I can’t tell if she sees this as a good thing or a bad thing.Regardless, a little spark of excitement ignites inside me.“Let’s hang out while you’re in town.I stay in Bayshore in the off-season, so I’ll be around.I have a house near the waterfront, just a few blocks over.”
A smile curls at her lips.“That’s awesome.I’d love to hang out.Let’s do that.”
Her parents are shouting for her, and she sends me an apologetic smile as she jogs away.
“See ya, Casey.”I wave after her, not failing to notice how her breasts move as she waves excitedly.
“Bye, Griffin!Thanks for helping rescue my dress.”
I laugh as she clambers into the car, sending me one last wave.There are a few other things I’d like to do with that dress—like remove it from her body—but I push the thought from my mind.
She’s got a boyfriend.And you’re not trying to start anything anyway.
Once the Harts have driven away, I head for the far edge of the parking lot, looking back at the barn.I’m proud of her and Kru for what they’ve built, which stands literally just beyond their main businesses, Kru’s restaurant – named Ray’s after his dad – and Piper’s marshmallow shop, Cloud Nine.My phone buzzes with an incoming text from Randall, the program coordinator at the Bayshore Rec Center.
RANDALL: Good news!Your Youth Hockey Workshop is officially FULL with a waitlist.We’ve got parents signed up from Indiana and Pennsylvania even.This is gonna be big!
I smile down at the screen, letting the words sink in.Each off-season I try a new thing to do with my downtime, and this year, I chose to try on the role of coach and hockey mentor.Interest was huge after the initial announcement, and it looks like this is going to be a fun thing to keep me in the zone over the summer.Beyond that, it’ll look great for my image with the team.
I wouldn’t be worrying about my contract’s looming expiration if I weren’t injured.But I don’t have a green light to play yet, and a renewal would mean a substantial paycheck the team would have to write.I can barely think about what the general manager, Marchetti, must be thinking about right now.I’m thirty years old and can’t skate professionally.What use am I to the team?
A wave of icy anxiety slides through me, and I remind myself to focus on what I was doing.I tap out a quick response to Randall, top it off with a “hell yeah,” and then pocket my phone.
I need to clear my head.Seeing Casey again has me hot and bothered in a way that doesn’t mix well with a busy summer.Besides, I don’t have room for that type of distraction when my career is one ultra-talented rookie away from disaster.
I’ve lived through a similar situation once before, right at the tail end of college.I got in too deep with a girlfriend; I let my focus slip a few times too many and damn near got the doorway to the NHL slammed shut in my face.
I learned then that romance and hockey donotmix.And certainly not if I want to maintain the momentum and career I’ve built over the past decade.Life has shown me in many ways how wanting more is dangerous.If you have it all, life will take something away.
I don’t dare tip the scales.
It’s early evening.My family support quota has been filled for the day, which means I have only one destination after I take my mom home: the gym.
I’m not going to let another season with the Cleveland Crushers disappear out from underneath me.
Absolutely nothing is going to steal my focus this summer.
Especially not a hot little brunette in a sundress.
CHAPTER THREE
CASEY
“Thanks for dropping off an application.”The sugary-sweet smile of The Daily Grind barista feels hollow as she subtly slides my paper application into a slot behind the counter.“I’ll make sure our manager sees it when she gets in.”
“Who exactly should I ask for when I call—” I begin.
“Oh, she’ll call you!”She hurries to add.She blinks encouragingly at me then tips her head slightly as though to saynow get out of here.“Thanks again.”
I return my best attempt at a smile and slink out of the fragrant coffee shop.The door shuts behind me, bells tinkling, and I take a deep breath of the fresh late-May Bayshore air.
I’ve been applying for jobs all morning downtown, trying to figure out what my next move is going to be.I haven’t exactly told my parents I’m staying here for the summer, and I don’t want to bring up that beast of a topic before I have my ducks in a row.
But right now, my ducks are fucking loose.They are nowhere near a row—they are a haphazard duck constellation spread across the town.I know my parents and Claire will take the news about a Bayshore “sabbatical” better if I have a plan.So that means I need a job and a place to stay ASAP.
The Daily Grind was the first place that accepted in-person applications.High-5’s, the popular bistro and pub near the water, kicked me to an online application process, just like a couple other bars and restaurants I visited.I don’t have much faith I’ll get a callback at any of those places if I’m in a faceless pipeline of applicants.
But I need something, and I need it fast.It wasn’t my plan to go the service industry route, but there aren’t exactly a ton of short-term, high-paying marketing jobs up for grabs.In a seasonally driven, touristy place like Bayshore, it’s not unheard of to snag a service job just for the summer.And while I haven’t served or bartended since my college days, I’m not mad about the chance to decompress from corporate bullshit.
