Mind Pucked (Chicago Blue Jays #1)

10. Jackson

10

JACKSON

I ’m in the locker room getting ready for the game. The usual swapping of underwear and socks happens, and I stifle a smile at my teammates shenanigans.

Most of these guys don’t even think about the germs their junk gives off and how sharing said germs might land any one of them in a sorry position. I’ve never been one for such rituals, but if it’s rituals that get these guys going, then by all means…ritual away.

“Are you not worried about Felix’s ball hairs mingling with yours, Oliver?” I ask as I pull my own shorts up.

“Shut up, man, you’re just jealous ’cause your ass is too big to fit our shorts,” Oliver retorts as he wiggles his ass at me.

I grab my towel and snap it in his direction, and it lets out a whap sound as it connects with his left cheek.

“Ow, man, that fucking hurts,” Oliver bellows as he jumps away, rubbing his cheek. “I’ll get you back, Jackson—just you wait.” But the smile on his face suggests he’s joking.

Luca walks in, a little late for his normal pregame happenings, and I have a sinking suspicion that something is up with him. Between my worries over Luca and the fact that my mother is in the stands with my daughter and nanny, I have a feeling something will go wrong today.

My mother doesn’t know when to keep her mouth shut sometimes, and given the fact that Hayden likes Amelia so much, she’s liable to say something to Amelia to try to run her off. I don’t want that to happen, but on the other hand, I also don’t want my mother to assume I’m sleeping with the help.

Which I am, but she doesn’t have to know that. Not that I think of Amelia as the help much either, but…I shake my head as a whole host of hoots and hollers come from the door as our families start to enter the locker room.

I smile as I see Amelia and Hayden in the group, but seeing my mother in the mix just sends my stomach rolling.

“Jacksy, my boy,” she says as she blows air kisses at me.

“Daddy,” Hayden says as she wrinkles her little face and jumps from Amelia’s arms into mine.

Our attention cuts to the center of the room as the hockey sticks began to drum on the ground. This is known as “TJ,” and the families like to be involved. The sticks make an echoing sound as they slap against the concrete, and I hand my practice stick to Hayden so she can join in. There’s no way I’m going to let her use my game stick.

She joins in on the drumming, and I smile to see all the guys tapping their sticks to their own individual rhythm.

Stephen from team two does a little double tap between each long tap. Oliver is definitely dancing to the beat of his own drum as he knocks his stick side by side with Felix. I follow the rhythm that Hayden sets for us as she dances up and down with her stick.

Eventually all the players come together in the middle, jiggling their sticks and tapping them to the ground. They each overlap until they become a mingle of plastic and wood. Soon, we’re all tapping in unison, showing that our team can work as one.

I look over to see my mother scowling at the noise, but Amelia is looking at Hayden who’s wearing the biggest smile I’ve ever seen on her face. Soon, Oliver breaks free from the chaos and throws Hayden into the air, planting her on my shoulders as we finish the ritual.

This is so much better than swapping underwear.

I look over at my mother who is also looking at me, but then she looks back at Amelia like she’s realized the nanny is watching me. A look crosses her face, but it quickly leaves as she seems to realize that Amelia must be watching Hayden on my shoulders. My mother nods to me as she takes her leave from the locker room. She’s never been one for such rowdy practices, even when I was a boy.

She would let me hang out with my friends and fellow teammates as long as we wanted, as long as we weren’t rowdy. Once we worked up to more than a normal octave, she usually shut us down quickly. I hope one day Hayden can experience the chaos and joy of friendship like this. These are my brothers.

Once the drumming stops, Amelia walks up and grabs Hayden off my shoulders.

“Down you go,” she says with a smile as she helps her down, grabbing her hand at the end. “Let’s go find your grandmother so we can sit with her for your daddy’s game.”

“Play really good for me, Daddy,” Hayden says, smiling as she bounces off toward the door holding Amelia’s hand.

My heart swells at how happy this little girl has been recently. I think about all the nannies we had in the past, and how she hadn’t gotten close to anyone since her mother. Not that she was old enough to remember her mother, but I know she senses that no one will replace the woman who meant so much to both of us.

I watch as Coach walks up to the center of the room as we all sit down or take a knee. He’s usually good for a pep talk, and the closer we get to winning this thing, the more intense his talks become.

“You guys are all winners,” he begins, but before he can say another word, we all cheer. “I know our team has gone through a lot together. You guys have grown, have learned how to take a few punches, and have developed skills far beyond what I imagined. I want you to go out there and do your best, be your best, and win this thing!”

It isn’t a particularly long or loving speech, but it’s enough that cheers erupt from all of us, and we get up and throw our fists in the air. I join in on the madness as we all grab our things and whoop and holler as we exit the locker room, making our way to the entrance of the arena.

Still making a scene, we enter the arena from our designated doorway. The entire audience erupts in cheers as we come out, allowing each one of us to be announced with both our names and numbers. Each of us gives our signature cheer or dance as we amp up the crowd, getting them ready for an awesome game.

I look across the ice to where the other team is warming up. It’s getting so close to the playoffs—they’re going to be good.

“Look, boys, the girls are coming in,” the right wing from the other team says.

“Your mother!” Felix shouts back as we pass.

I smile, because there’s nothing wrong with a little playful banter, especially if our team ends up winning. It doesn’t always have to be harsh or mean words—a simple knock on a guy’s inability to score can put a player over the edge. It’s honestly one of my favorite parts of the game.

I smile and wave playfully at the team’s right wing as we skate by, blowing him a kiss for distraction.

“Don’t, Jackson, he might like that a little too much,” Oliver says as he pats me on the ass.

I look over to where Felix guards his goal. He’s gesturing obscenities at the goalie from the other team. Oliver takes his center position as face-off is about to begin.

A whistle is blown as the centers take their position. The puck is released, and the game starts as Oliver darts forward, sticking the puck before our opponents can grab it.

I see Luca take up his position from the corner of my eye, wishing like hell it was Preston. I might be upset that he was with my wife when she died, and that he and I had been rivals all our lives, but I do miss playing with the sorry bastard.

“Luca, watch out!” I yell as the other team’s left wing flanks in, accidentally hitting Luca in the chest with his elbow.

Oliver shoots the puck in the general direction of the other team’s goal and I quickly skate up and grab it with my stick. I glance over to make sure Vaughn and Benjamin are in their places as I lock eyes with Felix.

He has full control of our goal as I head toward the other team’s.

As I make a move to pass the puck, I catch Amelia watching me from the stands. My heart does something I’m not sure I like as I fake the pass, dodging a player from the other team and an elbow to the nose, but just barely. I shoot the puck and it’s intercepted by Oliver who has seemingly come out of nowhere. He banks the shot and makes the goal as the puck zooms past their keeper.

“Score!” Felix cheers from our goal.

One of the asshats from the other team spits profanities our way as they set up to start again.

The play begins again as we set up a similar action. Vaughn fakes left, intercepting a pass from Benjamin who’s playing defense. I glance over in time to see ol’ Benny boy take one to the face. He spins around and grabs the jersey of the player on the other team.

A brawl breaks out when both players go skidding into the glass partition on the other side of the rink. Oliver sinks the goal and cheers erupt, but a penalty is being called.

“Come on, man,” I say as I go to play my part as enforcer. “Get off him!” I yell, grabbing Ben’s jersey and pulling him back a good two feet.

The other player doesn’t want to take a hint as their enforcer comes to assist. It takes him and another guy to make sure their guy doesn’t piledrive Benjamin again. Ben backs up and allows me to pull him to his feet.

“Don’t need you getting the shit kicked out of ya,” I say, as I pat him on the shoulder and head.

The player from the other team is put in the box for a time-out as Ben smiles a bloody, toothy grin at the man who’s now fuming like a caged tiger.

“Just wait until I get out of here—I’m coming for you,” the player says as we set up.

“Oh, I’m shaking in my skates,” Benjamin says as he lines up to get things started again.

“Ben,” I scold him, but mostly it’s playful.

“What?” Benjamin smiles. “If mama bear over there wants to fight because I poked her cubs, then let’s see what the sow can do,” he finishes, making sure the player in the box can hear him.

The next play starts, and Luca, who’s been acting aggressively up to this point, decides to essentially steal the puck from Oliver. Oliver frowns at him, wondering what the hell he’s doing.

Luca looks at me as he passes, the other team’s players hot on his heels. It’s been fairly quiet, and other than showing up late, he hasn’t been his usual self. One of the other players sticks his stick out, tripping Luca as he makes his way to their goal.

Luca goes flying, and before I can get to him, he throws a punch the lands directly in the opponent’s face. Both players crashed to the ground, but of course it’s Luca who will get the penalty for this. While the other player initiated it, Luca was the first to start the brawl.

“Stop, man—you know we can’t afford a damn penalty!” I yell at him, wishing like hell he had a more level head. I grab his arm to help him up, realizing that he’s bleeding from his nose.

“Get off me, man.” He shrugs my hand off his arm and scrambles to his feet.

I watch as Luca enters the box and throws his helmet to the ground. He nurses his gushing nose, resulting in a medic coming to assist.

I try not to pay too much attention to the blood draining from his nose that might be broken. I wince when the medic pops it back into place, and my eyes begin to water at the thought of it.

After Luca gets let back in, the game continues to be really intense. We take turns slamming opponents into barriers, shit-talking, and just round about playing a normal game of hockey.

As we get closer to playoffs, the teams are all fighting hard to make sure they get a spot. My adrenaline kicks into overdrive as we approach halftime.

So far, we’re winning, but the second half could bring on any amount of changes. The whistle blows, marking the end of the first half, and my stomach lurches. I don’t know if it’s post-traumatic stress or what, but even though it’s been a few years, this part of the game gets me every time.

As we skate off the ice to enter the locker room once again, all I can think about is the day that officer came to tell me my wife had been in an accident. So many games have been played since then, so many years have passed, but still it’s the only thing I can think of until the hype of the locker room replaces the thoughts in my mind.

We walk in cheering, throwing our skates off to the side so we can have a break. Eventually the morbid thoughts are replaced with the beautiful face of my daughter and Amelia as they walk into the room.

“Looks like your job as enforcer has come in handy tonight.” Amelia smiles.

“More than a few times,” I say with an eye roll in Luca’s general direction.

His nose is taped with a ridiculous amount of white medical tape. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought he was one of those nerds on the beach with a glob of sunscreen on his nose. I don’t stare too long, looking back to Amelia and my daughter.

“What’s up with him?” Amelia asks as Hayden runs over to give Felix a high five.

“Not sure…he’s had his shorts in a wad for a while now. If you ask me, we’d have better luck if someone else moved to the team from team two, but no one plays his spot as well as he does.” I wipe sweat from my neck with a towel.

“I see,” she says, just as my mother walks in.

Her demeanor is better now that the game is half over and there’s less noise than before.

“Good game so far, son,” she says, and I smile at her. “Your nanny and I have been chatting, and it seems Hayden has quite the affinity for the sport.”

I smile at Hayden as she runs from Felix to me and jumps into my arms.

“Yes. You do, don’t you, baby?” I say as I knock my nose against her little cheek.

“What, Daddy?” she asks with a wrinkle of her nose.

“You like hockey, don’t you?” Amelia says as she takes her from me and hugs her tight.

“I want to defend the goal like Uncle Felix one day,” Hayden says, but then she leans over to my mother and puts her hand to her mouth like she might be getting ready to tell a secret. “They get the most action,” she whispers.

We all laugh. “Is that what Uncle Felix told you?” I ask, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “Well, you, Amelia, and Grandma better make your way back out there—the second half will start soon enough.”

“Otay, Daddy,” she says as she slides out of Amelia’s arms and then takes each woman’s hand in hers to lead the way out. “This way, ladies,” she adds as they walk out the door.

Amelia looks back with a huge smile at the last moment, and I’m not sure but I think my mother might have noticed.

In the end, our team wins by a landslide. Throughout the rest of the game, there are many penalties from both sides, three fights, a lot of trash-talking, and another broken nose—but this time it’s the nose of the other team’s goalie when I send a puck flying at his face.

We cheer and celebrate in the locker room as our families gather. I smile at everyone as they make their way out of the room once their gear has been stripped off and put away. Only a few of us linger.

“We’re going to Ted’s bar to celebrate,” Oliver says as he jumps up and down. “You should come with us.”

He smiles at me. I have turned down too many invitations to the bar. I have too many responsibilities. I think about telling him no, when I remember my mother is with us. Maybe she can take Hayden home for the night.

Just then, as if on cue, my mom, Amelia, and Hayden walk in.

“You did amazing tonight, son,” my mother says as she gives me a genuine hug. “I was thinking, what if I took Hayden home with me for the night so you could go celebrate with the boys?”

I smile at her and nod, looking at my daughter for confirmation that this is what she wants. It’s nice that I don’t even have to ask.

“Do you want to go spend the night with your grandma tonight?” I ask her as I kneel on one knee in front of her.

“Yes, please, Daddy,” she says, jumping up and down and clapping her hands.

“See? It’s all set, man,” Oliver says as he walks toward the door. “See you at the bar.”

“Okay, Mom, if you’re okay with it, I’ll go home and pack a few of her things.”

“There’s no sense in that—I have enough at my house to last,” she says as she kisses my cheek, then grabs Hayden’s hand.

“Does this mean I’m off for the night then?” Amelia asks as my mom and Hayden walk out of the room.

“Yeah,” I say, but I don’t want to be rude. “But…you could always come hang out with the guys and I…come help us celebrate.”

“I don’t know about all that,” Amelia says. “I don’t know that me hanging out with a bunch of sweaty guys at a bar sounds like all that much fun.” She slaps me playfully on the arm and snorts out the most adorable laugh.

“We have all showered,” I say. “But fine, you can miss out on the madness. It can sometimes get more interesting than the games themselves.”

“Oh, I’m sure,” she says with an eye roll. “Okay, you’ve talked me into it.” She allows me to take her arm and walk out with her.

In no time, we show up at the bar. We walk in together, but not touching. I don’t know that I’m ready for the guys to get the wrong idea about us, but as soon as they all see that she’s with me, I wish they had the wrong idea.

“Amelia, over here,” Oliver says, waving her over.

She gives me a half-shy smile as she walks over to where Oliver, and a couple guys from the other team, are playing darts. Off the ice, we are all cool for the most part, though with enough beer in them, and the games they’re playing, it’s possible things might become heated again at some point.

I grab a drink from the bar and watch as Oliver talks to Amelia.

“I need another player—you wanna be on my team, babe?” he asks, and I can tell he already has a couple drinks in him.

“Sure, but only on one condition,” I hear Amelia say.

“What’s that, babe?” Oliver asks.

“Don’t ever call me babe,” Amelia says before grabbing a random shot off the table and downing it.

“Hey, that was my tequila shot,” Oliver says, but he laughs and hands her a few darts.

They begin playing as I try to ignore what’s going on over there. In exchange, I find a few of the guys sitting at the bar. Luca is nowhere to be seen, but Benjamin is there with his black eye, and Vaughn is sitting next to him, both with a glass of what I assume is whiskey.

“You’re drinking beer?” Vaughn asks me as I sit and sip my drink.

“Yeah, what’s wrong with that?” I ask.

“Tastes like piss water,” he answers as he takes a long pull from his own amber liquid.

“Have you had that much experience drinking piss water to know what it tastes like?” I counter, causing Benjamin to spit his drink all over the bartender who has just walked up.

“Oh shit, I’m sorry, man,” Ben says to man I can only assume is Ted of Ted’s bar.

“Don’t worry, happens more than you might think,” Ted answers.

I glance at his nametag…it does indeed say Ted.

“Yeah man, piss water. Beer—that’s what it smells like it would taste like,” Vaughn picks up where he left off like the bartender wasn’t just sprayed with Ben’s mouth liquor.

“Woohoo!” a cheer erupts from over at the dart game and we all turn to see Amelia annihilating Oliver at darts.

The few other wives and girlfriends of the players that are here have gathered to watch them play. Even the ladies belonging to the guys on the other team have joined in on the show.

I thought Amelia was supposed to be on Oliver’s team, but now it looks like they’re going head-to-head.

I continue to watch as they each take turns throwing three darts at the board. Amelia hasn’t hit the bullseye yet but has come far closer than Oliver to hitting it.

One of the wives has taken to keeping score. I ignore both Vaughn and Benjamin as Oliver lines up to throw his first dart of the round…his are blue, hers red.

He throws the first, holding a beer in his left hand as he does. It soars through the air and smacks the outer rim of the dartboard.

“Ohhh,” the crowd that has formed boos Oliver.

I can’t help but smile as I get up from the stool I’ve been sitting on and make my way over to watch. Half the bar is focusing on their game.

“Ten bucks on the bombshell,” one of the guys from the other team shouts to the man standing next to him.

“I’ll get in on that,” another man says, and before my eyes, money is being passed around.

Seems so silly to bet on a game of darts in a bar, but if these guys want to drink through the night, they have to make money somehow.

The bets usually start later in the night when some of the guys are running low on cash. Usually in the form of arm wrestling or hockey trivia…never this.

Oliver releases his second dart, and it hits right on the rim of the center bullseye.

“Yeah!” he cheers as he throws his hands in the air, sending a slosh of beer to rain down to the ground. “Oh shit, sorry, man,” Oliver says half-heartedly toward the bartender.

“Dumb luck,” Amelia says, and something squeezes inside me at how stunning she looks tonight. She’s so…relaxed, and it’s a good look on her.

Oliver sizes up the dartboard and squares his shoulders for his last throw. He mimics the pros you see on TV.

Finally, he releases the dart, and it hits DEAD CENTER.

The crowd hoots and hollers just like we were doing in the height of the game. This time, both teams are cheering together. I think it’s great when the guys from the other team decide to stay over and hang out…we all play the same game after all.

Amelia squares her shoulders and aims her first dart. The crowd goes wild as it skims the second dart Oliver threw, right on the rim of the inner bullseye. It’s a smart and calculated throw…at least I think so. When she tosses the second dart, and it lands nestled against his third dart in the middle…I know for sure she’s playing this game with skill.

I watch as the entire group essentially holds their breaths as she aims, breathes, and releases her third dart. It hits the butt of Oliver’s dart in dead center…and sticks, protruding from his blue dart. In fact, it has driven into the plastic of the dart beneath it.

The group goes crazy as money is redistributed appropriately, marking Amelia’s win.

“Wait, wait, wait, that doesn’t count, it didn’t even hit the board,” Oliver says in protest as he waves a hand at those passing money around.

Amelia sizes him up and then goes over to pluck her dart off the board. She then takes his dart off dead center and pushes it into his hand.

“Okay, watch this,” she says as she aims again, and throws the dart.

It hits dead center where his dart had been—this time there is no denying her skill as everyone breaks out in cheers.

I watch as Felix runs up to Amelia and hoists her up onto his shoulders as they all celebrate. She’s handed a shot and downs it.

My stomach coils with something similar to jealousy as I see Felix set her down and take her hand, leading her over to the pool table.

“Are you just as good at this game, darlin’?” he asks, purring through the alcohol clearly already in his system.

“Now this game,” she says as she picks up a ball from the table and looks at it before putting it back down. “I know nothing about this game.” She smiles at him, and it nearly sets me over the edge.

“I can show you how…give you a few pointers,” Felix says, but I have to look away before she answers.

I make my way over to Oliver who’s now sitting at the bar sulking. I clap him on the back, and he winces as if he’s a whipped pup.

“You sore you lost to a girl?” I tease him as I accept another beer from the bartender.

“Just sore I lost period,” he says as he downs a shot that’s just been set in front of him.

I smile at him as I turn on the stool. I face the pool table, but immediately wish I hadn’t. Felix has his arm around Amelia as she leans over the table with the pool cue in her hands. His hands are laid over hers as he teaches her how to shoot. My blood boils, and I can’t help but watch every move he’s making.

Amelia seems oblivious to the fact that Felix is trying to bait her with his usual tricks. She simply thinks she’s being taught how to play pool. I’ve worked as Felix’s wingman enough to know this is his routine…and next he’ll be buying her shots.

“Yep, here they come,” I mumble under my breath as a tray of shots is carried over to them and slapped down on top of the pool table.

They both stand as they grab a shot and drink before Felix opens his wallet and pays for the drinks. I can’t help feeling possessive of her as I get to my feet, leaving the conversation that Benjamin, Vaughn, and Oliver are now having about some defensive maneuver.

I walk over to the pool table, unsure what I’m going to do or say to deflect his attention from her. I cook up an idea as I pull out my phone and hold it up.

“Amelia, can I see you for a sec? My mom has a question about Hayden that I don’t know how to answer.” I note the time on the phone…it’s almost midnight.

“This late?” she squeals as she runs over to me, leaving Felix looking deflated.

I put my arm across her shoulders and lead her over to the other side of the bar.

“What does your mom need?” she asks, true concern lacing her face.

“My mom didn’t text me,” I admit, but then her face creases with concern and I have to think of something, anything that might help me out here.

“Then why in the world would you lie to me?” she asks, shock creasing her forehead.

“I just…” I mumble a little, sure this is going to sound bad no matter how I deliver it. “Felix is baiting you,” I blurt out.

“Baiting me?” she asks, but now irritation has replaced the confusion.

“I mean, this is his game.” I try to change my wording.

“Teaching me to play pool is a…game?” she asks.

“No, teaching you to play pool while filling you full of drinks he buys you, and putting his hands all over you in the name of being a good coach,” I growl, and I know I sound possessive.

“Oh,” she says, realization on her face. “OH…you’re jealous.”

“I am not,” I bite back. “I just don’t want other guys buying you drinks and putting their hands on you is all. It doesn’t look good, and that’s how I lost my last nanny.”

“Okay, I see how it is. You’re worried about losing your help.” She isn’t mad—she’s laughing at me.

Her laugh starts small and then bubbles up, becoming loud and infectious. I don’t know why she’s laughing, but it makes me smile hearing her do so, and soon I’m joining in.

“Why are we laughing?” I wonder as it dies down a little.

“If you don’t want other guys buying me drinks…then buy me one yourself,” she says as she playfully turns and smacks me with her hair.

She saunters over to the other side of the room and plants her ass in one of the bar stools. Felix has already moved on to someone else. He wraps his arms around the busty blonde who he’s now teaching how to play pool.

I roll my eyes as make my way over to where Amelia is sitting, and I take the stool next to her.

“Rum and coke,” I say to the bartender, and then point to Amelia. “And whatever the beautiful woman beside me wants.”

“I’ll take the same,” Amelia says, sending me a smile. “See, was that all that hard?”

“No,” I grumble, though I’m smiling too.