“Yeah, I think if he could, he’d have a whole hockey team of kids,” Jude sighed.
“Maybe he needs to teach a peewee team,” I said, as the girls walked away.
“I’ve already checked,” Jude said. “Monroe already has a team with coaches.”
“Hmmm.” I tried to think of what else he could do to keep him close to hockey.
“Alright, I’m sorry aboutthat,” Webber said, blushing. “I wasn’t expecting that.”
“It was nice to see you in your element,” I said, as we started walking. “You’re kinda cute.”
“Just kinda?” He attempted to smolder.
“Yeah, just kinda.” I shrugged.
Jude chuckled as I held his hand and maneuvered us out of the arena. I took a deep breath, glad to be out of there.
“Are you teaming up against me?” Webber threw his arms over our shoulders.
“Never,” Jude said, lookingover at me.
“We could team up against you,” I said softly against his ear. “Could you take us?”
Webber pulled away, a blush creeping up his neck. “I’m always up for the challenge.”
I really hoped something happened tonight.
Webber’s phone rang and I grabbed Jude’s hand so we didn’t get lost in the crowd as he talked to his hockey buddy on the phone. I steered us to the car which was right across the street and looked to be a hell of a lot closer than for a lot of the people who were crossing the street and kept walking.
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll see you guys there,” Webber said, as he opened the doors for us.
I opened the door for Jude, gettinghim in the car before gettinginto the back seat.
“Are we meeting them at Cheers?” Jude asked, as he put his seat belt on.
“Yup, it’s still the hang out and hopefully we’ll be left alone,” Webber said, backing out of the parking spot.
“Who’s going?” Jude asked.
“Cap, Clarke, Val, Gomez and Hunter,” Webber said.
Jude turned around to look at me. “You’ll like Cap, he’s reserved, and an old man like you.” He grinned, as I glared at him. “Clarke’s a goof, a literal manchild, but is super sweet. Gomez and Hunter are great, they kiss the ground Valencia walks on and all three of them are hilarious together.”
“Is she the one who called when he had surgery?” I asked.
“Uh… Yeah, that’s her,” he said.
I immediately liked her.
“I hate that she did that, but I’m grateful she did it too,” Webber said, grabbing Jude’s hand.
“Sounds like a fun bunch,” I said, trying not to feel a little left out.
“They are great,” Webber said. “Your team becomes your family, so you grow quite close to your teammates. I miss the camaraderie. It will be good to visit.”
I patted his arm as we caught each other’s gaze. He was nervous.
Once we arrived at the bar, it was busy, but since the game was on a Thursday it wasn’t too packed. We made our way to a pool table where we racked the balls up and Webber and I played a game while Jude got drinks for us. We taunted each other as we each sank a few balls in keeping the game pretty even. Jude came back with our drinks and while Webber was sinking one too many balls, Jude leaned against me, and I rested my hand on his waist keeping his body flush with mine.
