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“Yeah.” I bite my bottom lip, wanting to ask him a question, but nervous he’ll agree with Dr. Hawthorne. “Do you think I should take it easy on them? Extend their deadlines?”

“Oh, hell no,” he says seriously. “If they want to make it to the NHL, they need to get used to working their asses off. Coddling them is doing them a disservice.”

A slow grin spreads across my face, and Colby stares at me with a confused expression.

“Stop that.”

“Sorry, it’s just that, for once, I agree with you.”

His eyebrows raise and he smiles. “Oh, then continue with the creepy grin.”

CHAPTER 15

COLBY

Our food comes out, glazed duck for Noel, and filet mignon for me, and we eat in comfortable silence. Conversation flows easily between Noel and me, but the quiet pauses are nice too. I’m a guy who requires a lot of action, a lot of noise. But something about being in Noel’s company calms my need to be in motion. That urge to always be moving—to always be on—is quelled, and I can simply sit and enjoy our time together. Maybe because I love looking at her so much. I could just sit here and look at her all day.

Remembering the fantasy convention happening tomorrow, I finish chewing my steak and swallow. “So, any other plans this weekend?”

She dabs at the corner of her mouth with her napkin. “Oh! Yes!” Her eyes light up with excitement.

I wonder if she’d be this free with Dr. Dickhead, and if she’d tell him all of her nerdy quirks. I bet he wouldn’t love them as much as I do.

“My sister and my parents are coming to town tomorrow and we’re going to a fantasy convention. We’re dressing up as Arwen and Galadriel from Lord of the Rings. We’ve been planning this for months.”

“That sounds cool,” I say, trying to keep my expression even, pretending I knew nothing about the fantasy convention. I pull a non-existent piece of lint from my sweater vest and flick it away, feigning ignorance. Her parents are coming as well. Now I can win them over too. Perfect.

A tall, lean, blond man approaches our table. His expression is relaxed and friendly.

Noel doesn’t notice him at first, but when she does, her eyes go wide. “Dexter?”

She stands from her seat, and I mirror her action. The man leans in and does the European cheek-kissing thing, and I instantly want to punch him.

“Dr. Woodcock, funny running into you here,” he says in a British accent. That’s when I realize this is the guy. The professor who’s too stupid to notice her. “This is my favorite restaurant. Do you come here frequently?”

“This is my first time, but it’s lovely,” she answers, smiling at him like he’s the greatest thing ever.

I’m curious how he got a reservation here, seeing as I had to pull in three favors to get one. “I’m Colby,” I say, thrusting my hand out in the Brit’s direction.

Dexter grabs my hand with his lanky arm, athlete my ass, and shakes it. His grip is limp, and his handshake is weak. He just lost even more of my respect for this sad excuse of a handshake. “Yes, I know. Huge fan,” he says.

“No kisses for me?” I tease, hoping my face isn’t dark red with the unreasonable amount of anger bubbling up inside me.

He bursts into laughter. Noel quirks an eyebrow and offers an awkward chuckle as well.

“Sorry if I interrupted a date.” Dexter’s eyes move between me and Noel.

“Oh, no, Colby and I are just friends,” she answers easily. Too easily.

Dexter looks quite pleased at this and takes his phone out of his back pocket. “Speaking of dates, I was hoping to ask you out soon, but didn’t want to do it at work. Would you like to grab dinner soon? Or perhaps even a hockey game?” He winks at me.

Noel blushes. “Oh, yes. That would be great.”

“Perfect. Give me your number and I’ll add your contact information.”

She spouts off her number while he saves it in his phone. My gut is telling me he’s asking her out because she’s here with me. Maybe because she seems more desirable when she’s with another man, or perhaps he wants me to get him good seats at Eagles’ games or something.

“Well, I’ll leave you two to your evening,” Dexter says. “And Noel, I will call you and set up a time for our date.”