be a problem, although, I do feel kinda bad about how we left things."

"Oh?"

"He uh, he told me he'd reached out to you." Riley sighed, feeling guilty all over again.

"But you knew that already," Abby said before the realization dawned on her, "ah, I see, he didn't know that you knew."

"Right. And rather than make you look like an idiot, I made myself look like an asshole... I told him I knew."

"Ouch."

"You should have seen the look on his face Abs, it was awful. I felt like I'd sucker punched him. And then he just walked out of the office before I even had the chance to explain. I feel like a total bitch."

Abby wasn't sure what to say at that point. They'd had this conversation, or one like it several times in the weeks following the "incident," and it never ended well. Abby had her opinion, and Riley had hers, neither was willing to give an inch.

"Would you just say something? Please?" Riley begged, feeling worse by the minute and considering having that third beer after all.

"What do you want me to say? I told you what I thought of all this months ago. My opinion hasn't changed Ry. I'm sorry."

"Right, yeah, okay."

"Oh, don't be like that. Denver is a great guy, and if you'd just give him a chance, you'd see that."

"I don't want your life though, Abby."

"Well that's new," Abby said, seemingly taken aback by the remark. "And here I thought it was because you didn't think a one night stand could be taken seriously."

"That's part of it."

"And what's the other part? That my life is so miserable you just wouldn't be able to stand to have a man love you the way Dean loves me? Gosh, Riley, you're right, that's terrible."

"Stop it, Abby, it's not like that." Riley could tell Abby was annoyed with her, and she had a right to be, which made her feel even worse.

"Then what is it like Riley? What's wrong with my marriage?"

"Oh, God, no! No, Abby, that's not what I meant at all!" She said, lifting her hands in an attempt to stop the conversation before it derailed completely. With a sigh, she tried to find the right words. "You and Dean are perfect together. I'm so happy you met him, and Tyler is amazing, you guys are the cutest little family ever. That's not what I meant."

"I'm listening."

"I would love to meet a guy someday, that looks at me the way Dean looks at you. I would love to know what that feels like, what passion, real passion feels like. I just don't want to get involved with a hockey player."

"Why? They're not all horn dogs like Andre. Look at Donovan and Peter. Viktor, France... all of those guys, and of course Dean." Abby said as her cheeks turned rosy.

Riley thought it was adorable that Abby still did that, that Dean still made her feel all those butterflies. She wanted that, God, did she want that. Just not with Denver. Not with anyone on the Slashers team.

"And what if he got traded?"

"What? Dean isn't getting traded, he's going to retire a Slasher."

"No, not Dean. Denver. What if I gave Denver a chance, and it was great, we fall in love, the whole shebang, what happens if he gets traded?"

"But Denver and his agent are working on an extension right now, Dean said they'll close the deal any day, something like six years for six million, why would he be traded?"

"And that's great and all, but Abby, he's a goalie, what goalie finishes where he starts? He isn't a forward like Dean or Donovan, there's no moving him into one of the bottom lines once he starts to decline, he's not going to go back to being a backup for the team, they'll ship him out."

"Maybe, but Riley, that would be like six years from now, and he's what, twenty-seven, twenty-eight? What's to say he doesn't just retire? His mom already lives out here, he probably wouldn't want to up and move her. You're thinking too negatively about all this. Too far into the future even."

"No, Abby, I'm being smart about this. I love my job, and I want to move into a supervisory role, I want to maybe, eventually move into a counseling position, and I want to do it here, in Savannah, close to my family, not in Canada because I married a hockey player and he got traded to the Canucks."

"I think you're being pretty close-minded, but it's your life, I can't, and won't tell you how to live it. I'm sorry if I'm not being helpful." Abby sighed, grabbing Riley's hand and giving it a firm squeeze

Riley rewarded her with a half-smile, "thanks for coming out with me Abs, you've been a big help, honest. Talking things out always helps me to reaffirm that I'm happy with my decisions."

"Happy? Are you really? Or are you just content?"

"Aren't they the same thing?"

Abby shook her head as she reached for her purse and pulled the strap over her shoulder. She bent down and gave Riley a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek. "No, they're not the same thing. I was content with Joey, remember?"

With a final pat on the shoulder, Abby left her with that thought.

Riley decided to have that third beer after all.
Chapter 8

What's Eating Gilbert Grape?

Denver met up with some of the guys later that night at their favorite local watering hole. They used to meet every so often at McDonough's, a nice restaurant and lounge off Perry Street, but after what had gone down with Peter, they'd started going to O'Connell's, a hole in the wall pub, if one judged based on outwardly appearances, on the corner of Drayton and Broughton.

It was a nice place, and a very well needed change of scenery. They still went to Molly's after home wins though, O'Connell's was just more of a guy's night out type of thing.

Dean, who spent more time at home than not, was of course, at home, and Peter was absent as well, he and Harmony busy planning their upcoming nuptials. Out of the usual cast, it was Denver, Spencer, Viktor, Andre and Donovan. Though Viktor had already informed them that he could only stay for one drink, he and Sandra apparently had dinner plans that evening.

As Spencer and Andre were both young and single, they were up for a little hell raising, but Donovan had only the amount of time it took his blushing bride to have her weekly girl's night with her mother and sister. Denver had to admit, Lacy was a pretty good wife, planning her time out around Donovan, but he guessed that since they kind of worked together, it made sense, they did both have the same days off.

"Tell me Denver, what's eating Gilbert Grape?" Donovan asked when they were alone at the bar together. Viktor had already left by that point in the evening, and Spencer and Andre were working a few girls at a table nearby.

"What? I dunno, I don't think I've seen that movie."

Donovan looked at him quizzically with raised brows. "I didn't mean in the literal sense man, I meant you. You seem a little, I don't know, off?"

"Oh. Sorry."

"No big deal, just tell me what's wrong. Is it Mia?"

Denver shrugged, taking a drink from his beer and signaling to the bartender to bring him another one. "Not really. I mean, it's always a little bit about Mia, but no more than usual I guess."

"Alright, well, if it isn't Mia, then who is the skirt that's got your mind all twisted in knots? I know it's a girl. I know that look, man. I've been there."

He didn't really feel like being a drag just then, and spilling all his problems at Donovan's feet, but somehow, he found himself doing it anyways. Denver told him about his night with Riley, all the explicit details included, or well, most of them, it wasn't like Donovan couldn't use his imagination to fill in the rest.

Then he told him about running into her again this morning, and how it kind of made him feel like shit. He knew it was a one-night stand going into it, but by the time they had finally fallen asleep in each other's arms, Denver wasn't so sure it couldn't have turned into something more.

He didn't know a whole lot about Riley at that point, though they did talk some and share the basics, but he knew enough to know he liked her. Not to mention the sex.

Because, yeah, the sex had been wonderful. Crazy, erotic, passionate, silly even, but amazing. Denver didn't have a long list of sexual partners, but he'd had enough sex in his life to compare that night to.

And really, there just was no comparison. Riley was the best sexual partner he'd ever had. He wasn't sure if it was the alcohol, or if it was because they had felt very comfortable with each other, again, could have been the alcohol there too, but whatever it was, neither of them had held back.

Neither of them had been afraid to let loose their inhibitions and just have fun.

By the time he fell asleep, holding onto to her for dear life, Denver was hooked. He wanted more. A whole lot more.

Obviously, Riley hadn't felt the same way though, or maybe she'd been more inebriated than he had realized. Because when he'd woken up the next morning, he was alone. Not just in bed either, she was gone. Riley had used a bright red lipstick to write 'thanks' on the mirror in the bathroom, and had been kind enough to even pay the bill, but she hadn't left a phone number or bothered to wake him up to say goodbye.

It hurt. He didn't want to admit that to himself, but it had. It hurt like a son of a bitch.

Of course, Denver wasn't ready to just let it go, he couldn't. He told Dean a few days later that he and Riley had a thing, and asked if he could talk to Abby about getting in contact with her for him. Dean, a man of very few words on most occasions, had plenty to say then. He'd seemed excited, thrilled even, and talked about how 'cool' Riley was, and that they'd make such a 'cute' couple.

Denver had lunch with Dean and Abby one day, and he explained to Abby that he was interested in Riley, he refrained of course, from going into any detail. Not that it was necessary, the look on Abby's face was VERY telling. She too seemed to think it was a good match, and of course, she was willing to talk to Riley and give her his phone number.

She never called.

Days, weeks, then months went by, but Riley never called. And Denver didn't have the courage to ask Dean OR Abby about it. He figured they were either just trying to be nice to him and said they would do it, but decided for whatever reason not to, not that Dean didn't have a pretty good reason mind you, or he thought, maybe, just maybe, Riley had been given the information and just wasn't interested.

Something she all but confirmed for him today.

Donovan was rubbing the back of his neck and grimacing by the time Denver finished telling him everything. It only reaffirmed the way Denver was feeling.

Donovan let out a loud sigh, "that's tough man. I'm not really sure what to say. That's a lot to process."

"Tell me about it."

"Don't get me wrong, Riley seems like a really sweet girl, I got to know her pretty well the night Dean and Abby met."

"You did? How come I'm just hearing about this now?"

"Well," Donovan said, wearing one of his signature cocky grins that often stopped women in their tracks. "She did kind of have a crush on me."

Denver's heart sank.

"I was dating Amie at the time, and Dean needed to keep Riley occupied, so I hung out with her. We had a couple of drinks, danced some, and went back to her hotel."

His eyes all but rolling back into his head, Denver gulped audibly and did his best not to throw up. It must have been the beer, he thought, looking at his empty bottle and wondering just how many he'd had.

"They were staying at the Andaz, and that place is sweet. The Cabanas are pretty awesome, we went swimming, well, she went swimming and then we face timed Amie and I sat there while they chit chatted for like three hours about bikinis and makeup."

Letting out his breath, not even realizing that he'd been holding it, Denver laughed.

"Yeah, I'd say I got to know her pretty well. She's funny. Nice girl."

"You don't think she's a puck bunny? Do you?" Denver asked, not really sure he wanted to know the answer.

Donovan seemed to have to think about it for a moment, but after finishing off a glass of scotch that he'd been nursing for over an hour, he finally answered. "I don't think so. I mean, I haven't heard any of the other guys talking about her. But maybe you should ask Andre, he'd know for sure."

They both laughed, looking over at Andre and Spencer then, the two still working to woo a group of ladies that surrounded them.

"Look," Donovan said, cutting into Denver's thoughts. "You like this girl, go after her. You know where she works now, shouldn't be that hard. At least you won't have to stalk her like I had to with Lacy."

They shared another round of laughter together before Donovan's phone went off and he had to excuse himself for the evening. It was time, as he put it, to 'practice making babies' because, you know, they wanted to get it right when they were actually ready to try.

Denver just shook his head and laughed, wishing his friend a successful 'work-out' and ordering what would be his last drink of the night before joining the other two and their ever-growing harem of women.

Andre and Spencer eagerly welcomed him into their group, introducing him to their fan club and practically thrusting him onto a pretty little blonde that they'd obviously hand-picked, just for him. She was very attractive, but to say that Denver wasn't interested, would have been an understatement.

He just couldn't seem to get Riley out of his head, and until he did, he wasn't interested in another woman, not even for mind-numbing, meaningless sex. After a casual conversation, Denver, just as casually, excused himself and caught a cab home.

After seeing Riley again this morning, and realizing that he had at least some sort of effect on her, he was sure that a relationship with her was something worth exploring.

Now he just had to convince her of that.

Mia had another Monday appointment with Riley, and as much as Denver wanted to use that time to try and get something going between them, but after a long week, a loss at home to the Florida Panthers in overtime, and a win for Spencer the next night against Calgary, he wasn't positive that was the best idea.

He had time to think about it though.

There was still the weekend to get through, they had another game at home, the third of their four-game home stand, against the Columbus Blue Jackets, before playing their final game on Monday night against Nashville.

Which made things kind of complicated really. Denver had set up an afternoon appointment, right after Mia got out of school, since he had practice that morning, and really didn't want her to miss school again, seeing as she had missed half a day for the last meeting.

He figured he still had enough time between the appointment and the game to get Mia home afterward and get to the arena on time, but he knew he was pushing it. It was probably not the best opportunity to talk to Riley, not to mention, if he did it while she was at work, it really was a conflict of interest.

Lucky for him he'd thought of another idea.

Friday was a voluntary practice, as there would be a regular morning skate on Saturday, and they had just played the previous night. Most of the guys probably wouldn't be there, but Dean, who prided himself on being a good role model, would most definitely be in attendance, and with any luck, Abby would too.

Abby didn't usually accompany Dean to practice, but she was off on Fridays and enjoyed bringing Tyler to the rink when she could. The noisy games were still too much for his little ears, but a nice quiet practice where most of the guys would opt to sleep in and work out at home might just interest her.

And so, it did. What luck!

Denver skated out onto the ice, watching as Dean leaned over the bench and pressed a kiss to Abby's lips before laying one on top of Tyler's bald little head as well. The picture they presented, one of the perfect little family, was almost too much for Denver, and his eyes nearly watered.

Had it not been for the fact that he feared his own heart was on the edge of falling, he would have chided himself for being such a wuss, but with all the emotions roiling within him, he figured it was only natural.

Practice was a short one. Warm ups, a few drills, and taking some shots on goal. That was about it, with nearly half the team, if not more, absent, there wasn't much to work with.

Denver headed into the locker room and did his normal cooling off routine which included some weights and a nice hot shower before approaching Abby. He wanted to let her and Dean spend some time with Tyler out on the Ice. Abby wasn't much for skating herself, she was still learning how to stay upright, but Dean loved skating around with his son in his arms.

It was quite a sight.

Damn, he really needed to snap out of it!

With a good head shake to get himself together, Denver allowed Dean and Abby their privacy while they gave each other one more long embarrassing smooch, then he headed over in Abby's direction.

"Hey," he said, nearly scaring the bejesus out of her and causing her to jump, dropping Tyler's rattle in the process.

"Shit," Abby exclaimed, bending over the bench and picking the toy up off the ice. "I didn't see you there."

"Sorry," Denver apologized, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Abby put the rattle in the stroller where Tyler was already safely tucked in and snoozing, then straightened herself and pushed a strand of hair behind one ear. "What's up?" She asked pleasantly.

"I uh, I was hoping you'd do me a favor."

"Is this about Riley?" She sighed, a pained look on her face that made Denver's heart sink.

He nodded.

"I see," Abby said quietly, sitting down on the bench and motioning for him to do the same. "I'm not sure what it is that you want me to do for you Denver, but I don't know that it's going to help."

Sitting down, well, more like collapsing there beside her, Denver let out the breath that he'd been holding. "I have to at least try." He told her.

With a smile, Abby took his hand, patting the top of it with her other one. "What can I do for you, Denver? Whatever it is, I'll give it my best shot."

Riley was near to the point of banging her head against her desk when the phone rang and saved her from herself. Did she really think this was her dream job? Oh, how wrong she might have been! Teenagers were already impossible to talk to, but teenagers with criminal records? Forget it! It was like talking to a deaf person behind their back and expecting them to read your lips. Pointless!

She had yet to encounter a child who actually felt bad about the crimes they had committed and wanted to change. They all acted like they had a God complex or something and the whole damn world revolved around them!

Perhaps the saddest part was that most of them came from broken or dysfunctional homes and were really only looking for attention. It was a shame that the majority of parents that accompanied them were too busy looking at their cell phones to give a damn about the child sitting next to them or the fact that their own behavior was partly responsible for their children's crimes.

Riley had studied her ass off, earning three separate degrees in college. She had a bachelor's in criminal justice so she could understand and navigate the justice system. Her master's in psychology, with an emphasis in criminal psychology so she could understand not just the brain, but the mind of a criminal. And then she'd gone back and acquired an associate's degree in early childhood development. Because she wanted a better understanding of children in general.

But even with all her schooling, she hadn't been prepared for this. And for that, she kicked herself mentally for allowing Abby to con her into working at the shelter with her rather than getting that internship at the courthouse.

It was true that the money she made at the shelter helped her afford to live on her own instead of staying at her parent's house, but she would have at least been exposed to some of this had she taken the internship. Oh well.

She'd simply learn as she went, she supposed. Feel her way through.

"Hello?" She said into the receiver.

"Ms. Andrews? I have an Abby Kirk on line one for you." Her receptionist answered.

Riley sighed, rubbing her temples in an attempt to calm a headache that was starting to brew. "Janet, for the last time, please, call me Riley."

"Yes, ma'am, I mean, Riley. Would you like me to patch her through, or should I take a message?"

"No, no, I'll take it. Line one you said?"

"Yes ma'am, I mean... shoot... Riley."

"It's okay, thanks, I got it." Riley laughed, that laughter carrying over as she picked up line one and said, "hello?"

"What's so funny?" Abby asked.

"What? Oh, nothing. My receptionist just seems to be having a hard time with the formalities around here, I guess Mr. Kostoff was pretty strict. She can't seem to grasp the concept of just calling me Riley."

"Well, at least she's respectful."

"I guess," Riley chuckled. "So, what's up?"

"Um, I was just wondering..." She paused. "No Tyler, mommy's on the phone, shit, sorry,"

"Take your time."

Riley could hear little Tyler fussing in the background, his little baby voice just starting to take on its own personality, it was the sweetest thing, and made her heart squeeze just a little. Somewhere in the back of her mind that imaginary clock started to tick, and she had to remind herself she was only twenty-seven and still had plenty of time.

There was a soft click on the line, and then Abby came back. "Sorry about that, I was trying to put Tyler down for his nap, but he kept wanting to play."

"It's fine, I understand. What did you need? I was just getting ready to take my lunch break."

"Oh, right. Um, what are you doing tonight?" Abby asked.

Riley had to think about it for a second as if she had some hectic social life or something. After work, the only plans she had were a hot shower and a tub of ice cream, or maybe a pizza. "Nothing much, why? Did you have something in mind?"

"Actually, I did! My mom is in town with her boyfriend and wanted to hang out, but when I told her I was thinking about going to the game tonight, she asked if I wanted her to watch Tyler so I didn't have to worry about taking a fussy baby with me, or leaving early."

"Uh, Abs, no offense," Riley protested, cutting her off. "But I'm not really interested in going to the game tonight." After her run-in with Denver on Monday, the last thing Riley wanted to do was be anywhere near him, even if he'd be too busy playing hockey, because, well, the game didn't last forever, and running into him was a chance she didn't want to take.

"Oh, no, I'm not talking about going to the game sweetie!"

"You're not? But didn't you just say..."

"That I was thinking about going? Yeah. The key word there Ry, thinking."

Riley gave herself a mental face-palm. "Oh."

"It's okay," Abby laughed. "I was thinking we'd go see a movie and then maybe get some dinner afterward, no way I'm ruining a night off with another hockey game, I've gone to two this week already!"

"That sounds like fun," Riley said with a renewed sense of interest. "Yeah, that sounds like a great idea, what movie?"

"Whatever you want, my treat. All of it."

"Great! I'll uh, I'll give you a call after I get home and shower, maybe then I'll feel like a person again," she joked.

They said their goodbyes, and Riley, feeling as though her day had just done a complete one-eighty, left the office with a pep in her step to go and get lunch.
Chapter 9

Alligator Soul

"Okay," Abby said, placing her phone on the coffee table. "I've convinced my Mom and Dan to come out and watch the baby for me, and Riley's on board for dinner and a movie."

"Great," Denver smiled, rubbing his hands together in front of him in a fit of happiness. "This is going to work, I just know it."

"It better," Dean grunted, cutting in on the conversation as he handed Abby a cup of tea and threw a water bottle over to Denver. "I'll never get Grace and Dan to leave tonight, so you had better make something happen if it's going to be worth me giving up sex."

"Dean!" Abby yelped.

"What? It's not like Denver doesn't know we have sex! And I'm obviously not going to make them drive all the way home tonight!"

"That doesn't mean we can't have sex," Abby said, surprising them both with her bold answer. "I can be quiet."

"Bullshit!" Dean smirked.

"What? I can so..."

"Uh, hello?" Denver coughed, making Abby blush as she shot Dean a sideways glance.

"So where am I, I mean, YOU taking her to dinner tonight? And by the way, you're paying for the movie." Abby commented, getting back on track.

"That's fine," Denver said, pulling out his wallet and handing Abby a fifty-dollar bill.

"Wow," Dean remarked, reaching for the money. "You have one of those for me too?" Abby was too quick for him, folding the bill up and tucking it into her bra before he could get a hand on it. "Don't think I won't go in there!"

Abby squealed, trying to dodge him, "You wouldn't dare!"

Denver just sat back and laughed at the two of them, watching while Dean tried to wrestle his petite little wife onto the floor in an attempt to prove that he would, in fact, dare to go in her bra.

After about five minutes, Abby finally gave up, Dean rolling off of her and coming away with the money, unfolding it. "A-Ha!" he boasted, shoving it in her face, only to frown in the next instant as she snatched it away and shoved it in her back pocket.

Abby smoothed the wrinkles out of her blouse and sat back down on the couch all lady like, a gesture that was ruined when she stuck her tongue out at Dean.

"Alligator Soul," Denver announced, Dean and Abby both turning to face him, seemingly confused by his statement.

"Huh?" They both inquired at the same time.

"Alligator Soul," He repeated. "The restaurant? You know, Alligator Soul."

"Never heard of it," Dean said with a shrug, turning to Abby. "You?"

Abby nodded, "I've never been there, but I've heard of it." She said, looking back at Denver. "Isn't that place expensive?"

"What do you care? you're not paying for it." Dean cut in, earning him yet another dirty look.

He was losing them again. As fun as they were to watch, Denver had things he wanted to do before the game that night. "Yeah, it's a little expensive." He said, regaining their attention. "But I don't mind, I like the atmosphere there, and besides, if you took her to Molly's she'd be on to you in an instant. She's never going to figure it out in a place like that."

Abby held up a finger and wagged it in his direction, "that's very sneaky of you Denver, but it just might work."

"And what the hell do we get out of the deal?" Dean asked, not one to be left out of the conversation.

"Excuse you," Abby scolded. "I get to go to the movies, and have a girl's night, you get nothing!"

Just as they were ready to take another tumble on the floor, Denver butted in, "Guys, guys! Really, relax! I'll buy you guys dinner too."

"Awe, Denver, that's sweet, you don't have to."

"No, no, it's fine."

"You're damn right it is!" Dean retorted. "And I'm going to order the most expensive thing on the menu!" Abby took a swing at him then, getting pulled into his arms and thoroughly kissed instead. To which she then shoved him away from her, and gave him her most indignant stare before blushing and pushing at the flaming red hair that had fallen in her face.

"You don't have to do that Denver, despite what my rude husband seems to think." Dean grumbled as she continued. "A movie is enough payment for me. I've always thought you and Riley would look cute together, I'd be more than happy to help."

"Thanks, Abby," Denver beamed, going to her and giving her a hug before excusing himself and saying his goodbyes.

Dean, however, caught him at the door, closing it behind them. "Good luck tonight." He said with a smile while extending a hand.

Denver took his offering, giving his hand a good shake, "thanks, man."

"You still owe me dinner though," Dean teased, using his free hand to point a finger gun in Denver's direction.

"Of course," Denver replied with a nod, clapping Dean on the shoulder before walking away.

Brandon Saad came streaking toward him off a breakaway.

Denver had watched as a young rookie defensemen tried for a dump in before heading off for a change, and he grimaced when Saad intercepted the puck at his own blue line and rushed through the neutral zone like a speeding bullet.

Settling himself deep in his crease, taking up as much space as he could, Denver tracked the puck and Saad's movements. What was happening in the blink of an eye felt like slow motion to Denver. Squaring himself up for the shot, he just barely flinched as Saad tried his best to get him out of position.

This was what Denver lived for. One on one shots were his specialty. Denver was near flawless in shootouts. He'd also come pretty damn close to making this his second shutout of the season. If it hadn't been for a bad deflection off one of his own guy's skates on a power play, the game would be two-nothing.

But with the tying goal staring him right in the face, Denver didn't have time to dwell on the rest of the game. He had to pay attention to the here and now.

And here and now, Saad was barreling down on him like a freight train.

Saad wound up, faking it, but making it just realistic enough to pull Denver to the left side of the net in an attempt to block the shot. So, how he was able to get far enough back into position and make the pad save, extending his right leg and feeling the hard thwack as the puck smacked into him and bounced forward, he wasn't sure.

But before he had time to contemplate, Denver slid to the right and scooped the puck up into his glove just as Brandon Saad set up to take another poke at it. With the rebound attempt stuffed, his teammates were finally able to recover the zone as the whistle was blown, killing the play.

It would be the save of the night, and earned Denver the second star of the game. The first being Andre, who continued to light up the ice, snagging himself a hat trick with a goal in the first, and two in the third to include the empty netter. He was really making a case for himself and proving he was worth his recent raise.

They would win four to one.

"I tell ya, that Ryan Gosling, what a hottie!" Riley blurted out while they left the movie theater and walked to Abby's car.

Abby laughed as she hit the button to unlock her sleek new little Mercedes, a present from Dean just after they'd found out they were having a baby. He thought the SUV was more suitable to a young mother than the beat up old pickup truck she had previously been driving, the one they then donated to the Salvation Army.

"He's okay, I guess."

"Okay?" Riley choked. "No, Jason Lee is an okay, looking actor, Ryan Gosling is fucking gorgeous. Just admit it, Abby, it's not like Dean's here to get jealous. Just admit it."

Pushing the button to turn on the ignition, Abby laughed some more, "alright, alright, he's a very attractive man. I wouldn't leave Dean for him or anything, but he's definitely more than just okay, looking. Are you happy?"

"I am," she replied with a triumphant smile, just before rubbing her very hungry stomach as it growled at her. "Man, I'm hungry, where are we going for dinner?"

"I don't know, I thought we'd go to Molly's," Abby said, hiding her smirk.

"What? I hope that's a joke."

"What's wrong with Molly's? You love the food there."

Riley looked out the window to calm her nerves, "nothing's wrong with the food there. I guess, I dunno, I figured we always go there. I thought we'd be going someplace different, that's all."

It took all of Abby's willpower not to burst out laughing.

"What? What's that little smirk for?" Riley demanded, noticing the way Abby was acting.

"Nothing, it's nothing. And we're not going to Molly's, I just wanted to give you a hard time."

Riley breathed a mental sigh of relief.

"Have you ever been to Alligator Soul?"

"I don't think I've ever even heard of that place," Riley replied after thinking about it for a minute.

"Well, that's where we're going."

"Okay, let me pull it up really quick so I know what the menu looks like." Riley took her phone out of her purse and had Siri pull up the menu for Alligator Soul. Taking a moment to look it over before letting a low whistle out through her teeth. "Jeez Abby, does Dean know you're about to drop a couple hundred on dinner?"

Abby just shrugged. "It's not his money."

"Alright, I'm down, let's do this."

Denver rushed through the post-game interview as quickly as he could without seeming like he was in a hurry and hit the showers. Then he threw on a pair of slacks and a polo shirt so that he looked nice without going overboard. After running a comb through his damp hair, he sprayed himself with some cologne and headed out, taking Dean with him.

Abby had dropped Dean off on her way to pick up Riley, so Denver was taking him to the restaurant, where he'd promised on the way that he'd buy him at the very least, a drink, or two. And of course, Dean wasn't about to let him off the hook for that one.

Abby and Riley had just sat down at their table when a small commotion by the stairs that led down into the restaurant caught Riley's attention. She immediately groaned, which in turn caught Abby's attention.

"Oh my God, Abby. How could you?"

"What?" Abby asked in a mock innocence that was so convincing that Riley almost bought it.

"Don't you dare," she began, becoming more frustrated by the second. "Don't you dare sit there all innocent like and pretend that you didn't have something to do with this."

"Something to do with what?"

"That!" Riley said, pointing to the stairs, where Dean and Denver were slowly making their way into the restaurant amidst the small crowd that was now gathered around them.

"Oh, that."

"Yes, that! You can't possibly think I'm going to believe that's some sort of coincidence!"

"It is. I mean, I told him we were coming here."

"You haven't touched your phone all night. Try again."

Abby was both pleased and annoyed by Riley's attitude, the fact that Denver was already getting under her skin and he hadn't even made it over to the table yet, was a positive sign in her opinion. "I meant, that I told him earlier that we were coming here. I dropped him off at the arena tonight and he asked me where I was going."

"So, it's just happenstance that DENVER is the one bringing him up here, or that he came here at all?"

Abby nodded and shrugged one shoulder, it sounded good to her.

Riley however, wasn't buying it. She leaned in and whispered to Abby as the guys got closer. "Liar! You set this up. Admit it!"

"I did no such thing," Abby replied, standing her ground as she stood to greet the men, giving Denver a hug and her husband a very inappropriate kiss.

Just as Denver pulled out the seat next to Riley, Abby leaned down and gave her a hug. "Have fun," She whispered with a smile before waving and walking with Dean back towards the bar.

Riley sat there seething for a minute, bouncing her feet on the floor as she debated what to do next. Denver laid a hand on top of hers.

"Relax." He suggested. "I don't bite."

Riley nodded, her mouth open in what was a half laugh half snarl with her tongue touching the tip of her eye tooth. "I can't believe Abby set this up," She growled, pulling her hand away and placing it in her lap.

"She didn't," Denver admitted, looking guilty as hell.

"Come again?"

"I said she didn't, I did."

"You did? You set this up? Why? Why would you do that?" She asked, ready to bolt from the table as her heart started racing a mile a minute. It was one thing, and rather annoying at that, to think that Abby was meddling in her personal life, but to know that Denver had wanted to be alone with her, was another thing altogether, and she wasn't sure how she felt about it.

"Because I wanted to talk to you," Denver said, looking down as he pulled out his napkin and placed it in his lap.

"Okay, so you pick up a phone, I mean, why go to all this trouble?"

"I didn't want to call you at work, and I don't have your cell phone number, and well, since you wouldn't call me if I had given you mine," he said, pinning her with a direct stare, "I figured this was my best shot."

"Why here?" Riley dared to ask.

The Alligator Soul restaurant was a lovely establishment. It was in the basement of an old warehouse, and unless you knew where you were going, you weren't likely to just "stumble" upon it. They catered to an upscale dinner crowd and served several different selections of fine wine and craft beer.

They were also fairly well known, though not to Riley, for serving exotic meat. Everything on the menu was priced well above the average Applebee's, and for good reason, the establishment was as near as one could get to five stars in every aspect. From food to service, they rated high among the competition.

The walls were all exposed brick, with large beams of dark wood and the slab floors were done in a broken tile-like design. It was high-class all the way, right down to the gleaming cherry wood tables and chairs. And the artwork around the place spoke to the soul of the south, with Jazz and other various contemporary paintings.

"Because I wanted to take you somewhere nice." He answered, tearing her away from her thoughts as she looked around the restaurant.

"This is very nice, Denver, but you shouldn't have."

"Please don't go," He begged, grabbing her hand as she went to stand.

"Denver, I can't, we can't."

"Why not?"

"Mia."

Denver sighed audibly, "It's just dinner, Riley."

Riley sat back down, not wanting to make a spectacle of herself as people started looking in their direction. "Denver, this is highly inappropriate given the nature of our relationship."

"Don't," he warned. "Don't turn all professional on me, Riley. This has nothing to do with Mia, and we both know that. It's just dinner. You can have dinner with me, Riley. Everyone has to eat."

The waiter came over to the table then, momentarily breaking up the tension.

"I'll have water," Denver said, turning to Riley and waiting for her answer, hoping she wouldn't leave.

"Martini, dry." She said instead, unfolding her menu and looking it over.

"Thank you."

Riley nodded and continued to look over her choices.

"I'm sorry I went about it this way, Riley, I just didn't feel like I had any other choice."

"You could have asked." She scolded, folding her menu as the waiter came back to take their order.

Denver ordered the Drunken Mussels, while Riley opted for the Carving Board, a selection of meats, cheeses, and bread. He was surprised she hadn't ordered a salad instead like most girls would have.

"It's just dinner, Denver," Riley told him once the waiter left. "You said it yourself, it's just dinner, let's keep it that way."

"You got it," he agreed reluctantly. "Just dinner."

They sat there quietly for a few minutes, Riley looking off into space as she stirred the little sword in her drink around the glass, and Denver looking down while he fidgeted with the edge of his napkin.

"Can we talk at dinner?" He finally found the courage to ask.

Riley looked at him, her gaze skeptical. "Mia, hockey, and the weather are all safe topics."

Denver laughed, and the way his eyes lit up broke the ice, causing Riley to laugh as well. By the time they'd finished laughing, their food had arrived and they made use of their mouths by eating rather than talking.

"Thank you, Denver, dinner was lovely," Riley said patting her mouth with her napkin once she had finished.

"Thank you for not walking out on me." Denver leaned in closer to her over the table, "it would have been embarrassing with all these people staring at us if you had."

Riley cocked one brow and then covered her mouth to stifle a giggle, "that's the only reason I stayed." She teased, earning a rather bemused look from Denver. "Well, that and the food, I never could pass up free food."

"I'll remember that."

"Don't," she said more sternly. "Really Denver, we can't do this. I'm Mia's probation officer and I can't get involved with you. It wouldn't be appropriate."

"To hell with what's appropriate, Riley. You said so yourself that you could transfer her, and besides, we've already," he leaned in again to whisper. "We've already been intimate, if your boss found out, wouldn't he transfer Mia based on that alone?"

Riley had to think about that for a minute, he had a point after all. "Well, yeah, but..."

"But nothing, our professional relationship is already compromised. What's the difference?"

"The difference is you said that it wouldn't be a problem, so I figured it wasn't going to be a problem."

"Well, maybe it is."

"You can't have it both ways Denver, and I really think I can help Mia," Riley told him, hoping it would dissuade him from wanting to pursue a relationship with her.

Denver sat back in his chair, tossing his napkin on the table out of frustration. "What if, what if we just try? If it doesn't work out, you can go on being Mia's probation officer and I'll act like it never happened, like you're a complete stranger."

Riley looked around for a moment, noticed that Abby and Dean were still sitting at the bar and grabbed her purse.

"Let it be Denver. Please," she countered, holding up a hand when he might have spoken. "For Mia's sake, we can't go down this road. Now, I really appreciate you buying me dinner, we'll call this a meeting where we discussed Mia, and leave it at that."

"But..."

"Have a good night, Denver." She said before walking away and effectively ending the conversation.

Denver sighed, frustrated as hell and watched as Riley left with Abby. Dean turned near the bottom of the stairs, and held up his hands in a gesture that said, 'what happened?' Denver just shrugged and watched as, Dean too, left.

Throwing a hundred-dollar bill on the table, Denver gave them a few minutes and then left as well. He felt a lot like he had that morning when he'd woken up and seen the lipstick writing on the hotel mirror. But now, maybe a little more deflated since she'd made it absolutely clear this time around.
Chapter 10

I have a solution

Riley's receptionist, Janet, buzzed her to let her know that her three o'clock appointment had arrived.

After effectively eluding both Dean and Abby's questions on the ride home Saturday, by pulling her earbuds out of her purse and listening to music, Riley spent Sunday wallowing in her despair. Sandra had invited her to go to the beach with her and Viktor, but Riley turned them down in favor of having the place to herself.

She then spent the afternoon watching cheesy romance movies that only served to make her mood worse and downing a pint of Haagen-Dazs.

She thought that by the time her appointment with Mia arrived, she'd be ready to go another round with Denver, because men were, after all, nothing if not resilient, and she didn't expect him to give up so easily.

She was surprised, however, when Mia entered her office alone.

"Where's your brother?" Riley asked.

Mia shrugged, "he's in the waiting room, he said there was no reason for him to come in here. Something about you not being his probation officer. I dunno, whatever."

Riley motioned for her to take a seat, torn between relief and guilt about Denver's decision not to join them. "I saw in your reports that you've already completed your community service."

"Uh-huh," Mia answered, sitting back in her chair and picking at her fingernails with disinterest. Something that was lost on Riley this time around as she kept looking from the file in front of her to the door, knowing Denver was just on the other side.

"And you're still attending your court ordered counseling once a month?" she asked, finally looking up.

"Yup, and I haven't missed any school outside of the few hours last week to come here, my grades are up, and Denver installed an alarm and refuses to give me the code, so I won't be sneaking out again. Can I go now?"

"Just, just a minute," Riley replied, in shock over how much attitude Mia was giving her. They were really getting off on the wrong foot. Out of all of her clients, Mia was the one she had the most hope for.

Not only was her crime less serious than most, but Mia seemed to have a decent support system in Denver, he genuinely cared about his sister and wanted her to have the best life possible. The same couldn't be said from some of her other clients as their parents were either absent altogether or so wrapped up in their own lives that they didn't see what was right under their noses.

"I saw in your file that Mr. Kostoff gave you permission to visit a location in Atlanta once a month, do you still go there?"

Mia lifted one shoulder in a half shrug, "yeah, so?"

With a sigh, Riley did her best to keep her temper in check. "I'm just trying to fill in the blanks here Mia, bear with me, okay?"

Mia didn't answer her, she looked down at her hands and resumed picking dirt out from under her nails instead. It took all the effort Riley could manage to let it go.

"Okay, well, I think we're probably good for now, but I do need to set up an appointment for a home visit." She managed.

"You'll have to ask Denver, I don't know his schedule, but I think he has an extended road trip coming up, or something." Mia retorted, preparing to stand.

Riley held up a hand to stop her. "And where do you stay when he goes on the road? I mean, he doesn't leave you home alone, does he?"

"No," Mia sighed in frustration. "If he was just going to be gone overnight he'd hire someone to stay with me, but if it was going to be for more than two days, I would stay with friends. I stayed at Harmony's place last time though, Denver said after my last little escapade that he didn't trust me to stay with my friends anymore."

Riley made a note of that in her file. "That's probably smart," she said, earning a sneer from Mia. "So, you said you stayed with Harmony last time, will you be doing that this time around as well?"

"I don't know," Mia huffed. "I told you you'd have to talk to Denver about that, I don't know what his plans are. He doesn't usually tell me ahead of time."

"Okay, well, I guess we're done then. Can you tell your brother to come in here on your way out?"

Mia pushed back in her chair with enough force that it scraped the floors, leaving the room in a worse mood than she had entered, and causing Riley to roll her eyes.

Teenagers.

"You wanted to talk to me?" Denver said a minute later, appearing in the doorway.

"Uh, yeah. Do you have a minute?"

"I guess." He replied, looking down at his wrist and noting the time. "I have to get Mia home and get to the arena though. We'll have to make it quick."

Riley nodded, laying her pen down on the desk after catching herself fidgeting with it. Denver looked sinfully handsome in his business attire, and she had to swallow a couple of extra times to keep her mouth from watering.

"Mia said you had an extended road trip coming up?"

"That's correct, we head out on Wednesday and I'll be gone until next Friday."

"And will Mia be staying with Harmony again?"

Denver walked towards her, exhaling loudly as he gripped the back of the chair in front of her desk, his knuckles almost turning white with the effort. "No." He sighed, "she won't be staying with Harmony again. Harmony said she could take her for the weekend, but she has to work Thursday and Friday."

"So where will she be staying?" Riley asked cautiously, her heart aching a little as she watched his reaction. It was no secret that Denver cared about his sister, any fool could plainly see that, but he was frustrated as well, and Riley just wanted to reach out to him and tell him it would all work out.

"Abby said she'd take her until Saturday, and she can take her a couple of days next week too, but I guess I'll have to hire someone to watch her the rest of the time."

"She'll be tossed around from place to place then? That doesn't really seem fair."

Denver reached his breaking point, his voice raising a couple of octaves, "what do you want from me, Riley? I'm doing the best I can. I can't change what is. I have to do my job. We don't have family in the area, and Mia clearly needs constant supervision. What would you have me do with her?"

Riley felt the bite to his words, and she knew it wasn't all about Mia, which made her feel worse.

"What if," she began, waiting for the tension in the room to dissipate some before speaking up. "What if she stayed with me?"

"What?"

Riley stood up and started to pace behind her desk. "Yeah. Yeah, she could stay with me. I can take her to school, and I can schedule all my meetings for earlier in the day so that I can pick her up, and just take her with me if I have to do any drive -by's. I'm sure Viktor wouldn't mind."

"Wait," Denver cut in, grabbing her attention and interrupting her pacing for a moment. "Are you talking about Viktor, as in my teammate Viktor? What does he have to do with any of this?"

"Huh?"

"You said, 'Viktor wouldn't mind,' what does Viktor have to do with anything? I mean, we are talking about Viktor Bortnik, aren't we?"

Riley pinched the bridge of her nose, she must have been rambling again, she did that sometimes without really noticing it. She didn't know how close Denver and Viktor were, but she doubted he knew that she lived in the same house with him, or he probably would have stopped by to see 'Viktor' a lot more often.

"Oh, um, I live with him."

"You..you what?" He all but shouted. "You live with Viktor? MY Viktor, I mean, my teammate? Since when?"

"A couple of months now, and would you please calm down?" Riley said, making a lowering motion with her hands. "It's not that big of a deal."

"The HELL," Denver growled, catching himself and lowering his voice some. "The hell it isn't, you live with Viktor!"

"I'm aware of that Denver, and I don't live with Viktor, I live in his house, it's not quite the same thing."

Denver took a deep breath, trying to process her answer and calm himself down. "I'm going to need to you explain that a little better."

"I rent a room upstairs from him and Sandra, I'm not dating him or anything. It's not what you think, and honestly, even if it was, it's none of your business." Riley barked, trying to put him in his place. "Can we please get back to the matter at hand?"

"Right," Denver conceded after another minute or so. "What were we talking about?"

"Mia, I said she could stay with me. Do you have a problem with that?"

Taking a step back, Denver ran his fingers through his hair, mussing it up a bit, and drawing Riley's gaze to his face, he looked sexy as hell when he did that, and it took a lot of self-control to keep her insides from turning into mush. She could remember a night, not so long ago, when she had, herself, run her fingers through that thick brown hair.

"Wouldn't that be some sort of, oh, I don't know, conflict of interest or something?" Denver asked, pulling her out of her wanton thoughts.

"Huh? Oh, uh, probably, but I can keep a secret if you can."

Denver snorted, "oh, so you can keep a secret now, can you? Hmm."

"Denver, don't. Don't make this about us."

"Oh no, Riley, it's never about us, is it?"

"Denver stop it." Riley chided, sitting down behind her desk to put a physical presence between them, and give herself a little breathing room. "Your sister needs help, and it isn't fair to keep shuffling her around this way. I can provide a solution. So no, THIS, isn't about us."

She had a point, he had to give her that much. He didn't like the idea of Mia having to stay with three different people while he was gone, but he hadn't had any other options until now. Riley was giving him a viable option and was willing to take on his sister in a much bigger capacity. Instead of being selfish and making this about him, he needed to do what was right for Mia.

"Fine." He said after the silence had finally become too much. "I can drop her off at Viktor's before I head to the airport Wednesday night."

Riley shook her head, "no, I'll come pick her up, I have to do a home visit anyways, why not kill two birds with one stone?"

Denver nodded and headed for the door, he was already pressed for time, and now he wasn't going to be able to drop Mia off at the house, she'd have to go to the game with him.

"Thanks," he said, turning back to smile at her just before he closed the door behind him.

"No problem," Riley whispered to the closed door a few seconds later, slumping in her chair and wondering what the hell she had just gotten herself into.

While it was true that Mia did need the help, and this was a viable option, if not probably the best one, Riley knew she could get in a lot of trouble for what she was doing. She was playing with fire, and not just any fire, it was the really hot kind of fire, the one in all different shades of blue and green, like the color of Denver's big puppy dog eyes.

Oh God. What had she just done? For someone who hadn't wanted to get involved, she had just involved herself in a VERY big way. To think that she was going to be able to separate the two was just ludicrous, her personal life and her professional life, had just become intricately linked.

Denver made a quick call before getting in the truck, giving Mia the keys so she could start it and get the air circulating. With that out of the way, he only hoped traffic wasn't too bad, he couldn't afford to be late.

"How do you feel about hanging out with Jean tonight?" He asked once they were well on their way.

Mia turned in her seat to face him, "oh my God, are you serious?" she asked with excitement.

"Yeah, I don't have enough time to take you home first, so I called Jean and asked if she wouldn't mind hanging out with you tonight."

"Will Abby or Harmony be there?"

"I don't know, maybe," he shrugged. "Are you okay with it?"

"Am I okay with it? Of course, I am!" She squealed before gaining control of herself. "I love watching you play Denver," Mia said more calmly. "I wish you'd let me go to more of your games."

"Really?"

Mia nodded, "Mmm-hmm, really. It's like this special thing we can do together, only," she laughed, "we don't actually have to do it together."

"That's really cool of you to say that Mia, thanks," Denver told her just before getting serious on her again. "I'll walk you to Jean's office, but then I have to get down to the locker room, okay? And I expect you to have your homework finished before the game starts. You hear me?"

"Yeah, I hear you." She acknowledged pleasantly, her previous attitude gone.

They reached the arena with just enough time to spare for Denver to be able to drop her off in Jean's care and make it to the locker room before he was considered late.

"Thanks again, Jean," Denver said, giving Jean a quick hug.

"It's not a problem, I don't mind hanging out with Mia at all!" Jean answered, looping an arm around Mia before turning and addressing her. "Denver said you had some homework to do, what would you say to grabbing a bite to eat first?"

Mia's eyes lit up, "that sounds great!" She gushed.

Denver mouthed 'thank you' to Jean once more, to which she nodded and then he headed down the hall to the locker room, making it with only minutes to spare, and earning himself a stern look from Coach Turski who tapped his watch to nail the point home.

The Nashville Predators were ending a successful road trip in Slashers territory, they had so far, like the Slashers, only lost two games this season. Though they were actually still one point behind the Slashers in the standings as the Slashers second loss was in overtime. Not that it mattered as they weren't in the same conference, but the announcers always liked to have a story line.

Nashville had made it to the Western Conference last season, losing in a game seven to the Oilers, who, since drafting Connor McDavid, had really come around. The Slashers were, overall, a younger team than Nashville, being as Nashville had entered the league in 1997, almost a full decade before the Slashers, and yet the Slashers had already won their first Stanley Cup and were poised to make another deep run this season. Whereas Nashville had only yet to reach the finals.

It was, despite being of little importance standings wise, still a big game for both teams.

A game that would be decided in a shootout.

Dean was up first for the Slashers, but Pekka Rinne continued to stay hot blocking his shot. Pekka, having, like Denver, only let in one goal through three periods of regulation and overtime.

Filip Forsberg skated first for Nashville, a left winger who, only a season ago had back to back regular season hat tricks. But he wasn't getting one past Denver tonight. Forsberg lined up his shot, trying to go glove side, and Denver smacked it down.

Pekka Rinne would stop two out of three shots, preventing Donovan from scoring as well, but failing to stop their hot young rookie, Cameron Tremblay, from going bar down, the puck hitting the top of the crossbar and dropping into the net behind him. It made a hell of a sound, and turned out to be the goal of the night!

Tremblay's goal would give them the lead, and Denver sealed the deal, stopping a hard slap shot from the Predators Mike Fisher and stuffing the last attempt by Ryan Johansen.

After starting the home stand with a loss, Denver finished strong winning his next two starts. He was primed and pumped for the upcoming five-game road trip.

He just had to get through this next meeting with Riley first.
Chapter 11

The Boathouse

Riley showed up at Denver's house two hours before Denver was set to leave for the airport.

Denver had a nice two-story house right off Penrose Drive, it was literally less than a mile from the rink, and right on the river. His property was long and narrow and included a private dock and boat ramp. During the summer Denver often had barbecues with the guys or spent time out on the water in the sleek new pontoon boat he'd bought.

His property also featured a fully functional outdoor kitchen and a hot tub Jacuzzi. Mia had been bugging him for a while now to get a couple of jet ski's as well, but Denver didn't think she was mature enough to handle one, so he was holding off until he felt like she was ready.

Like the whole dog argument.

Mia still hadn't given up on that one. It was true that they had a big enough yard for a dog, and maybe, given that she had been doing better in school and was trying to keep her nose clean otherwise, she might be responsible enough to take care of one, but he still wasn't sold on the idea. Especially if it was going to cost him a thousand dollars.

He just didn't think a dog, even a purebred dog from God-like bloodlines was worth that kind of money, whether it was his money or hers didn't matter.

Mia seemed excited about the prospect of spending the week with Riley, though she did her best to mask it with her petulant attitude. Denver wasn't buying it any, and he had an inkling that she was simply desperate for female attention since their mom wasn't around to give it to her.

They hadn't seen their mother in over a month. They usually made the trip out to Atlanta once, sometimes twice a month, but with Denver's schedule, they had missed this past month. Denver made a note in his appointment calendar to set up a visit once he got back.

As soon as Riley got there, Mia dragged her off on a tour of the house.

Their home was a four bedroom, three and a half bath house, with a master suite on both the first and second floors and an additional Jack and Jill type setup upstairs. The master on the first floor had been used by their mother, and Denver just hadn't wanted to move into it after she'd been put in the nursing home, opting to stay closer to Mia instead.

They decided to use the downstairs master as a guest suite and turned the extra room on the second floor into an office, slash gym. There was, in addition to the formal dining and living rooms, an open concept kitchen with a great room and a small dinette off to the side, as well as an enclosed sun room that they had turned into a kind of man cave, theater room deal.

The house was a large one at over four thousand square feet and had been tastefully decorated by Denver's sister and mother, while she had still been at least a little bit sane.

Riley seemed very impressed by the overall size and appearance in general.

"Are you sure you wouldn't like to just stay here?" Denver asked for the second time since Riley's arrival. "The downstairs master is set up for guests."

Riley shook her head, taking in the fireplace in the formal living room, there were pictures on the mantel, and sports memorabilia on a nice bookshelf that sat against one wall near a picture window that faced the wooded side of the property.

It was a beautiful house, and Riley felt a twinge of jealousy that Denver lived in such a place. It reminded her a lot of her parent's home, the place where she'd grown up in Jacksonville, aside from, of course, the sports stuff that was woven in tastefully here and there, and the long dock she saw from the sun room, that led down to the river.

But the kitchen with its white cabinets and dark granite had a light airy feel to it and made her miss her parents for the first time in a long time. It hadn't really been that long since she'd seen them, only a couple of weeks really, but she missed them all the same, she guessed it was the nostalgia of being a family that she really missed.

"No, no I couldn't. Sandra is going to meet Viktor in Saint Louis, I promised I would watch Dasha."

"You could bring the dog here," Denver informed her, receiving a doleful stare from his sister.

"Oh, sure! You'll let Riley bring HER dog here, but I can't have one?"

"Mia, knock it off," Denver groaned. "I told you we'd talk about the dog thing when I got back, I said you could have one, didn't I?"

"Yeah, just not the one I want," Mia grumbled, leaving them to talk amongst themselves while she headed to her room to finish packing.

Riley chuckled, "sounds like she wore you down."

Denver stood there with a wry smile on his face, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "Yeah, I guess she did. Do you, uh, do you want to take a walk with me out back for a few minutes before you go?"

Riley looked through the glass of the French doors that led outside, contemplating if it was a good idea. "Sure." She finally said, against her better judgment. "I wouldn't mind taking a walk out to the water."

Denver gave her a more genuine smile this time, nearly knocking the breath out of her. "Cool, I'll show you the boathouse," He said, leading the way.

Denver pointed out the outdoor kitchen on their way, it was a nice set up under a large pergola with a grill on each side, a refrigerator, and ample counter space in the middle done in a dark tile. There was also a center island with a sink that separated the prep area from a large seating area.

Just to the left of the house was the hot tub, enclosed in a wooden cabin like structure, and though she couldn't see inside, Denver told her there was also a sauna in there and a big screen TV. Down the path to the water, and a little to the right was a clearing in the wooded portion of the property where Denver had created a fire pit as well.

It seemed like he had just as much living space outdoors as he had in the house. And it only served to make Riley even more jealous. Viktor's place was homey enough she supposed, but not set up for entertaining the way Denver's house was.

Nor did it boast the beach and waterfront views of Abby and Dean's Condo out on Tybee Island. In comparison to others, Viktor's house was quite, well, plain.

She had yet to go to Donovan and Lacy's home, but she heard it was a pretty sweet get up as well. And during her time spent dancing with Andre at the wedding reception earlier in the year, he had more than bragged about how awesome his own condo was. Viktor, it seemed, was the only one who didn't care about entertaining guests.

Then again, he was hardly ever home. Which made sense when all of his friends had awesome homes built for this kind of thing.

Denver's boathouse was unlike anything Riley had ever seen, as it too, provided space for entertainment.

His boathouse was more of a cottage really, that, while it only currently housed one large pontoon boat, had space for a second boat too. Both boat slips had electric lifts, and the space around the slips had to have been at least a couple hundred square feet.

At one end, closer to the boat slips, there was a fish cleaning station, and a storage area for what appeared to be mass amounts of fishing gear and tackle. And at the other end of the boathouse was a large TV attached to an Antenna, a seating area, a wet bar, and a pool table. It was incredible!

Hell, if she were Denver, she'd never want to leave home! She couldn't understand why, with this place set up the way it was, that Mia would run off the way she did. The girl had more to do here than she did at any mall or beach!

"This is incredible, Denver!" Riley exclaimed, walking over to the open window near the fish cleaning station and looking out over the Savannah River.

The waters were a bit murky today, but she could see small fish swimming around, and birds flew overhead or hung out in the trees nearby, calling to each other.

"It's so beautiful out here." She continued.

"Yeah, it's alright." Denver chuckled, slowly walking up behind her.

Riley hadn't realized how close he'd gotten to her and turned without looking, coming up against the hard length of his chest, and all but knocking the wind out of herself.

Denver caught her in his arms before she tripped them both up and steadied her. Still holding onto her, he looked down into her startled gaze as she fought to get control of herself.

"Denver I..." Riley started to say.

"Shh.." He whispered, cutting off her protest before it ruined the moment.

Riley gulped, and Denver took that as the invitation he had been waiting for, laughing softly before bending just enough to capture her lips in a kiss that would quickly spin out of control.

It started off slow and soft, the briefest meeting of their lips. Denver seemed to be gauging her response, but when Riley failed to pull away, as she twined her arms around his neck instead, Denver pulled her bodily against him and ravished her mouth like a starved animal.

He nipped at her lower lip, then sucked it into his mouth, massaging the pain he inflicted with his tongue. Then he changed the depth, the speed, and the pressure. He sought her open mouth with his tongue as he had once done to her body.

Riley moaned, falling weakly against him and relying on him and his strength to support her. He wrapped her in his embrace and held on for dear life as they fought their primal urges, as they tried to maintain some semblance of sanity in the storm that raged between them.

It was the loud clearing of a throat from behind them that finally broke the spell, and pulled them from their haze.

Denver set Riley aside, turning away to adjust himself when he felt she was stable again. And blushing, Riley wiped at her mouth as she faced Denver's sister, who stood at the entrance of the boathouse, her arms folded across her chest as she tapped a foot impatiently.

"It's about time," she muttered, "I've only been standing here clearing my throat for the last five minutes."

"I uh, I guess we better get going," Riley said quietly, trying to act like nothing had happened although she was mortified by her moment of weakness, and the fact that his sister had found them that way.

"Yeah, um, I'll pick her up from your place next Friday," Denver stated, his cheeks beyond red as he faced his sister and warned her to behave.

Mia shook her head, turning and walking back up the dock.

"I'll take care of her, Denver. Don't worry." Riley told him in parting, anxious to get away from him, and more than a little confused by what had just transpired between them.

Denver waited until he heard Riley's car backing out of the driveway before heading back to the house. He used that time to look out at the river and get his head back on straight. He'd known he'd had feelings for Riley, she was an amazing woman after all, and there were so many things he liked about her, but he hadn't known, not until she'd kissed him that way, that he was capable of falling in love with her so quickly.

And it scared the hell out of him.

"Do you want to tell me what that was all about back there?" Mia asked once they were far enough away from her house.

"No, not really," Riley replied, keeping her eyes on the road, lest Mia see how red her cheeks still were.

"You slept with my brother, didn't you?"

"What?" Riley nearly choked. "What makes you say that?"

"Oh, come on!" Mia exclaimed, "I'm not stupid Riley, I know an intimate kiss when I see one, and you sure as hell don't kiss someone for the first time, like that!"

"Okay, so that's not the first time we've kissed, that doesn't mean I've... had sex with him."

"But you want to?"

Riley let out the breath she'd been holding, this was NOT something she wanted to be talking about with Denver's little sister. "I didn't say that."

Mia, however, wasn't backing down. "It's one or the other, I know it. You either have, or you want to, which is it, Riley? I think I deserve to know, I mean, I'm supposed to be able to trust you, right?"

And there it was. Riley's heart sank.

Her first big responsibility and she felt like she'd just screwed it up, and royally so. She should have transferred Mia to another PO from the start, but no, she'd hoped, that by some miracle, that she and Denver could keep things professional. Well, not only had she overstepped her boundaries by agreeing to take Mia in for the next week, but she'd pretty much obliterated any trust the girl had in her by making out with her brother after she swore to herself that she wouldn't go near him again.

"I met your brother at Donovan and Lacy's wedding." She admitted.

"You DID sleep with him. I knew it! I knew there was something going on between the two of you when I saw how he reacted to you in your office that first day."

"Mia, please, I'm sorry, it's not what you think." Riley blurted, trying to backtrack now.

Mia surprised her though, "I think it's awesome," She said.

Riley pulled the car over onto the shoulder, turning in her seat so she could get a better look at Mia. "You think it's what?"

Mia nodded, "I think it's awesome," she reiterated.

"Mia, you do understand what this means right?"

"No, not really."

"How can I explain this," Riley said with a sigh. "Look, your brother and I, we're..."

"Dating?"

"No, Mia."

"Then I'm really confused," Mia stated, looking utterly lost.

"I met your brother at the wedding, and yeah, we kind of had a thing. But, I wasn't ready for a relationship, I was just about to graduate from college, and I still had to get a job, and figure out where I wanted to live. There just wasn't any room in my life, or time for that matter, for a relationship."

"And now?"

Riley shook her head. "Your brother is a great guy, Mia, and I do really like him..."

"But?" Mia asked, already knowing what was coming.

"What happened today, it can't happen again. We slipped, that's all. It was a mistake."

"Why? why can't it happen, I don't understand."

Riley thought about it for a minute, trying to find the best way to let her down easy. She didn't want to break the poor girl's heart, she was afraid Mia had enough heartbreak in her short life already.

"Because I care about you Mia, I care about you, and I want to help you. But I can't do that, I can't... do my job, and date your brother at the same time. I could get fired for something like that. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I think so. But it sucks."

"Tell me about it."

"Well, what if... what if I got a new probation officer? Then could you date him?"

Riley stifled a giggle, patting Mia's leg affectionately. "But then I couldn't help you, could I?"

Mia was silent for a minute, and Riley thought that might have been a sign of her finally understanding the situation.

She was wrong. Mia was a lot smarter than she gave her credit for.

"You could be my friend." She said instead, catching Riley completely off guard.

"You know what Mia? Let's um, let's talk about this later, okay?"

Mia, feeling a little like she'd just been stabbed in the heart, nodded, turning and looking out the window so that Riley wouldn't see her eyes as they welled up with tears.

Satisfied that the conversation was over, at least for now, Riley pulled back out onto the road and continued the drive back to her place.

Denver made sure to take a seat next to Viktor on the plane as they flew out to California. They would play the Los Angeles Kings tomorrow, and then the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday, before heading to Arizona to take on the Coyotes on Monday.

Their Western Conference road trip ended with a back to back on Wednesday and Thursday, playing first the Colorado Avalanche, and then the Dallas Stars. Their first game against France since he'd been traded.

After that, the next few games they played, a mixture of home and away, would all be against teams in their own Division.

"Can I ask you something Viktor?"

"Yes."

"Why didn't you tell me Riley was living with you?" Denver all but demanded.

Viktor turned in his seat, sliding the headphones he'd had on off his head so that they hung around his neck.

"I did not know that this was an issue."

Denver shook his head, reading the serious expression on his friend's face, and realizing he might have been coming on too strong. "I'm sorry. I just, I didn't know she was staying with you, it kind of caught me off guard."

"You two have a thing?" He asked curiously.

"If it were up to me, yeah. But no, it's more like, we had a thing."

"Riley is a nice girl, you two would look good together."

Denver smiled and nodded, "thanks, man."

"Is no problem," Viktor replied, all but ending the conversation as he slipped his headphones back on and turned up his music.

The conversation hadn't exactly gone the way he had hoped it would, but then again, he wasn't sure he'd had an end goal in mind to start with. He was basically just blowing off some steam after what had happened down by the river in his boathouse.

Denver went over and over in his mind the events of the afternoon, as well as every other encounter he'd had so far with Riley. There were little tell-tale signs, like the way she looked at him, or the way she'd turn away, or blush when she thought he wasn't paying attention. Her body language spoke of an intense interest, but the words coming out of her mouth said anything but.

He knew, after today though, that Riley had some sort of feelings for him. The key now was, getting her to admit to it, and finding a way to convince her to give them a shot.
Chapter 12

Getting to Know Mia

Denver's game against L.A. found him all out of sorts. He ended up letting in at least two rather soft goals, one in the first two minutes of the game, and another in the last five. His team, however, was more than capable of picking up the slack, finding a way to win the game five to three.

Dean didn't have a problem pulling him aside after the game though, to find out why Denver had underperformed. Everyone had their days, but Denver hardly ever gave up rebounds as easily as he had that night.

"What happened out there Denver? Nerves?"

"I'm sorry man, I guess I'm just..."

"Too far into your own head?" Dean supplied.

Denver snorted, "you could say that."

"Look, Collins, whatever it is that's going on at home, you have to leave that shit off the ice."

"This has nothing to do with Mia," Denver told him, suddenly rethinking his answer. "Or, maybe it does in its own way."

"So, it's Riley then," Dean said pulling Denver along with him and sitting down at a table. "Denver, I'm going to be straight with you. I don't know what happened between you and Riley, and honestly, I don't need to hear all the details, but I think it's time you let that girl go."

"I'm not ready to."

"Yeah, well, when it starts affecting how you do your job, it's a problem, Denver."

"She cares about me Dean, and I don't mean just as a friend. We kissed yesterday, and it was, it was amazing. You don't kiss someone like that because you just want to be their friend."

"Okay, I'll give you that, but it doesn't mean things are going to work out. Abby seems to think Riley's afraid of something, and she's just not sure Riley will get over it very easily. There may just come a time when you have to decide to walk away."

"Would you have walked away from Abby?"

"What does Abby have to do with any of this? It's not even close to the same thing!" Dean argued, clearly not wanting to drag his own relationship into the matter.

"Think about it Dean, Abby was in a relationship with another man, Riley is in a relationship with her job. It's not that different." Dean was shaking his head, he just didn't want to see the similarities. "So, tell me, would there have come a time when you would have given up on Abby?"

Dean thought about it for a moment. And the answer that came to him, considering how perfect everything had turned out, wasn't an easy one to reach. "Yeah, I would have. If Abby had decided she was in love with Joey, and that she honestly saw a future with him, I would have walked away. But only if I KNEW she loved him. Of course, that's the difference, you can fight a man, Denver, you can't fight a job."

As much as Denver wanted to tell him he was wrong, he knew Dean was right. Denver loved his job, and he wouldn't give it up for anything, or anyone. He knew that if Riley wanted her job more than she did a relationship with him, they were doomed from the start.

The next couple of days, leading up to the weekend, seemed to go by kind of fast. Mia settled into the guest room next to Riley's and appeared to have gotten over her earlier melodrama rather quickly after meeting Dasha and Wolverine.

She found it hilarious that someone the likes of Viktor, who could almost be compared to a giant, could own such a small, sweet, scruffy little dog, and it surprised her to learn that Viktor had brought the dog over with him from Russia. A gift from his daughter to keep him company while he was in America.

Mia was also shocked by the appearance of Riley's cat.

"That's a cat?" Mia had exclaimed when she'd first laid eyes on Wolverine.

Riley had nodded, "he is, he is definitely a cat."

"What kind of cat is he? He looks really funny, no offense."

Riley pretended to cover Wolverine's ears, "none taken," she giggled. "Wolverine is a Lykoi cat. He's actually a purebred."

"No way!"

"Way," Riley insisted. "The shelter I worked at in Yulee rescued a bunch of cats from a hoarding situation, and while a lot of the feral cats had to be put down, Abby took a couple of them home with her, as barn cats, thinking she could maybe tame them and find them homes. Everyone thought Wolverine had mange or something at first, but after living there when Abby moved in with Dean and feeding him for a few months, I realized I had seen a cat like him before."

"He's really purebred? And he didn't have mange?"

"Yes, and no. It's a mutation that causes his hair and skin to look like that. The lady that was hoarding the cats had a few of these guys, and the other ones had to be put down because they were in bad shape. Everyone thought Wolverine was feral too, so no one really got close enough to realize what he was, Abby just kept pumping antibiotics into the food she gave him."

"But he's not feral," Mia remarked as Wolverine came over to investigate, rubbing himself against her outstretched hand.

"Not at all, he was just shy."

"And Viktor let you have him here when you moved in? That's so cool!"

"Are you kidding?" Riley laughed, picking the cat up off the floor and hugging him to her. "Viktor and this cat are in love. I don't know what it is, but animals seem to love Viktor, and despite his rough exterior, the man is such a softy!"

The girls giggled and laughed for hours after that, bonding over pizza and talking about how cute some of the guys on the Savannah Slashers team were, outside of Denver that is. Mia seemed content, for now at least, to let that go.

The more she opened up to her, the more Riley realized she was going to have to resign as her probation officer. It just didn't feel like a professional relationship anymore, and Riley couldn't bear the thought of taking advantage of her.

Mia admitted to Riley that she'd been acting out, more or less, because of the things going on in her life, she just wanted a little more of Denver's time. And while she understood that Denver was doing the best he could, it sometimes didn't feel like enough.

She missed her mother, and she missed her father, and the life she'd once had.

And when they'd talked about her mother and what had happened, Mia confessed something that completely blew Riley away.

"I'm afraid I'm going to get it to. Her disease," She admitted.

"That's crazy, I mean, I don't think that's how it works. Is it?"

Mia nodded, "there's some genetic predisposition to Alzheimer's, I think my mom had it, and that's how they found out. I want to get tested for it, but..."

"But what?"

"I'm afraid to ask Denver to take me to get tested. I mean, what if I do have it? I don't want to be like her. It was really scary."

Riley's heart broke as Mia told her the story about the incident that landed their mother in the nursing home.

They had been living with Denver for over two years at that point, and Denver had already hired someone to be in the home at all times to take care of their mother, as her memory and the ability to care for herself had gone downhill quickly after their father had abandoned them.

"It was like, like she'd given up on life and let the disease take over," Mia told her, all but in tears. "My dad left, he went to live with his new girlfriend, and my mom just lost it. I don't, I don't think they loved each other anymore, but, well, she didn't want to be alone."

"But she had you," Riley remarked.

Mia just shook her head. "It wasn't the same. But we moved in with Denver then, and she seemed okay for a little while. Then she just, stopped trying."

It was a few months before the playoffs. Denver had already taken over as the starting goaltender. And Mia recalled how everything went down, she did so with such clarity that Riley almost felt like she was there in the room with her while it was happening.

Their mother had grabbed a knife out of the kitchen and was threatening the home health aide with it, saying she had stolen her husband, calling her all sorts of names and chasing her around the house. Mia had called the police and was waiting for them to arrive when her mother got within inches of stabbing the nurse.

Mia had thrown herself in the way instead, taking the knife high in her right thigh, she even showed Riley the scar. The whole thing sounded crazy, and surreal, like something out of a horror movie.

"The cops showed up, and then they had to call for an ambulance. My mom had to be sedated, and they sent an officer to the rink. Denver had to leave the game so he could come home. It was awful. He called and made arrangements at the nursing home the next day. I was so mad at him. I thought, you know, that I hated him or something. I didn't want her to go."

"He was just trying to protect you, Mia."

"I know that, now," Mia said, tears dripping down her face as she talked about the days and weeks that followed, and how she'd started to make Denver's life a living hell after that, how she had been arrested, and how bad she felt about all of it.

Riley was holding her in her arms at the end of it all, soothing her, coaxing her, and wiping her tears. Her heart ached for Mia, and for Denver, and she knew then what she needed to do.

The Slashers would take Anaheim to overtime, where they would squeak out a win in the last minute of three on three hockey. Dean, once again proving why he had been paid the big bucks, by turning into Mr. Clutch and slamming one through the five hole.

On Monday, Denver would record his second shutout of the season against a struggling Arizona, the Slashers winning four-nothing.

However, by the end of the week, the constant travel seemed to wear on them, and they dropped their next two games. The first in overtime, and the second by blowing a two-goal lead late in the third. But walking away from their road trip with seven out of a possible ten points wasn't too bad.

And it was pretty great seeing France again, even if he did end up stealing the game from them.

It was still early in the season, and they were currently sitting second in their division and fourth overall in the conference. The Tampa Bay Lightning were one point ahead of them, and both Pittsburgh and the Washington Capitals were ahead in the conference as well.

The Chicago Blackhawks, were, as usual, near the top of the league standings, followed closely by Nashville and surprisingly, the Oilers, who continued their newfound success. While fourth in the conference, the Slashers were just seventh in the league.

But there were plenty of games left in the season to make a run for the President's trophy if they were so inclined. The President's trophy, though, giving the team home ice advantage throughout the playoffs, wasn't normally something teams strived for. It was great to win it, but the Stanley Cup was the only trophy in professional hockey that really mattered.

And having been to the Stanley Cup finals two out of the last three years, winning it once, the Slashers, who were, for the most part, well rested, were ready to make another run at it.

Just now though, they were whipped. Traveling, sleeping in hotel beds, and playing five games in seven days was enough to do that to you.
Chapter 13

The Truth About Cats and Dogs

By the time his flight got in on Friday morning, Denver couldn't think about anything other than crashing in his own bed for a few hours. And since Riley was going to pick up Mia from school, he had plenty of time for a nap.

It was late afternoon before Denver finally crawled out of bed, stopping at a McDonald's for a bite to eat before heading to Viktor's to get Mia. When he'd talked to Mia a few times over the past week, she had sounded happy and told him how much fun she'd been having. Denver really didn't think there was any rush to go and get her.

Besides all that, he'd been giving a lot of thought to the whole dog situation and had a stop to make beforehand. It was time he started to trust his sister.

About an hour later, Denver pulled up behind Sandra's car in the alley and walked around to the front of the townhouse. Riley answered the door after the second knock.

"Come on in," she said with a smile.

"I uh, I actually don't have much time," Denver objected.

"Someplace you need to be?"

Denver looked behind him, forgetting for a minute that the truck was parked around back, Riley leaned to her right, trying to see what he was looking at, and gave him a confused stare as he turned back to face her, "no," he told her. "Just something I need to take care of."

Riley took his hand, pulling him into the house and shutting the door behind him. "Well, whatever it is, it can wait, I need to talk to you about something."

"Actually, it can't wait..." He argued, trying to tug his hand out of her grasp. "Wait, what do you mean you need to talk to me? Is something wrong with Mia?"

"No, no, Mia's fine, I just wanted to talk to you about her, I came up with a solution to our problem that I think will work out for everyone."

"I didn't know we had a problem."

Mia looked over the railing then, calling down to them. "Is that Denver? Is Denver here?" She asked.

"Yeah," Riley answered looking up. "Can you just give us a couple of minutes...." She trailed off as Mia came bounding down the stairs, Dasha hot on her heels.

The little dog skittered to a stop in front of Denver rolling over and exposing her stomach as she wiggled emphatically. Denver obliged her, bending down and giving her a good belly rub. Riley watched in awe as he gave affection to the little dog, but she quickly groaned as he looked up and gave his sister a confused stare.

"What the hell is that?" He demanded, coming to his feet and pointing to the small white ball of fluff in Mia's arms.

Mia turned her body away from him in a protective motion, "nothing." She gulped.

Still pointing at the offending creature, Denver turned to Riley, "what is that?"

Riley gulped as well. "It's a kitten."

"I hope that's your kitten."

"I'll uh, I'll go get packed." Mia interrupted, taking off back up the stairs.

Denver watched her go, then turned his attention back to Riley, "tell me it's your cat." He said with annoyance written all over his face.

"It could be."

"What do you mean, it could be? It either is or it isn't. And is this what you wanted to talk to me about? Because this definitely doesn't solve any problems."

Riley blinked at him a couple of times, she'd seen Denver angry before once already, but this was different, it was a kind of controlled anger, and frankly, it scared her a little.

"No," she finally managed, coming back to herself. "I wanted to talk to you about where Mia stays when you have to go out of town."

"What about it?"

Riley took a deep breath, "I'm going to transfer Mia to another PO."

Denver's mood seemed to perk up for a minute, only to come crashing down as Riley destroyed whatever hope he had in the next instant.

"I want Mia to stay with me when you have to go out of town. It's the perfect solution. I can be the authority figure she needs, I can be her friend, and I can make sure she stays out of trouble. Give you peace of mind."

"And where does that leave us?" He dared to ask.

Riley shrugged, watching as the color drained from his face. "It doesn't change anything Denver. There can't be an us, I'm sorry."

They stood there for a few minutes, both staring at the floor. Then Denver broke the silence as he yelled up to Mia, startling Riley in the process.

"That's a good idea," He said quietly, being rewarded with a smile as Riley looked back up at him.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Denver smiled weakly in return. "Mia sounded like she really enjoyed being here, and at least this way I don't have to worry about where she'll be. I know she's in good hands with you."

Riley beamed, she wasn't sure how Denver was going to take the news. She'd thought long and hard about the decision and it was really the only thing that made sense, for everyone.

"I uh, I already called my boss to get things going. Mia is going to be transferred to Mrs. Westerly, she mainly deals with adults, but I've convinced her to take Mia on. She's a real motherly type of woman, but stern."

"Sounds like you thought of everything." Denver nodded. "But Riley?"

"Yeah?"

"Next time you decide to make a decision that affects me, I wish you'd come to me first."

"But I did..." she said, with a sort of puzzled look.

"I was talking about the cat."

"Oh, that."

"Yeah, that." He replied a little irritated.

"I was going to tell you, but, well, Mia said you told her she could have a dog, and then, well, we went to the shelter to visit Abby, and she saw the kitten, and I dunno, I guess I didn't think it was a big deal, I mean, you were already going to get her a dog, and a cat is less expensive and lot easier to take care of."

"You still should have asked me."

"I know." She admitted, a little embarrassed.

Mia came down the stairs, kitten in hand, and as she reached the bottom, she dropped her bag at her feet and after a quick snuggle, held the small feline out to her brother for inspection.

Denver reluctantly accepted the small kitten, holding it close, he stroked it softly.

"Riley already bought a litter box, some litter, and food, and she already has all her shots and is fixed and what not, I hope you're not mad." Mia babbled, without taking a breath. "Riley's cat is just so cool, and they're much easier to take care of. I'll get a couple of automatic feeders, and then all I have to do when you're out of town is set them and then, you know, clean the litter box and what not."

Denver gave the little kitten one more look, then handed her off to Riley, grabbing Mia's bag and the cat supplies and heading towards the garage.

Mia and Riley exchanged glances, smiling at each other and following in Denver's wake.

Once in the garage, Denver hit a button on the inside wall and watched as the garage door began to lift, then he looked back at Mia and sighed. "Well, I hope it likes dogs." He said.

The two girls looked at him in confusion, and then Mia squealed in delight when Denver's truck came into view and she saw the little brown head peeking at them from over the dashboard.

Mia darted under the partially opened garage door, making a beeline for the truck and throwing the door open. The little puppy whined and wiggled as she picked it up, licking her face and wagging its stub of a tail.

"You got her a dog?" Riley said, more than asked, still holding the kitten and watching in astonishment as Mia took the small pup over to the grass and sat down with it in her lap.

Denver tossed Mia's stuff into the cab of the truck and came back over to where Riley stood, still staring slack-jawed at Mia and the puppy. "Yup." He replied.

Riley shook her head, she had to get ahold of herself. She turned to face Denver, who seemed to be amused by her reaction. "Do you want me to keep the kitten?" She asked.

Denver reached over and took the animal in question out of Riley's hands, holding it by the scruff of its neck, he inspected it, and then tucked it into the crook of his arm. "Nope." He told her.

With a half laugh, half sigh kind of sound, Riley followed Denver over to where Mia and the puppy were getting to know each other.

"Is he really mine?" Mia asked in wonder when she noticed she had company.

Denver nodded, bending down and grabbing the end of the puppy's leash before handing the kitten to Mia. "I'd say you've got just about all the responsibility you can handle now."

Mia laughed, "yeah, I guess so. I still can't believe you got me a puppy! He's so cute!" She said, turning to Riley, who smiled and watched as the pup sniffed at the ground and found a spot to relieve himself. "Look at all those spots! Is he mixed with Dalmatian or something?"

Denver picked the little pup up off the ground, fending off his kisses as Riley walked over and scratched behind it's big floppy ears.

"He's a German Shorthaired Pointer," He told them. "Noah's girlfriend's parents breed them and train them to hunt. When he heard I was thinking about getting you a dog, he told me they had a puppy that didn't have the drive to be a hunter and they were looking for a good home for him."

"Does he have a name?" Mia asked, standing at a distance now as the kitten stirred a little and hissed.

Denver nodded, "his name is Copper. They said you could change it though."

"No, that's perfect! I love him Denver, and I promise you I'll take care of both of them!"

Putting the pup into the cab of the truck, Denver shut the door. "You have no choice." He then pinned Riley with a stern look, "I trust you won't make any more decisions without me though?"

Riley shook her head vehemently, "no," she answered quickly. "I promise I won't do anything like this again."

"Good," he said, watching out of the corner of his eye as Mia climbed into the truck and did her best to keep the kitten out of Copper's reach. "I want to talk to you a little bit more about this arrangement, what do you say to lunch tomorrow?"

"Denver," she sighed, about to argue.

"It's just lunch, Riley."

"Like it was just dinner? Or, like it was just a walk down to the river?" she retorted.

Denver held up his hands, palms out, "I promise I'll keep my hands to myself, Riley." She looked at him skeptically. "I just want to make sure we're both on the same page here, I promise, hands to myself."

"Fine."

"Great, I'll pick you up around eleven."

Riley was about to object when Denver cut her off by hopping up into his truck and turning the ignition. Copper climbed into his lap, sticking his little brown head out the window and sniffing at the air.

Riley laughed, at herself, at them, and at the situation she now found herself in. Somehow or another she'd let Denver get the best of her, again.

The night was chaotic, to say the least.

While it was true that Riley had provided them with most everything they would need to take care of the kitten, they had still needed to make a stop at the local pet store for a few other things as well as whatever Copper would need.

A few hundred dollars' worth of toys and supplies later, and they finally made it home, where the real fun began.

Copper and the Kitten, who Mia named Cobalt after the color of her eyes, didn't hit it off right away.

Copper was curious and wanted to play, and Cobalt wanted nothing to do with him. To settle things down, Denver decided a separation was the key. Cobalt's litter box went in the office, and her food dish on the sink in Mia's bathroom so the puppy couldn't reach it. Her bed and all her toys went in Mia's room.

And as he suspected from the start, Copper pretty much became his dog right away.

They put his crate in the sunroom, and Denver installed a doggy door in there as well, he figured once the puppy got used to using the doggy door they could trust him to be loose in the house, but they'd crate train him at first. And his bed was placed in Denver's room.

After hours of chasing balls and trying to sniff out the cat, Copper finally settled down for the night.

In bed with Denver.
Chapter 14

North Beach

With her newfound responsibilities, Mia seemed only too happy, and Denver felt comfortable leaving her home alone for a few hours while he went out with Riley.

Of course, he hadn't told Mia where he was going or who he'd be with, he didn't want her to get the wrong idea, even if it was the very idea that he, himself had. She probably just figured it had something to do with work.

Denver had the day off though.

The Slashers had a home game on Monday against the Hurricanes and an away game on Wednesday against the Red Wings. They then had a back to back on Saturday and Sunday, a home and away, only in reverse for them.

They would travel to New Jersey for a game against the Devils and then play at home against the Devils on Sunday night.

He was going to enjoy his rare weekend off.

After lunch with Riley, he had plans to meet some of the guys at the bar that night, and on Sunday, while he did have practice, he invited the team over for an afternoon barbecue. It had been too long since the last time he'd fired up the grills, and he and Mia deserved an afternoon of good friends and good food. Mia always enjoyed socializing with his teammates.

He had thought about inviting Riley too, but for now, he figured he'd just play it by ear.

Riley was waiting for Denver outside when he arrived. As he hadn't given her any details the day before, and she didn't have his phone number on hand to call him, she wasn't sure what he would have in mind, so she stuck to casual.

A pair of shorts because the weather was mild and a Slashers t-shirt, of all things.

She took a deep breath as Denver got out of the truck and moved around to the other side to open the door for her. He too was dressed casually in board shorts and a polo. And yet, he looked sexy as hell.

"Nice shirt," Denver said when she approached. Riley's brows rose, but she settled on a nod, for fear that her voice wouldn't work.

The woodsy smell of his cologne as she got close to him caught in her nostrils and made her stomach do little flip-flops. She took another deep breath as he closed her door and made his way back to the driver's side. She really needed to get ahold of herself. Denver had said himself that it was just a lunch meeting to talk about Mia.

Then why did it feel so much like a date?

"So," she said as he pulled out of the driveway "where are you taking me?"

Denver looked her way and smiled, sending an explosion of nerves and excitement throughout her body. "I thought we'd head out to Tybee Island."

"The beach?" she gulped.

"Yeah, there's this little bar and grill to the north that Mia really likes."

At the mention of Mia, Riley's nerves settled just a fraction. She just needed to keep reminding herself that this was about Mia, it wasn't a date.

"I thought we could maybe, I dunno, get to know each other a little better on the ride over there." Denver mused, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel in tune with the song on the radio. "What do you say?"

Riley nodded, "sure." It seemed like a safe enough idea she supposed, and there were plenty of things she was curious about. Like if he'd slept with anyone since that night. What? No, that wasn't right. It's not a date, it's not a date. She told herself, trying to get a grip and hoping Denver couldn't read the turmoil on her face.

"Tell me about your family," Denver said, cutting into her thoughts and bringing her back to reality.

Thank God for small favors.

Riley proceeded to tell him about her family. Though, she didn't really think there was much to tell.

Riley had been born and raised just outside of the Jacksonville city limits, in Florida. Her father supervised a warehouse and her mother was a dental hygienist. She grew up in a nice house on a cul de sac and didn't want for anything.

She had two older brothers, Allen and Eric. Allen was a police officer and lived with his wife and two young kids, a girl aged ten and a boy aged six, in Orlando. Her brother Eric lived with his wife in Jacksonville and worked with their father at the warehouse in manufacturing. They had three kids, twin boys aged nine and a little girl who was four.

Riley had played softball in high school and was a member of the student council. She told him she had been kind of a nerd, but Denver didn't believe her.

"Sounds like you had a pretty good childhood." He commented when she was finished.

Riley shrugged, "Certainly no complaints. You?"

"You know those kids, the ones that have the really cool parents, and live in really nice houses, that everyone wants to hang out at after school?"

"Yeah. My friend Kelly had that kind of life. Was that you?" She asked, more interested than she wanted to be. But she told herself it was just because she wanted to know how Mia had grown up.

"Yeah." He answered, looking at her briefly before turning his attention back to the road. They had just turned on Islands Expressway headed West. "I was twelve when Mia was born, so she was still young when I was in high school, but yeah, I was that kid. We were that family."

"So, what happened?"

The story he told her was a sad one. It started out like most fairy tales, he had perfect parents, his father in real estate and his mother working for the county. Good, well-paying jobs. A nice house in a beautiful neighborhood. By all accounts, a life of privilege.

Denver went to good schools, and Mia as well, Denver had loved hockey, and his parents pushed him hard to succeed. He got a scholarship to Maine, and got drafted by the Slashers, it all sounded too good to be true.

And so, it was.

He told her how he'd found out about his father's many indiscretions, walking in on one of them himself. Not that his mother had seemed to mind, "He is a man," she had told him "and men sometimes needed more than one woman to satisfy their urges." Bullshit he'd said, and Riley agreed.

He told Riley how devastated his mother had been when she'd first gotten diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and how his father had quickly abandoned them all.

Some fairy tale.

"Mia told me you guys talked about the incident." He said as they pulled into the parking lot of their destination.

"Yeah, it was pretty heartbreaking. I'm so sorry Denver."

Denver sat there for a minute without saying anything, staring off into the distance, then he turned and faced her, rewarding her with a smile, albeit a very sad one. "Not your fault."

Riley nodded, she didn't know what to say.

Smacking his hands on his thighs, Denver startled her out of her depressing thoughts. "What do you say we go and get something to eat? I'm starving."

North Beach Bar and Grill on the north side of Tybee Island, reminded Riley a lot of Marlin Monroe's with its bright colors and tiki bar, but instead of a busty Marlin as their mascot, they had a Bob Marleyesque Manatee.

Like Marlin's though, North Beach was also right on the water, and being as it was still early, they weren't too busy yet. Riley would bet they did a pretty good business out here on Saturdays though.

Grabbing a couple of drinks, they ordered some burgers and fries, to go, at Denver's insistence, and chatted at the bar while they waited for their food.

Riley asked Denver how his two new housemates were getting along, and Denver filled her in on Copper's puppy antics and Cobalt's bitchiness, as he called it.

"Awe, she seemed like such a sweet little kitten," Riley said, not wanting to believe that Cobalt was capable of being the little terror Denver was suggesting she was.

"That cat is the devil," He insisted.

Their food arrived by that time and Denver grabbed the bags, leading her back to the parking lot for a moment while he grabbed what looked like a large blanket out of the truck before heading off in the direction of the dunes and the beach beyond.

Riley, a little uneasy about this impromptu picnic, followed him anyways.

The beach was all but empty, a brisk wind adding a slight chill to the air. But the sun was high in the sky, and warm enough so that it wasn't too cold. The waves crashed and rolled on top of each other as they made their way towards the shore, and little birds darted in and out of the water looking for crabs or other things to eat.

Perfect picnic weather.

Denver shook the blanket out over the sand, it was large and had a colorful striped pattern to it. Once he was satisfied that it wasn't going to blow in the wind too much, Denver sat down, motioning for Riley to do the same as he started rifling through the bags of food.

He handed Riley her burger and fries, as well as a couple of napkins, and went to work on his own food. Riley watched with amusement as he bit into his burger with vigor, he clearly hadn't been kidding around when he said he was hungry.

"You really were hungry," She laughed.

Denver looked up, a mouth full of burger, "huh?" he said between chewing and swallowing.

"Don't you eat at home?"

"Yeah, sometimes," Denver admitted with a sheepish grin. "I just got home yesterday, I haven't had the chance to go shopping yet."

Yeah, that made sense.

"What's Mia doing for lunch?"

"I dunno, she has my credit card number if she wants to order out, but there's probably something in the freezer."

Riley cocked a brow, "you trust her with your credit card?"

Denver shrugged, "she's at home with no car, how much trouble could she get into? Besides, it's not the card she has, just the number."

"Have you ever heard of this little thing called the internet?"

Denver didn't seem too fazed. "Mia may be a lot of things, but she's nothing if not respectful when it comes to things like that."

They both chose to eat in silence at that point, neither of them sure what to say next.

It was Riley, once she had finished with her food that broke through the quiet. "What are your concerns as far as me taking care of Mia?" She asked.

Denver considered his answer for a minute, taking a sip of his drink and wiping his mouth with his napkin. "I guess I don't really have any concerns, per se, it's more like, I just need to know how this is going to work. Like, do I bring her to you? Will you come get her? Is it going to be like it was this last time?"

"Wow," Riley said, exhaling loudly. "That's a lot of questions."

"Sorry."

"No, no, it's okay. Alright, well, let's just take this a little bit at a time."

"Okay."

Riley turned on the blanket so that she was facing him, sitting Indian style with her legs crossed in front of her. Denver sat with his feet out in front of him, leaning back and using his hands to brace himself.

"I don't want Mia to have to go back and forth all the time, so I kind of figured that when you go out of town for extended trips I'd just use your guest room, if that's okay."

"Sure, yeah, I told you that you could the first time."

"Right, yeah, I know that, it was just, I was...."

"Nervous?"

Riley looked out towards the water, afraid her cheeks would be red, "yeah, something like that."

Denver reached out and placed a finger under her chin, turning her face back towards him. "What is it, Riley? What are you afraid of?" He asked, shocking her to the very core.

"N-nothing," she stammered. "I'm not afraid of anything."

"No? Because you look like a timid little bunny rabbit who's ready to bolt at any minute."

Riley's heart began to thunder in her chest, pounding to the beat of a stampede. Denver's finger hadn't moved, in fact, his thumb now brushed slowly against the side of her cheek, and the heat of his skin seared her, sending chills down her spine.

"Denver," she whispered, trying so hard to hold onto what little control remained.

"Yes?" he asked, leaning in closer, his mouth mere inches from hers.

Riley closed her eyes, her fists clenching as he closed the distance, she turned her face at the last second, his lips landing on her cheek instead. Shrugging out of his grasp, Riley scrambled to her feet and put a little distance between them, turning away from him and looking out at the ocean as she pulled herself together.

Denver didn't move, but he squinted under the sun's harsh glare as she turned around to face him.

"Denver," she said with more authority, though her voice still shook. "This can't happen. And you promised you'd keep your hands to yourself."

He nodded, sitting upright as he extended a hand and then patted the blanket beside him, "You're right, and I'm sorry, it won't happen again, just, please, sit back down."

Hesitantly, Riley took a couple of deep breaths and did as he suggested, though she made sure to keep as much distance between them on the blanket as she could.

Denver laughed. "I'm sorry," he apologized again, his laughter setting her more at ease.

"It's okay, really. You just, we just..."

"It can't happen."

She nodded, "right, it can't happen."

With a sigh, Denver slipped off his flip-flops and dug his toes into the sand, "can I ask you something?"

"Sure." She said, though her heart still beat a mile a minute and she was honestly scared of what he might ask.

"Why did you leave?" He asked, looking out at the Atlantic, hoping that by not looking at her she would feel more at ease.

Riley bit her lower lip, glad he couldn't see just how uncomfortable his question made her. And maybe that was the point. Maybe he thought if he didn't look at her it would be easier for her to answer him. Maybe Denver was a lot smarter than she gave him credit for.

"It seemed like the right thing to do." She answered quietly.

Denver caught her expression out of the corner of his eye, and he half smiled so she couldn't see it. He hadn't meant to make Riley feel uncomfortable. He hadn't meant to kiss her. Denver was usually a man of his word, which was a testament to his feelings for her, in that he hadn't been able to help himself.

The way she had looked at him, the light from the sun as it played with the highlights in her hair and glinted off those brown-gold eyes of hers. The sound of the ocean as it played tag with the gulls racing along the shore, and the scent of her perfume as it wafted in the breeze. It was all like a drug to him, assaulting his senses and pulling him under.

He had fast become addicted to Riley, and he couldn't help but be drawn to her. The need to touch her was stronger than any magnet pulling against metal. How could he stop himself? He needed to find a way. He needed to summon all his resolve, he couldn't risk scaring her away.

"Why?"

Riley shook her head. "I wasn't ready for you."

"And now?"

Riley looked at him, she smiled softly, and Denver's insides turned to mush.

"I'm sorry Denver." She began, knowing she'd need all her tact in order to let him down gently. "I know this is really cliché sounding, but it's not you, it's me."

Denver burst out laughing, which honestly shocked Riley, it was probably the last reaction she expected out of him.

"Why are you laughing?"

"It's not me, it's you? Really, Riley?"

"Well, yeah."

Denver shook his head, stretching himself out again. "You're right, that sounds cliché as hell, and it's total bullshit."

"Excuse me?" She shot back. "It's not bullshit, it's how I feel."

"No. No, that's what you say to someone you don't feel anything for, but like, you don't want to hurt their feelings at the same time."

"And that doesn't apply here because...?"

"Because you feel something for me."

Riley snorted, then laughed just slightly. "Awful cocky there aren't we, Denver? How do you know I feel something for you? Maybe it's like you said, maybe I just don't want to hurt your feelings."

"Nah, that's not it." He declared with confidence.

"Then enlighten me, please."

"I promised I wouldn't touch you again."

Riley sat there, stunned, trying to process his last remark. Though he had a very good point, she wasn't quite ready to concede. "That's just a physical response," she retorted.

"Yeah? Would you let Andre kiss you like that?"

"No," She blurted without thinking. "Shit."

Denver laughed again.

"Okay, fine, I have feelings for you, but that doesn't negate the fact that this CAN'T happen." She said, pointing from him to herself and back again to indicate her meaning.

"Why? Tell me why Riley. You give me one good reason why, and I'll let it go."

"Fine," she seethed, working herself up into a snit. "It can't happen because of Mia, and you know that."

"Not good enough. You already told me you were giving her up as a client, that makes you fair game. You can still be her friend and my girlfriend."

Girlfriend. Just the word coming from his lips was enough to send her head spinning. It sounded so good. Too good. And just like that, her mind was off to the races, thinking about what life could be like with Denver. Living with Denver, sleeping with Denver, having lots and lots of sex, with Denver.

She had to shake the thoughts from her mind before they dug too deep and made themselves at home.

"Okay, fine, yeah, you've got me there."

"Alright, so try again then, I'm waiting."

Riley didn't really want to talk about it. She had hoped her first excuse was enough to put him off, but he was too smart for her twisted logic once again. She wasn't about to admit to him though that she was afraid of falling in love with him and having to end things if he ever got traded.

Living in fear of what could happen was stupid, and deep down she knew that. She was smarter than that, but it didn't make it any easier to swallow.

"What are you afraid of Riley?" He asked, prodding her for an answer.
Chapter 15

What's your number?

What was she afraid of? Everything.

Riley already knew she had feelings for him, and every time she looked into those deep blue eyes of his, eyes the color of the ocean in front of them, she lost a little more of her heart. A little piece of her drowned in them each and every time. She was afraid alright, afraid of him and the amazing life they could have together. And if she were being honest with herself, she was afraid she couldn't love him the way he deserved. With all her heart.

Riley let her brain take the lead far too often, and logic told her that he WOULD eventually get traded, and he would have to move. And there was no way she'd give up her life, and the close proximity to her family, not for him, not for anything.

Not even love.

"I can't date you because you're a hockey player." She heard herself saying, regretting it the instant the words came out of her mouth.

Lucky for her, Denver didn't take it in the way she, herself, thought about it. Which lead the conversation into much safer, and much more interesting territory.

"I'm not some horn dog if that's what you're thinking," Denver said, rolling up his napkin and tossing it into the garbage can nearby.

"I didn't say you were."

"You didn't have to. I know what most women think, and if I were, oh say, Andre, they'd be right."

Riley snorted, sitting upright on the blanket and crossing her legs again.

"Honestly," Denver retorted, trying not to laugh. "How many women do you think I've been with?"

A little agitated, or perhaps, more aptly described, flustered, Riley uncrossed her legs and leaned back on her hands, looking out at the water and watching as the little birds scurried across the sand, darting away from the waves when they lapped at the wet sandy shore.

"I dunno..." she replied with a shrug. "Like twenty?"

Denver's eyes bugged a little, "wow, if you think a man sleeping with twenty women isn't a horn dog, then I'd hate to think of how many women he'd have to sleep with to become one."

They both burst into laughter.

"Okay then," Riley said once she'd settled down. "How many women HAVE you slept with?"

Denver cocked a brow, "I'll tell you if you'll tell me."

"That's fair."

"Less than a dozen. You?"

"What?" Riley asked indignantly, "what the hell kind of answer it that? Less than a dozen." She mocked. "I want a hard number, I'm not giving up mine for that lazy ass answer, hell, in that case, my answer is the same!"

Denver laughed, he liked this side of Riley, it reminded him of that night they'd spent together on Donovan's wedding day. He didn't care for the stuffy business side of her. "Alright, fine. Ten, my number is ten."

Riley pondered that for a moment, "and when did you lose your virginity?" She asked.

"When did you lose yours?" Denver countered, trying to sidestep her question, as he looked down at the sand and shuffled around some seashells with his feet.

"Uh-uh, I asked you first!"

"But you didn't answer my first question, so why should I answer your second one?"

"Five. And I lost my virginity when I was sixteen. You?"

Denver looked up, "was that before me? Or five altogether?"

Riley hesitated, "before you."

"Huh."

"What? what do you mean, huh?"

"Nothing," he said shaking his head and stifling a laugh.

Riley reached over and poked him in the chest, "no, you'll tell me what that huh means! And you'll do it now!"

Laughing harder, Denver surrendered. "Fine. It's just, well, five guys in ten years, and then a one-night stand. Seems odd. Was I your first one-night stand?"

"No," she flushed, pushing at her hair as the breeze blew it into her face. "No, you weren't."

"Alright, tell me about it."

"Why? Especially when you haven't even told me when you lost your virginity!"

"I was twenty."

"Wow, really?"

"Yeah, really," he laughed. "Why is that terribly hard to believe?"

Riley shook her head, "I dunno, I mean, I guess... well, just look at you!"

Denver obliged and looked down at himself, shrugging, "so?"

"Never mind. You've slept with ten girls in, what, eight years?"

"Yeah. I went to an all-boys preparatory school, one of the best in Washington, they had the highest rated hockey program in the state. I just wasn't really around girls, and for the first couple of years in college, I was busy studying and playing hockey. I hooked up for my first time with the girl I was seeing. We broke up a few months later."

"And how many one-night stands have you had?"

Denver kind of looked up, like he was considering his answer, "five."

"Including me?"

"Including you."

"Okay."

"Now you go."

Riley sighed, sitting up straight again and folding her hands in her lap. "I lost my virginity to my high school boyfriend. We started dating my freshman year, he was a junior, and we broke up shortly after I graduated. I went to the University of North Florida, in Jacksonville, and he was on an athletic scholarship in Gainesville to play football. We'd tried to make it work, I mean, it was only like an hour and a half drive, but well, it just didn't work."

"Did he cheat on you?" Denver asked inquisitively, sitting up and kind of leaning over on his knee so that he was closer to her.

"Well, yeah," she replied, giving him a look, "but like, I didn't know that until sometime after we'd already broken up. We just, we wanted different things. I wanted to go into law, and he wanted to play professional football."

"How did you find out he'd been cheating on you?"

Riley laughed, stretching out again, Denver mimicking her movements. "I found out when I started dating his best friend."

"Ouch."

"No, no, it wasn't like that. Trevor and I had been friends first, that's how I met Kyle, the um, the football player. Trevor was my next-door neighbor, and when he started hanging out with Kyle, that's how we met. But Trevor and I always sort of had a thing for each other, we just, we'd never acknowledged it."

"Until college?"

"Right, Trevor was pre-law, he's a big-time corporate lawyer now up in New York, working for his uncle or something, but anyways, we had a lot of classes together, and spent a lot of time together studying and stuff, and then he kind of spilled the beans about Kyle cheating, and told me how he'd wanted to tell me before, but that, well, he didn't want me to think he was only telling me because HE liked me."

"I see, and how did Kyle feel about it?"

Riley shrugged, "he didn't care, they didn't really hang out much at that point, Kyle was too busy chasing cheerleaders and getting drunk. He never did make it to the big leagues, he suffered an injury during his senior year and, I think, I think my mom said he was a coach or something now at one of the local high schools. But, whatever, he didn't care. He was cool with it."

"Alright, so that's, what, two guys? How long did you and Trevor date?"

"A year." Riley stood up at that point, dusting off the sand from her jeans, and looking down at Denver, who squinted under the light of the sun. "Do you wanna, I dunno, go for a walk?" Riley suggested, nodding with her head in the direction of the beach.

"Sure," Denver replied, getting to his feet and throwing the blanket they'd been sitting on over his shoulder. "But that doesn't get you off the hook, I want to hear the rest."

Riley nodded, "fine, yeah, okay."

They walked for a few minutes in silence, checking out their surroundings and just enjoying each other's company. The air was just starting to hint at the cooler weather to come, and the water sparkled like diamonds under the sun's warm rays. It was beautiful. Serene.

"I had a one-night stand a few months after Trevor and I broke up," Riley said, finally breaking the silence. "He got into Harvard Law, so we both figured it was just time to move on. And I went to a frat party one night and maybe had a little too much to drink."

"Is that the only time you let go of your inhibitions? When you've been drinking?"

Riley blushed, "well, no, but it doesn't hurt."

"Okay, that's three, two to go." Denver chuckled

"Right," she agreed, with a nod. "Um, I dated this one guy for a few months when Abby and I interned at this shelter in Jacksonville, you know, before we got jobs at the one in Yulee. He uh, he worked for animal control, and he was really cute."

"Why only a few months?" Denver asked, cocking his head to the side as he studied her.

"I dunno, we just didn't... I guess we just didn't click." She replied with a shrug, unaware of being under his intense scrutiny.

Riley stopped then, putting out her hand to indicate that she wanted him to stop as well, and as they faced each other, she looked up at him, squinting and shading her face from the sun, "so the fifth guy... um.. I uh, I kind of need you to promise that you won't say anything to anyone about it."

Denver peered at her for a moment, lowering his brows before eventually cocking one in what would seem a sort of confused expression, "you didn't sleep with someone on the team did you?"

"What?" Riley yelped, taken aback. "No!"

"Phew," Denver said, taking a deep breath in an almost dramatic fashion. "You had me scared there for a minute."

"Really? Why?"

"Oh, I dunno, maybe because I wouldn't want to find out that I'd practically bragged about what happened between us and he was laughing at me all along because he'd already slept with you," Denver admitted, his head lowered as he rocked back and forth on his heels.

"Wait, who did you tell, you know, about us?" Riley asked with a gulp.

"Just, just Donovan, and well, maybe Dean."

"Donovan, and Dean?"

"Okay, maybe not so much Dean, I mean, I told him you and I had a thing once, but that was it, and only because I needed to talk to Abby. But I may have gone into more detail with Donovan."

At that point, Riley wanted to be mad at him, she'd had a huge crush on Donovan, and there was just no way Denver hadn't known that, but in the end, given the fact that she'd told Abby every last detail, er, well, maybe excluding a few VERY personal descriptions, she couldn't find it in her to be as angry as she might have liked to be.

Hell, even if he'd told the entire team about their encounter, right down to the very specifics she'd left out, could she really hold it against him? No. It was what it was, a one-night stand between two possibly drunk, but consenting adults.

It was a night they both wouldn't soon forget, and for good reason, it was probably one of the most pleasurable experiences that either of them had ever had.

"Alright, I can deal with that. I mean, I did tell Abby everything that happened that night, so, I guess I can't really blame you, though, to be frank, I do wish it had been someone other than Donovan."

Denver laughed, and as such, Riley figured he grasped her meaning and he didn't need any further explanation. "I promise I won't say anything, but, I mean, if it wasn't someone on the team, I'm not sure I understand why."

"You will," Riley groaned, continuing their walk, not bothering to see if Denver followed her.

It took him a few minutes to catch up, and Riley took that time to catch her breath, she wasn't proud of what she was about to confess.

"I slept with Joey."

"Joey?" Denver looked away for a moment, saying the name quietly to himself a couple of times as he tried to place it. Riley didn't bother to put him out of his misery. "Wait," he finally said, putting his hand out and stopping their progress up the beach yet again. "Abby's Joey?"

Riley nodded, dodging his grasp and walking more hurriedly up the wet path towards the dunes.

"You slept with Abby's ex? I take it she doesn't know?" Denver said, putting himself directly in her path once he'd caught up to her again.

Riley tried to move around him, but whether it was his size or his athleticism, Denver made a great wall. Probably why he was such a good goalie, only now, she was the puck, and the entire beach was the net, even with all that space though, she couldn't manage to out maneuver him.

Frustrated, she threw her hands up in the air before smacking them against her sides. "Yes! I slept with Joey, Abby's Joey! Look, I'm not proud of it, I mean, I gave Abby a REALLY hard time about Joey, and then, well..."

"It just sort of happened?"

Riley sighed loudly, plopping down on a bench at the edge of where the sand met the parking lot. "He came over one night, he said he had something to drop off for Abby, and he didn't know that she'd already moved in with Dean. Hell, he didn't know they were engaged either, I guess he missed that game."

"I'll say," Denver said, a little shocked. Dean's proposal to Abby had been broadcast on national TV after all. And it was in all the newspapers as well, kind of hard to miss really. "So, what, like, you felt sorry for him then?"

"Kind of," Riley mumbled, more embarrassed than anything to be admitting all of this to Denver. "Look, Joey's a really good-looking guy, that was never the problem, I mean, he DID date Abby, so he'd have to have been attractive, right?"

"Well, yeah, I guess so. I never actually met the guy."

"Right, well, he was good looking. Blonde hair, blue eyes, nice smile, a good-looking guy. And yeah, maybe I did feel a little sorry for him, I mean, he did care about Abby, there just wasn't any..." Riley chewed on her bottom lip as she contemplated how best to explain it. "There wasn't any passion between them. They were both just, kind of content. Like friends who maybe sometimes had sex."

Denver nodded, he understood passion, probably more than Riley could imagine.

"We got to talking, and then, I dunno, I just kissed him. I didn't mean to, or well, I didn't mean for it to become intimate, it was just supposed to be a kiss on the cheek, but he turned his head, and then, next thing I know, he's kissing me back." She rushed on, intent on getting it all out before she didn't have the courage to. "And then, well, ya know, we had sex. And it was, it was okay. I actually felt bad about all the times I'd called him a prude. There was definitely heat there, fire even."

"Was it only that one time?" Denver asked, coming over and finally sitting down next to her, having been standing this whole time as Riley spilled her guts, a vulnerable look on her face.

Riley shook her head. "It went on for about a year." She looked at Denver, and her eyes sort of bulged as she read his expression, "we didn't date or anything," she blurted, intent on defending her actions. "It was just a physical relationship, and we ended it once we came to our senses and realized there was nothing there outside of the sex."

Denver held up his hands, "hey, you don't have to explain yourself to me, Riley, I'm not Abby, and I don't care who you've had sex with. I don't have any claim on you."

Riley seemed to breathe a little easier, nodding and allowing herself to smile. "Right. You're absolutely right, I guess, well, I guess I just..."

"Have a guilty conscience?" He supplied for her.

"Yeah. Something like that I guess."

They sat there for a moment, Riley all but dying of embarrassment, and Denver at a loss for words, just not sure of how to steer the conversation away from Joey, since Riley clearly didn't like talking about it.

"So." He finally managed.

"So." Riley agreed.

"I lost my virginity my sophomore year of college. She was my first real girlfriend." Denver said at last, when the quiet solitude stretched just a beat too long.

Riley turned to face him, "that's sweet," she said, giving him a genuine smile.

Denver half shrugged, "I guess." He said with a laugh, "It's actually kind of embarrassing admitting that."

"Why?"

"I dunno, maybe because a guy like Andre has probably had more sex in high school than I have had in my entire life. Not many guys are virgins until they're twenty."

Still smiling, Riley looked down, brushing the hair out of her face as it fell, and putting a hand on Denver's thigh. "Please don't compare yourself to the likes of Andre. And for the record, I think it's really sweet that you waited until you found someone you actually cared about."

"Thanks," he chuckled.

"How long were you guys together?" Riley asked after another seemingly awkward silence between them.

"About a year. She was pre-med and ended up doing her last year abroad. I had a small string of one-night stands after that, while, at the same time, maintaining a friends with benefits type of situation with a girl I met in my economics class."

"What did you go to college for?" Riley asked, interrupting him.

"Oh, um, uh, Journalism."

"Really?"

Denver blushed, "yeah, I uh, I didn't always want to be a hockey player. Growing up, I was really interested in the news, like, you know, being an anchorman for some big network like Good Morning America. Stupid really."

"No, not at all. I don't think it's stupid." She reassured him, giving his leg a light squeeze.

"Yeah? Cool. So, uh, anyways, this girl and I hooked up a lot, but we were just friends, and we both saw other people."

Riley took her hand off his leg, laying it in her own lap, feeling shy around Denver for the first time since meeting him. Why though, she couldn't even begin to contemplate. "So that's, what, three, four girls?" She asked, clearing her throat as her voice shook slightly, and hoping he hadn't noticed.

Denver smiled, noticing, but choosing not to make a big deal out of it. He was really starting to like this side of Riley, he already respected her, and he was thoroughly enjoying their time together, so he didn't want to make her any more uncomfortable around him than she already was.

"No, it's six."

"Six?"

"I said I had a string of one-night stands, that does imply more than one, right?"

"I guess so."

"There was Kathy, my ex, and Amanda, the friend with benefits, and then four one-night stands while I was in college. Then I briefly dated an athletic trainer while I played in the AHL, but she took a job across the country, and we weren't stupid enough to consider trying the long-distance thing."

"Seven," Riley stated simply.

Denver nodded, "I uh, I went out with Dean's sister a couple of times too."

"Oh, my God, really? You messed around with Whitney?"

Shaking his head, and laughing, Denver stood up, "You say that like it's taboo or something? Is there something wrong with her?"

"Well, no...I, I guess not." Riley stammered, caught off guard by his sudden change in mood.

"Is it because she's older than me? Or because you think she's a whore?" He demanded, gesturing with his hands.

Riley jumped up, grabbing his arms and pulling them back down to his sides to keep him from any more wild gesturing, "whoa. Take it easy Denver."

"No, tell me, what's wrong with Whitney?"

"Why are you getting so defensive? Did I say there was anything wrong with her?"

Denver stopped for a minute, coming to his senses.

"Now, if you're ready to be rational about this, I'll tell you why I was so shocked."

They sat back down together, though Denver still seemed a little stiff.

"I like Whitney, I've met her, and I don't think she's a whore at all. But she is the sister of the Captain of your team, isn't that a little...awkward?"

Denver relaxed a little then, taking a couple of deep breaths. "Yeah. It was at first. But Dean, I guess he kind of got over it, or I don't know, accepted it? He didn't seem to care after the first couple of dates."

"Oh. So, you two actually dated?"

"Yeah, for about six months." He confirmed.

"You really liked her?" Riley asked when it finally dawned on her as to why he'd been so quick to defend his relationship.

Denver just nodded.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not much to say. I told her I loved her, and she freaked out, she told me we were just 'having fun' and I needed to get a grip. She told me I couldn't let passion rule my emotions, that it was just sex."

"Ouch."

Denver snorted, "yeah, that's why my next encounter was a one-night stand. It took me a while to decide if I was interested in trying again." He paused for a moment, thinking about what he'd say next, and Riley put her hand on his leg once more to encourage him. "The next girl was someone I met at a charity function. She was a model, really pretty, really nice, but there just wasn't any passion."

Standing again, Denver walked a few feet away from Riley, turning his back on her and looking out over the water.

"Then there was you, and well, we both know where that led."

Riley sat there, stunned for a minute while Denver headed off in the direction of his truck. Here was a man, a good man, who treated women with respect, ALL women, and he had just told her yet again, that he wanted something more, with her. It nearly broke her heart to know just how much she had obviously hurt him. And he was right, maybe he didn't say it, but he was right all the same, there HAD been a lot of passion between them.

She'd felt it, and it had probably had the same effect on him that it had on her. Only, she'd been able to box it up and store it away with the rest of the memories from that night. Clearly, Denver wasn't able to compartmentalize things in the same way she was.

What was it he had said? Whitney accused him of letting passion rule his emotions? She wished she was able to feel things as deeply. For the first time in a long time, she wished she was capable of thinking with her heart instead of just her head.

But had she ever really loved a man?

No. She didn't think so.

Oh, she'd cared about Kyle, hell, they'd dated for four years, but it wasn't love. Not real love. And maybe Trevor had loved her, he'd told her so on more than one occasion, but again, she hadn't loved him in the same way. It had been all too easy to let both of them go.

But there was nothing easy about love was there?

Thinking about it, Joey was probably the closest she'd come to any real emotion. But that was more physical than anything. She and Joey had nothing in common, and outside of sex they rarely did anything together during that period of time. And again, it was easy saying goodbye.

So no, she'd never been in love. And now she had to wonder yet again, if she was even capable of loving someone.

By the time Riley got up and made it to the parking lot, Denver had the blanket put away as well as his shoes on, and was just starting the ignition. Riley climbed in, using the towel he handed her to wipe her feet before putting her flip flops back on.

The ride back to Riley's house was made in silence.

"I'm having a Barbecue tomorrow," Denver said as he pulled up in front of the townhouse and put the truck in park. "You're welcome to come."

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea." She murmured, gathering her things.

Denver shrugged, "suit yourself, everyone's going to be there."

"I'll think about it. Thanks for lunch, Denver."

With a nod, Denver watched her climb down from the truck and waited until she disappeared into the house before letting out a long sigh and backing down the driveway. Today had not gone the way he had hoped it would at all.

Of course, he wasn't sure what it was he had wanted to accomplish today. If he'd been expecting Riley to come to her senses and agree to take a chance on them, then he should be sorely disappointed. But he wasn't. He'd learned a lot about Riley today, and that in and of itself was something to be happy about.

Riley was exactly what he thought she was, well, sort of. He was still having a hard time figuring out what it was she was so afraid of. He had a feeling there was a lot more to that comment about not wanting to date a hockey player than he first thought. It couldn't possibly be because she thought they were all dogs. If that was the case, then she probably wouldn't have slept with him, to begin with.

No, there was more, a lot more, going on below the surface. He just needed to figure out what.
Chapter 16

A Little Off

Riley leaned up against the back of her door and exhaled deeply.

Her heart pounded in her chest, her skin was hot and sweaty, she felt like she'd just run a marathon. Denver did things to her body, without even having to touch her, that she just couldn't comprehend. And today had been no less than an emotional whirlwind. It was like a tug of war, as they went back and forth. One minute they were fine and joking and the next everything was hot and heavy. It really weighed on her. There were so many emotions that she needed to sort out. So many feelings she didn't understand.

A big part of her wanted to give in to Denver, and yet, that rational part of her brain insisted she remain firm in her convictions. She couldn't be a slave to her body, a slave to her passions.

And there it was, that word. Passion.

Wolverine padded towards her, winding himself between her legs in an attempt to get her attention. Riley leaned down and picked him up, holding him close to her as she climbed the stairs and considered the word passion.

In its simplest form, passion was a feeling. It was strong, intense, and at times uncontrollable. But it was still just a feeling. A feeling that one could often confuse for love. Not that she ever had.

Until now.

Was it passion she felt for Denver? Or was it something more?

Denver ended up making it an early night, he'd only managed to drink one beer before deciding he just wasn't in the mood. He kept going over his morning with Riley, running every conversation, every look, every touch, through his mind.

And as he was so distracted, he made for miserable company, and excused himself about half an hour after he'd arrived at the bar. The guys figured he was tired, so they didn't give him any flack. And maybe physically, he was a little tired, but mentally, and emotionally, he was flat out drained.

Every time he got near Riley, whatever his intentions were, even the simplest ones, he couldn't seem to stop himself from making everything about them. He had to find a way to control himself. If he didn't, he'd end up chasing Riley off altogether, and regardless of what did, or did not happen between them, Mia needed her, and that was something he had to consider.

His bad mood followed him to practice the next morning.

After tossing and turning all night, getting little to no sleep, he felt almost drunk. While some of the guys, guys like Andre and Spencer, were probably a little hung over, Denver was anything but. Knowing that didn't help his reaction time any though.

Denver missed just about all his one on one shots, and failed to stop most of the others during drills as well. He wasn't surprised any when Coach called him over to the bench as he was getting off the ice.

Coach Turski waited until everyone was gone, and Denver took that time to brace himself for what he was sure would be a major ass chewing.

"Are you okay Collins?" Coach Turski asked, completely surprising him with his calm and seemingly concerned demeanor.

Denver nodded, "yeah, I guess I'm just having an off day."

"You're sure?"

"Yes, sir. I'll be better tomorrow. I promise."

Coach clapped him on the shoulder, "alright, Denver, I trust you. Just let know if you need Spencer to start tomorrow."

"Yes sir, thank you, sir." Denver replied, heading off to the locker room and feeling guilty as hell.

"Oh, and uh, Denver?"

"Yeah Coach?"

"Rainin wanted me to ask you what we should bring this afternoon."

At the mention of the barbecue, Denver's mood perked up a little, "oh uh, nothing Coach, I've got everything covered."

"Alright, we'll see you later then."

Denver skipped his usual after practice workout and headed straight for the showers, a few quick conversations with the guys about the barbecue and he was on his way. It seemed as if everyone, like Coach, was giving him a pass today.

Something he was both grateful for and ashamed of. He held himself to some pretty high standards and felt like he didn't need anyone's understanding or pity. But when it came down to it, he was awfully glad no one had decided to call him out on his less than stellar performance.

Everyone had their off days. Right?

After all was said and done, Denver decided to shake it off and forget about it. He said he'd be better tomorrow, and he would. He had a lot to do in the next couple of hours, and no time to dwell on things currently out of his control.

Denver stopped at the store before heading home, he had a long list of things he needed to buy. Tonight's menu included burgers, dogs, and brats, as well as plenty of sides and all the fixings. He was feeding an army after all.

An hour and a few hundred dollars later, and Denver made his way back to the house where Mia was furiously cleaning with Abby and Harmony to make sure everything was presentable. The Hellcat was to be locked up in the office for the night, and Copper would be crated if he became too much as well. But so far, in the two days that he'd been a member of the Collins clan, he appeared to be a fast learner and was pretty well behaved.

And there was, of course, no mistaking it now, Copper was absolutely Denver's dog, he followed him around like a little shadow and outside of playing, wanted little to nothing to do with Mia. Denver didn't even care though, he enjoyed the little dog, and thought he'd make a great fishing partner when he was bigger.

Mia didn't mind either, she loved spending time with Copper but liked her low maintenance cat better, and as Denver had gotten the dog without talking to Mia about it first, he decided not to push the issue as far as responsibilities went. As long as Mia took care of Copper when he was out of town, Denver was more than happy to take care of the pup when he was home.

"Help me unload the truck, would ya?" Denver asked upon walking in on the girls in the kitchen, who were giggling and chatting over iced tea.

"Well hello to you too," Abby joked on her way out with Harmony by her side.

Mia hung back, and it was obvious to Denver that she had something up her sleeve. "What is it Mia?" he dared to ask as he started to unload the groceries. "What do you want now?"

She didn't even bother toying with him, "Can I stay over at Harmony's tonight?"

"What? It's a school night Mia!"

Mia began putting things away for him as he took them out of the bags, hoping it might sway him. "I know, but Harmony said she'd take me to school tomorrow, so I don't see what the big deal is. It's really not any different than if you were going to be out of town."

"How so?" he asked, handing her a bag of tomatoes.

"You have practice in the morning, so I'll more than likely have to take the bus anyways, and then even if you are able to pick me up after school, you have to get right back to the arena for warm ups, and then you'll be gone most of the night."

The kid had a point. "Go on." He told her.

Mia put a couple of bags of chips in a cabinet and turned to face him, ready to seal the deal. "Well, Harmony doesn't have to work the next couple of days, so she said she'd take me to school tomorrow and pick me up, and then we'd do dinner with her dad before going to the game, then I can just ride home with you."

"You've just got it all figured out, don't you?"

"Uh-huh. Harmony said we could even bring the dog if I needed to, and that she'd just drop him off in the afternoon before she came and got me from school. And I'll make sure to set the timer on Cobalt's feeder so you don't have to worry about her."

Denver thought about it for a minute, rubbing his chin for effect. It certainly would be nice to be able to have the place to himself for the night once everyone went home. And he knew Harmony had a positive effect of Mia, just like Riley did.

Riley.

There he went again, no matter what he was doing, everything somehow or another circled back to Riley. He began to wonder if she'd show up, and started planning how he might convince her to stay the night with him.

"So?" Mia asked, cutting into his thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Can I go?"

"Oh, um, yeah, yeah I guess so." He replied, bracing himself in the next instant as Mia wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him for dear life.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you! You're the best!" She squealed, running towards the door to, he assumed, tell Harmony the good news.

"The dog can stay," he called to her back.

Mia waved him off as the door slammed behind her.

Teenagers.

Riley struggled with the decision of whether or not to go to the barbecue at Denver's house for most of the night, and all the next morning. After talking to Abby around noon that day though, she went against the little voice in her head that kept telling her not to.

What did she know anyways?

When she spoke to Abby, who had been at Denver's house all morning with Harmony cleaning the place up, she realized it would be a good opportunity to socialize, and there was one person, in particular, that would be there, that she really wanted to talk to.

That person being Lacy.

If anyone could sympathize with her and understand what she was going through, she figured it would be Lacy, and maybe if she could figure out how to overcome her fears, if Lacy could impart on her some wisdom, she could finally decide once and for all what to do about Denver.

Abby had told her that the entire team and their families would be there. So, at the very least, it sounded like a good time.

As she pulled up to the driveway though and saw all the cars lining the streets, she wondered if she was making the right decision after all.

"Stop second guessing yourself, damn it!" She said to her reflection as she looked at herself in the rearview mirror, checking to make sure her makeup and hair looked okay.

The whole team would be there, as well as their spouses and children, it wasn't like she was going to be left alone with Denver the whole time, and so what if she was? He had invited her after all, and after the last conversation they had, she was pretty sure he wasn't going to try something again, especially in front of so many people.

The party, if that's what you wanted to call it, was in full swing by the time Riley managed to walk her happy ass up the driveway. There were people everywhere. All the doors and windows in the house stood open, and guests mingled both inside and out.

Andre gave her a brief nod as she passed him, but as he was currently entertaining a very pretty blonde, he did little else to attract Riley's attention. Having been to enough games, and around the team in general, she knew who most everyone was, even if they didn't know who she was, and therefore was able to identify most of the men at least, and some of their companions.

There were a few opposite sex pairings here and there, but for the most part, the men were gathered under the pergola where she noticed Denver standing in the middle, manning the grill. And the women were split up into a few different groups, while a handful of children of all ages, ran amuck, Mia's new puppy Copper, right on their heels yipping excitedly.

Riley spotted Abby talking to the coach and a girl who was probably only a few years younger than them that looked a lot like him. She guessed it was his daughter. She headed in their direction.

"Hey, you!" Abby said, motioning her over. "Coach Turski, this is my good friend Riley."

"How do you do, Riley?" Coach asked, extending his hand to her.

Riley shook his hand and exchanged hellos with the woman next to him as well, who was introduced to her as his daughter Rain. Rain was a sports journalist for the local newspaper, and as she had suspected, only a few years younger than Riley at twenty-three.

She was a very well-toned, and very pretty woman, with dark blonde almost brown hair just like her father's, and thin lips, but where his eyes were brown, hers were a darker shade of hazel. She had her father's full round face too, but her nose was smaller and perter, her expressions feminine.

Looking at his daughter, Riley figured that Coach Turski had probably been a very attractive man in his youth, not that he was old, probably only in his mid-forties, but she'd just bet he'd been a heartbreaker when he was younger and his features were a little sharper. At least he was aging well.

Rain excused herself after a few minutes of light conversation, and Coach Turski left as well after one of the guys, she wasn't sure which one, called to him from over by the grill.

"I'm glad you came," Abby said when they were alone, leading Riley into the house where she spotted Harmony and Mia in the living room playing with the kitten and Lacy with a group of women in the sunroom taking turns on a foosball table.

"Yeah, me too, I guess."

"You guess?"

Abby handed her an empty cup and poured her a glass of iced tea.

"Yeah, I mean, what else did I have to do? Viktor and Sandra are here too, so the house is kind of empty." She said with a half shrug before taking a sip of her tea and grimacing. "Holy shit that's sweet!"

Abby laughed, "yeah, Denver made it, I guess he likes it that way."

"Denver made it? Denver makes sweet tea?"

"There's a lot you don't know about me," Denver said, coming up behind them and startling Riley.

Abby apparently saw him coming as she used her cup to try and hide the big smirk on her face.

"You got a minute?" He asked, placing his hand on the small of her back.

Throwing a dirty look at Abby, Riley nodded and followed him into the utility room just behind the kitchen. "What's up?" she asked nonchalantly, as though the previous day and all its emotional turmoil had never happened.

"I'm really glad you're here, Riley, and I promise I'll be on my best behavior, you won't even know I'm here."

"But it's your house."

Denver laughed, rubbing the back of his shoulder with his free hand as he held a pair of dirty looking tongs in the other. "Yeah, I guess is it. But I want you to be able to relax and enjoy yourself, so I'll leave you to it, okay?"

"Okay."

Denver started to leave her then, turning back at the last second, "hey, um..."

"Yeah?"

"Mia's staying with Harmony and Peter tonight, and don't give me an answer right now, think about it, but, I was hoping, maybe, well, I was thinking maybe you'd consider staying here tonight. In the guest room, of course." He paused, trying to find the right words, "you know, so we could talk and stuff. I really don't like how we left things yesterday."

Riley was about to say something, though she wasn't sure what, when he cut her off, holding up the tongs and snapping them together to shut her up.

"Just think about it. I gotta go, gotta rinse these off and get back out there. Let me know later. Have fun okay?"

"Okay." She managed, completely taken aback by her inability to respond in any other way, even though her fully rational mind was screaming that she turn him down flat, right now.

Riley waited a few minutes to give Denver enough time to get back outside before rejoining Abby in the kitchen.

"What was that all about?" Abby asked curiously.

"Huh?" Riley mumbled, her brain still trying to catch up. "Oh, um, nothing. He just wanted to tell me to have a good time. That's all, it was nothing."

Abby crossed her arms in front of her in disbelief. She just wasn't buying it. "Uh-huh, I see. And he needed to take you out of earshot to tell you to have a good time? Something tells me there's a little more to it than that. What's going on between you two, Riley? You seem really distracted whenever he's around."

Riley really wished Abby would have taken her at her word and just let it go, but once upon a time, she had been just as nosy, so she couldn't really blame her, could she? Riley caved. She told Abby about the kiss in the boathouse, and about taking care of Mia, and going to lunch with him the day before, and how their conversation had been light and friendly one minute and deep and emotional the next.

She didn't understand it all herself, maybe there was something she'd missed and Abby could fill in the blanks for her. Abby was pretty good at being objective when it came to someone else's problems. Then again, wasn't everyone?

"Wow, it uh, it sounds like Denver's pretty crazy about you," Abby remarked when she was finished.

"Ya think?" She said with a kind of mock laughter.

"Do you want to know what I think?"

"Probably not."

Abby laughed, "well, I'm going to tell you anyways."

"No surprise there," Riley teased, though she was actually anxious to know what Abby thought about it all.

"I think you feel the same way about him as he does about you."

"Pfft..." Riley chuffed. "You're out of your mind!"

"Oh, stop it, Riley, I see the way you two look at each other! Hell, a blind man could see what's going on between you and Denver!"

Riley waved her off, making a show of it and laughing, though it sounded stiff and forced. "Thanks, Abs, I needed a good laugh. Now come on, let's go out to the boathouse and shoot some pool."

Abby knew Riley was just trying to deflect from having to admit what was totally obvious to everyone else, but as Riley was clearly done with the conversation and already headed toward the dock, she just shook her head and followed along. She wondered if she had been that hard headed a couple of years ago when she and Dean were in a similar position, she liked to think she hadn't been.
Chapter 17

Family Matters

Riley did as Denver suggested, and enjoyed herself. Thoroughly.

She challenged a couple of the guys on the team to pool, and beat all of them, did some shots with the wives of said guys, as the men all stuck to beer, and kept it to a minimum at that since they had a game the next night, and she got her grub on.

Denver turned out to be a pretty good grill master, and he'd come prepared as there was enough food to feed a small army, or a few dozen hockey players and their families. Everything was great, from the burgers to the toppings, to the chips, and various cold salads. Riley even got used to the sweet tea after having caught a buzz off the few shots she had done.

She made sure to stick to the sweet tea though, she didn't want to risk getting drunk and thus end up trapping herself there against her will. She still hadn't decided on whether she wanted to accept Denver's offer to stay the night, but if she didn't she'd need to be able to drive home.

She and Abby didn't talk any more that night about the conversation they'd had in the kitchen, in fact, Riley had done her best to pretty much avoid talking to Abby alone again at all.

It was just as everything was winding down, including the sun, and people were starting to leave that Riley spotted Lacy again. She'd been around too many other women before, so Riley hadn't wanted to approach her, but Riley watched while she briefly interacted with Donovan, the two talking in what appeared to be a flirty manner as they kept touching each other and laughing, before Donovan gave her a rather intimate kiss and walked off to join the men in the cleanup effort.

Riley figured now was her chance.

"Hey, um, it's Lacy, right?" She said with a smile as she approached.

Lacy smiled as well, but it was tentative at best as it didn't reach anywhere near her eyes. Riley realized she'd need to tread carefully here. It wasn't terribly long ago that she'd had a crush on Donovan herself, and Lacy was probably aware of that, if she had to guess.

"I'm Riley, Abby's friend."

"I know who you are." Lacy replied, taking the hand that Riley extended and giving it a curt shake.

"Look, I uh, I know this is going to sound pretty weird, but, well, I was kind of hoping you could give me some advice."

Lacy's wary expression suddenly became one of confusion, "advice about what?" She asked cautiously.

"Men."

Lacy smiled, and this time, it was real. God, but she was beautiful when she smiled!

Riley could see then and there why Donovan had become so easily enamored of her. Lacy wasn't the classic beauty that Abby was with her big blue eyes and her rich red hair and porcelain skin. But she was just as gorgeous. Whereas Abby was delicate in her features, Lacy's were more dramatic and eye-catching. She had blonde hair with a black layer underneath and red highlights, she wore glasses over her emerald green eyes, and she had freckles. But the total package, including her well-toned physique, was absolutely stunning.

"I can totally see why Donovan fell in love with you," she heard herself saying, not realizing she was thinking out loud until it was too late.

"Well thanks, I think." Lacy laughed, finally easing the tension between them. "I'm really not an expert when it comes to men, but what the hell, what do you want to know?"

"How did you do it?"

"Do what?"

Riley blew out a breath, she really needed to start thinking before she just blurted stuff out, not everyone could read her mind like....Denver....

"How did you give up your career for love?" She asked, hoping she'd phrased the question right this time.

"I didn't," Lacy replied without even having to think about it.

"But you quit your job at the hospital, didn't you?"

"Well, yeah, but, not because of Donovan, if that's what you're thinking."

"But you work for the Slashers now, what am I missing here?" Riley was really confused, and she figured it showed because Lacy laughed at her again for a few seconds before answering.

"I told Donovan before I ever even agreed to move in with him that I wasn't going to quit being a nurse, and I haven't. It's true that I work for the Slashers now, but that wasn't because of Donovan. I looked into a couple of private practice positions, and yeah, that was partly because of him, working at the hospital was too demanding, and it made it hard for us to spend time together.

But I had already been considering a job in private practice, and then, it was actually Abby who told me about the position with the Slashers, and it paid a lot more than some of the jobs I'd already interviewed for, so I interviewed with them, and after they offered me the job, I told them I was dating Donovan, when they assured me it wasn't a problem, I told him."

"Wow, so he didn't even know?"

Lacy shook her head. "No, it was my, let's call it, my engagement gift to him, because I told him that same night that I'd marry him."

"That's sweet, but, well, that doesn't really help me any, so, could I," she paused, wanting to be sure she worded it all just right. "Could I maybe ask you a hypothetical question?"

"Um, okay. Sure, go for it."

"What if the Slashers hadn't been hiring and you'd taken a job in private practice, and Donovan ended up getting traded."

Lacy considered that for a moment, ultimately coming up short, "I'm not sure I follow, what was the question exactly?"

"Right, sorry." Riley apologized, shaking her head, "if Donovan had been traded, would you have quit your job and moved with him?"

"Like, if we hadn't gotten married you mean?"

"Yeah."

"I guess I probably would have, I mean, I can be a nurse anywhere."

"What about your family? Aren't you close to them?"

"Yeah, we're pretty close," she nodded. "But I love Donovan, he's my family now too. Now can I ask you something?" Lacy inquired turning the tables on her.

Riley wanted to say no, thinking Lacy might ask her about her relationship with Donovan, but she found herself saying yes instead. "Yeah, of course."

"Which one is it? Which Slasher are you head over heels for?"

"Who said I was head over heels? I'm not head over heels for anyone."

Lacy gave her a look of pure disbelief, "awe honey," she crooned. "You've got it bad, I don't know you very well, but even I can see that. So, tell me, who is it? It's not Andre, is it?"

"What? No!" Riley yelped, the very thought of what Lacy was suggesting being beyond absurd, to begin with, but Andre? That was almost laughable.

Lacy started to name off a few other guys on the team, but stopped and followed Riley's gaze as her eyes landed on Denver who was kneeling down off in the distance as he played an impromptu game of tug of war with Copper.

"Oh, I see.." Lacy remarked, coming closer and laying a hand on Riley's shoulder. "A word of advice, don't listen to your head, Riley, it doesn't know what it's talking about." With that, she left Riley standing there to stare after Denver and rejoined Donovan who was saying his goodbyes to Abby and Dean.

Denver felt her eyes on him long before he decided to look in her direction, he'd done his best all evening to stay away from her, even though he could sense her every time she got within a hundred feet of him, it was like a magnetic pull.

As they locked eyes, he smiled, and laughed to himself when he saw color immediately flood her cheeks. Clearly, she was embarrassed to have been caught watching him. Scooping Copper up into his arms, Denver walked back into the house and finished putting the leftovers away. Mia had already left with Peter and Harmony, and Donovan had caught him a few minutes ago telling him that he and Lacy were taking off as well.

Other than Dean and Abby, who were cleaning up outside still, Denver and Riley were the only ones left. Everyone else had split the moment the sun started dipping below the horizon. It was getting late, and they had a game the next night, so he hadn't expected anyone to stay much past five, as it was. Overall though, he'd say the barbecue had been quite successful.

With the fun and relaxed atmosphere, a safe space for everyone to just hang out and let loose, he felt recharged rather than exhausted, and his mind was clearer than ever. The fact that Riley had stayed as late as she had, seemed like a pretty good sign to him too. He wasn't going to go after her though and ask her to stay again. No, he'd let her make her own decision and come to him. To rush her, or pressure her in any way would only be to put her off of the idea completely.

When Abby and Dean made their way inside, letting him know that the outdoors was back to rights, and saying their goodbyes, Denver noticed out of the corner of his eye that Riley was hanging back, she stood just outside the back door, her back to them, and her head tilted as though she were looking at the sky.

"Nice night huh?" He said, coming up behind her once the last of his guests had left.

Riley jumped, startled by him, but turned to face him and rewarded him with the very same smile she'd stolen his heart with a little more than ten months ago. He sucked in his breath audibly, hoping she hadn't heard him. But when she laughed, he knew she had.

And he was sunk.

The look in her eyes as she stepped towards him, took him by the hand and lead him down the path to the fire pit, where a couple of embers still glowed, was enough to set flames to his entire being. Every nerve ending was on high alert.

"How much have you had to drink?" he asked as they sat down together on a couple of logs in front of the dying fire.

Riley grabbed a fresh log from a pile of stacked wood and tossed it on the still hot coals, it caught instantly and the flames roared to life, dancing and twisting in front of them, the light catching the whiskey tones in her irises and turning them to gold.

Denver gulped.

"Oh, just a couple of shots, but that was hours ago. I'm not drunk Denver." She said, her voice low and husky.

"Well, that's good to know. I wouldn't want to think I was taking advantage of you."

Riley gave him an amused sideways glance, "what's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," he smirked. "It's just that if you were drunk, you'd have no choice but to stay the night, I'd never let you drive home in that condition."

"Then you can relax, I'm sober," Riley said, poking at the fire with a stick before tossing it into the flames. "And I haven't decided if I want to stay tonight."

"Fair enough."

They sat and admired their surroundings for a time. The fire popping and snapping between them as it ate up the log Riley had tossed on it. Night birds chatted, a lonely whippoorwill calling out, searching for a mate. An owl hooted from a nearby tree, and bats screeched and flapped their wings overhead as they hunted for mice and insects.

The peace and quiet of the coming dusk relaxed them both. The perfume of the evening air as it mingled with the pungent Savannah River coaxed them into a comfortable silence. Riley's mind began to wander, and she thought about various conversations, not just with Denver but with friends, and with Mia.

Riley stole glances here and there, but Denver must have been deep in thought as well, for he was staring down and towards the flames each time. But as one conversation, in particular, came to mind, and Riley looked in his direction again, their eyes met over the glow of the fire, and the intensity of his gaze sent chills down her spine.

"Can I talk to you about something Denver?" She asked without even thinking about it.

Denver smiled, "okay."

"When Mia stayed with me last week, and we were talking, she told me something that kind of surprised me, and I thought, well, I guess I've been kicking this back and forth, wondering whether I should talk to you about it or not."

His smile quickly faded, to be replaced with a look of concern. One that nearly broke Riley's heart. He truly loved his little sister, and it was clear he'd do just about anything for her. Riley felt really bad that she hadn't talked to him about this sooner.

"What is it, Riley? You can tell me, it doesn't matter what it is, I promise I won't get mad at Mia. You don't have to protect her from me."

"Oh no," Riley said, shaking her head. "It's not like that Denver. Mia's a good girl, honest. She feels really bad about the things she's done, and everything she's put you through."

"Oh phew," he chuckled. "For a second there I thought you were going to tell me she was pregnant. I was just wondering what idiot teenage boy I was going to have to kill."

Riley laughed too, "no, nothing like that Denver, actually, and I guess I could be wrong since she didn't outright admit it, but I believe she's still a virgin."

"Okay, didn't really need to know that, but good I guess. What is it then? Don't leave me hanging here."

"I kind of feel like I'm overstepping my boundaries here, so maybe don't tell her we talked about this, but, I think Mia is seriously afraid she's going to end up like your mother. She told me about wanting to get tested for certain genes, but said she was too afraid to talk to you about it."

Denver sighed, looking down at his feet and nodding, "you know, I kind of wondered if our mom had more to do with her behavior than she would ever let on. I mean, I know she acts out sometimes just to test me, and see what she can get away with, and other times it's a cry for attention, but I always thought our mom's health had more to do with this."

"Then you'll talk to her? And maybe take her for testing?" Riley asked cautiously, still feeling like she was prying into something that was none of her business.

"I'll talk to her, and if she really wants to, I can take her to our mother's neurologist so she can talk to him about it, but she doesn't need to be tested for anything."

"Why not? I mean, how can you know she's not at risk without testing?"

"It's not that easy, Riley." Denver laughed, "I didn't take Mia to any of our mom's appointments because I didn't want her to be around all of that, but I guess I should have. While it's true that they've discovered several genes associated with the disease, having those markers doesn't necessarily mean you'll get it."

"They're just risk factors," Riley finished for him.

"Right," He agreed. "And besides, my mother's condition isn't hereditary. No one else on either side of our family has it."

"Then how did she get it?"

Denver shrugged, "Best guess? They think it had a lot to do with her heart health. Our mom has had diabetes since she was a child, and she had high blood pressure and cholesterol problems too. I guess they go hand in hand sometimes."

"Oh, I had no idea."

"Thanks for telling me though, Riley," he said with a weak smile. "Really, thanks."

Riley blushed, picking up another stick and poking at the hot embers to hide her embarrassment.

"So, uh," Denver began when the silence started to become uncomfortable. "Do you wanna, I dunno, maybe play a game of pool or something? I hear you're quite the pool shark." He finished, with a wry smile.

Riley cocked a brow, "oh yeah? Your teammates tell you that?"

"Maybe."

"Do you really want to risk getting your ass kicked?" She teased.

Denver stood, holding out a hand to help her up, "maybe." He said again.
Chapter 18

A Friendly Wager

Riley looked at his outstretched hand for a moment, then smacked it aside playfully and got up on her own merit, leaving Denver to follow as she headed out of the woods and up the dock.

"By all means, lead the way." He mocked from behind her.

Riley looked over her shoulder, giving him an exaggerated wink, and causing him to laugh as he followed her to the boathouse. It amazed her how easily they could switch gears and go from deep meaningful conversations to light and playful banter. But she liked it.

Denver sort of sat back and let Riley school him in the first game. She won so easily that she almost wondered why he had a pool table if he played horribly. But with each shot he missed, and each question he asked about the rules, Riley became more and more suspicious.

"Why would you have a pool table if you don't know how to play? And why would you ask me to play knowing you'd lose?" She finally demanded to know.

"Who says I don't know how to play?"

"You keep asking me questions."

Denver shrugged, grabbing the triangle and setting the balls up for the next game. "Maybe I just like distracting you."

"Uh-huh," she murmured, handing him the cue stick he'd leaned against the table. "You break."

Shaking his head, Denver chuckled and lined up his shot, allowing the stick to slide easily between his fingers, "or maybe I have you right where I want you." He told her before ramming his stick into the cue ball.

With a loud crack, the cue ball slammed into the rack, the balls scattered in all directions, two of them going in.

"I'll take stripes," He said.

Riley, mouth open, was so stunned by his break that she almost missed it as he ran the table, one ball after another going into whatever pocket he called out.

"You son of a bitch!" She roared, grabbing her stick and acting like she was going to smack him upside the head with it. "You fucking played me! You asshole!"

Laughing at her in earnest, Denver backed away from the table slowly, his hands up in a protective stance. "You're the one that assumed I couldn't play. You know what they say about assuming right?"

Riley bit her lower lip and shook her head, "I cannot believe you played me like that, what's worse, I can't believe I fell for it!"

"What say we make this more interesting then?" Denver suggested, grabbing the triangle and re-racking the balls.

"Yeah? How so?" Riley asked skeptically.

"I'm a sporting man, are you up for a little wager?"

"What are the terms?"

Denver circled the table, coming up behind her and inhaling her scent as he leaned in to whisper in her ear, "one article of clothing for each missed shot."

Riley had watched his approach, turning her head to follow his motions, he was so close now that she could feel the heat from his body, and her heart beat faster as his words sunk in, as his breath tickled her ears.

She craned her neck so that they were almost nose to nose, and licked her lips. Though his facial expression never changed, Riley smirked, noticing how his eyes traveled to her mouth before meeting her gaze. "Fine." She rasped, leaning in as though she might kiss him, "but I get to break."

Denver let out the breath he had been holding as Riley walked over to the front of the pool table and lined up her shot for the break. The sexual tension between them was high, and the air sizzled and crackled like a downed live wire.

Riley's break was loud, but in her show of power, she'd forgotten accuracy, having let Denver get in her head with his run of good luck in the last game. Not one ball went in.

"Ooh," Denver hissed through his teeth with a comical grimace, "missed on your first shot, that cannot be a good sign." He moved around to the side of the table, looking at the various combinations, before meeting her seething gaze. "So, what'll it be?"

"What?" She huffed, "I am NOT taking anything off because I didn't sink a ball on the break! That shit doesn't count!"

"Says who?"

"Oh, shut up!" Riley sassed with a little less venom. "That doesn't count as a shot and you know it!"

"Poor sport!" He teased.

"Oh, I'll show you a poor sport, I'll take this cue stick and shove it right up your ass!"

Leaning over the table, Denver lined up his next shot, "nine ball, corner pocket." He said, pointing to the ball with his stick and motioning to the corner pocket. "And I might like it," he added before stuffing the nine ball in the pocket he had indicated.

Riley shook her head, then stuck her tongue out at him when his eyes found hers again. "You would," she grumbled under her breath.

"What's that?"

"Just you don't worry about it and make your next move, hotshot."

Denver laughed, lining up for his next shot and telling her which ball was going where.

It was another three shots before Denver finally missed one, opting to remove his left shoe, and getting called a 'pussy' by Riley for being so cheap.

"Oh, I'll remember that when it's your turn," he mocked.

And he did, teasing Riley mercilessly two shots later when she failed to stick the one ball in the side pocket and took off her earrings, stuffing them in the pockets of her shorts.

It took almost four full games, Denver winning three of them, before they were both down to their underwear. Riley in a skimpy little matching bra and pantie set, and Denver in his boxers and socks.

"Alright," Denver chuckled, getting ready to break as he had won the last game. "It's down to the wire now, who gets naked first?"

Though she blushed, Riley tried to give him her best sneer.

Denver's break, like the other four, was perfect. All the balls scattered, leaving him with lots of options, and two balls ended up going in, one of each.

"How the hell do you do that every time?" Riley wanted to know.

"Practice."

She rolled her eyes at his answer, watching carefully as he made his next shot, hitting the thirteen ball into the side pocket off a combination shot. It really irked her. At this rate, considering he still had BOTH socks on, she would be half naked, if not completely naked by the end of this game.

Which gave her a great idea.

Riley waited for Denver to call his next shot, the eleven ball in the right corner, and then she quickly moved in front of the pocket, leaning down and allowing her cleavage to lay on top of the corner of the table.

Denver gulped, "now Riley," he grunted between breaths, "that's not fair, in fact, that's downright dirty!"

Riley used her arms to press her breasts further together, "what's a matter Denver? Too distracted to make the shot?"

"No."

"Then just do it."

They locked eyes, Denver lowering his brows as Riley bit her lower lip, allowing it to slide seductively from between her teeth, her mouth parted in a small 'O.' Taking a deep breath, Denver lined things up and took his shot. His cue struck the felt, making the ball jump and missing his shot.

"Damn it!" He growled, slamming his stick on the table and scattering the remaining balls.

Riley straightened away from the table walking towards him.

With his hands on the waistband of his boxers, Denver prepared to admit to defeat and take them off, but when he looked down at his feet, he smiled, wiggling his toes, hoping that Riley would follow the motion.

"Oh, come on!" She muttered, "don't be such a bitch!"

"Fine, I won't."

"Good."

"But only if you take them off for me," he quipped.

Riley stopped in her tracks. It was one of those moments, a crossroads type moment. The tension between them had been building all night, and now she had a choice. It was a game, a silly game they'd been playing, but she'd known all along where it might lead. That they were playing with fire.

And she was about to get burnt.

With a feline smile, Riley closed the distance between them and shoved Denver back up against the wall. She ran her fingers down his abs, tracing each one. Denver groaned and shuddered under her touch.

"What are you doing Riley?" he gasped as her fingers gripped his waistband.

Riley held a finger to her lips. "Shhh," she whispered.

Grabbing her hands before she went any further, Denver warned her, "If you do this Riley, it won't be a one-night stand anymore."

Giving him one of the most seductive stares he'd ever received, Riley licked her lips and shrugged out of his grasp, pulling his boxers to the floor and filling her hands with his soft flesh before he could protest further.

"Now this is how you play with balls," she joked, grasping and massaging him with one hand while she used the other to slowly stroke his shaft.

Denver laughed, then groaned again as she used her tongue to flick the tip of his manhood.

Riley tortured him in small doses. Pulling him into her mouth and sucking hard, then releasing him and tracing the head of his masculinity with her tongue in slow soft circles. She continued this pattern for about five minutes until Denver had finally had enough, grabbing her by the shoulders and yanking her to her feet.

"Just shut up and kiss me," he demanded when he thought she might argue.

Their lips met in a clash of wills, powerful and greedy. Almost painfully. Denver held Riley close, slowly backing her towards the pool table as they jousted and fought each other's tongues. True to form, Denver was a master illusionist with his hands, removing her bra and panties without her noticing.

With a grunt, Denver sunk his fingers into her hips and hefted her onto the edge of the pool table. Riley gasped as her butt hit the hard granite and Denver's mouth left hers, searching out every inch of skin from her earlobes to her breasts.

His lips were soft, his kisses punishing, ravishing.

Riley threaded her fingers into his hair and gripped tightly as he licked and sucked his way down her torso, coming to a stop briefly at the juncture between her thighs so that he could admire the view. With a soft moan, Denver used his fingers to part her and slid into her tight opening, then he used his mouth to devour her.

Riley bit her lip to keep quiet, but small gasps and pleas escaped as she tried to contain the storm brewing inside of her. The more Denver sucked and licked at her sensitive womanhood, the louder she begged.

She begged him to stop, and she begged him to keep going. The intensity, the pleasure, the pain, and the rapture, it mingled together creating sweet agony that spread throughout her entire being. He thrust his fingers deeper, he sucked her harder, he licked her softly and he nibbled just enough in just the right spots.

And as her body exploded around him, Denver quickly made his way north, pushing stray balls out of the way and laying her back flat on the table. He wrapped her legs around his waist and pushed himself into her with ease, her slick body welcoming him home.

Riley was already past the point of no return, Denver's quick thrusts only prolonging the ecstasy that coursed through her veins. She clamped her thighs around him and pulled him deeper, she arched her back and gasped as he filled her to the hilt.

Denver groaned and growled as Riley's body responded, as she opened herself to him and received him fully. The heat of her body, and the taste of it that lingered in his mouth, had his blood pumping, his heart racing as he plundered her, as he lost himself inside of her.

Thrust after thrust, Riley urged him for more. They were trapped in the vortex together, spinning out of control as the tornado ripped through them. Lost in the moment, the fervor so acute it almost hurt. Denver held her close, with one hand gripping her hips, his fingers digging into her soft flesh, and he held her closer still with the other hand on her head.

Riley turned her face in his palm so that her lips sought his fingers, sucking one into her mouth and biting down gently as she moaned. The act so primal, so erotic that it was all Denver could do to hang on.

But he had to. He had to wait until she was with him again. He had to bring her to the breaking point. He thrust harder, he thrust deeper, he thrusted until their bodies all but merged together. Until their very souls connected and melded into one.

And Riley came. Riley climaxed with such intensity that she nearly passed out.

Denver leaned over, stifling her moans with his mouth as he buried himself even deeper and spilled his seed inside her.

"Fuck!" he gasped, collapsing on top of her, trying to catch his breath.

"Oh, I think we just did." Riley cackled, her laughter harsh and raspy.

Denver rolled over, nearly falling off the table, but catching himself at the last second and pulling Riley on top of him. "You're going... to be... the death... of me..." he groused, slapping her on the rear.

Riley giggled, pushing herself up with her hands so that she could look down at him. "I must be pretty good then, eh?" She teased.

"I wasn't... expecting this," he said, still not quite having caught his breath.

"It's okay," Riley assured him, having understood his meaning. "I've been on the pill for years."

"Good."

"Wait. Does that mean you WERE expecting it the first time? You sorta came prepared."

Denver reached up and ran a finger down the side of her cheek, stopping at her lips and rubbing her bottom lip gently with the pad of his thumb. "I asked Andre for one when you went to get the key for the room."

Riley laughed, "that makes sense."

Denver swatted at her butt again, and Riley yelped as it stung a little. "Hey!" she snapped, "that hurt! What was that for?"

"There was a mosquito on your ass," he said sheepishly.

"Whatever!"

"Don't whatever me, I wasn't lying." He argued, showing her the small bloody insect that was crushed on the palm of his hand.

"Eww."

"No kidding, what say we take this party inside before we both get eaten up?"

Pushing herself off him, Riley climbed down from the pool table and started picking up her clothes. "I guess I could stay the night," she conceded once she'd found all her discarded clothing.

"Great!" Denver said excitedly, scooping her up in his arms and walking stark naked back up the dock to the house.

"Denver!" She protested.

He didn't listen though, holding her closer as she tried to struggle out of his grasp.

Denver somehow managed to hang onto her and still get the door open, taking Riley into the guest room and plopping her down on the bed.

"This isn't your room," Riley remarked, looking around at the plainly decorated room.

"My you're observant, aren't you?" Denver quipped. "My room is upstairs, this is the guest room, I didn't want to disturb the dog."

Riley tilted her head and smiled at him warmly, "such a softie," she giggled.

Denver laughed, coming down on top of her and pushing her into the mattress with his weight, "I'll show you a softie," he snarled.

"Nothing soft about that," Riley gasped as he entered her and they went for round two.
Chapter 19

Sound the Alarm

Riley woke up the next morning alone in bed. As she looked around the dimly lit room, her eyes landed on a small digital clock on the dresser across from the foot of the bed. It was still fairly early at only 6:00 am, so she wasn't too worried about getting home and making it to work on time, but she was concerned about getting out of the house without Denver realizing it.

She just wasn't very good at these sorts of things. And knowing Denver, he'd probably want to talk about it.

Riley wasn't ready for that though. She knew they'd have to at some point. Things had changed, and she had to accept that. But she honestly didn't know where they went from here. She liked Denver, and she could admit at least that much to herself. She wasn't willing to buy into the delusion that everyone else wanted her to believe though.

In love with Denver? That was crazy talk.

It was passion. Just passion. That's all, nothing more, and obviously nothing less. But she didn't want to make it into something it wasn't. And she'd need to find a way to convince Denver that it was best if they didn't try to force something that wasn't there.

Sure, they had fun together, and yes, the sex was great. But that didn't mean they were a good fit, that didn't mean they needed to date and move into together, then get married and have kids or something. They were both healthy consenting adults, and they could have a healthy and mature relationship of some kind.

She knew that eventually, she'd have to tell him why she didn't want to get involved with him, and if he understood like she hoped he would, maybe they could have some kind of mutually beneficial arrangement while he resided in Savannah. At least until they both met someone and wanted to end it. But she couldn't and wouldn't get involved with him beyond that.

She wasn't, however, ready to have that conversation today.

Grabbing her clothes, she went to the bathroom to freshen up. She didn't want to run the shower in case he heard it, but she did rummage through his drawers after getting dressed and managed to scrounge up an unopened toothbrush and some toothpaste. At least there was that. She'd wait until she got home to shower.

Satisfied that at least her mouth was clean, she splashed some water on her face and put the bathroom back in order. Then she slowly cracked the bedroom door and began the trek down the hall to the front door, tiptoeing quietly so as not to wake anyone.

Riley didn't know when Denver had left her, though she did remember falling asleep in his arms and being woken at least once during the night for another go at it, but as the sheets on the other side of the bed had been cool to the touch, she figured it had to have been at least a few hours ago, maybe even longer.

He had probably left her after she'd fallen asleep the second time, and gone to his own bed. She knew he had a game today, so maybe he'd needed to get away from her to ensure he got enough sleep. If it were her, she probably would have been tempted to try for some good ole fashioned morning sex as well, so she understood the need to get away from temptation.

When she reached the door, Riley paused, noticing the small blinking red light on the alarm system next to it. She sighed loudly.

Armed. Shit. The system said it was armed.

"Going somewhere?" Denver asked from behind her, scaring her nearly to death and making her jump.

"Errr!" She growled, "do you always have to do that?"

"Do what?"

"Sneak up on me and scare the shit out of me!"

"Sorry," he smirked, turning and heading in the direction of the kitchen.

"Hey!" She called out, reluctant to follow him. "I need to get home you know. Can you disarm this damn system?"

"What's that?" He called from the kitchen, "Did you say you wanted some breakfast? I couldn't hear you."

Riley stalked into the kitchen, slapping her purse down on the counter and putting her hands on her hips, "you damn well heard..." she began, trailing off as the scent of bacon and eggs assaulted her senses.

Denver had clearly been a busy man.

There was what amounted to a small buffet spread out on his center island that included; bacon, eggs, toast, fruit, bagels, and various toppings like cheese, tomatoes and onion.

"What the hell is all this?" She asked, sliding onto a bar stool on the other side of the island as Denver grabbed a couple of coffee mugs out of a cabinet.

"Coffee?" He inquired, completely ignoring her question and pouring her a cup.

"What is this Denver?" She asked again.

"Breakfast. Don't you ever eat breakfast, Riley?"

Riley accepted the coffee mug he extended to her, pouring some cream and sugar into the steaming liquid and stirring it before bringing it to her mouth and blowing on it. "I usually just eat a protein bar," she admitted taking a sip. It was good, and hot, and spread warmth through her body quickly.

"Well, help yourself." He told her, fixing his own coffee and heading into the great room with a paper tucked under his arm.

"Aren't you going to eat too?"

"I already did," He called back.

Riley didn't wait for any further invitation, with a meal like that, she didn't need any more prompting. Besides, she didn't think Denver was going to let her leave until she did.

"When did you get up?" she asked him a little while later when she had finished eating.

"About four. Why?"

"Just curious," she said, walking into the great room and sitting down on a loveseat across from the sofa where he sat comfortably with his feet crossed over each other on the coffee table in front of him, and the newspaper spread out on his lap.

"I didn't know you wore glasses," Riley commented.

Denver slid the thin rimmed black glasses down his nose, looking at her over them. He looked sexy as hell like that, and it took just about all the self-control she could muster not to attack him then and there.

"Just for reading. Did you enjoy your breakfast?"

"I did, thank you. But I really need to be going, I need to get home and shower so I can get to work."

"You could have showered here," he told her, tilting his head as though he were studying her.

"I didn't want to..."

"You didn't want to wake me?" He interrupted, causing her to frown angrily.

"I thought maybe you'd gone upstairs to get more sleep, and I didn't want to disturb you. So yeah, I didn't want to wake you. Sue me." She grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. "Of course, if I had known you were going to hold me, prisoner, I probably would have."

Denver laughed.

"Seriously Denver, I need to go. Don't play games with me. I'll set your alarm off if I have to, don't think I won't."

"I'm not the one playing games," He snapped, sitting up and slamming the newspaper down on the coffee table, his sudden anger making Riley jump.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You were just going to leave again, Riley. No goodbye, no thank you for last night. Nothing."

"Well excuse me," she barked. "I didn't know I was expected to make a big deal out of last night. Thank you for the sex Denver, and goodbye, can I go now?"

"Stop it, Riley," He yelled, getting to his feet and cutting off her path as she got up herself and started towards the door. "I'm not Joey, and this isn't some game. You can't just fuck with my emotions and act like nothing happened."

"What do you want from me?" She snapped in frustration.

"I want you Riley, just you. Why is it so fucking hard for you to understand that?"

With tears starting to form, Riley took a breath and spoke more quietly, "I can't give you what you want Denver."

"Why the hell not?" He asked, reaching up and gently wiping at the moisture that tracked down her cheek.

"Because I'm stubborn."

"I know that," Denver chuckled softly. "Why else?"

"I'm scared," she finally admitted. "I'm scared out of my mind."

Denver pulled her into his arms, hugging her tightly and kissing her face, kissing away the tears, kissing her cheek, her chin, her forehead, and finally her lips. Sweet, gentle, passionate kisses. Kisses that Riley wanted to get lost in.

"I'm afraid that I'm not going to be able to love you, Denver," she cried once he stopped kissing her and just held her in his arms. "And I'm afraid that if I did, that you'd leave me."

"I would never leave you." He whispered, his chin resting on the top of her head as he continued to hold her to him for dear life.

"What if you got traded?"

And there it was. Denver had been waiting to get to the heart of the matter, and he'd finally done it. Riley had finally come clean. She was afraid he would get traded. Hockey players got traded all the time, and goaltenders were often the most expendable. It made sense. Riley had worked hard for her job, her career, and she enjoyed being close to her family. She wouldn't want to move.

It made so much sense.

Pulling her away from himself just enough so that he could look into her eyes, Denver held her at arm's length, "Riley, I'm getting ready to sign a six-year extension, and yeah I get it, that doesn't guarantee anything, but my mother lives in Atlanta, and Mia likes it here. My life is here. YOU are here. I would retire before I would allow myself to be traded."

"You, you mean that?" She asked in earnest.

Denver nodded, "absolutely. I'm young, and I'm going to play my heart out for this team, but at the end of my contract, if they decide I'm not good enough to keep around, I'm done. I'm out. I don't want to leave Savannah."

"What would you do if you retired?"

"I dunno," he shrugged. "Maybe get a job at the local paper, write about the Slashers," Denver said with a smile. "I'd figure something out. I won't exactly be hurting for money once I retire. I'll have plenty of time to figure out what to do with my life."

Riley's head started to spin, she didn't want to believe him, she couldn't. Hell, even if she did, being that she wasn't willing to make such a sacrifice herself, how could she let him? "I can't let you do that, Denver."

"Do what?"

"Retire before your time just so you can stay in Savannah for me."

"Wow Riley," he snorted, "either you're really conceited, or you haven't listened to a word I've just said."

Riley scoffed, pulling away from him, "and what is that supposed to mean? I heard you just fine!"

"But you didn't listen. That's obvious. I said that my mother lives in Atlanta and that I wouldn't want to leave her, or move her for that matter, and I certainly don't plan on uprooting Mia again or leaving her here to fend for herself. I have plenty of reasons other than you to stay here. The fact of the matter is that I care about you, and you're one of many parts of my life here in Savannah."

"Oh."

"Look," he began, closing the distance she had placed between them, and lifting a hand to the side of her face, stroking the back of one finger down her cheek. "I'm not trying to put you on the spot here, Riley, I want you to think about it. I want you to think long and hard about everything. If me getting traded is your only concern, then just take that out of the equation right now. But if there's something else holding you back, figure out what it is and get back to me."

Riley turned her face into his hand and kissed it lightly, then she caught his wrist in her grasp and pulled his hand so that the opposite side of her face fit nicely into his palm, without prompting, he began to slide his thumb along her face, wiping at any remaining moisture. She hoped the gesture was enough of an answer for him, because words simply failed her.

"I think we could do this Riley, I think we could be good together."

She nodded, taking a slow step back and kissing the back of his hand before letting it go. "I really need to go," She said quietly.

Denver walked her to the foyer, disabling the alarm and opening the door for her. "Just think about it, Riley."

She smiled back at him over her shoulder, and with a quick wink, headed down the steps to her car. Instead of it being out by the road where she had left it, she found it waiting for her in front of the house, and realizing Denver had probably moved it sometime in the morning while she slept, she smiled warmly to herself.

Denver obviously thought of everything. He was a special kind of man for sure, always thinking of others. Riley wasn't completely sure what came next, but having Denver ease some of her biggest concerns made the future, a future that included him, a lot easier to accept.

There just might be hope for them yet.
Chapter 20

About Last Night

Despite the long night, Denver felt more alive than he'd ever felt in his life. He breezed through practice, blocking all but a couple of shots, and leaving his team and coaching staff in awe. No, there was no need for Spencer to start in net tonight. Denver would do just fine against the Canes.

A quick meeting with Jean to see if she could hang out with Mia at the game that night in case Harmony left early and Denver was headed home. He figured he'd get himself some lunch and try to take a nap. He didn't feel tired by any means, but a little extra rest certainly couldn't hurt.

"Yo!" Donovan called to him as he reached his truck in the parking lot. "Wait up a second."

"Yeah, man, what's up?"

Donovan gave him a friendly little jab in the rib cage, "what uh, what happened last night with Riley, man?" He asked teasingly. "Lacy told me about the little conversation she had with her, and I noticed she was still there when I left. You two, uh, hook up?"

Denver ignored the last part of his statement and went straight for the morsel about Lacy and Riley having had a conversation. "Lacy talked to Riley? About what?"

"Nuh-uh, Collins, I'm not letting you off the hook that easily, you tell me what happened first."

"Fine." Denver sighed. "Riley spent the night, and we uh, we played pool."

Donovan cocked his head a little in confusion, "Is that uh, is that supposed to be code for something? I mean, is the cue stick code for your dick and the balls, well, balls? Because I'll be honest, if all you two did last night is play pool, then you're not quite the man I thought you were, Denver."

Denver laughed, he couldn't help it. For someone who was actually pretty intelligent, Donovan could be really stupid sometimes.

"Nah," he admitted. "Without going into too much detail, let's just say that the pool table is multipurpose and good for many things."

"Denver!" Donovan shouted, giving him a punch on the shoulder. "You dog!"

Denver looked around the parking lot to make sure no one else was around, thankfully they were alone. "Alright, alright," He said, pulling Donovan closer to his truck. "Just tell me what Riley talked to Lacy about."

"Sure, yeah. Lacy told me on the ride home that Riley asked her about the whole job thing, you know, like why Lacy was so willing to give up the job she loved for a chance to be with me."

"And what did Lacy tell her?"

"That she didn't. That the job with the Slashers was a better option than the private practice positions she had been looking into. And then Riley asked her if she hadn't taken the job with the Slashers, and I had been traded, like that would ever happen," he laughed, Denver nodding in agreement. "Anyway, she asked in the event that I had been traded and she wasn't with the Slashers, if she would have given up her job and moved with me."

"And what did Lacy say? No way in hell?" Denver teased.

Donovan rolled his eyes, "no funny man. Lacy told her she would, that she could be a nurse anywhere, and she could always visit her family."

"Wow. You got a great woman there, Donovan. Really great."

"I know." Donovan agreed, his mood becoming a little more somber. "She's everything to me, and I know exactly how you're feeling right now, man. Just keep your head up, and no matter what shit Riley tries to pull, you keep at it. I don't care what Dean says, don't give up on her. You hear me?"

"You know about what Dean said to me?"

Donovan shrugged, "well yeah, Dean and I talk about everything."

"Does he know about?" Denver began to ask, suddenly nervous.

Donovan cut him off, "no, of course not. Your secret's safe with me."

Letting out a sigh of relief, Denver waved to Donovan and watched as he walked off towards his own car. Damn. He thought to himself, that had been a close one. He didn't mind that Dean and Donovan talked about, well, anything really, especially since he often went to Dean with his own problems, except for that one little detail concerning his sister.

He may have told Riley that Dean had known, and sometimes he even suspected Dean did and was just too modest to say anything. But he'd never actually told Dean about the interactions between himself and Whitney. Hell, other than Riley, Donovan was the only one that knew. And he really hoped it stayed that way.

When it came to Whitney, Dean was about as overprotective as a brother could get, and he'd made it clear on multiple occasions that his sister was off limits to everyone on the team. He couldn't control her, and she was free to sleep with whoever she wanted to, outside of the Slashers, he had said, because they were a team, and teammates stuck together.

But while sleeping with her was off the table, Dean didn't mind his friends taking Whitney to an advent here or there, as he often had himself, before meeting Abby. Whitney enjoyed the finer things in life and loved being on the arm of a good-looking athlete for charity functions. A few of the guys had used her in that capacity, including Donovan.

Honestly, though, Denver hadn't meant to betray his friend the way he had. Whitney had escorted him to an event for a local children's hospital, and though he'd kept his promise the first time around, it was much harder to ignore her charms when she escorted him a second time to an event that Dean had attended with Abby.

Whitney had a way about her, she was truly a free spirit and a master seductress. As hard as he'd tried, she had somehow managed to convince him to bug off early, and after telling her brother some crazy story about her date, a guy from another team, spilling a drink on her, she met Denver back at his place where they hooked up, before she would eventually spend the night at Dean's.

They snuck around with each other a few times a month after that. And while Denver found himself falling in love with her, Whitney was simply enjoying the taboo aspect of their relationship.

In the end, after Whitney crushed him, he felt bad about betraying one of his best friends, and he'd wanted to come clean for the longest time, but it was Donovan whom he told and Donovan who warned him to keep quiet. Dean wasn't rational when it came to his sister, and Donovan assured him that no good would come of telling him the truth.

It seemed everyone had their secrets. He with Whitney, and Riley with Joey.

Unable to concentrate on much of anything after leaving Denver's place, Riley called in sick for the day and headed down to Jacksonville to visit her mother. With everything going on in her head, and emotions at an all-time high, she thought a little time spent with her mother might do her some good.

She called her mom after talking to Janet, and as luck would have it, her mother was only working a half day, as she had a repairman coming out to their house to fix their HVAC system and someone had to be home.

Riley picked up some takeout on her way and made it there just as her mother was also pulling into the driveway.

"Hey ma," She said, giving her mother a big squeeze and a kiss on the cheek.

"Whatcha got in the bag?" Her mother asked, pretending to peek even though the bags were rolled up.

"Just some burgers and fries, have you had lunch yet?"

"Nope! You're just in time, come on inside, I'll make us some tea."

Riley loved her mother, they were a lot alike really, but they never really bashed heads because of it. Her parents were both pretty low key, and very down to earth. All three of their kids inheriting their personalities, though her brother Allen, the cop, was a little more serious at times.

Riley's mom was a wild one at heart though, which was probably one of the reasons they did get along so well. Like mother like daughter they always said.

While her mother made tea, Riley decided not to beat around the bush and filled her mother in on all things Denver. Though, unlike with Abby, she didn't leave a single detail out. Maybe it was weird for some people, but Riley had never had a problem being candid with her mother.

No matter what bad or risky thing Riley had ever done, she knew she could always confide in her mother without judgment. That didn't mean she never faced punishment when she was younger, because she had, and often, but it was usually her father doing the punishing. Her mother always seemed to have fun joking with her about things after her punishment had been served.

She'd really hit the parenting jackpot, and she knew it. Which only made her feel worse for Denver and Mia. Mia. That poor child. At least she had Denver to love her and look after her now.

"This Colorado guy really seems like a good catch," Her mother said, stuffing a couple of fries in her mouth.

Riley rolled her eyes, "Ma, it's Denver."

"I know honey, I was just teasing."

"Whatever."

"Hey now, here's an idea!" Her mother all but squealed with excitement.

"Oh, God, do I even want to know?"

"Oh, come on, my ideas aren't all bad. I sometimes have really good ideas!"

"Okay, shoot," Riley conceded.

"Okay, so, what if," she began, gesturing wildly, making Riley flinch. "What if you invite Denver and his sister Mia here for Thanksgiving? Huh? huh? That's a good idea, right?"

Riley puffed her cheeks full of air and then slowly let it out with a grimace, "I dunno about that."

"Why not? You said so yourself they don't have any family around here, and if you're serious about this boy, and I can tell you are," she said, poking a finger into Riley's nose. "Then why not let us meet him? I'm sure he and your father would get along great!"

"I couldn't, right? No." Riley said, sort of arguing with herself while her mom just looked on with a dopey smile on her face. "Yeah, I guess, maybe. I dunno mom."

"Do it."

"Alright, yeah, okay, I guess I could. It's not like he couldn't just say no if he didn't want to come."

"Exactly!" Her mother exclaimed, throwing her hands up to indicate how readily she agreed.

"Alright, I'll do it. I'll go to the game tonight and ask him afterward if he wants to come here for Thanksgiving."

"Awesome. I'll start making a list!"

Riley groaned and put her face in her palms as her mother rushed about the kitchen to find a pad of paper and a pen. This was going to be a disaster, she just knew it.
Chapter 21

Rock you like a Hurricane

It was game time.

Denver had gotten himself a nice little nap after practice, and now he was ready and raring to go, tonight was going to be a good game, he could just feel it.

Dean stopped by his stall on his way out to the ice for pregame warm ups. "I hear Riley's going to be in attendance tonight."

"Oh yeah? Who told you that?" Denver asked, his heart picking up the pace at the mention of her name.

"Abby did on the way here, she said Riley texted her earlier and said she was coming. What's the deal, Collins? What's up with you two? You a couple yet, or what?"

"I'm working on it, these things take time," Denver retorted with a sigh. "I think I love her though. She's great. No, she's incredible."

Denver's enthusiasm made Dean smile, he could remember just how he'd felt the first time he realized he was falling in love with Abby. "Love huh? That's great, man. Hey, maybe you can take that enthusiasm out onto the ice and show her how much you love her with a shutout tonight."

Denver coughed, "or maybe you could get off my ass and help me out by actually scoring a few goals tonight."

"Touché," Dean laughed.

With a click of his tongue, Denver winked and shot a little finger gun in Dean's direction. Dean rolled his eyes and continued on his way out to the rink, finished with adjusting his gear, Denver wasn't far behind.

Denver's thoughts on the game being a good one, turned out to be true.

The Carolina Hurricane's, having missed the playoffs the previous year, had acquired themselves a new goaltender in their long offseason, adding the Chicago Blackhawks Scott Darling to their roster. It turned out to be a great move for them as Darling was doing very well. Carolina was only two points back of the Slashers in the standings, and tonight's game would be called a goalie win either way it went.

The Hurricane's scored first early in the first period, though Denver, nor any other Slasher blamed him for the missed shot. It was a goal that shouldn't have been allowed, but as the linesman missed it, and the camera angles were inconclusive, the goalie interference was waved off.

Denver was livid about the call, but there just wasn't much he could do about it other than to play his game and keep them from scoring again.

It was Carolina's Teuvo Teravainen, another former Blackhawk, who was credited with the goal, and Jordan Staal who got the assist, or more like, was the cause of the interference as he deliberately grabbed Denver's stick and tripped him up, making it look like an incidental play with the help of one of Denver's own teammates who did, in fact, trip up.

Late in the second period, Peter helped Noah even the score with a pass from behind Carolina's net. Noah set himself up right in front of Darling who was doing his best to track the puck but ultimately fell just short of stopping it after Peter's slick pass that came at a weird angle that should have never worked, to begin with.

Somehow, they'd made it happen though.

Most of the game consisted of battles up against the boards and clogged neutral zones, with few shots getting past defenders and those that did being eaten up by two outstanding goaltenders who were both seemingly on fire.

It was a game that was looking more and more like it was going into overtime.

A couple of dangerous shots on goal from each team, Carolina's Rask hitting the top of the crossbar and deflecting out of play with two minutes left on the clock. And a rebound shot from Donovan going just wide of what was nearly an empty net as Darling scrambled to get back into position after an amazing save, and overtime was exactly where they were headed.

The clock wound down, the buzzer sounded, and each team got a couple of minutes to breathe as they put their heads together and figured out what needed to be done to win the game.

They had exactly five minutes of three on three hockey to score a goal if they didn't want to face settling it in a shootout. And though Denver relished the thought of going one-on-one with these guys, confident that he could stop all and any of their shots, he was pretty damn tired, and really wanted this game to just end already.

Maybe the effects of last night were finally starting to get to him. Then again, maybe not.

Coach decided to start overtime with Dean and Donovan together along with Peter as their defender, and with a combination like that, Denver was sure they had a fighting chance. If anybody could get one past Darling, it would be one of those three.

Dean took the faceoff against Carolina's Rask, ultimately losing it, and causing Denver to be tested early as it was taken to the net. He was more than up for the task though, scooping it up and tossing it back out before the play was blown dead.

Peter took it back up the ice, dumping it in behind Carolina's net, and Donovan chasing it down as Dean and Peter skated off the ice for a change. With no help though, he ended up turning the puck over without getting off a shot and Denver was forced to make yet another save.

It seemed to go that way for the first four and half minutes of overtime. With only thirty seconds left on the clock, Denver prepared himself mentally for the coming shootout.

But it never came.

With less than ten seconds on the clock, Andre flew up the ice with Dean at his side, Carolina's defenders scrambling to catch up. The seconds ticked away, and then the buzzer sounded, but so did the goal horn.

There was confusion in the stands, and chaos on the ice, as everyone tried to figure out what had just happened.

But Dean and Andre knew. And they celebrated enthusiastically.

It was determined after a review, one that had to be sent to the big dogs up in Canada, that the puck, after being passed from Andre to Dean, and then deflecting off Dean's skate, hitting the side of the goalpost, and getting tipped by the edge of Andre's stick, somehow managed to trickle into the goal underneath Darling's right pad, a mere fraction of a second before the final buzzer sounded.

The crowd went wild, the players hooted and hollered, and Carolina shook their heads in disbelief.

Denver threw down his gloves and skated into the fray, Picking the smaller Andre up and swinging him around in a circle as he pumped his fists in the air and screamed. What a fucking goal, he had thought to himself, what a fucking game!

Riley and Abby waited until the crowd thinned out before heading down to the locker room, and honestly, with the way everyone had cheered and carried on, hanging around to hear them announce the three stars of the game, one would have thought it was the Stanley Cup finals or something. It was that crazy!

Riley was excited to hear that Denver had been named the number two star of the game though, Carolina's Darling getting the number three star, and Andre, of course, snagging the number one star for that amazing goal of his.

She and Abby had hugged, jumping up and down screaming when Denver's name had been announced, much like they had been for that last exciting goal. What a game!

They made it into the locker room just as the media was leaving, she and Abby exchanging their goodbyes as Abby went in search of Dean, and Riley stopped at Denver's stall which was somewhat near the door.

"Hey, you!" She beamed, leaning down and giving him a hug even though he was all sweaty and smelled positively awful.

"Hey, yourself! Dean told me you were going to be here. Did you enjoy the game?"

"Probably not as much as you did, but yeah."

"Awesome, hey, can you wait here for a few minutes?" He asked getting up and grabbing a towel. "I stink, I need to go shower really quick."

"Sure yeah," she said, nodding and pointing to the bench in the middle of the room, "I'll just wait right here for you."

"Great, thanks!" Denver bent down and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. Riley rewarding him with a grunt as she waved her hand in front of her face.

"Oh God, you do stink! Hurry up, get out of here and go shower."

Denver laughed, shaking his head as he took off to get cleaned up.

About ten minutes later they were walking through the player's lot together, where both of them had parked, Riley's car only a few spaces from Denver's pickup truck.

"So, uh..." Denver mumbled.

"Yeah?"

He laughed, "sorry, I got nothing."

Riley couldn't seem to help herself as they stopped in front of her car, she giggled along with him. Now that she'd had plenty of time to think about things, and a little advice from her mother, as well as everyone else with an opinion to share, Riley felt kind of awkward around Denver.

She had already known, since transferring Mia to a new PO, to be exact, that things between her and Denver had, and were going to continue to change, but now that she'd decided to attempt some sort of a relationship with Denver, she felt scared, nervous even. The little butterflies in her stomach were flapping like crazy.

"Hey, Denver?"

"Yeah?" He said, looking her straight in the eyes and smiling that famous lopsided grin of his, the one that turned her insides to goo.

Riley gulped, it was now or never. "I was wondering if you and Mia wanted to come to my parent's house with me for Thanksgiving, you know, if you didn't have any other plans."

"Wow."

"Too much too soon?" She asked, nervously biting her bottom lip.

Denver shook his head, "no, not at all. I'm just... I'm surprised. You surprised me."

"Oh."

"No, it's a good thing. And yes, yeah, of course, we'll come, thank you so much for inviting us. Although, Mia and I will need to stop first and see our mom, I hope it's okay if we came sometime in the afternoon."

Riley smiled, her heart beating a rapid tattoo, and the little butterflies doing flips, "oh yeah, no, duh, your mom, late afternoon is fine! I totally understand."

"Great," Denver said, backing away from her car. "Just uh, just text me their address, and we'll meet you there when we're done at the nursing home."

"Okay, awesome..." Riley started to say, her words being smothered in the next instant by Denver's lips as he, realizing he was leaving without a proper goodbye, closed the gap between them and kissed her like they hadn't seen each other in months.

His lips were soft and gentle, and he smelled like soap and old spice. Riley's head swam, her senses dulled but for her sense of touch and taste as she breathed in his kiss and the faint taste of mint on his tongue. It was passionate but tender, erotic but sweet.

Her knees felt weak, and her heart beat to the bass of a drum at a rock concert. Denver held her close, her body pressed tightly to his, and he inhaled her, he fed off her, giving as much as he took.

This was passion, no, it was beyond passion. This was love.

Denver released her with a loud sigh, allowing his head to rest against hers for a minute before taking a step back and helping her into her car. He bent down for one more kiss, this one a little rougher, then whispered goodbye and gave her a wave before walking to his truck.

Riley sat in her car for a moment with a big sloppy smile on her face. Maybe everyone was right, after all, maybe she was head over heels for him.
Chapter 22

Thanksgiving in Jacksonville

"Thanks, Denver," Mia said, looking out the window of the truck as they made the four-hour trek from Atlanta to Jacksonville.

Denver nodded, then promptly told her it was no problem once he realized she wasn't looking at him and wouldn't have heard his shoulders shrugging. No further conversation was necessary, he knew why she was thanking him, and after their last visit to their mother, he also knew she probably needed the solitude of this ride to get her thoughts back under control.

Typically, hockey, not being a traditional Thanksgiving staple, wasn't played on Thanksgiving, but as of the past few years, the NHL had been scheduling a game here and there. The Slashers had yet to play a Thanksgiving game, and they had even been lucky enough this year to get the day before Thanksgiving off as well.

Denver had decided to take Mia to see their mother a day earlier, spending the night in a hotel and leaving early the next morning. They'd gotten to Atlanta by noon the previous day and with the help of the staff, set up a Thanksgiving dinner for their mother that night.

It was one of the rare times that their mother had been lucid and cognizant of who they were. Often during their visits, she had no idea who they were, which made her suspicious or paranoid of her own children.

But God had seemingly graced them with this time. A wonderful Thanksgiving meal with their mother. And heeding Riley's advice, Denver made it a point to take Mia to see their mother's neurologist before heading to the nursing home to see her.

They'd spent nearly an hour discussing their mother's condition and the doctor assuring Mia that she was highly unlikely to develop the disease herself based solely on the fact that their mother had it. Denver's heart squeezed while he watched Mia relax upon the doctor's words, as he saw what he assumed were tears of joy, tears of relief even, well up in her eyes before she staunched them with the back of her knuckles.

Mia had clearly needed to hear this. He was only sorry he hadn't realized it sooner.

After a quick hello to their mother that morning, one Denver wished they hadn't made since she was no longer aware of anything, including her own children, they hopped back into Denver's truck and began the trip to Jacksonville. They would get there right around one that afternoon.

Denver was both excited and nervous about the prospect of meeting Riley's parents, and he had to keep reminding himself that he shouldn't read too far into the whole thing.

While it was true that they had taken a step forward in whatever it was that one wanted to call their relationship, Denver wasn't about to count his chickens before they hatched. Riley would need time, that much was clear, she had her reservations and they likely weren't going to just disappear.

Though he understood why she was reluctant to get involved with him, it didn't make things easier to overcome. Riley had a valid reason for being skeptical, and his words alone weren't going to make those fears dissipate.

Until he reached the point in his career where a trade was imminent, he could promise her anything he wanted, but it didn't mean much in all honesty. If the Slashers drafted and developed a goalie in the next couple of years, one they could retain for cheaper than what they were paying Denver, a trade could become a real possibility.

The NHL was a business. He of all people should know that after he'd been that cheaper goalie that replaced France. Now, of course, the situation was a little different. France was going to be an unrestricted free agent at the end of that season and had already been informed that they wouldn't have been able to afford to resign him, so he'd chosen, for the good of the team, to be traded beforehand.

Denver was due a significant raise, his previous contract being four years at two million, which, in comparison to France's six-year contract at almost eight million, even if he'd only had a year left at that point, was a major discount.

His agent had been going back and forth with the Slashers organization all summer and as they neared the halfway point of the season, was confident they would get this matter settled soon. No one wanted Denver to become a free agent at the end of the season, even if he was restricted because an offer sheet was a possibility that the Slashers wanted to avoid.

Denver was the best shootout goalie in the league. He was near perfect in his six seasons as a backup for the Slashers. He had more shutouts than any other goalie when he'd played for the Slashers AHL team, and the rest of his stats had him right up there with the best in the league.

Being that the Slashers were looking to stay cap compliant, Denver was willing to take a hometown discount of six million a year. He could easily command seven or better on the open market, and the Slashers knew that. The amount of money wasn't really up for debate. Everyone was comfortable with six million.

It was the length of the contract and the no movement clause that seemed to be stopping them from getting this thing done. Denver wanted six years, the Slashers wanted to make it another four. Denver was already twenty-eight, and they had several good prospects developing at different rates in the AHL and OHL.

The Slashers also wanted a modified no-trade clause versus the full no movement one, which Denver wasn't comfortable with.

While it was true that Mia would be eighteen in two years, Denver suspected she'd go to college locally, and he didn't want to move away from her, he also didn't want to move their mother. Though she was out of it more often than not, she was still comfortable in her surroundings, and any dramatic changes could be detrimental to her overall health.

His mother had the best care, and the best doctors in the state, it was a very real possibility that she would live longer than the average eight to ten years of someone with her condition, and Denver wanted her to stay in Atlanta for the duration, likewise, he didn't want to be more than the three hours away from her that he was now.

Of course, until that contract was signed, and under the stipulations he wanted, he really couldn't assure Riley of anything. As it stood right now, he was fully tradeable. The Slashers could decide he wanted more than they were willing to offer and let him go at the end of the season in the hopes that they might be able to get one of the available veterans on the market.

Which was exactly why he wasn't putting too much stock into having Thanksgiving with Riley's family. Until he could be absolutely sure that his future, for at least the next six years, with the Slashers was set in stone, he wasn't going to make promises he couldn't keep.

Hell, he kind of had already.

Denver had already told Riley he would retire before being traded, but if he were traded tomorrow, would he hold firm to that conviction? Probably not. He would be reluctant to go, but ultimately, as it stood, he couldn't afford to retire just yet. For that reason alone, Denver knew he'd need to talk to Riley about what he'd said before.

Riley was about as nervous as a mouse caught in a snake's crosshairs. She still couldn't believe she'd really invited Denver to meet her parents! No, no, that wasn't quite right. She had to remind herself that this wasn't exactly what it seemed.

Riley cared about Mia, and she knew the girl was hurting, she knew she was confused about a lot of things, and that she yearned for attention, especially of the female variety. This was just as much about Mia being able to have a good time in a family environment as it was about Denver meeting her parents. She just had to remember this wasn't some sort of date, it was a vacation of sorts for Mia.

But God she was a mess!

Riley had already warned her brother's to be on their best behavior and made sure both of her parents understood that she and Denver were not dating, that they were just friends. Her mother of course had given her one of those famous knowing looks of hers, as despite her daughter's reservations, she knew they were more than friends, hell, Riley had confessed feelings for the man, and given her mother all the nitty gritty details.

It was more so just for show, to try and convince her father that there was no need to give Denver the third degree, to which her mother gladly played along, not letting on that Riley had already taken her into her confidences. What her father didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

But even after both her brothers and her father had given her their word that they wouldn't give Denver a hard time, Riley was still a basket case. She wanted everything to go well. She wanted Denver and Mia to have a good time, she wanted them to be able to relax around her family and just enjoy themselves.

She'd gone to great lengths to ensure all those things.

The turkey was being handled by her mother, the sides were taken care of by Allen's wife, she'd seen to desert herself, and Eric's wife would keep the kids in order, and all the women would handle cleanup. Everyone had their job assignments and assured Riley that they would take them seriously so that Denver and Mia wouldn't have to worry about a thing.

Denver had told her that Copper would be staying with Harmony and Peter as they were going to Atlanta a day early, and the cat had been left with enough food and water to manage, and she'd already informed him that he wasn't to bring anything with him.

She felt like she had all her bases covered, why was she so nervous?

A knock on the front door, at just a few minutes after 1:00 pm, signaled the arrival of her guests, and Riley instantly went from nervous to frantic.

"Relax Ry, everything's going to be fine." Her mother soothed, coming up behind her and rubbing her shoulders briefly as she headed for the door.

Riley took a deep breath and followed suit.

Denver juggled the case of beer he held in one hand to the other and wiped a sweaty palm on his jeans. The closer he'd gotten to Riley's parent's house, the more his system went haywire. Mia seemed perfectly content standing next to him with a bouquet of flowers in hand, if this had any effect on her, he sure as hell couldn't tell.

Then again, why would Mia be nervous? Riley was just a friend, and she certainly didn't have anything riding on this.

Denver pasted on his biggest and best smile as the door opened in front of him, and tried like hell to hide the fact that he wanted nothing more than to run in the opposite direction. The woman who opened the door looked a lot like Riley, only older. Her hair was the same color, though a few streaks of gray were visible here and there, and it was longer, much longer. Her eyes were that same shade of whiskey, and her face was angular and pixie-like as well, though she had freckles, whereas Riley didn't.

Denver had heard that if you wanted to know what a woman was going to look like when she got older you only needed to look at the mother, and if that was the case, Riley was going to be beautiful for a long time to come.

Riley stood just behind her mother and immediately reached out to take the beer, some craft recipe he'd picked up at the local Publix, out of his hands. Mia graciously handed the flowers to Riley's mother and accepted a hug from her as well with a genuine smile on her face. Something that truly warmed Denver's heart.

"It's so nice to finally meet you both," Riley's mother began, as she led them into the living area off the foyer. "Riley talks about you both all the time."

"Mom," Riley ground out between her teeth as she headed for the kitchen with the beer, causing her mother to smile brighter, if that were even possible.

Denver laughed. "Does she now?"

"Oh yes," She winked. "If you'll just come this way, everyone is out in the backyard playing horseshoes."

Riley's mother bustled through the house, pointing out along the way the powder room off the living room, and telling them that her home was their home and they were welcome to anything they wanted while they were there.

"Oh my, how rude of me," She paused, just inside the door to the backyard. Denver and Mia exchanged confused glances. "I'm really sorry, where are my manners, I didn't even properly introduce myself!"

Mia giggled, shaking the older woman's hand as she extended it to her.

"Mia, Denver, my name is Amelia, and I'm delighted that you'll be spending Thanksgiving with us. If there is anything you need, anything at all, you just let me know."

"I am kind of thirsty," Mia piped up.

Amelia smiled, turning to Denver, "Denver honey, you go on outside and catch up with Riley and the rest of the family, I'm going to take Mia into the garage, we stocked the fridge in there, can I get you anything?"

Denver shook his head and grasped the doorknob, watching Mia disappear into the utility room with Riley's mother before heading outside to join in the festivities.

Riley caught up with him immediately, intercepting him before he got to the horseshoe pit where the rest of her family was gathered.

"She didn't embarrass me too much, did she?" Riley asked nervously, taking a sip of a malt beverage, her hand all but shaking.

"No. Your mother is great Riley. She's amazing."

Riley seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, she smiled, looping an arm through Denver's elbow. "Come on, I'll introduce you to the rest of the family."

Denver met Riley's father, Dominick, a handsome older man with salt and pepper hair and the kindest gray eyes he'd ever seen, and then he was introduced to her brothers and their families. Allen, the cop, was five years older than Riley and looked like a mix of both parents. He had his father's eyes, but his mother's smile, he was tall and stout, but still a few inches shorter than Denver.

His wife Myra was a petite blonde with a heart of gold and their children, Tanner who was six and Annie who was ten, were some of the most well behaved and polite children he'd ever met.

Her brother Eric was only an inch or so taller than Riley, and thin as a rail, he heavily favored his father in looks, though his eyes were blue and hard, he seemed like the serious type. His wife Connie was short and plump of stature, but one of the sweetest and most motherly women he'd had the pleasure of meeting, and their children, twins Aaron and Alex, were typical little nine-year-old hellions, while their daughter Bella, who was only four, definitely took after her mother, as she was nothing but smiles.

Overall, everyone was welcoming and warm, even if Eric did seem to stare him down at times, and he felt more at home than he had in a long time.

Denver had thought that since Riley's brother Allen was a cop, he'd be nervous around him, but Allen was open and friendly, and extremely interested in Denver's job. He'd played football in high school, and though he'd gone on to be a cop, he admitted he'd always wondered what it would have been like to go pro.

They spent hours joking and talking to each other about their jobs. Allen loved hearing about the perks of being a professional athlete, and Denver enjoyed hearing about the drunken idiots and crazy arrests Allen had made over the year. Eric even seemed to lighten up some by the time dinner came around and joined in on the conversation, spilling embarrassing stories about working in the factory with his father.

Dominick, of course, interrupting to defend himself, and endearing himself to Denver further. Denver wished he and Mia had a family like this. He wished their father had been more like Riley's dad. His mother, meek though she had been in her youth, was loving and maternal, something he missed deeply when he saw how Riley and Amelia interacted.

Mia seemed to be eating up all the attention she was getting from the women, and even though the kids were all much younger than her, his sister had a lot of fun playing tag and hide and go seek with them. He was grateful to Riley for inviting them, and even more to her family for making them both feel at home.

After dinner had been eaten, everyone stuffing themselves completely, the men set up shop in the den with some beers to watch the Lions take on the Packers, and the children, including Mia, went back outside to play croquet, while the women headed for the kitchen to do the dishes after the table was cleared and the leftovers were put away. And though the men called to him to follow, Denver found himself in the kitchen with the women, offering to help.

Amelia and Riley's sisters-in-law seemed to understand the unspoken request to be alone with Riley, quickly excusing themselves and heading into the living room to join their husbands.

Denver picked up a discarded dish towel and started drying the dishes as Riley placed them in the rack.

"Where does this go?" He asked, holding up a plate.

Riley pointed to a cupboard to the right of him. "Top shelf, on the left," she said with a shy smile. "You don't have to help."

Denver shrugged, "I want to."

They worked in silence for a few minutes, Denver opening cabinets on his own to figure out where things went and putting the dishes away as he dried them.

"Thank you, Riley. I've really enjoyed today."

Riley put down her sponge, letting the water out of the sink and turned to face him, one hip leaning against the counter. "Yeah?" she chuckled. "You don't think my family's a little... odd?"

Denver laughed. "They're great. All of them. Although, I won't lie, your brother Eric can be a little intense sometimes."

"Yeah, Eric takes after our grandpa I think, he's a little too serious sometimes, but he means well."

"They're great Riley, really. I love your family, and they've made Mia feel very special today. I can't thank you enough for that."

Riley smiled, blushing a little as she tried to regroup. "Would you like to go for a walk with me Denver? There's this great little walking trail behind the property, I used to bike it a lot growing up."

"Yeah, I'd like that."

Riley led him out the back door and through the yard to the back gate. Her parents lived in a mature neighborhood where the streets were lined with old oak trees and most of the properties backed up to the Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve.

It seemed like a pretty nice place to grow up and reminded Denver a lot of his own family home.

"I'm actually really glad you suggested this walk," Denver mentioned as they hit the trail. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

Riley turned to face him, having been admiring a blue jay in a nearby pine tree. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah." He answered, shoving his hands in his pockets as they continued along. He'd been going over things in his head all morning on the drive over, and the decision he'd come to wasn't easy. It was going to be a test for both of them, and require a lot of trust on Riley's part.

"Well?"

Denver stopped, turning into her path and bringing her up short just in front of him. "I want you to move in with me." He blurted.

There, he'd said it. And taking a deep breath, Denver felt a lot better about having gotten it out there in the open. Though the shocked look on Riley's face, expected as it was, still had him nearly reeling.

"I'm sorry, what?"

Denver laughed.

"This isn't funny Denver, have you gone mad? You want me to move in with you? That's insane!"

"I'm sorry," He apologized, getting himself back under control. "That came out all wrong."

"Did it? I'm not sure I understand how." Riley retorted, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"What I meant to say was; instead of you having to go back and forth to help me take care of Mia, why don't you just move into my guest suite? You can consider taking care of Mia your share of the rent, and just chip in a little for the utilities."

If Riley hadn't already looked shocked, she sure as hell would have then.

"I... that's..." she stammered. "Can I think about it?"

"Of course. Take all the time you need."

"Wow, Denver, that's.... that's a really generous offer, and not at all what I expected when you said I should move in with you a couple of minutes ago. I mean, for a second there I thought you were trying to get past this awkward dating phase and move right to a happily ever after."

Denver chuckled, taking her hand in his and moving them up the trail again. "Is that what you call this? An awkward dating phase? I didn't think we'd even moved past the friends with benefits stage."

Riley went to say something, but thought better of it, making Denver's chuckle a full-blown laugh.

"Look, Riley," he began, stopping them again and taking both of her hands in his. "I like you, I really do, and I absolutely think we could have something special together. But I'm not going to rush you into anything. You've told me why you don't want to get involved and I respect that, until I can prove to you that I'm not going anywhere, I'll settle for just having you near me."

Riley was truly stunned by his admission and absolutely touched at the same time. "Okay, yeah, I'll do it." She gushed, not completely aware of what she'd said until a few seconds after the words had left her mouth.

"Really?"

She took a deep breath, Denver probably wouldn't blame her if she changed her mind. "Yeah, really," She confirmed.

And why the hell not? She was going to be spending at least one night a week at Denver's home, sometimes full weeks when he had an extended road trip, so as far as logistics went, it made sense. The fact that she wouldn't have to pay rent either, was a huge bonus, she could keep saving for that down payment on her own house.

Perhaps the biggest reason she was on board so easily though, was what Denver had just said, he'd settle for having her near. It was the single most sweetest thing anyone had ever said to her.

"Yeah, no, I'm serious," She reiterated as they turned and headed back towards her parent's backyard.

"You're sure? You don't want to take a little time to think about it?"

"No. I mean, don't get me wrong, I was shocked when you first kind of blurted it out there, but when you explained it a little more, it made a lot of sense. I'm already going to be there a lot, and I could certainly use the extra money. I've been trying to save to buy my own house and that would help."

Denver's heart sank a little as she spoke, but he did his best to hide his despair as Riley chattered on about this cute little downtown neighborhood that she wanted to live in. His end goal was obviously to gain her trust, as well as her heart so that she wouldn't want to leave, and he couldn't expect her to surrender easily, but hearing her talk about a future that didn't necessarily include him still stung.

"So, you're absolutely sure about this?"

Denver nodded. "It makes the most sense, don't you think?"

"Yeah. Yeah, it does." Riley gave him a hug then, a huge one. Nearly squealing like a little girl, she wrapped her arms around him and squeezed.

Denver wasn't ready for it, and the hug all but knocked the air out of him as it threw him off balance and he landed on his ass, Riley on top of him.

Riley laughed, "Oops, sorry...." she mumbled, gasping as their eyes locked and the intensity of his gaze sent a wave of electronic pulses along her nerve endings.

Denver wanted to kiss her. Badly. She licked her lips unconsciously as his eyes lit on them, her cheeks flushed with heat, she gulped. He gulped. He sat on the cool ground with her in his lap and contemplated what to do next.

She'd just agreed to move in with him, even if it was in a platonic fashion, and now she was in his lap. The moment couldn't have been more right if he had set it up himself, and yet, despite what his penis told him to do, he couldn't help but think he would be taking advantage of her.

With a laugh, Denver helped her to her feet instead. "It's okay," He joked.

Riley didn't know what to think. Hell, she had wanted him to kiss her. But he hadn't. He wanted to, she could tell by the way he looked at her. Like he wanted to devour her. And she'd all but told him it was okay with the desperation in her own eyes.

Hadn't she?

Maybe she needed to work on that.

Riley tried to understand Denver's motivations as they walked through the yard back up to her parent's house, but all she could come up with was what he had said earlier, he didn't want to rush her. She didn't honestly think he was suddenly unattracted to her, in their conversation earlier, he'd pretty much admitted that he wanted to have a relationship with her, so that certainly wasn't it.

He was obviously just trying to be a gentleman.

Well, screw that noise!

Just as they reached the back of the house, Riley pushed him up against the side of it, out of the view of the window in the back door and pressed herself to his body, her lips coming down hard on his.

Denver was completely caught off guard and met her lips with an oaf, before finally kissing her back. He pulled her closer to him, wrapping his arms around her as her hands gripped the sides of his face, her fingers sliding into his dark hair, her nails scraping his scalp.

Denver placed his hands under her buttocks and lifted her closer still, trying to basically mold their bodies together as he continued to gorge on her lips. Riley feasted as well, scrambling against him to feel as much of his body on hers as possible. They seemed to lose themselves in the moment, completely forgetting that they were standing just outside the house where more than a dozen people could stumble upon them at any moment.

Lucky for them they came back to reality, ending the kiss and taking a step back from each other mere seconds before the back door would open and Riley's brother Eric would step out, looking for them.

"There you guys are," he commented, looking from Riley to Denver and just barely squinting with suspicion. Eric was no dummy, and Denver was pretty sure he knew they'd just been making out. "Mom's been looking for you Ry, she's ready to serve that cake you made."

Riley gulped, wiping at her swollen lips and blushing as Eric sneered in Denver's direction before walking back inside.

"You made a cake?" Denver asked, hoping a change of subject would ease their frazzled nerves.

Riley laughed, "no, but that's what I told them." She admitted, placing a finger in front of her lips to indicate that he keep her secret.

Denver nodded, and with a chuckle of his own, followed Riley inside.

The cake was great. The conversation during desert just as wonderful. Denver and Mia continued to feel right at home with Riley's family, even if Eric kept giving him dirty looks.

They left soon after desert, saying their goodbyes to each member of the family, Mia getting big hugs from everyone, while Denver got hugs from the women and children and settled for handshakes from the men.

Riley walked them to his truck.

"So, I'll, uh," she started, nervous now when she shouldn't be after the steamy kiss they had shared. "I'll break the news to Viktor and Sandra tomorrow, and move in next weekend if that's alright with you."

Denver smiled, "yeah, that's fine. I'll tell Mia about it on the way home."

"You haven't even told Mia?" She gasped in shock.

Denver just laughed, giving her a quick hug and climbing up into his truck.

Riley shook her head in disbelief as she watched them back out of her parent's driveway, waiting until they were completely out of sight before heading back into the house.

"You two looked cozy today," Mia remarked as they headed for the highway.

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Oh, come on, anyone with eyeballs can see you two have a thing for each other."

"Your point?"

Mia cocked her head, he had her there. "I don't think I have one."

Denver chuckled, guiding the truck onto I-95.

"I just have one question," Mia piped up a few minutes later.

"And that would be?"

"What are you doing about it?"
Chapter 23

Moving Right Along

"He's pretty great Riley," Amelia told her daughter as they cleaned the last of the dishes after everyone else had left, and her father had gone to take a shower.

Riley just smiled, thinking back on the afternoon, and the time she'd spent with Denver, especially the kiss. "Yeah, he is," She agreed absently.

"Eric told me he caught you two in a rather compromising position earlier," her mother teased, throwing a dish towel at her and recapturing her attention. "So, are you two going to make a go of it?"

"He asked me to move in with him."

"Whoa..."

Riley laughed, "no, not like that. I would be staying in his downstairs suite and it would be so that I don't have to go back and forth to take care of Mia for him."

Amelia nodded, "Ahh, I see. So, you'd be his live-in nanny?" She laughed.

Riley laughed too. "Yeah, yeah I guess so."

"Well, plenty of nannies sleep with their employers, I guess it won't be all that bad."

"Ma!" Riley yelped, throwing the towel back at her.

Denver had to hand it to her, Mia was very astute. "Well, there is something I need to talk to you about."

"I knew it!" Mia gushed, turning in her seat to see him better. "You asked her to marry you, didn't you!?"

"What? No! Where the hell did you get an idea like that?"

"I heard Riley say you hadn't told me something yet, what else could she have been talking about?"

Denver looked at her with a satisfied smirk on his face, "oh, I dunno, only about half a dozen things. Marriage is a pretty big assumption to jump to."

"Just shut up and tell me." Mia groused.

"Riley's moving in with us," he stated simply, holding up a hand before she could get a word in. "But, before you get all these crazy ideas in your head, she'll be using mom's old room. This arrangement is for your benefit, not mine."

Mia squealed in delight, much like Riley had earlier, and then instantly rolled her eyes, "riiight," she teased, dragging out the word. "My benefit, as if you two will somehow be able to keep your hands off of each other, I saw you guys earlier, don't think I didn't!"

Denver grumbled, his cheeks flushing as he began to wonder who else might have seen them.

"When is she moving in? Is she bringing the cat with her? Are you two dating? Is she going to be my legal guardian too?" Mia continued, pelting him with one question after another and not giving him half a chance to answer any of them. "Are you going to put her on the pickup list at school? This is totally awesome!"

Trying to get ahold of his spinning thoughts, Denver shook his head. "Slow down there Mia, will ya? Let's take it one step at a time okay? Let Riley get everything figured out before we start worrying about anything else."

Mia took a deep breath, "yeah, okay, but do you at least know when she plans on moving in?"

"She said maybe next weekend. She has to settle up with Viktor first. I don't think they have any kind of lease or whatever, but I guess you never know."

"This is so cool, it's going to be great having a woman around the house!"

"Yeah," Denver agreed, wondering for the first time, what exactly, he was getting himself into. "So, great."

Riley sat down with Viktor and Sandra the next day, having gotten home pretty late that night herself, and told them what her plans were. Though both Viktor and Sandra would miss her, they understood that it was a good opportunity for her financially and that it made sense in the grand scheme of things as pertaining to Mia.

However, an argument ultimately ensued when it came time to talk about Wolverine's future. Granted, it was a playful argument, but Viktor was very reluctant to let the cat go, and surprisingly, Sandra was too.

In the end, knowing that Mia had a kitten of her own, and that the household also had a very rambunctious puppy as well, and that Wolverine was already settled and content where he was, Riley decided to leave him behind.

As much as she loved the cat, uprooting him when he was already happy, just seemed cruel. And he really did prefer the company of Viktor to her, so she doubted the finicky cat was going to miss her too much.

Riley picked up some boxes that weekend and spent the bulk of it packing, tying up the loose ends during the week when she got home from work and didn't have to take care of Mia. The Slashers had an away game early in the week, but Mia stayed with Harmony, and the other three games on the schedule were all home games, one of which she and Mia attended together.

Mia was excited by the prospect of Riley moving in, and they chattered to each other about all the cool things they'd do together while watching the Slashers get their asses handed to them by the Flyers.

Riley was all set to move in that weekend, though she'd had to hire movers as Denver and the Slashers would travel to Chicago Saturday morning for a Sunday afternoon game that would kick off a three-game road trip, keeping him away for the first half of the week.

It gave her plenty of time to get settled in though, Riley was actually quite happy about the timing of it all. Of course, being that they were playing Chicago, Riley and Mia were already conspiring about inviting Abby, Harmony, and Lacy over to watch the game with them and celebrate her move. Kind of a house warming party, but just for the girls.

It sounded like a great idea, and Riley was optimistic about the get-together, as well as the move in general after seeing how much it all excited Mia. In the few weeks that she'd come into Mia's life, she'd seen a complete change in her attitude.

She didn't think for a second that the changes were strictly because of her, she knew Denver had a lot to do with it, but she liked to think she'd had a hand in all of it, including Denver's own transformation.

Both Mia and Denver had definitely benefited from having her in their lives, and Riley had to admit that spending time with them had brought a lot of joy into her own life. She'd finally found what she'd been missing all this time.

Now she just had to figure out what to do about it.

As the week drew to a close and the impending move was upon her, Riley thought she would be more nervous. She guessed that the fact that Denver wasn't going to be there was probably why she was at ease, or maybe it was because the move just felt... right.

She hadn't brought a whole lot with her to Viktor's house, Abby's place having been furnished and all, she'd only had to take her bedroom set with her, so she'd sold or donated most of the crappy furniture she'd had at the apartment she had lived in previously.

Once again, the bedroom set was all Riley had taken to Viktor's house, but she was still glad she had hired movers, there was no way she and the girls would have been able to move her big ass bed frame. Denver cleared out the downstairs suite on his day off during the week, now all she had to do was put her stuff in it.

Luckily, it only took her about half of Saturday to put the bedroom together the way she wanted it. Afterward, she took Mia downtown with her and treated them both to dinner while they talked about the girls only barbecue they were going to have the next day while they watched the Slashers play the Chicago Blackhawks.

Riley had taken a peek at Denver's grill earlier and decided that it wasn't too intimidating. She knew that between the six of them, they could get it all figured out. So, first thing Sunday morning Riley and Mia headed to the store and picked up some chicken breasts and asparagus for the grill, as well as all the makings for a nice salad. They were going to eat like queens.

Or so she thought.

It turned out that grilling was a lot harder than it looked if you'd never actually done it. By the time she was 'finished' she'd burned the asparagus, and the chicken was well undercooked. They made up a big salad and ordered pizza instead.

"Now this is a meal fit for a queen!" Lacy exclaimed as she bit into a slice of pizza.

"No kidding!" Mia agreed, guzzling down some soda before stuffing her mouth with salad.

Despite ruining their original meal plans, Riley's attempt at barbecuing had at least been quite entertaining as she hollered and yelped at the burning asparagus. She probably should have known better than to try and cook with plastic on a grill, but since she'd never actually done it before, she didn't think anything of it.

To be honest, she had thought the heat couldn't have been much worse than the microwave and didn't account for the fact that she would be cooking over actual flames. She still wasn't sure how she was going to explain all of the leftover goo from the fire extinguisher to Denver.

Maybe she would just rag on him first about his abysmal performance against Chicago.

By the end of the second period, the Slashers were down three to one, all three of those shots coming in the first ten minutes of the first period. Though, to be fair, it looked like it was a team meltdown rather than anything Denver was doing wrong.

How was he supposed to block a shot if he had three red sweaters crowding him? He'd have to be Superman to be able to see through all those bodies! The Slashers D was really letting him down today. And the offense wasn't faring much better with only fifteen shots on goal in two periods to Chicago's almost forty.

It was a bizarre game for sure and only got stranger during the third period as the Slashers tried to regroup and take some shots on goal. No less than five shots in the first seven minutes of the period went either just wide of the net or bounced off the goal post.

But at least the defense had finally gotten their heads out of their asses.

The guys were able to somehow tie up the game with two minutes to go, but Crawford would stand strong and block any more shots while Donovan, who wasn't known to be a very defensive-minded forward, to begin with, would commit the ultimate faux pas and turn the puck over right in front of Denver with less than a minute on the clock.

Unfortunately for Denver, he didn't catch it until it was too late and Marian Hossa was chucking it in top shelf.

"Oooh man!" Lacy cried, watching her husband all but gift wrap the puck for Hossa.

Loud groans and moans spread about the room as each woman expressed her disgust and disappointment. Coming back from a deficit only to turn it over at the last possible second, it was heartbreaking for sure.

"Denver should have had that!" Sandra scowled, throwing her napkin at the TV.

Riley balked, "no way he could have seen that coming!"

All eyes seemed to land on Riley then, a knowing grin spreading across each face as they exchanged glances with one another.

"What?" Riley gulped.

"Methinks somebody has a crush on Denver," Harmony teased, her brows raising suggestively.

"Oh, she's got it pretty bad." Mia chimed in.

Riley just sat there and took it, blushing furiously and shaking her head.

"Is this why you moved in with him?" Sandra asked curiously.

Everyone else sort of leaned in, as though they had wanted to ask the same question but were too afraid to, but were now all but sitting on the edge of their seats as they waited for an answer.

"Help me out with this, would ya Mia?" Riley finally mumbled.

Mia shook her head, "nuh-uh, I thought all along that you had some ulterior motive, I want to know the answer to that question just as much as everyone else here does."

They all nodded and murmured their agreement, which served to make Riley anxious as she contemplated how best to answer Sandra's probing question.

"Okay, fine," She sighed, mentally exhausted from having to keep it all in. "I have feelings for Denver."

There was a collective "awww" throughout the room that was quickly hushed by Riley's upraised hand.

"It's complicated, and it's complex and confusing as hell, but yes, I have feelings for Denver. That's not, however, why I agreed to move in here. Mia," she continued, pointing to the young lady that sat to her left with a shit eating grin on her face, "needs someone to look after her when Denver isn't around, and I had already assumed that position, living here just makes it easier."

Everyone seemed content with that answer, and to change the subject, Abby got up and headed towards the kitchen, "who's ready for dessert?" She sang, the other women chiming in with excitement.

'Thanks,' Riley mouthed to her friend just before she disappeared, thank God for Abby!
Chapter 24

The Best Part of Waking Up

After the horrible showing in Chicago, the Slashers regrouped on Tuesday and came away that night with a win against St. Louis by a large margin. Their last game of the trip was against the Rangers, then they'd get a couple of days off before two games at home, the second being the home part of a home and away against the Florida Panthers, and another game at the end of the week, at home, against Tampa again.

They had a busy schedule with a game pretty much every other day leading up to the three days they'd get off for Christmas. And even then, it really wasn't much of a break as the team was traveling to Russia, except for a couple of the younger players, to attend Peter and Harmony's wedding.

Mia would be on winter break, so she was going with him, and he'd probably end up putting the animals in a boarding facility, as he planned on asking Riley to go with him as his date.

Thinking about asking Riley to go away to Russia with him, made him wonder how she was settling in, he was looking forward to getting home that night after the game to find out.

Following the rotation, Spencer got the start in goal that night, and honestly, Denver didn't envy him, as the Rangers had come more than ready to play. It was probably one of the hardest fought games between the two teams, one that ended in a shootout.

Spencer put up a valiant effort, but in the end, he wasn't able to stop J.T. Miller or Tanner Glass in the shootout, whereas Lundqvist shutout two of the three shots he faced. The Slashers would fall two to one to New York. But at least they walked away from the three-game road trip with at least half of the points available.

They continued to keep pace with Tampa, who was, after this latest loss, still only two points ahead of them in the standings.

By the time he got home that night, Denver was completely beat, even if he hadn't been the one to play that night, the constant travel really wore on you. The game ended just after ten, and it was about a two-hour flight back to Savannah, so Denver walked in the door at around 1:00 am, maybe a little after.

Copper was in his usual spot on Denver's bed and growing like a weed, he was becoming more and more of a bed hog every day. Pushing the gangly puppy over a bit, Denver dropped his duffle bag on the floor and crashed into bed with vigor, falling asleep within minutes of his head hitting the pillow.

Copper grunted his annoyance at being moved, but after making a few circles, he curled up against Denver's back and fell asleep once more, happy to have his human home again.

Riley woke up at around six the next morning, fixing breakfast for Mia and seeing her off to school. All but forgetting that Denver was coming home right after the game, Riley went up to his room to see what was keeping Copper, as the small hound was usually waiting by his food bowl every morning when she woke up.

Finding the door shut was a bit of a surprise to her, and without even thinking about it, Riley opened the door to let the little dog out. Copper greeted her right away before darting between her legs and heading down the stairs, but instead of following him, Riley found herself walking towards the master bathroom where she could hear the shower running.

After almost tripping on the duffle bag in the middle of the floor where Denver had left it, Riley managed to make it to the bathroom door without incident. Finding the door half open, curiosity got the better of her, with a light knock, she pushed it the rest of the way open.

Denver slid the shower curtain aside and peeked around it, "oh, hey." He smiled upon seeing Riley standing in the doorway. "Something you needed?"

Riley felt like she was caught in some kind of trance, like she couldn't move one way or another as she stared at the naked top portion of Denver's dripping wet body.

It wasn't like she hadn't seen him naked before, but for some reason, the way the water dripped down his torso, sliding over his broad shoulders and down his chest made her mouth water. Or it could have been how his dark hair looked, all askew and spikey from having just been washed, that was making her hormones go all haywire.

She didn't know, couldn't be sure one way or the other, but she suddenly found herself closing the gap between the door and the shower.

Denver reached out to her when she got close enough, pushing some hair behind her ears, the wet heat of his hands making her shiver. "Hey," he said more gently, "you okay?"

Riley leaned forward, allowing her lips to caress his briefly, a bolt of electricity shooting through them and stunning them both. Without hesitation, Riley wound her arms around his wet body and pressed herself as close to him as she could, not even caring that her clothes were now soaking wet.

Denver pulled her into the shower and began the painstakingly slow and almost impossible task of peeling off her wet clothes. It was like a frenzy, and as their lips clashed, as their hands fought to free Riley of her caked-on armor, they grunted and groaned under the hot spray of the shower.

"Where's Mia?" Denver asked at one point, his voice breathless as he struggled to pull Riley's shirt off.

Riley was mad with need, one hand twisted deeply into his thick hair, and the other stroking him vigorously, "school." She panted in answer to his question as Denver finally managed to get her shirt off.

With no further barriers between them, Denver pried her hand loose and looped her arm around his neck before hefting her bottom upwards, and pressing her back against the shower wall, sliding into her tight heat with little to no resistance.

Riley gasped and arched her back, her nails digging into his slick, wet, skin as he started to thrust wildly into her. "God, I've missed you," he moaned, with his face buried in the crook of her neck as he pounded her over and over.

Riley groaned her agreement, unable to speak, totally lost in the sensations of her body that she couldn't possibly manage a coherent sentence just then. Her lips sought his, and her mouth told him a story of longing and passion beyond anything words could illustrate.

As their bodies merged, their souls intertwined, and their fates melded together in one cataclysmic orgasm that shook them both to the very core.

Sated and spent, Denver slid Riley down his body slowly, continuing to hold her close to him for fear it was all a dream and he might wake up at any minute. He had wondered in the weeks following their hookup in the boathouse, what, if anything, was going to become of them. And even after the heated kiss, they had shared at her parent's house, Denver was still skeptical.

He wanted Riley, hell, he wanted her in ways that no man had ever wanted a woman before, he was sure of it. He wanted her body and soul, every last piece of her heart. He was being selfish, he knew, but he didn't care. If he could have nothing else for the rest of his life, Denver could be content with just having her.

But he had no idea how to express such emotions without completely scaring the shit out of her. Was it love? Or was it simply an obsession? Denver figured they kind of went hand in hand, but could Riley possibly understand the depth of his feelings for her?

Riley, on the other hand, wasn't sure what to make of the things she felt. She had admitted to her friends, and to Denver's sister the other day, that she did, in fact, have feelings for Denver, so she didn't deny that they existed, she just didn't know how to put them into words.

She hoped her actions at this point spoke loudly enough, because if she spoke, she was afraid her words would betray her, and lessen the emotions that simmered deep inside her being. She needed more time to figure out how to put them in the right context, maybe how to rationalize them. Something.

She had no idea what had come over her just now, why she felt she had needed to touch him, to feel him inside of her, but as they gently bathed each other, lovingly washing the other, Riley felt whole and more alive than she ever had.

Riley scooped up her wet clothes and rang them out in the sink as Denver finished with his morning routine, the two of them stealing shy glances at each other in the process. It was a sweet moment and one that felt more right than either of them could have imagined.

With a quick kiss, they went their separate ways to get dressed for the day ahead, neither of them saying a word to each other until they sat down at the table together a short while later.

"You're off today?" Riley asked between bites of cereal, even though she already knew the answer to that question.

Denver looked up from the newspaper he was reading. "Uh-huh."

With a smirk, Riley shook her head, Denver chuckled and smiled at her warmly, which spread a slow delicious heat throughout her body. Sex was probably the furthest thing from her mind just then, but when he looked at her that way, her whole body melted, and she knew she'd knock everything off the table and go another round with him if he'd asked her to.

"Did Abby tell you about the party tonight?" He asked instead, his eyes still alight with mischief.

Riley's heart did little flip-flops, the butterflies in her stomach fluttering like lunatics. She nodded. "Yeah, she said Viktor and Sandra were throwing Peter and Harmony an impromptu engagement party." She answered, her voice a bit husky.

Riley needed to find a way to get her body to settle down, she felt like a damn love-struck teenager.

"Are you going?"

"I thought about it, are you?"

Denver smiled wider, "of course I am, Pete's one of my best friends."

The way his eyes crinkled at the corners, his whole face lit up in complete admiration for the man he was talking about, Riley's insides turned to mush, her heart reaching critical mass as it squeezed and clenched. God, she was sunk.

"Will you be my date?" He asked, forcing her to fight through the haze and snap back to reality.

She looked at him with a bit of confusion at first.

"Riley? You okay?" Denver prompted when she didn't answer him.

"What?" She stuttered, shaking her head to loosen up the last of the cobwebs. "Yeah, I'm fine, I was just..."

"Deep in thought?" He supplied for her with a chuckle.

"Something like that."

"So? Do you want to go with me tonight?"

A little more focused, Riley nodded, "sure, yeah, that sounds like fun."

"Okay, good," Denver replied, pushing away from the table and taking his dishes to the counter before opening the dishwasher and placing them inside. "I've got a lot of things I need to get done today, I'll meet you back here around seven and we can go together, how does that sound?"

Riley walked up behind him, placing her dishes in the machine as well, then turning and leaning against the counter, "how about I just meet you there? I have a drive by I have to do after work tonight." She answered.

"Yeah, okay." Denver leaned down and gave her a kiss, it was supposed to be quick, but after tasting the sweetness of her mouth again, he lingered a little longer than he had originally planned.

Riley didn't mind in the least though, her hands snagging in his shirt and holding him to her as they drank their fill of each other once more.

When their lips finally parted, Denver waited a beat, allowing their foreheads to rest against each other for a minute as they caught their breaths. He could get used to this, having Riley in his home, sneaking into his shower and sharing breakfast together.

Yeah, he could definitely get used to this.
Chapter 25

Sucker Punch

Peter and Harmony were set to get married on Christmas day, in Russia. The wedding was going to be at a little farm Peter's grandfather owned, and most of the team, as well as their families, were going to be in attendance.

But given the time constraints due to their busy schedule, the couple had decided to forego any kind of celebrations or dinners beforehand. Something that never sat well with Viktor, who was kind of a romantic at heart.

After everything Peter and Harmony had gone through together, everyone wanted to see them get their happily ever after, and being that Peter and Viktor were close friends, Viktor took it upon himself to set up the, what he was calling a belated engagement party, all on his own.

They had today off and the next day, as practice was voluntary. Then, they had a two week stretch before the holiday and subsequent wedding where they would all be busy as hell. Then the flight to Russia of course, the day before the wedding.

So tonight wasn't just the best night for this party, it was pretty much the only night.

Viktor and Sandra, having put the whole thing together themselves, had rented out Brockington Hall, a mansion in the historic district for the evening. They had spared no expense, wanting to make sure Peter and Harmony had a great night with all their friends, to celebrate their upcoming nuptials.

The venue was beyond beautiful, breathtaking even, like a small castle, and Harmony the princess waiting for her prince to sweep her off her feet. Which Peter did, over and over as they danced and laughed together, all eyes pretty much on them the whole night.

Young love.

It was a beautiful thing and had Riley tearing up from time to time. Looking around at the antebellum mansion, with its crown molding and crystal chandeliers, Riley could almost imagine what it would be like to get married herself, in a place just like this.

It was every woman's dream wedding venue, and for a minute, she allowed herself to picture herself walking down the staircase on her father's arm, draped in white silk with crystals on her bodice. Denver waiting for her at the bottom under a makeshift altar. Marrying him under the bright sunshine as all their friends and family looked on.

It wasn't until Denver came up behind her and laid a hand on her shoulder that the image faded away into the back of her mind. She wept inside a little as she remembered why that was never likely to happen. Her frown worrying her charming date, who looked absolutely stunning in his Gucci tux.

Yes, Denver cleaned up quite nice, and with another frown, Riley looked down at her own clothes, the tired sundress she was wearing, paled in comparison to how most of the women were dressed, guess she missed that memo.

"You okay?" Denver asked with concern.

Riley nodded, wiping at the moisture in her eyes, "I'm fine." She lied, pointing to where Peter and Harmony sat at a table by themselves on the other side of the room, all cozied up and laughing together. "They're just such a beautiful couple, ya know?"

Denver looked over at his friends, they were a beautiful couple. Peter with his blonde hair, not all unruly for once, and his big blue eyes, and Harmony with her dark mahogany locks and that dazzling smile. They were immensely happy together, and he couldn't have been happier for them.

But he was jealous as well. He'd found his person, but for some reason, he just couldn't fathom, had yet to convince her of that. With Riley so close, and yet so far away emotionally, his heart bled and ached. If only Riley knew just how much she meant to him.

What was stopping him though?

Denver held out a hand to her, "join me for a walk?"

With a nod and smile, Riley slipped her hand into his and let him help her to her feet. She could certainly use a little fresh air.

Denver took her outside, down the steps and under the large veranda where a few tables had been set up outside, candles flickering in the slight breeze. Winter was coming, the December air had a chill to it that it hadn't had a few days ago. Riley shivered.

Taking off his suit coat, Denver wrapped it around her shoulders and helped her into one the chairs, pulling out a second one for himself. It was all quite romantic, and Riley's imagination started to run away with itself again, imagining Denver down on one knee in front of her, asking for her hand in marriage.

The atmosphere was certainly perfect for such a moment.

But alas, neither of them had even spoken words of love, but merely affection for each other instead. And even if Denver was of a mind to marry her, Riley couldn't possibly bring herself to do it knowing he could be traded tomorrow.

It always came back to that, didn't it?

Denver could tell her all day long that he was safe, that there was nothing they could do to him, but Riley wasn't stupid enough, or naïve enough to believe it. Jaded she was not. There simply wasn't a future for them, at least, not one that she could see. And knowing that, Riley began to question the intelligence of her decision to move in with him.

As much as she had wanted to believe her intentions were pure, and she was doing it solely for Mia and to save money, she knew deep down that she had done it for Denver too. She wanted to be close to him in the same way he did with her. But was it really worth it? Riley was falling in love with him, if not already there, what was going to happen to them when the inevitable trade was made?

Just how bad of a heartache was she in for?

"I want to talk to you about something." Denver chimed in, pulling her from her morbid thoughts.

"Okay."

"There's been a lot of back and forth between my agent and the Slashers organization," he began, pausing and looking at her, as he contemplated his next words.

"And?"

"And we're really close to coming to an agreement."

"That's great Denver!" She smiled in earnest, her heart picking up the pace as it read further into his words than she intended it to.

Denver placed a hand over Riley's and when she didn't attempt to move it, but rather, intertwined her fingers with his, he smiled and continued, "yeah? I was hoping you'd think so. We're still trying to come to terms with the length of the contract, and whether or not my rights will be restricted at the end of the term, but the amount is pretty much ironclad, and there's going to be a no-movement clause.

"I'm sorry, a what?" Riley interrupted.

"A no movement clause, it means they can't trade me."

"You mean like, at all?"

"Right. Not unless I waive that right. Which I wouldn't."

Riley thought back to a conversation she'd had with Abby a while back, "wait, didn't France have one of those no movement thingies too?"

"Yes, he did. But that was different."

"How?"

Denver sighed, trying to figure out how best to explain it. "France was going to be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, and he'd already been told they weren't going to resign him. It was just a formality for him, he could agree to go then, and allow his team to get something for him, or he could have waited until after the season and walked. He chose to help his team."

"And what, you wouldn't choose to help your team?"

"It's a little more complicated than that. I'm fighting to be a restricted free agent, which means they would retain my rights like they will at the end of this season if we don't agree to terms beforehand. It would put a little more pressure on them to resign me. I've already told them that I want to retire a Slasher, which is why I'm firm on that no movement clause. Even if it means filling a backup role, I want to go out a Savannah Slasher."

"Wow."

"Which brings me to my next point," he said slowly, giving her time to catch up.

"And that is?"

"I don't know where you stand, and I'm willing to wait until you're ready, but I want some kind of future with you Riley. I love you."

Riley gulped, her mouth going slack, her eyes glazing over. "Say that again?" She all but whispered, closing her eyes and taking a few steadying breaths.

"I said I love you." Denver reiterated nervously. "Look, I don't expect you to say it back, not now, not ever if you don't feel the same way, but I couldn't keep holding it in. You deserve to know how I feel about you, but I don't want you to feel like I'm trying to pressure you into anything. I meant it when I said I could be happy just being near you."

As the words continued to spill out of his mouth, Riley's heart thumped loudly, drowning out all other sounds as it pounded in her ears. Denver loved her. Denver really loved her. She knew that of course, it was pretty obvious actually, but hearing him voice the words, somehow made it, real.

"We should probably get back inside," Denver said a few minutes later when Riley still hadn't spoken.

Riley held up a hand, her eyes still closed as she attempted to get ahold of herself. "You go ahead, I need a minute."

"Okay." He replied, bending down and kissing her lightly on the top of her head before walking out from under the overhang, looking back at her one more time and smiling, though she didn't see it.

Riley bowed her head in her hands and wept. She wept in pain, and she wept in joy. Though neither emotion could be explained. Was she upset because she still didn't believe they could be together? Hadn't he just told her he was going to do everything in his power to retire with the Slashers? And were they happy tears because she loved him too? Because she wanted the same things?

The only thing Riley knew for sure, outside of the fact that Denver did indeed love her, was that she didn't know anything at all. She had no idea how she was really feeling, or what she wanted to do about it. She did know that she couldn't hide outside under the veranda all night though.

Riley gave herself a few more minutes to get her shit together, then she headed inside and to the bathroom where she fixed her makeup and hair after checking Denver's coat at the entrance. She didn't want anyone to know she'd been crying. Tonight was about Peter and Harmony, a couple she had become very fond of in the past few weeks, and she didn't want to do anything that might ruin this night for them.

As she left the bathroom, having been gone for almost a half hour at that point, she took a minute to look around the ballroom for her date. Denver wasn't at the table they were sharing with Dean and Abby, who were both on the dance floor, being goofy as only they knew how to be. Nor was he over in the buffet line getting something to eat.

When she didn't find him at the bar either, Riley began to get a little worried that he might have left, but then she spotted him. He was sitting at a table, his back to her as he talked in a rather animated manner to a beautiful blonde with wavy hair and a big smile on her face while she laughed at whatever story Denver was telling.

As rationalization finally dawned on her, Riley realized who this mystery woman was, and jealousy shot through her. Whitney. Denver was talking to Whitney. Riley hadn't even known that Whitney was here, but then again, why wouldn't she be? Being Dean's sister, she was involved in most things Slashers, then again, she could have come tonight as someone's date as well.

There was another gentleman at the table with them, he looked like a polished lumberjack, but he excused himself a few seconds later and left Whitney alone with Denver. Jealous? Is that what she thought she was? More like livid!

Not that she could figure out why of course. Maybe it was because Whitney really was that beautiful, or maybe it was the way she laughed at Denver's story, how she smiled genuinely and touched him. Oh God, why was she touching him? Whitney playfully touched his shoulder, then his forearm, before finally laying a hand on top of his and rubbing it gently.

And in all that time, Denver seemed oblivious! What was worse, it looked like he was enjoying the attention!

Breathing heavily, her nerves strung tight and starting to ache, Riley had to get away from there and fast. But just as she went to move away, Denver and Whitney stood, the leggy blonde leaning in for a hug. A very intimate hug and a, oh God, a kiss, they were kissing!

Riley bolted for the bathroom again, sure she was going to throw up! With his back still to her, she hadn't had a very good view, and she couldn't see his face at all, but she knew a kiss when she saw one! And Denver had without question, kissed his ex just now, the only other woman he'd ever admitted to loving.

And after telling Riley that he loved her! What a crock! Yeah right, he loved her alright. He loved her so much so that he'd forgotten he'd told her he loved her the minute his ex-girlfriend gave him the come-hither look!

What a fool she'd been!

Satisfied that she wasn't going to puke, after all, Riley left the bathroom intent on making her escape, only to run into Denver on the way to their table to get her purse.

"Hey! There you are, I was just coming to find you." He told her, smiling at her all charming like as if he hadn't just made out with his ex right in front of her.

"Here I am," Riley agreed, her annoyance and anger just barely in check. "I was actually getting ready to head home, I'm kind of tired." She lied, hoping he would believe her and let her go.

"What? Go? You can't go. We haven't even danced yet!"

Denver grabbed her hands and led her to the dance floor where Abby and Dean were still at it, waving to them as they waltzed by.

Riley tried to pull her hands free of his grasp, "Denver, I'm really tired, it's been a long day."

"Is this about what I said earlier? I told you I didn't expect anything to change between us."

"No, it's not that, I'm just tired. Honest."

Denver wasn't really buying it, he could tell she was a bit off, but he wasn't going to fight her. "Alright, yeah, okay. You can go home, but, can we at least dance first? Please?"

With a sigh, Riley nodded, she really didn't want to cause a scene.

Plastering on a fake smile to hide how she really felt, Riley allowed him to lead her out onto the floor and pick up the dance that was in progress.

Riley was between anger and despair, but she waited until a few minutes into the dance to say anything to Denver, who was all but oblivious to her change in mood. She still didn't want to do anything that might draw attention to them and ruin the party for anyone, but at the same time, she just couldn't keep holding it all in, not if he was going to insist on keeping her so close.

"Did you have a nice little chat with Whitney?" She asked, her voice dripping sarcasm.

Denver was taken aback by the sudden question, and even more so by her tone of voice. "Do I detect a hint of jealousy?" He teased.

"Not at all," Riley smiled sweetly, though her voice was laced with ire.

"What's gotten into you?"

"It must be lonely being famous." Riley spat, changing tracts.

Denver was becoming less amused, "How's that?" he asked, mildly annoyed now.

"Oh, I dunno, having thousands of women who would sell their souls to sleep with you, for no other reason than because you have a pretty face. That's gotta get old, right?"

"Right," he laughed angrily. "Because I've slept with so many of them!"

"Oh, come off it! I saw you with her, Denver. I saw you kissing her! Don't lie to me."

"You saw me kissing her? Is that what you saw? Or did you maybe see what you wanted to see?"

Riley mocked him with her own laughter, "you think I wanted to see the two of you kissing?"

"No Riley," He answered, shaking his head. "I think you were looking for an excuse, I think you're scared, you were looking for a way out. You may have seen me hugging her, but no way in hell Riley, would I EVER kiss a married woman. Let alone, disrespect someone I love."

Riley was about to yell back at him when she caught herself. "A what?"

"That's right, she's married! I was telling her all about you just now, and then she introduced me to her husband, a very charming man I might add. And as she was getting ready to leave, she gave me a hug, and then whispered in my ear that I would be a fool to let you go."

Riley stood there dumbfounded, staring at him.

"Maybe she's wrong though, maybe I'd be a fool to love you."

"You don't mean that," she cried.

"Since you obviously don't trust me Riley, how can you ever love me?" He growled before stalking away, heading towards the men's room.

Riley returned to her table, not quite sure what to make of things. His words stung, but she had to remember they were just that, words. And he probably hadn't meant them. Right? No, he couldn't have.

What he'd said, he said out of anger, she had clearly struck a nerve and he was just retaliating. You fight fire, with fire. Isn't that how it went?

She had to wonder now though if he was right. Was she just looking for an excuse? Did she see what she wanted to see rather than what was actually there? Picturing it all in her mind again, watching it over like some home movie in slow motion, she realized she'd been wrong to accuse him.

Yes, it was true that she'd seen the two of them laughing, and yes, Whitney had put her hand on Denver and yeah, okay, they had hugged. But did she ever actually see their lips meet? No. She assumed they had kissed because of the weird angle at which she had been watching. But it could have just as easily been as Denver had said it was, she was whispering in his ear.

God, she was such an idiot. She had to find Denver and make things right.

"What was that all about?" Dean asked, coming back to the table with Abby and taking his seat just as she had decided to hunt down her date and make it up to him.

"Huh?"

"He means, what just happened out on the dance floor with you and Denver? He seemed kind of mad about something." Abby clarified.

"Oh, um, nothing," she said, deflecting. "Hey Dean, when did your sister get married?"

"Um, I think it was sometime in January," he smiled, looking over at Abby, "yeah, I think she and Mel eloped right after Tyler was born. Why? What's that got to do with anything? I know you two weren't just arguing about my sister."

"Actually," Riley admitted, "we kind of were."

"Why?"

Abby's eyes widened, she reached over and put a hand on top of Riley's, "hey hun, I need to go to the bathroom, will you come with me?"

Dean held up a hand to stop them, "no, sit down, I want to know what's going on here. Now." He demanded.

Abby closed her eyes and bit her lip, and in that moment, Riley felt like something was off.

"What does my sister have to do with this Riley? Tell me now, or I'll go track her down and ask her myself."

"Nothing, Dean, it's nothing, honest. I just, stupid me," she said, gesturing with her hands. "For some reason, I thought I saw them kissing earlier, and you know, I thought given their history..."

"What history?" He cut in, his voice cracking.

And then it hit her. He didn't know.

Abby buried her face in her hands, shaking her head, and making Riley want to disappear herself. A part of her felt like she should be angry at Denver for lying to her, but he'd probably told her Dean knew to avoid a situation just like this one. If Riley thought Dean had known she might have been less inclined to bring it up, but really, if he had told her Dean didn't know, she would've known to keep her mouth shut.

Just like he was doing about Joey.

Which was exactly why she wasn't mad at him. Everyone had their secrets, including her. She really couldn't fault him for it. Too bad the cat was out of the bag now. And knowing Dean's persistence, he was bound to get all the details one way or another, even if they didn't come from her. At least, maybe, if she was the one to tell him, she could be a little more tactful about it.

Seeing Abby's reaction, she wondered just how much her good friend knew about the situation, and how she'd been comfortable keeping the knowledge from Dean all this time.

"Spill it, Riley." He said between his teeth.

Riley took a deep breath, exhaling loudly. "He told me they'd 'dated,' that's all." She said with little finger quotes.

Dean, laughed, it was harsh and stiff, but it was laughter all the same, and it made Riley nervous as hell. "They dated? What are you trying to say, Riley? That Denver slept with my sister?"

Biting her lip, she nodded, then closed her eyes as Abby dropped her head to the table.

Dean looked over at his wife. "You knew about this?" he accused.

"Honey," Abby huffed.

"No, no, don't honey me, you knew about this, and you didn't tell me?"

"I knew how you'd react!" she sputtered. "Look at you! You're getting worked up for nothing!"

"Nothing?" Dean was fuming, he held up a hand to cut Abby off from speaking again and turned back to Riley. "How long? How long did this go on for Riley?"

She shrugged, "a few months."

"I should have known. I should have fucking known something was going on between those two, Denver always had this weird look on his face whenever I talked about Whitney, and she was always asking about him. I should have fucking known."

God, he was angry. Riley felt sorry for Abby, knowing she was going to have to deal with the backlash from this once they left the party.

It was then that Denver emerged from the bathroom, Riley caught sight of him as he headed in their direction, a sullen expression on his face. And before she could do anything, Dean noticed the way her eyes widened, turning in his seat and seeing Denver's approach.

"Excuse me." He grunted, pushing away from the table and getting to his feet.

Abby and Riley exchanged glances and hurriedly followed suit, but they were too late. Dean was faster, eating up the distance between himself and Denver in a matter of seconds.

"Hey man," Denver managed, just before Dean pulled back and let him have it.

Without a word, Dean wound himself up, and all but threw his fist at Denver's face, hitting him square in the right eye and knocking him off his feet. Poor Denver hadn't seen it coming and never stood a chance.

The music stopped, and everyone turned to look. Abby got in the middle, putting her hands on Dean's chest and doing her best to hold him back. Riley reached them at just about the same time, sliding onto the ground and lifting Denver's head into her lap.

"What the fuck, man?" Denver managed, placing his hand over his eye and bringing it away to check for blood.

"You fucking slept with my sister!" Dean roared.

"Shit," Denver said under his breath, turning his head so that he could see Riley better. "You told him?"

"I didn't know I wasn't supposed to!" she cried, taking an ice pack from Harmony as she walked over to them and handed it to her, and placing it over his eye.

"Dean, Dean!" Abby yelled, trying to get his attention, still pushing at him with her hands.

"No, no Abby. I need to know why he did it. I need to fucking know why he went and stabbed me in the back." He moved around Abby, who quickly scooted in front of him again, to get a better look at Denver, who still on the floor, was at least making an attempt with Riley's help, to sit upright. "Why Denver? Tell me, I want to know. Why did you do it?"

"I don't, I don't know man, it just kind of happened."

"Oh," he laughed menacingly. "It just happened huh? Don't give me that shit Denver, we both know I'm not stupid enough to fall for that lame ass excuse!"

"Look, Dean," he pleaded, holding his hands up in surrender. "I didn't mean for anything to happen between Whitney and I, honest. And I felt horrible, but I didn't do anything wrong."

"You didn't do anything wrong? You went behind my back and slept with my sister!"

"I loved her!" Denver yelled, shocking everyone in the room, including Dean.

After an intense stare, that only lasted a couple of seconds, even though it felt like an eternity, Dean turned and walked away, Abby following quickly in his wake, turning around every few steps to give Denver a sympathetic look.

Holding the ice pack to his face, Denver shook his head and laughed softly to himself, air puffing through his nose. "Help me up, will you?" He asked Riley, who quickly got in front of him and grasped both hands, pulling him to his feet. "I'm sorry." He said, stumbling a little has he took his first couple of steps.

Raising a hand in the air, he looked around the room, "I'm sorry everyone, please, turn the music back on, go back to what you were doing."

Viktor came up to him, placing a hand on his shoulder and helping to steady him as Riley pulled Denver's other arm around her neck. "Are you okay Denver? Do you need for me to call an ambulance?" He asked with concern.

Denver shook his head, "no, I'm okay Viktor. I'm fine. Really. Get back to your party, I'm very sorry this happened. Tell Sandra I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ruin your party."

"You did not ruin it Denver, and if you are hurt, you should see a doctor."

"I'm fine, really. I'll just go home and put some more ice on it, I'll be fine, man."

Riley peeked around him, "I'll make sure he gets home safe Viktor, don't worry."

Viktor nodded, "I can have Sandra drive your car home."

"Thanks."
Chapter 26

Nurse Riley

Denver waited until they were outside and near his truck, then he pulled his arm out from around her shoulders, "thanks, Riley, I think I can make it from here." He said, digging for his keys.

Riley snatched them out of his hands and opened the passenger side door. "Get in."

"Riley, this isn't necessary. I can drive."

"I don't care." She spat, growing frustrated by his stubbornness. "Get in the truck, Denver."

Begrudgingly he did so, climbing into the passenger side and flinching when she slammed the door shut.

"Can you even drive this thing?" he teased as she got behind the wheel.

"It's not a Mack truck," she retorted. "It's a fucking dodge, of course, I can drive it. Just close your eyes and rest."

Denver grumbled, but as the pounding in his head grew stronger, he did as he was told, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. It wasn't long before they were pulling up into his driveway.

Riley helped him out of the truck, though, with the little bit of rest he'd gotten on the short drive home, he was able to get inside the house without her intervention.

"Where's Mia?" Riley asked on her way into the kitchen once she saw him safely to the couch in the great room.

"She's at a friend's house."

Riley smiled to herself as she searched the freezer for something she could use as an ice pack, Denver really was a softie, Mia was supposed to be grounded after the little stunt she'd pulled with her report card. "Here," she said a few minutes later, handing him a bag of frozen corn. "Put this on your eye."

"Frozen corn? Really?"

"You don't have an ice pack, and this is a lot softer than putting some ice in a bag."

"Oh, right." Denver agreed, placing the bag of corn over his eye and grimacing in pain.

Riley sat down on the edge of the coffee table in front of him, grabbing his wrist and gently pulling his hand away from his face, "let me see for a second." She coaxed, getting a look at it. "Ouch. That's going to leave a mark."

"That bad?"

"Well, it's not good. Definitely going to be a shiner for sure. I didn't know Dean was so strong."

Denver laughed, allowing Riley to hold the makeshift ice pack over his face for him. "It was a fucking sucker punch."

"Probably." She agreed.

"No probably about it. If I had known it was coming, I would have been able to stop his ass."

"You really think so?"

"I know so." Denver gloated, the hand that had once held the ice pack slowly sliding up Riley's thigh. "Dean and I have sparred before, I could totally whoop his ass and he knows it. That's why he fucking sucker punched me."

Riley smiled, but as she felt his hand sneaking higher, she frowned, covering his hand with her free one and pulling it off her leg. "Denver," she quietly scolded.

"I'm sorry." He said softly.

"It's okay, I just don't think now is the right time for you to be trying to seduce me."

"No, I mean, I'm sorry for blowing up at you, and for what I said. I didn't mean it, and I'm sorry."

Riley shook off his apology. "No, I'm the one that should be sorry, I shouldn't have accused you like that. I should have just asked. I'm such an idiot."

Denver smiled warmly at her, squeezing the hand that still held his, "I guess we're both a couple of sorry asses, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess so." She laughed, looking away from him for a minute as she blushed. "We should probably get you up to bed, no?"

"Only if you'll stay with me. I promise I'll keep my hands to myself."

With Mia at a friend's house, and the puppy at the vet's office recuperating after getting neutered, they had the place to themselves. Since moving in with him, aside from the impromptu shower, she'd snuck in this morning, Riley and Denver hadn't really spent any time together.

How they would manage to keep their hands off each other she wasn't really sure, they'd probably make it work though because they'd both be too busy with work and looking after Mia, but now that they were alone together...

Riley pursed her lips and considered his proposal. "Okay," she sighed dramatically. "But only if you promise NOT to keep your hands to yourself."

"Deal," Denver laughed, pulling her on top of him.

Denver showed up at practice two days later with his right eye still partially swollen shut. After having the medical staff examine him, Lacy laughing at him as she did so, Coach Turski questioned him about what happened.

Denver lied of course.

It really surprised him that no one had told the coach about the incident, but if nobody else had, he wasn't going to either. Normally, the party was one that Coach Turski would have attended, but as it was sort of last minute, he'd already had plans and was out of state meeting his son's new significant other.

Another time when Denver was quite glad he was a convincing liar, because Coach Turski bought the farce of him being in a bar room fight, hook, line, and sinker. And it was worth it in all honesty to lie, it was bad enough that Denver got his own ass chewed out, he couldn't imagine how hard Coach Turski would have come down on Dean had he'd known it was the captain of the team that had cost him his goalie tonight.

"I don't want you out there on the ice at all today," Coach told him in parting. "You just take your ass home and rest. We'll see you for the Tampa game on Saturday."

"Yes, Coach." He agreed, packing his stuff back into his gym bag and straightening his stall. Looked like Spencer was going to pick up a few games, including the home and away against Florida. Well, at least it gave him plenty of time for his eye to heal.

"Hey, man," Dean said, coming up and sitting at the empty stall beside him. "You got a minute?"

"Sure, yeah, what's up?"

"I'm sorry about the other night."

Denver waved him off, "nah, forget about it."

"No, seriously, let me just get this all out." Dean started, taking a deep breath. "I talked to Whitney as soon as I left the party, and she told me everything. About how she basically seduced you the first time, and then manipulated you a few times after that."

"She didn't exactly..."

"Just, just let me finish." Dean cut in. "Whitney said you turned her down several times before she finally convinced you, and after that, she said she told you the damage was already done, so what was the harm? I get it. And she also said you tried to be noble, and that you wanted a real relationship, but she didn't."

"Yeah, that's about the gist of it. Seems I just couldn't make an honest woman out of her."

"Ha," Dean laughed. "I'm still not sure how Mel did it."

"I hear you there." Denver agreed. "But they look good together, she looks, happy."

"She is. I'll have to tell you about it sometime, the story about how they met is actually pretty funny."

"I bet. Listen, Dean. I'm really sorry about all of this. I should have told you. Hell, I should have just stayed away from her altogether."

"You're right, but you're also wrong."

"Come again?"

"If I had to guess, you're not the only one on this team that has been tempted by my sister, and for all I know, you're not even the only one she's slept with. But you should have told me. I might have understood."

"I'm sorry."

"Me too," Dean replied, lifting a hand and touching Denver's black eye. "Shit, that looks like it hurts."

"A little bit. By the way, I told Coach I got it in a bar fight."

"Thanks." He snorted, looking down, "I still can't believe I did that. I'm even more surprised you didn't get right back up and beat the piss out of me, we both know you could have."

They laughed then, completely killing whatever tension had remained. After a few more minutes of joking around and posturing, Dean admitting he'd gone for the sucker punch knowing he wouldn't have stood a chance in a fair fight, and Denver telling him that it had all been worth it in the end as Riley had turned out to be a good, if not a little bit naughty, nurse.

"Well, I did good then!" Dean exclaimed, getting up and laying a hand on Denver's shoulder. "For what it's worth though, I really am sorry. I'll try not jump to conclusions next time."

"Won't be a next time," Denver assured him.

"Alright, well, I guess I'll see you out there?"

"Nah, Lacy said my depth perception is a bit off, Spencer starts tonight, Coach told me to take my ass to bed."

"Oh. Shit. I'm sorry man."

"Forget about it, Dean. I'll see you Saturday."

With a nod and a wave, Dean headed out of the nearly empty locker room, and Denver got up to leave as well, a couple of the other guys snickering at him as they passed. Denver just shook his head.

Yeah, Dean was damn lucky he hadn't been in a fighting mood.
Chapter 27

I'm Not Perfect

Mia ended up spending the entire weekend at her friend's house, even though she was still technically supposed to be grounded for forging Denver's signature on her report card envelope, afraid that he'd get mad about her recent D in math, oh the irony. Riley spent the remainder of Friday night and all of Saturday in bed with Denver.

Between sessions of makeup sex, Riley and Denver came to terms with the current state of their relationship.

While Riley still hadn't said the exact words, she expressed her feelings to Denver, and he accepted her answer for what it was, he wasn't going to force anything, and Riley was truly grateful for that. They decided that Riley would still use the guest suite downstairs, especially when Denver was out of town, but they weren't going to avoid intimacy in any way.

It wasn't a full-blown relationship by any means, and they had no intention of flaunting it in front of Mia, lest she got some crazy notion in her head, but rather, they were going to try and date, just in a low-key fashion.

If and when they were intimate, there would be no spending the night in each other's rooms, not unless Mia was out, like she was now.

It was an arrangement that worked for both of them. For now. Riley knew that at some point Denver WAS going to want more, and she only hoped that when that time came, she could either give him what he wanted, or find a way to let him down easy.

Around 10:00 that morning, a few hours after Denver had left her in his bed to head to practice, Riley finally woke up. She didn't know how Denver was going to function today after their frantic lovemaking late into the night and first thing this morning before he'd gone to the rink, but she supposed he'd manage.

Then again, his eye still looked pretty bad, he probably wouldn't play at all.

Stretching, Riley looked over to his side of the bed and smiled, remembering how it had felt to fall asleep in his arms, and wake up to his kisses as he rained them down on her. Denver was such a passionate man. Such a wonderful and loving man.

And extremely understanding.

She had once thought she was incapable of love when she and Denver had first crossed paths again, she felt for sure that she would never have been able to give him what he wanted. Her heart. She just didn't think love was in the cards for her. But the more time she spent around Denver, the more she got to know him, the more those reservations crumbled.

How could a woman not love Denver? How was Whitney able to just walk away from him when he wanted to give her everything she'd ever dreamed of? Maybe it was like Denver had said, Whitney just wasn't the right one for him, or rather, he wasn't the right one for her.

After hearing a little bit about Whitney's new husband -she made a mental note to ask Dean for the full story since it all sounded crazy, and quite romantic- Riley realized that Denver was probably right in that regard. It took a special kind of man to tame Whitney's free spirit without breaking it in the process.

Denver wasn't the one. But maybe, just maybe he was the one for Riley.

As she slipped into one of Denver's shirts and went into the bathroom to brush her teeth, having found an unopened toothbrush in one of his drawers instead of going downstairs to use her own bathroom, Riley let herself think about a future with Denver.

She could see it all easily now. Especially after they'd had a nice long conversation about his future with the team. Denver was adamant that he'd retire in a Slashers uniform, and the more they talked about it, the more comfortable Riley became, the more she wanted to trust him.

She could imagine waiting until Mia went off to college, and then maybe getting married, and turning Mia's bedroom into a nursery, having children, at least two of them, and spending all their free time together as a family. She could see going to games with the kids to watch Denver play. Hanging out with Abby and Dean, and their children.

As well as other couples from the team. They'd just be one big happy family.

Riley really could have it all. She already had a job she loved, even if it did break her heart sometimes. And now she lived in the house of her dreams, there wasn't one detail of Denver's home that she would have changed.

All she needed was the perfect husband. All she needed was Denver.

Riley was smiling from ear to ear and completely lost in the fantasy world she had created when she walked into Denver's workout room slash office and turned on the desktop screen, wanting to check her emails.

When the machine buzzed to life, she realized Denver must not have shut it down the last time he'd used it, as it was still logged into his own email. There was a message open, it looked like it was from his agent, and though she hadn't meant to snoop, Riley found herself reading it anyway.

When the contents of the email finally registered in her head, all the wonderful images and imaginings dissipated in a puff of smoke. It was like her entire life had changed in the blink of an eye. She was having a hard time comprehending what she had just read when Denver walked into the room, having noticed the door was open on the way to the master suite.

"Hey," he said cheerfully. "You're awake after all, I tried calling you a couple of...." Denver trailed off as Riley turned in the chair, her face distorted in a mixture of shock and rage.

"What the hell is this?" She demanded, pointing to the computer screen.

"Excuse me?"

"Don't play games with me Denver, this email? What the hell is going on?"

Denver stepped around her to look at the screen, sighing when he realized what she was looking at, then quickly becoming angry himself. "Why are you looking at my emails?" He retorted.

"I wasn't."

"Sure looks like you were to me."

Riley snorted, "don't try to turn this around on me Denver, there's no deflecting this one. I turned on the computer, and this is what came up, I wasn't snooping, you clearly just forgot to log out."

"Clearly," Denver admitted, his tone a little more casual.

"Do you want to explain this to me? Or were you not planning on telling me that you were going to take a job in Detroit?"

"There's nothing to explain Riley, it's just an offer."

"Just an offer huh? Why do I find that difficult to believe?"

Denver crossed his arms and laughed angrily, "you just can't help yourself, can you Riley?"

It was her turn to be confused. "Say what?"

Denver leaned in and grabbed the mouse, scrolling down the page until his reply came into view on the screen. "See there? I turned it down. It was just an offer Riley, my agent is just thinking about how much money he can get out of me, Detroit is willing to pay a whole lot to get me there this summer, all Jeff sees are dollar signs. I told him no."

Still skeptical, Riley read his reply. Sure enough, Denver had been firm in his answer, letting his agent, Jeff, know that he wasn't interested in looking at any other team and that they needed to focus on the contract negotiations with the Slashers.

Riley felt like a complete and utter fool for thinking Denver could play her like this.

They'd had several conversations about Denver's impending contract, he'd already told her that if it came down to it, he would agree to a shorter contract if it meant he couldn't be traded and that if at the end of the new contract, they weren't willing to keep him, he'd just retire.

Denver had said that the Slashers wanted a four-year contract and were willing to pay him an extra million a season to get it. They didn't argue about the no-movement clause if he kept it to four years, but anything beyond that and they wanted him to consider the modified trade clause.

It was a tough decision, Denver felt like he had at least another good six years left in him, but he understood the Slashers position, and there really was no guarantee that they wouldn't resign him at the end of the four years, it would probably just be in a different role, or for a lot less money.

Riley had understood his frustration and led him to believe that she would support him in either case. And yet, here she was, backing away from him at the first sign of trouble. Imagined trouble at that.

"Why are you doing this Riley?" Denver asked, killing the remaining tension between them, all but sucking the wind right out of her sails with his doleful tone, and defeated facial expressions.

"I'm sorry," she cried, standing up. "I shouldn't keep jumping to conclusions."

"No kidding," he huffed, gaining steam. "But you do, and you're going to keep doing it."

"Now that's not fair!"

"You're right, it's not fair. It's not fair to me, and it's not fair to you. It's not fair to either of us, Riley."

Riley took a step towards him, stopping when Denver flinched. "Denver," she pleaded. "What are you saying?"

"I don't know. I'm not sure. I just.." He took a deep breath, closing his eyes, his heart aching. "I just don't know if this is going to work. I can't keep walking on eggshells around you, wondering when the next fight is going to be."

"Denver, all couples fight."

"Yeah, I get that. But I don't think all couples fight about being a couple. You either want to be with me, or you don't. You either trust me when I say I'm not going anywhere, or you don't. It's pretty freaking simple, but you make it so damn complicated! You're hot and cold, you're in one minute and the next minute you're heading for the hills. I can't live that way. I can't do this."

Denver turned and walked out of the room, his hands rising and falling in defeat.

Riley's heart almost broke watching him go.

What had she done?

Without a second thought, Riley rushed forward, reaching out and grabbing Denver's wrist just before he hit the stairs.

"Denver wait!" She wailed.

He whirled on her, tears and all, "I'm done waiting, Riley. I'm sorry. I know I said I would be patient, but that was only if I actually thought you were trying. All I see is you looking for an escape." He pointed down the stairs, his voice breaking with each word. "There's the door Riley, if you want out, just go!"

"That's not what I want!" She shouted, not letting go of his wrist, her fingers digging into him.

"Then what do you want! Do you even know?"

Falling to her knees, tears running down her cheeks, Riley laid her head against the hand she still held captive. "I want you, Denver, I just want you," she declared, her voice a harsh whisper.

Denver kneeled down with her, taking her in his arms. He did his best to soothe her and comfort her as she cried in earnest, as the sobs tore through her body.

"I just want you, Denver, that's all I've ever wanted, but I'm scared. I don't know how not to be. I'm sorry, I know that's not enough, I want to be better. I'm trying to be better. I'm sorry."

"Shh... shhh...," he whispered, trying to console her. Denver had wanted her to tell him how she really felt, but he hadn't meant to hurt her in the process.

Once Riley allowed the floodgates to open though, she couldn't seem to stop. "I never thought I was capable of loving someone, but you proved me wrong Denver, I love you, and I regret that I didn't tell you before now. I, God, I saw that email, and my heart just shattered. I didn't want to believe you were capable of being cruel, and I can't believe I ever thought you could have been."

Denver picked her up and carried her in his arms to the bedroom, wanting to move them out of the hallway in case Mia came home early. The last thing he wanted to do was embarrass Riley further. Holding her close as she continued to cry, Denver lowered himself onto the bed, with Riley in his lap.

"Shhh, baby.." He soothed, "It's okay, Riley. It's okay."

"No, no it's not. You're just being nice again, you're always nice. I don't deserve you, Denver."

Denver held her away from him then, looking deeply into her tear soaked eyes, and chuckling, "You really think you don't deserve me? I'm not perfect Riley, don't you dare try to put me up on some pedestal. I won't let you."

"But you are perfect, don't you see that?"

"I make mistakes just like the next guy, and I'll keep making mistakes. I'm not perfect, Riley, and I won't claim to be."

Riley wiped at her eyes, "no, you're wrong, you're completely wrong. You are perfect Denver, you're perfect for me."

With a half-smile, Denver cupped a finger under her chin and lifted her face, leaning in and kissing her. It started off slow. It was sweet and mild. But as passion began to consume them both, the kiss spun desperately out of control.

If one thing for sure, could be said of their fights, it was that they made up with just as much passion as they fought.

Riley broke free of the kiss, tucking her hands under his shirt and pulling it off over his head. With laughter and tears, she kissed his neck, and then his cheek, before finally finding his lips again and pulling him down on top of her.

"I love you, Denver," she whispered against his mouth.

Sliding his hands up her waist and beneath his dress shirt that she'd donned, Denver groaned when he realized she was naked but for that shirt. "Oh, God, Riley, you drive me crazy." He growled, then using one finger, he gently wiped away the last of her tears. "Tell me you want me, tell me you want this."

"I want you," she moaned as his hand slipped under the shirt once more. "I want this, I want all of this, forever."

"Marry me, Riley," he murmured as his mouth sought an aching nipple. "Tell me you'll marry me."

Riley arched her back when the heat of his lips enveloped her taut nipple, his tongue encircling it and pulling it deeper into the warmth. "Oh, Denver." She gasped.

"Say it, Riley, I'm not going to let you go any further until you say it."

Denver went lower, kissing her navel, dipping his tongue into it.

Riley began to writhe beneath him, she was losing control of herself, thoughts slipping away as Denver's mouth and hand continued to ravage her body. She loved this man, and yes, she did want to marry him. God, did she want to marry him.

"Yes," she blurted, gasping for air.

"Say it," he demanded again, bringing her perilously close to the edge as he eased a finger into her, and tortured the throbbing nub of her desire. "Say it. I want to hear you say it."

Just as she felt the heat start to spread throughout her body, while Denver manipulated her womanhood with his hands and his glorious mouth, Riley broke. She felt that last thread of constraint snap, she began to freefall, her entire being spiraling out of control, without the will or strength to stop it, she moaned loudly.

"Yes," she screamed. "Yes, I'll do it. I'll marry...."

Denver plunged his tongue into her, sucking and twirling his tongue like a tornado, cutting off the very admission he desperately longed to hear and driving Riley into delirium. She came hard, and fast, and Denver drove himself into her tight sheath just as the sensation started to ebb, forcing her body into another crescendo.

Yes, Denver and Riley made up with the same amount of passion as they fought, if not more so.

It was hours later before they would come back down to earth, hours of erotic, soul shattering, mind numbing sex before they would finally catch their breath.

Lying in his arms, listening to the steady rhythm of his heart, Riley sighed in contentment.

Denver pulled her closer, kissing the top of her head as he did so, and sending those little butterflies into an erratic frenzy once more.

"I meant what I said," Riley proclaimed, breaking the silence that had fallen comfortably around them.

"Hmm?" Denver mused, stroking the side of her arm absently with one hand.

Riley rolled half on top of him, looking down into those big blue eyes. Drowning in them. "I meant what I said. You're perfect for me Denver, and I love you."

Giving her one of those famous lopsided grins of his, Denver leaned forward and kissed her, sweetly, passionately, and to the core. "I love you, Riley, I think I have since that very first night."

"Get out," she teased.

Denver laughed.

"That first night? How could you have known?"

"The way you looked at me, the way you kissed me. I just knew."

Riley tapped a finger on his chest, her lips pursed as she considered this new information. "Do you really want to marry me?" She asked.

"I do."

"Are you sure? because it won't be easy."

"I don't want it to be."

"I'm serious Denver, it's going to be hard. I'm not an easy person."

With a low chuckle, Denver slapped her on the bottom. "Are you sure you aren't easy?" He joked.

Riley gave him an indignant stare and then rolled her eyes.

"I don't want it to be easy Riley. I know we're going to fight sometimes, but as long as we end up here, I think we'll be just fine."

"What if I get scared again?"

He pulled her closer, their faces were just inches apart, "then I'll hold you just like this until you feel safe again."

He felt her whole body relax then, like she'd been holding her breath underwater for a long time, and had finally come up for air.

"Okay," she whispered. "Okay."

"Are you saying you will?"

She nodded enthusiastically, "yes. Yes, Denver, I'll marry you."

As if every wish he'd ever made had suddenly come true all at once, Denver was flooded by such intense emotion that he couldn't possibly hold it all in. He began to hound her with kisses all over her face, her shoulders, and her neck. Riley giggled each time his lips met her skin.

It was perfect. Everything was perfect. He was perfect.

They were perfect... together.

### ###
Coming soon!

Check out a sneak peek of my next novel, Hunting Death!

Chapter 1

Madison slipped the nipple of the bottle into the scruffy little black cub's mouth, and he suckled hungrily. She laughed as he pawed at her hands and growled, this was easily her favorite part of the job.

"Hungry little devil aren't you?" She asked the young hyena cub, who squirmed and wiggled in her grasp.

The pup gulped down the rest of the supplement and began biting the rubber nipple, pulling at it and growling more fiercely, before abandoning it altogether to nip and snap at Madison's fingers. With one last chuckle, she stood and stepped over the siding of the holding pen.

As much as she enjoyed playing with the cub, the runt of the litter that needed just a bit more than momma was able to give it, she needed to finish her morning rounds.

One of the Singing Dogs was pregnant and due for an ultrasound, and she needed to check on the rest of the hyena clans as well. She also had a public appearance scheduled with Koda, the resident gray wolf, and his companion Kona.

It was going to be a busy day indeed.

"Hey Madison?" One of her coworkers called out just as she finished washing the bottle and placing it in the drying rack.

"Yeah?"

"There's someone here to see you."

Madison cocked a brow, it wasn't often she got visitors at work, in fact, it never happened. "Can you have them wait in my office? I just need to finish up here."

"He already is," the woman replied.

"Oh, okay. Thanks, Barb."

Madison finished filling out her charts for the hyena pup and took one last look around the room to make sure everything was in order before heading to her office.

It wasn't much of an office, more of a supply closet really, but at least it was hers. She had just enough space in there for a small desk, an extra chair for visitors, and a bookshelf. She'd been with the San Diego Zoo for three years now, working as a zookeeper and specializing in Canine care.

Barring major veterinary procedures, she handled the day to day care of the zoo's wolf, hyena's, singing dogs, and painted dogs. She also sometimes helped out with the various species of foxes and the resident fossa clan. While she loved the big cats at the zoo, it was the canines that pulled on her heartstrings. She'd always felt like she had some kind of bond with dogs, both domestic and wild, even if she'd never had a pet growing up, due to her mother's severe allergies.

She was still saving up for a place of her own, she rented a small apartment close to work for now, but once she had a house with a yard, the first thing she planned on doing was going down to the local shelter and adopting a dog or two.

Then she'd be surrounded by canines all day long. Ugh, she couldn't wait. Her apartment was much like her office, small and cramped. But it allowed her to save quite a bit of money, and the day was fast approaching that she'd be able to afford a house she could call home.

Walking down the hall towards her office, Madison let herself think about the future, about the prospect of buying a house and filling it with love, and she smiled. She didn't give much thought to who might be waiting for her in her office.

She did a lot of community outreach and was a big part of the animal ambassador program, so she figured it probably had something to do with that. A school wanting a zoologist to come and speak to the kids, or a field trip that including an animal encounter. Those sorts of things were requested all the time.

The tall Italian looking fellow in the posh suit that waited for in her office, however, was certainly not what she was expecting.

With a perplexed look on her face, Madison extended a hand to the gentleman when he turned towards her from the bookcase where he'd obviously been examining her collection of books. A collection that ranged from books on veterinary medicine and zoology to romance and science fiction. Madison spent a lot of time at work, especially when an animal was due to give birth, so having a variety of things to read was often helpful in passing the time.

"Hello, I'm Madison, and you are?" She asked, warning bells going off in her head as the man's eyes roamed her body from head to toe, taking stock of her khaki shorts and tank top with an odd smile.

"Forgive me," He apologized, his voice heavily accented. He sounded like he was from New York. "My name is Alfred Demello, but you may call me Al. And you are Ms. Adams?"

"Yes, sir."

He held up a hand, smiling sleekly. "Please, call me Al."

"Alright," she agreed, motioning for him to take the chair in front of her desk as she made her way around it and took her own seat. "Al, what can I do for you?"

Al opened a briefcase in his lap, shuffling through the contents before pulling a small stack of papers out that were clipped together, closing the briefcase and laying them on top. "It is not what you can do for me Ms. Adams, but what I can do for you." He said with another of those smiles that really gave her the creeps.

"Pardon?"

"I am a lawyer, Ms. Adams."

Ah, a lawyer, well that explained it. Of course, now she was left wondering if she was is some kind of trouble. The Zoo had been sued in the past, it was quite common actually, but lawsuits didn't often include employees. She supposed if it had something to do with one of her guest to animal interactions that it would make sense, but she couldn't remember any incidents offhand.

"I am here to talk to you about your father's estate."

"My father's what?" She blurted, even more confused.

"Estate. I'm an estate lawyer for Mr. Robert Melton. Were you unaware of Mr. Melton's passing?"

Mr. Melton. Her father. Her biological father. Was she aware of his passing? No. Hell, she'd only known he'd even existed for the last decade. She'd never met the man, for that matter, she'd never had any communication with him at all, so how was it that anyone, especially this man that didn't know her from Adam, expected her to know that he was dead?

"When did he die?" she heard herself asking.

"About two weeks ago. He had a stroke." Al said, filling her in on the details.

Her father had apparently had a series of mini strokes a few years prior and sought out an estate lawyer immediately thereafter in the event he had a life-threatening stroke, such as the one he'd had two weeks ago.

Despite this man being a complete stranger, and knowing she didn't owe him anything, Madison found herself defending her lack of a relationship with her father anyways. "I didn't know my father." She told him candidly. "My stepfather adopted me when I was four, he's the only dad I've ever known. So you'll have to forgive me if I don't seem more upset about the news. It's hard to miss someone you've never met."

"I am aware of dynamics involved in the situation, Ms. Adams. Your father told me everything."

Madison was almost offended by his remark. "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" She all but demanded.

Al chuckled. "Simply that I am aware of the dynamics Ms. Adams. Now, shall we get down to business?"

Madison shrugged.

The lawyer handed the paperwork over to her, a second copy still lay in his lap. Madison accepted it gingerly, almost afraid it was going to bite her.

"If you'll turn to page three, we can try to get through this as quickly as possible so that you can get on with your day."

With the papers in her lap, Madison ran her hand over the cover sheet. 'The Last Will and Testament of Robert W. Melton.' She wondered what the 'W' stood for. And as she flipped through the first couple of pages, she wondered, not for the first time, what her father looked like, and what kind of man he was.

Because what kind of man would sign away the rights to their own child? Madison squeezed her eyes shut, blocking out the pain and the moisture. She didn't want to think about this. She'd been down that road many times, and it was always best just to let it go. For whatever reason, her father hadn't wanted her, but it didn't matter, because Rick had, and Rick was a wonderful father.

Her father. Biologically or not, it didn't matter. He was the only father she'd ever known, and the man had always loved her as his own.

"Your father had a sizeable estate, Ms. Adams, and he's left half of all of his liquid assets to you, as well as a share of the company stock."

Madison's head shot up, "say that again?"

Al smiled and nodded. "Mr. Melton was a very wealthy man."

"I gathered that. Look, Al, not to seem greedy or anything, but you said I only get half? Did Mr. Melton, er, my father, did he have another child? Do I have a sibling?" She asked with hope.

Madison had always wanted a brother or sister. Her mother refused to have any more children, afraid they would get sick like she had. It was a fear her mother just couldn't get past, despite how much Rick had wanted a child of his own. While her childhood had been anything but lonely, was in fact filled with love, she'd always longed for a little sister.

"No ma'am, you are Mr. Melton's only offspring. In fact, aside from a sister in Pittsburgh, you're his last remaining heir."

"I have an aunt?" She asked, more to herself than anything, and smiling slightly when he nodded. Her mother was an only child, and Rick, her stepfather, though he had both a brother and a sister, Madison wasn't close to either of them. One lived in Europe, and the other in Florida, neither of them caring much to keep in touch over the years.

"Shall we get back to the matter at hand?" Al asked, breaking into her thoughts.

"Oh, yes, sorry."

"Now then, as I said, you are entitled to half of his liquid assets, as well as his share in the Bank of Lancaster." Madison nodded as he continued.

She was trying to take it all in as she followed along, reading over bits and pieces of the will herself, her father owned a one-eighth share in a very profitable private credit union, his sister, her aunt, owning two-eighths of the same bank, and the other five belonging to who she could only assume were business partners or distant relatives.

"You are also granted a one-half ownership in the not-for-profit sanctuary your father ran in Lancaster, the other half belonging to..."

"Wait." Madison interrupted. "What kind of sanctuary?"

"Dogs. It's all there in the will." He said rather gruffly, clearly annoyed with all of the interruptions. "Listen, Ms. Adams, while I understand that this is all very sudden, and quite confusing, I have a flight to catch, my granddaughter is expecting. So I'm going to politely ask that you allow me to finish and save whatever questions you might have for afterward."

Gulping, and feeling slightly guilty for reasons she couldn't comprehend, Madison nodded and smiled weakly.

"Great. Your father basically left you half of everything, outside of his stock in the bank, the other half was put into a trust to see to the care and management of the facility he left behind. A Mr. Keith Walker, the onsite veterinarian, is listed as the trustee. Now, as you look over the documents before you, I ask that you please keep in mind that the sanctuary meant the world to your father, it was his life's work."

The lawyer gave her a minute to consider everything he'd just told her, before continuing, as he had admitted, it was quite confusing, and a lot to take in.

"There is, however, one stipulation in your father's will." He went on, looking her dead in the eyes as he did so, probably trying to gauge her reaction. Madison didn't speak, but rather implored him with her gaze, her brows rising. "Your father requested, that in order to receive your share of his estate, that you reside at the ranch in Lancaster for a full year."

Her brows furrowed, "I'm sorry, what?"

"As I said, the sanctuary meant everything to your father, and it was his hope that you might consider continuing his legacy. He thought that perhaps if you lived there for some time, and had a hand in running the place, you would want to stay there permanently."

"I didn't even know the man, and he wants to control my future?" She spat, completely taken aback by the request. "And what if I say no?"

He nodded, turning towards the back of the will, "if you'll turn to page ten, you'll see the stipulations fully outlined. You have thirty days to make a decision, but if you choose not to accept the requirements of this agreement, your share of his liquid assets would be turned over to the trust he set up for the facility, and his stock in the company would go to his sister. Now, when your aunt, er, when Mrs. Melton, passes away, though, to be fair, she's only fifty, if she so chose to turn over her remaining stock in the company to you, that would be her choice."

Madison sat back in her chair and let out a huff of air. She read along in her copy of the will as he spoke, it was pretty much word for word what he'd said.

"I have thirty days to make a decision you said?"

"That's right."

"And I just call the number on the second page?"

Al opened his briefcase and put the will back inside, letting it click shut. He could tell by the look on her face that she'd heard all she needed to hear. "That is correct, Ms. Adams. If you have no more questions for me..."

She looked up at him a little dazed, speaking automatically. "No, you can go. I'll be in touch. Thank you."

With a curt nod, he got up to leave her to her thoughts.

"Congratulations on the baby." She said to his back, her tone still monosyllabic.

He turned at the door, that sleek oily lawyer's smile on his face, "thank you."

Chapter 2

Madison sat in her office for another half hour, the first fifteen minutes with a blank stare on her face as she looked at the closed door the lawyer had left through, and the next fifteen reading through the will again.

She then called her supervisor and explained about her 'visitor' before asking to go home for the rest of the day. Given the circumstances, and the fact that she hadn't taken a single day off in the three years that she'd worked there, her boss was more than willing to oblige, telling her to take the entire weekend if she needed it.

A whole weekend. Hell, if she decided to agree to her father's request, she'd need a lot more than just a weekend. She wondered if they'd grant her a sabbatical, ha, that was a good one. And if the numbers in the will were anything to go by, without seeing his full financial portfolio, it wasn't like she'd even need a job after that year was up anyways.

Her father had been a wealthy man, yeah, that was an understatement.

She went straight to her parent's house from work. Her mother was on call this weekend but was otherwise off. Being a flight attendant for a busy airport like San Francisco she'd probably pick up at least one job over the next three days, but Madison knew she was home at the moment, she'd made sure to call ahead.

She didn't knock when she got there, but rather, slipped her key into the lock and called out once she was in the door. "Mom, hey, I'm here, where ya at?"

"In the kitchen dear!" Tammy, her mother, called back.

Madison dropped her purse and keys on the coffee table on her way through the living room, but kept her father's will hugged tightly to her chest in the manilla envelope she'd taken from work. She found her mother right where she said she was, in the kitchen. Tammy was sitting at the small dinette table that occupied one corner of the large kitchen, her feet propped up in the chair opposite her and a book in her hands.

She looked up and smiled as Madison approached, putting the book down and sitting a little straighter, her feet on the floor. "Hey honey, I was surprised when you called earlier and said you were coming over. Is everything okay?"

Madison pointed to the half full coffee pot on the counter, "is that fresh?"

Tammy nodded.

Helping herself to a cup and loading it down with cream and sugar, Madison sat in the chair next to her mother, laying the will on the table.

"What's that?" Tammy asked.

"My father's will."

Madison watched with curiosity as all of the color drained out of her mother's face. On the way over, she had thought about many things. She'd thought about whether or not she could, and should take her father's offer, and more importantly, she wondered if her mother knew. It was obvious now that she didn't.

"Robert is dead?" Tammy asked weakly.

Madison nodded, pulling the envelope towards her and slowly taking the will out. Then she thought about her father, and her life, the life she'd lived, and she wondered about the truth.

Her mother had told her shortly after her eighteenth birthday that Rick wasn't her biological father, that he had adopted her when she was only four. Naturally, she'd been in shock at first, and didn't want to believe it. It had taken her a couple of weeks to come to terms with the knowledge that the man who had raised her, the man who had loved her, and called her his own, wasn't her father.

Of course, a lot of things made sense after that.

Madison had dark brownish black hair, depending on the light, and she was tall, almost five-nine. She also had dark blue eyes. A lot of people over the years had asked her if she had any gypsy or Romani blood in her as her looks were quite exotic.

Both her mother and Rick, on the other hand, were quite fair. Her mother had dark blonde almost brown hair, and Rick's had been, before turning gray, a shade of platinum. While Rick was average in height, her mother was short, and they both had light eyes. Rick's were Hazel and her mother's baby blue.

She was also left-handed.

And now, while that might not have been very telling because a lot of left-handed people were born to right-handed parents, her mother admitted that her father had been left-handed.

There was also her love of all things canine, of course, she hadn't known up until a few hours ago that her father rescued and sheltered dogs, but she suspected she'd gotten her love of dogs from him, as her mother was allergic, and Rick just wasn't into animals.

When she finally got around to asking her mother about her father, she suspected she wasn't given the full story, but out of respect for Rick, the man who had loved her and raised her as his own, she let it go.

Yes, her mother had been willing to give her all of her father's known contact details if she'd wanted them, but the truth of the matter was, she'd gone this long without knowing who he was, and since he hadn't made any attempts to see her, she figured it was just best if she left it alone. For surely he would have reached out to her if he had really wanted to be a part of her life.

Of course, now that she had this will in front of her, she began to think back on the things her mother had told her, and wonder just how much of the story she'd left out.

According to her mother, when she was eighteen, and they'd last talked about her father, they hadn't been in touch for years. Tammy told Madison she'd met her father on a flight to Vegas, he was handsome and charming, and she had a layover.

They'd gone out to dinner, and one thing had led to another.

She said she had reached out to him several times after finding out she was pregnant, but without response. She felt his family might have had something to do with it. He was a very polished gentleman, and he had told her during their time together that his family was quite conservative. They probably convinced him that she was lying and just after his money.

She told Madison that when she was one, she met Rick, and they fell in love, and he loved Madison as well and was more than willing to call her his own. They had even made it official by having Rick legally adopt her at the age of four.

When questioned about that, Tammy said Robert had been only too willing to sign away his parental rights. And she had finished the story by saying she'd written to Robert when Madison was sixteen, letting him know that she was going to tell Madison everything when she turned eighteen, so that Madison could decide for herself if she wanted to reach out to him.

And knowing then, that he hadn't wanted her, that he hadn't tried to get in touch with her, and that it would probably break Rick's heart to know she wanted to get to know this man, this stranger, Madison decided to bury the knowledge that Rick wasn't her biological father.

And she had. Until now.

"How, how did it happen?" Tammy inquired, her voice a bit shaky. "When did it happen?"

"His lawyer told me he had a stroke, about two weeks ago."

They sat there in silence for a few minutes, Tammy eyeing the will, and Madison eyeing her.

Madison finally spoke up, voicing something that had been eating away at her the whole way to her parent's house. "After reading his will, this doesn't sound like a man that didn't want his daughter."

Tammy's eyes shot to her daughter's face, tears started tracking down her cheeks. Her lower lip trembled.

"You've been keeping something from me, haven't you?"

She nodded, the tears falling with more gusto

Madison's heart sank. "Well," she all but whispered, "now's a great time to get it off your chest."

After grabbing a napkin and blotting at her tears, Tammy took a sip from the bottle of water in front of her, and with a deep breath pushed away from the table. She left the kitchen, going up the back staircase, only to return a few minutes later with a box in her hands. She set it down on the floor next to Madison's feet and took up her seat again at the table.

Madison didn't bother to ask what was in the box, she feared she already knew the answer to that. Instead, she flipped the lid, and with a quick intake of air, stared down at a box full of letters and cards.

"There's gotta be a few years worth of cards and letters in there!" She gasped, pinning her mother with an enraged glare.

Tammy swallowed hard. "He wrote you a letter every year for your birthday, since you were four. And he sent you a card for every holiday."

"Why did you keep these from me?"

"I thought it was the right thing to do." Tammy whispered, doing her best to hold in the pain and choke back the sobs that tore through her.

"How could you think this was the right thing?" Madison cackled angrily.

"You'd already been through so much, and I, I didn't want you to have to go through this too. You loved Rick, he was the only father you'd ever known, and I thought, I just thought it would be too much for you," Tammy cried. "You were only four, and you were still going through the treatments. I was afraid if he became a part of your life, that you might have a setback, that maybe you'd get sicker. I couldn't lose you."

While her heart broke for her mother, because she did understand, even though it was selfish, her heart ached for her father. For the first time since she'd known about him, Madison wished she could meet him. Only, now it was too late. They'd both been robbed.

"When did he find out about me?"

Tammy looked down at her hands. She was ashamed of herself, and she feared her daughter would end up hating her for what she was about to say. "Not long after you were diagnosed."

"He was the match," Madison said rather than asked.

Tammy nodded.

When she was just four years old, Madison had been diagnosed with Acute lymphocytic leukemia. She was told later when she could understand, that a nice man had donated his bone marrow to save her life. But she was never told that it was her father who had done it. Given her biological makeup, they'd had a hard time finding a match in the registry, and now that she knew her father had been the one to donate, Madison felt sick to her stomach.

She could only imagine her mother going to him, telling him for the first time that he had a four-year-old daughter, and that she needed a bone marrow transplant, and that he was probably her only shot at survival.

What must he have gone through? How must he have felt?

"Is that when you asked him to sign away his rights?" Madison dared to ask.

"You have to understand, Maddie."

Madison felt sick to her stomach. Lies, it had all been lies. She stood abruptly, ready to leave her mother's house and never come back. Her entire life, everything she'd ever known, it was all in shambles.

Tammy reached out to her, grabbing her wrist. "Please Maddie. Please let me explain."

She looked at her mother with such disdain. "You lied me. All those years ago, you lied to me. And what's worse, you were never going to tell me the truth, were you? You were never going to show me that box, you were just going to keep letting me think he never wanted me, that he didn't love me."

"No Maddie, no! That's not true!"

"Then please, tell me, what is the truth!?"

Tammy cried in earnest now, still holding her daughter's wrist. "I wanted to tell you, honest I did. I just, I just didn't want you to hate me."

Madison sat back down, "I don't think I could ever hate you mom, but I'm honestly sickened by the thought of what this man must have thought, what he must have felt. Tell me, did he sign me over willingly?"

"Yes." She admitted. "But only because I begged him." Madison flinched. "I'm sorry Maddie, I'm not proud of what I did, but I swear to God, I'd do it again. You have to understand how scared I was of losing you. And I don't mean to your father, he would have never taken you from me. I was afraid the knowledge that you weren't Rick's would hurt your chances of remission. I was scared to death that you weren't going to make it, and I did whatever I could to save you."

"So you're telling me he agreed to do it because you thought it was what was best for me?"

"Yes."

"And why didn't you tell him about me sooner? Why did you wait until then?"

"When I first found out I was pregnant, I was scared out of my mind. I wasn't the kind of girl that slept around. I'd been in a few serious relationships, but your father was my first and only one-night stand. And I wasn't lying when I told you he came from a strict conservative family. I figured they wouldn't believe me, that they'd call me a tramp, and convince him I was only after his money. And I thought, well, I thought that if we did a DNA test to prove it, they might try and take you from me. I made enough money to take care of you by myself, and your grandparents loved watching you when I had to be out of town. I didn't need a man, and then I met Rick, and he wanted so badly to be your father."

She could understand. Madison could understand her plight completely. And frankly, she didn't blame her one bit in that regard. She didn't lay blame at her feet until after her father was made aware, until it was clear that he wanted to be a part of her life.

That part wasn't fair to any of them, her illness be damned, she had deserved to right to get to know her father. She could have used all the love she could have gotten, and she didn't understand how her mother hadn't realized that. What was so wrong with letting another person love her too?

Another family for that matter. She suspected her father's parents had been alive at that point, wouldn't they have liked the chance to get to know their only grandchild? She didn't know, and now, she'd never know.

"What did he leave you?" Her mother finally asked, after a few awkward minutes.

"Everything," Madison answered. "He left me everything. More money than I could hope to spend in three lifetimes."

Tammy gasped, her hand going to her face. "His parents?"

"Gone. The lawyer told me he has a sister in Pittsburgh, but that's it."

"Oh, Maddie."

"Tell me, all of my medical bills, who paid those?"

"Your father."

"And my college tuition? did you really take out a loan?"

"No. Your father paid it."

Madison shook her head. "All these years, you've let him foot the bill for everything, and yet, you wouldn't even give him the chance to get to know me! Did you tell him I didn't want to know him? Is that what happened? When did he stop writing letters?"

"When you turned eighteen. I told him I'd leave that decision up to you, and I did. You decided not to get to know him."

"Because you let me think he didn't want me!" She roared, standing and snatching the will off the table, tossing it into the box. She'd heard enough.

"Madison, please don't do this. I love you."

She turned to face her mother, box in hand, tears streaming down her face. "His lawyer told me everything is mine, all I have to do is go to Lancaster and live on his ranch for a year, and I get it all. He gave me thirty days to make a decision, but hell," she rasped, laughing mirthlessly, "I don't need thirty days. I need to get as far away from you as possible."

With her mother sobbing, grabbing at her frantically and calling out her name between sobs, Madison hefted the box onto her hip and started to walk away, stopping at the coffee table to grab her purse and keys she turned to find her mother hanging back just inside the threshold to the kitchen.

"I'll call you once I'm settled."

And with a sad and disgusted look, she left.

###
About the Author

After writing her first novel Contractual Attraction and naming her lead character after two of her favorite hockey players, April decided to write a series of books about two of her favorite things, hockey, and romance! Inspired by the men of the Chicago Blackhawks, the Savannah Slashers' series pays tribute to three of the hottest men in the league while introducing readers to new and intriguing story lines. April currently lives in Florida with her husband and two young sons, where she is hard at work on her next novel! April loves to hear from fellow romance enthusiasts and welcomes comments from readers!
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