“Thanks.” I eye her over the rim of my beer, so she gets the point that I’m thanking her for more than the compliment. I’m thanking her for tossing the white wine at me.
Her small smile says she understands.
“So this is what you do when you win?” Tedi looks around the room. “You drink in a bar that has no dance floor?”
“You wanna dance?” Ford asks her.
“Yeah and…” She rises up on her knees and looks around. “Where’s Tweetie?”
Ford glances my way and laughs as if this girl can’t be serious. I’m sitting right next to her and she’s asking for Tweetie?
I snicker as Saige thanks the waitress for bringing her a white wine. I snicker again. Then the waitress sets a bottle of beer down in front of Tedi.
“Tweetie isn’t here yet,” I say.
“Oh.” The disappointment is clear in Tedi’s tone. She and Saige share a look that says maybe they should just leave.
I’m not ready to call it a night with her yet.
“You know I’m the right wing, right? Ford Jacobs?” He sticks out his hand and everyone at the table can see Tedi bruised his ego.
“I know who you are.” She’s obviously not impressed at all. I’m shocked, because usually the ladies love Ford and his flirtatious personality.
“Maybe I need a little good luck charm like Drake.” Ford nods in my direction and gives me the once-over.
“Good luck charm?” Saige asks and tilts her head.
“There’s no shame in it. You’re not the first one to improve a man’s game that way.”
Damn it. I lower my head.
“Why would there be any shame?” Saige asks, her narrowed gaze on me.
“I just mean that Drake was lucky to find you. You’re turning his game around,” Ford says.
“Well, he might think it’s me, but I don’t.”
Ford looks at her as if she’s insane. “I thought you understood the whole athlete thing. Maksim said you were a social media person or something.”
Saige glares at me then leans over the table toward Ford. “What exactly are you under the impression I do for him before a game?”
“Ford.” I clear my throat.
He laughs. “I don’t wanna embarrass you.”
“Embarrass me?” she asks.
I’m desperate to end this conversation and where it’s headed. I tug on Saige’s sleeve. “Can I talk to you for a moment?”
She doesn’t even turn to look at me when she says, “No. Now tell me what Aiden told you.” Her voice is more demanding.
“He didn’t have to tell me. It was clear.” Ford sips his scotch on the rocks and smirks at her. “No judgment.”
Tedi grabs his nipple through his shirt and twists. “Tell her what he told you.”
“Jesus, woman!” Ford tries to get Tedi’s hand off him and looks at me as if I’m actually going to help him. I’d laugh if I wasn’t worried about one of them kicking me in the balls.
This whole thing screams immature teenage boy shit, which is not the impression I want to give Saige.
“Get off me.” Ford pulls at her fingers.
“Tell her.”
“Tedi, it’s fine. Let him go. I’m sure Aiden will fess up.”
Both women turn toward me, but Tedi has yet to take her fingers off Ford’s nipple. I hold my hands in the air.
“Hey, I thought it’d be my nipples getting twisted tonight.” Tweetie joins us, sliding in next to me, blocking my escape for after I tell Saige how juvenile I am.
“Tweetie!” Tedi exclaims, releasing Ford.
Ford stares down at his chest and swears again. “Good luck with that one, Tweetie.” He slides out of the booth and heads back to the bartender.
Tedi follows him out of the booth, but only to join Tweetie on his side. Damn it all to hell.
Saige scoots farther away from me, but then she’s sliding out of the booth. “Take care, Tedi. I’ll see you tomorrow at work.”
Tedi waves, but she’s way more enthralled in Tweetie and his beard.
“Whoa, where are you going?” I follow her.
She stops short of the doors. “Listen, I don’t appreciate having rumors spread about me.”
“I didn’t spread any rumors.”
“I’m not an idiot, Aiden. I know what your friend thinks I did for you.”
I sigh and run my fingers through my hair. “He assumes because that’s what kind of person he is.”
“And you didn’t correct him? You’re just as bad then.” She turns toward the door.
I grasp her elbow to stop her. “Wait! I did tell him, he just doesn’t believe me. I just… I’ve never been in this situation before. To need something from someone else to make my game better. It’s ludicrous, I know.”
Her angry demeanor softens first with her shoulders, then her eyes. “I can’t continue on with this if people think I’m sleeping with you just to improve your game.”
I hold up my hand. “I know. I know. Give me a minute to clear this up?”
“I should go.” She glances toward the door.
“Please? Just give me a second and then let me buy you a drink as a thank you.”
She doesn’t say anything, so I use the opportunity to embarrass the hell out of myself. I’m going to be razzed about this for years, but it’ll be worth it.
I stand on a nearby table, thankful it’s a weekday and the bar isn’t as crowded as it gets on Fridays and Saturdays. In fact, it’s mostly our team here. I use two fingers and whistle to grab everyone’s attention. Everyone quiets and I suddenly regret this decision. But I own my mistakes, and for some reason, I want Saige to know that about me.
“Okay, okay! As you all know, I’ve been out of my funk for the past two games.”
A roar of shouts commence.
I glance toward the door where Saige stands. “I’ve never been a superstitious guy, as you all know. Never needed it.”
They all call out “cocky bastard, arrogant ass, Shamrock.”
“But someone has changed that. On New Year’s Eve, I met her, and what happened at midnight is what I think has turned my game around.”
Saige cocks an eyebrow.
“No kissing and telling!” one of my teammates yells and a few others laugh.
“I didn’t kiss her.”
“No fucking and telling!” another one yells.
“I didn’t fuck her. All she did was throw white wine in my face.” I wave Saige over and squat on the table, asking the waitress to grab me a bottle of white wine. “You all need to know that was all that happened. That’s it. Some of you might share Ford’s dirty mind or assume I just wasn’t coming out and saying that we slept together but that’s not the case. We did not sleep together. And so, I welcome her to do it again as penance for me putting her in the position to be embarrassed in the first place.”
Saige shakes her head with a small grin. The waitress comes over and pours the glass, holding it out to Saige. When Saige still refuses, the waitress throws it in my face with a laugh. Then Tedi jumps off Tweetie’s lap and pours a glass of wine, tossing it in my face right after with a huge smile on her face. Yeah, she’s enjoying this. My tongue slides out and I lick my lips.