***
An hour later, the crowd had thinned out, leaving only a few players, Coach Halbur, and Lake milling around the arena. "Why don't you grab Lake, and we'll go for pizza to celebrate?" I reluctantly scoot Sea off my lap.
“Sure.” She gives me a nod before wandering over to where Lake is standing.
"Hey Coach, I'm taking the girls out for pizza. Do you want to join us?" I nod toward where Sea and Lake are standing, huddled together in conversation. Coach Halbur's eyes follow the movement.
“I don't know. I don't want to interrupt," he shifts his gaze back to mine.
“No, it's totally fine. I want to show off my new fiancée, and as my agent, Lake will be joining us. But I don't want Lake to feel like a third wheel. So technically, you'd be doing me a favor.” It's a bit of a stretch, but I don't mind. I've seen the way Coach and Lake look at each other. It's time for someone to give them a little nudge.
"Sure. As long as it's okay with the girls." His eyes dart back to where Sea and Lake are talking as they make their way back to us.
“I don't know what all that was about, with Sea on your lap, but the internet is buzzing with guesses about who your mystery woman is. Since no one has ever seen you act that way with a woman before. Also, Marty from Zearing Sports already sentme a text. It seems he recognized Sea from when she saved his company from going bankrupt a couple of years ago.” Lake glances up from her phone to share the good news.
"Oh my God! I love Marty. He's the sweetest." Sea gushes, causing me to grind my teeth as I think about her and sweet Marty.
“Come on. Let's get something to eat." I take Sea's hand, wanting to stop any talk about her with another man, even if he's seventy and has been married to the same woman for fifty years.
***
The Skyline Bar and Grill isn’t very busy tonight, giving me a chance to get to know Sea over a friendly game of foosball.
“You’re cheating! You can’t spin your guys.” Sea’s voice is filled with laughter as she accuses me of breaking the number-one rule of foosball.
“I’m a hockey player, not a foosball player.” I spin my guys again as she flicks her wrists, sending the ball flying past my players and into my goal for the winning shot. “Lucky shot.”
“You’re a professional goalie. It shouldn’t matter if you’re playing hockey, foosball, or any other game with a goalie—you have to know the rules.” Her eyes shine with laughter, and I find myself liking this side of Sea, with the forest-green of her eyes looking at me as if she likes me instead of seeing me as a bug she wants to squish under her shoe.
“How about one more game, double or nothing?”
“I thought we were going to play partners.” She glances around the quiet room, only the sound of the hockey game on repeat coming from the television speakers. “Where did Lake and Coach Halbur run off to?”
I have an idea where they might have gone, but I’m not sure how Sea will react to the news about her sister sneaking around with Coach. I’m spared from answering as Lake and Coach head back to the foosball table from the hallway where the bathrooms are.
“Sorry, I, um, had something in my eye. Coach Halbur helped me get it out.”
“Did he help you button up your shirt, too?" We all follow Sea’s gaze to the mismatched buttons on Lake's shirt. “Because he didn’t do a very good job.” The laughter in Sea’s tone is unmistakable.
By the surprise looks on Coach Halbur's and Lake’s faces, it's clear they don’t see the humor in the situation. “I must have missed a button when I was freshening up.”
“You might want to adjust your skirt while you’re at it.” Sea’s eyes shift to Lake’s skirt. “It seems to be on backwards.”
Not wanting to miss out on the chance to tease Coach, I motion to the side of his cheek, “It looks like you have a little something there. It looks the same color as Lake’s lipstick.”
Sea doubles over laughing, while Coach Halbur scrubs at the smear of lipstick on his cheek, as Lake glares at me. Hey, it’s not my fault they got caught. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for both of them, but this is too good to pass up.
“I think it’s time we call it a night.” Lake grabs Sea’s arm, tugging her upright. “You can give me a ride home if you can stop laughing long enough to drive.” She mutters the last part, making Sea laugh so hard that tears roll down her face.
Not wanting the night to end, but knowing it has to sooner or later, I grab Sea’s other arm, patiently waiting as she catches her breath and finally stops laughing. “I have a thing at the community center tomorrow, and I want you there with me. I’ll pick you up at 10 am sharp.”
"Sure," she says, wiping at her eyes. “Do you want me to wear anything special?”
“You wouldn’t happen to have an elf costume, would you?”
five
Sea
