Hockey Holidays Read online

  That was a lie. The Erik she knew had loved having a fuss made over him when it came to hockey. When it came to all things off the ice, he wasn’t as good with other people’s emotions, though.

  “I’m a professional,” Chelsea insisted, though the excited gleam in her eye made Andie nervous.

  As if she didn’t have enough to be anxious about. She didn’t have the mental bandwidth to worry about how Chelsea would react to Erik walking through the doors tomorrow morning.

  She had enough to worry about when it came to herself. She had a little more than twelve hours, give or take a few, to get a hold of herself before she saw him again.

  Forget the blue eyes, she told herself. Forget how just the sight of him made her pulse quicken. She needed to remember how much it had hurt when he’d let her walk out his door for the last time.

  She couldn’t let herself forget that when it came to a choice between hockey and Andie, Erik chose the game every time.

  Chapter Two

  Erik tossed his bag on the floor and his keys on the table, kicking the door closed behind him. Usually his mind would be turning the game over and over in a constant replay loop. Analyzing his play. Noting his mistakes. Cataloging his aches and pains, though they didn’t matter. Mentally telling himself what he needed to do better for the next game.

  Tonight there was only one thing on his mind.

  Andie.

  Taking Peanut into the clinic and coming face to face with Andrea Morgan had blown every other thought out of his head.

  Walking away from her was the stupidest move he’d ever made. They’d been together eight months and they’d been the best eight months of his life, but like every relationship he’d ever had with a woman, it started taking time and focus away from his game.

  His phone rang and the few seconds he thought it might be Andie were a rollercoaster. There was the spike in his pulse at the thought of talking to her again, but then he was afraid she might be calling with bad news about Peanut.

  But it was his sister, Kristen, and he flopped down on the couch as he answered. “Hey, Kris.”

  “Are you home?”

  “Literally just walked in the door.”

  “Good game,” she said, and he knew that she meant it, but she also didn’t call to talk about it. That would be his dad’s call once he let him know he was home. While falling in love with a hockey player had loosened her up a bit, to say she wasn’t a hockey fan was an understatement. Before she hooked up with Cross, she’d actually hated the game, probably because of all the sacrifices the family had made for Erik’s career.

  “Thanks,” he said. “What’s up?”

  “Are you going to Dad’s for Christmas break?”

  It seemed like an odd question. “I’d planned on it. Why?”

  “Is he going to be a dick if I bring Will over?”

  Lamont Burke wasn’t any more of a fan of Will “Cross” Lecroix than Erik had been, but the guy wasn’t actually that bad. And he was head-over-heels for Kristen. They were happy, so Erik was willing to leave their rivalry on the ice. “I’ll talk to him. I think he’ll be okay, though. He’s getting used to the idea and now when Cross comes up, most of the words that come out of his mouth could be said on TV.”

  “Network or cable?”

  Erik chuckled. “Give him time. Oh hey, I got a dog.”

  There was a long silence. “What do you mean, you got a dog?”

  “I found her and now I have a dog.”

  “Erik, you need to back up.” He could tell she’d put him on speakerphone, but she only did that when she was alone. “You found her?”

  “She ran across the road in front of me and I stopped. She’s spending the night at the clinic because she’s obviously been on her own for a while. But she’s cute and she likes me.”

  “Last time I suggested you get a dog or a cat or a damn fish or anything to keep you company, you said you couldn’t care for a pet because you spend too much time on the road.”

  “Yes, I did say that. And it’s still true, but you can help us out with that, right Auntie Kristen?”

  “Don’t call me that, and I am not babysitting your dog, Erik.”

  “But she’s—”

  “No. Nope. Not a chance.”

  “You should meet her,” he said. “She’s the cutest little thing.”

  “There are plenty of kids out there who’d love to babysit the cutest little thing.”

  Erik frowned. “You want me to leave her with some random kid I find on the internet?”

  “You found her on the side of the road.” Erik was very offended on Peanut’s behalf, so he didn’t respond. Kristen finally broke the awkward silence with a sigh. “Okay. I’ll help you, but I’m not going to be your dog sitter. I’m busy. But I’ll help you find somebody who will take really good care of Peanut because she’s had a rough go and she deserves to be a princess.”

  “Thank you,” he said, relieved she was on board. He knew she’d give in because she loved animals and she had a hard time resisting her brother, too, but she had a lot going on in her own life.

  “I’ll get back to you tomorrow sometime with some potentials.”

  “Thanks.” And then, because it was on his mind and he needed to talk about it, he spilled the rest. “So there’s more to the story.”

  “There’s more? I’m still trying to get over picturing you with a dog.”

  “The vet I took her to was…somebody from my past.”

  “Yeah, you’re going to have to narrow that down. Way down.”

  He rolled his eyes, even though she couldn’t see him. “Andrea Morgan.”

  Kristen sucked in an audible breath. “Oh, shit.”

  Those two words meant Kristen got it and he wouldn’t have to explain why it was a big deal. She could probably guess how rocked he was by seeing Andie again, which was good since he didn’t really want to vocalize it.

  “That was the first time you’ve seen her since the break-up, right?” she asked.

  “Yeah.” When he was awake, anyway. He dreamed about her a lot.

  “That must have been quite the emotional sucker-punch.” That was his sister, always getting right to the heart of a thing. “How was she?”

  “She didn’t throw anything at me or try to stab me with a doggy needle or anything, but I wouldn’t say she was happy to see me.”

  “I wouldn’t expect her to be. Not after…what happened.”

  What happened. Such a bland way of describing the day he’d broken Andie’s heart and probably ruined any chance of happiness he’d ever have, not that he’d realized that at the time. At the time, he’d been almost proud of himself—proud of his laser focus on his game, because hockey was the only thing that mattered. It was how his father had raised him. Hockey first. He’d never amount to much if he let anything affect his game.

  “She’s going to be there tomorrow when I pick up Peanut,” he said.

  “I still can’t believe you have a dog.”

  He couldn’t believe it, either. He still wasn’t sure what he was going to do with her, but he sure as hell couldn’t just dump her with a vet—even if it was Andie—and walk away. “What should I say to her?”

  “Sit. Stay. No, you can’t have my bacon.”

  “I mean Andie, smartass.” He snorted. “And she can have my bacon.”

  “If that’s meant as some kind of sexual euphemism, I’m hanging up on you.”

  “No, I mean I would literally share my bacon with her.”

  “So let me get this straight,” Kristen said in a tone that made Erik wince because he wasn’t going to like whatever she was about to say next. “You wouldn’t make room in your twenty-four-seven living and breathing hockey life, but you’ll share your bacon with her? I’m just trying to nail down your rating system.”

  “That’s harsh, Kris.” Her words—deserved though they may be—cut him like a blade. “And you’re not exactly unbiased since you hate hockey.”

  She sighed