Back Check (Aces Hockey #4)(22)

"Really? Well, he always was a bit cocky. And come on, you broke the poor man's heart."

 

"He's the one who left. I was the one with the broken heart."

 

"Katelyn. Seriously. Is that how you remember it?"

 

"It's the truth."

 

"He had to leave."

 

"I know." She sighed. "I don't blame him. Except I do. Because I couldn't leave."

 

"You would never have expected him to stay. To give up his hockey career."

 

"Of course not. I don't know what I expected. Maybe for him to fight harder for us instead of just walking away."

 

Rachel cocked her head. "Maybe he thinks the same."

 

Katelyn shook her head. "I doubt it. He's over me. He married someone else, even though they're divorced now. He doesn't like seeing me, though. I can tell that." One corner of her mouth twisted up. "It makes it a little awkward. Lovey and Marc are so nice and their friends are fun."

 

"It's just a job, though. You have to do your job, get through the wedding, and you'll never have to see him again."

 

Ouch. Katelyn bent her head and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Why did that sting? She didn't want to see Tanner. She'd be glad when this was all done.

 

Their salads arrived and they picked up their forks to dig in.

 

"We should go to a game," Rachel said.

 

"A hockey game? No way."

 

"Come on. Why not?"

 

"I don't want anything to do with hockey."

 

"Wouldn't it impress your clients if you did that, though? To show you're interested in their lives."  

 

"No. I don't have to be interested in their lives." That was a lie. She always had to be interested in her clients' lives, knowing their likes and dislikes, their passions and pastimes-that way she could make their event as personal for them as it could be.

 

"You're so stubborn."

 

"I know." She smiled.

 

"Do they have any other hot single friends?" Rachel asked. "For you, I mean. Not me."

 

Katelyn laughed. "Well, Hugh was flirting with me. Apparently he's single. But no way am I going out with a hockey player. No way am I going out with anyone. I'm a menace to men everywhere."

 

Rachel burst out laughing. "Oh my God."

 

"I am! Look what happened with Daniel, Parker, and Ethan. I led them right to the altar, then ditched them and broke their hearts."

 

Rachel winced. "Yeah, I know. But better that you realize you didn't love them before you get married than after. They just weren't the right guys for you. You'll find the right guy."

 

Katelyn shook her head, but an ache formed behind her sternum because she was afraid that she'd already met the right guy … and he'd left her behind.

 

She shook her hair back behind her shoulders. "Nope. Not looking. Not going there again. Now, never mind me. How are things at your work?"

 

Rachel was an intellectual property lawyer. For the rest of their lunch they chatted about her job, friends of theirs, and plans to go to hot yoga Saturday morning before Katelyn did a birthday party.

 

After lunch, she was off to a corporate event she'd been working on for a while, a rewards and recognition dinner for a big pharmaceutical company being held at Trump Tower. The flower arrangements were being delivered that afternoon and the AV company she'd hired was setting up. She needed to put aside thoughts of the Armstrong-Dupuis nuptials and hot hockey players and trade rumors, and focus on pulling off this dinner.

 

-

 

"Oh no. Oh no, no, no." Katelyn rolled to her back on the towel she'd laid over her yoga mat and closed her eyes, her heart racing.

 

"What?" Rachel whispered. They weren't supposed to talk in the heated yoga studio before class started.

 

"Nothing."

 

She could not believe who she'd just seen enter the Bikram yoga studio … four very large, very muscled guys. They'd found spots near the door and were quietly unrolling yoga mats and towels.

 

For the love of Gandhi, what the hell were they doing there? She only recognized three of them-Tanner, Duncan, and Marc-but she assumed the fourth guy was also a hockey player.

 

She stayed flat on her back, eyes closed. Hopefully they wouldn't look over this way and see her.

 

How could this be? They'd lived in the same city for years and never even knew it. Now she'd run into him how many times? And this … this was ridiculous.

 

Her muscles had all tensed up. She needed to relax for this yoga session. She let the chill music flow over her and focused on breathing.

 

The instructor spoke quietly at the front of the room. "Welcome. I'm Deesha." She ran through a few pointers about the class and finished, "Remember that yoga isn't just about the body but is about creating harmony and love inside and out, connecting the mind and the body. Most of all, relax and enjoy yourself."