But it couldn’t be, because when she was away, he missed her, and when she was with him, he felt so good. He didn’t need the sex, he just needed her: her smiles, her country twang, her giggles, her, Elli. When they finally did have sex, it would do nothing but make whatever was going on with them stronger. Yeah, that’s it. There was nothing to worry about, nothing…he hoped.

Elli came into the living room just as Shea stood up, putting the remote on the table.

“I’m done,” she said.

He then saw that she had a pillow and blanket from the bench at the end of his bed.

“What’s that?” he asked, nodding his head toward her hands.

“Oh, I was gonna sleep on your couch.”

“Elli, I told you. This couch is hell on the back. Call anyone that has slept on it, and they’ll tell you.”

“Oh, I’m fine.”

“Fine. Then don’t sleep on the couch, because I want you to sleep with me.”

“Shea.”

“No, stop. When you walked through my door, where did you think you were sleeping?” She kicked the floor, looking down at the bundle in her hands. “With you, right?”

“Right.”

“Okay, so because I asked if you’re ready to fool around, and you said no, that causes you to sleep on the couch?”

“I just don’t want to disappoint you anymore, Shea. I feel like that’s all I do. I’m not like the girls you would date, I won’t put out. I mean, I suck!”

“You do not. How many times do we need to do this, Elli!?”

He hated that he was getting mad, but she was pissing him off and she started yelling first.

“You are the girl I want. I mean, yeah, I would love for you to put out, but I’ll live until you are ready!”

“I just don’t know if this is going to work. I think I’m f**ked in the head, and I’m sorry, but I just don’t know.”

“This is going to work, Elli. Stop thinking so much, we’re fine. Now when I get out of that damn shower, you better be in my bed or I’ll come in here and sleep on this God awful couch with you,” he said, stepping towards her, “because I will be beside you.”

He kissed her hard before going down the hall to the bedroom. He grabbed his night clothes and went into the bathroom. After showering, he threw his clothes on and went out of the bathroom to see Elli laying in the bed, watching TV. He smiled to himself, liking that she changed her mind because he really didn’t want to sleep on that couch. Shea hung up his suit before coming back into the room and climbed into the bed with her. He laid on his side, looking at her as she turned off the TV.

“Why was Harper mad earlier?” he asked.

She looked over at him and smiled as she put the remote on the nightstand.

“Jakob called her his girlfriend. She didn’t like that much.”

“I thought they were dating?”

“No. Harper is really weird; she’s all about sex and only sex.”

“Jakob isn’t like that.”

“He knows she is, though. He thinks he can change her, but Harper Allen will never change.”

He took her hand in his, playing with her pink nails as they laid together in silence. He felt so good, so complete. Elli did this to him. He wanted more. So much more with her.

“When I introduced you to Mary Ann, I wanted to call you my girlfriend, Elli,” he looked up at her to see her eyes were wide, “I’ve never had a girlfriend, so I’m not sure if I’ll do the boyfriend/girlfriend thing right, but the thought of you being with someone else, or me with someone else, actually hurts my gut, so I guess what I’m trying to say is,” he took a deep breath, this was huge, and he thought he sounded stupid, but with the way her eyes were glazing over, maybe he was doing this right.

“I was wondering if you wanted to be my girlfriend.”

She smiled at him lovingly, cupping his face in her hands.

“Are you sure? I’m kinda crazy.”

He laughed, kissing her palm. “I’m sure.”

“Then, yes, Shea, I would love to be your girlfriend.”

Chapter 11

The next couple of days flew by. Even with all of the weddings, baby showers, and birthday parties, all Elli could think about was that she was Shea Adler’s girlfriend!

Sitting in her glass seats and watching her hunky boyfriend play had been awesome! It was ten times better than it had ever been. He would give her little smiles, or hit the glass in front of her with pucks, or just come over and smile at her. This caused people to talk around her, but she didn’t care!

She was Shea Adler’s girlfriend!

Elli was in her truck, listening to her new mix CD while driving to Shea’s so they could go to his sister’s for dinner. She was wearing a pair of jeans with a cute purple plaid short sleeved shirt. It was getting chillier, but not cold enough for fall clothes yet. She loved Fall in Tennessee it was so rich with color, so beautiful. It was one of her favorite times of the year, and she couldn’t wait. It also meant that hockey season would be in full swing, and that meant that Shea would be traveling a lot.

He was leaving tomorrow for a week to play games in Dallas and Tampa Bay, and then he would be home for two weeks. He had to fly out for two games before going back out for a week. November was going to be the worst, because Shea would only be home for two home games. Needless to say, she was not looking forward to November.

Elli then remembered that she had to bring Shea home for dinner in the next couple weeks. She was so nervous that he would probably drop her like a bad habit after meeting her family, and she would never see him again. So really, she might not have to worry about November.