Page 44 of Gross Misconduct

I couldn’t argue with her thought process. While she cleaned, Chloe cuddled with me on the sofa. I watched whatever game was on, and when Jill was finished, she glanced at her watch and yawned.

“I know it’s barely ten, but I’m exhausted. I get up pretty early. You’re welcome to stay up as long as you want.”

She headed off to bed, and Chloe looked at me as if to ask where she was going. When she realized that Jill wasn’t coming back, she hopped off the bed and followed her, leaving me all alone. Chloe had no idea how much I wanted to follow Jill too.

I didn’t get to sleep right away. By now, I should have been able to sleep in any bed, but I kept thinking of Jill in the other room. I tossed and turned, trying to get the thought out of my head. At one point I did fall asleep and got up around six in the morning. I wandered into the bathroom, and when I finished, I stopped at Jill’s open door. I don’t know what possessed me, but I poked my head in. I could see her feet under the covers but nothing more. I took a few more steps in to see her asleep in bed, her blonde hair sprawled over the pillow. Chloe was right up against her, her head resting on Jill’s arm.

I snuck back out and didn’t try to get back to sleep. I snooped through all the drawers until I found the coffee. Ethan had some state-of-the-art maker, and it took me fifteen minutes and a YouTube video to figure it out. I had practice that morning and planned to go to my place for a pregame nap. I was thinking about this and staring at the coffeemaker when Jill padded into the kitchen with Chloe at her heels.

I glanced over and nearly did a double take. Jill had on a simple T-shirt and pajama shorts that showed off her long, toned legs. I tried not to stare at her disheveled hair that made her look sexy.

“Morning,” I said. “I finally figured out the coffee machine. How did you sleep with your new sleeping partner?” The one that wasn’t me.

Her face lit up. “Actually, really good. She cuddled up with me and it was kind of nice. Thanks for making the coffee. You need a degree to work that machine.”

She yawned as she went to grab a mug. I had to stop staring at her.

“While this coffee takes forever to make, I’ll go take Chloe for a quick walk. I can’t stay for breakfast. I have practice and I don’t want to eat before I go. You okay being with Chloe until after I get home from the game?”

“Yeah, but you’re not coming back after practice?”

I explained the whole game-day nap, and she understood. What I really needed was for her to get dressed. Her shorts were short.

“All right. I’m sure Chloe and I can handle it,” she said, leaning over and scratching Chloe behind the ears. I took the quickest of glances down her shirt and had to look away. The crest of her breasts was more than enough to get me going.

“Let’s go, Chloe,” I said quickly. I had to get out of there before she figured out what was going on. More importantly, I needed to figure out what was going on.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Jill

With Jeremy at practice and nothing for me to do, and more importantly, it being Sunday, I took Chloe to the park Nadia had told me about. We headed for the fenced-off small section until I could trust Chloe with her recall. Nadia waved when she saw me and brought her beagle, Misty, with her to play with Chloe and a few other dogs in the fenced area.

“So glad you could make it,” she said.

Chloe and Misty immediately recognized each other and ran off chasing each other. That gave me a chance to chat more with Nadia. I was trying to find ways to make friends, and maybe she would be the first one.

“I’m not going to lie, but my husband wouldn’t stop talking about you and your boyfriend on the way home. He said he’s never met a Kodiak before.”

“Oh, that,” I said with a laugh. “You know, I can get you tickets anytime. I work for the Kodiaks.”

Nadia’s light brown eyes lit up. “You do?”

“In PR. That’s how I met Jeremy.”

“He’s a hottie, but don’t tell Brett I said that.”

“My lips are sealed. What do you do?”

“I’m a real estate agent. Brett is a dentist.”

“He could come in handy for Jeremy.”

We lost all track of time while we chatted. The fact it wasn’t raining helped. She was twenty-nine and had lived in Vancouver all her life. She’d met Brett when he moved from out east and was looking for a place eight years ago. They’d been married two years, and Brett was a hockey fan and so was Nadia, although not nearly as fanatical as Brett.

“I shouldn’t ask, but I’m nosey,” Nadia said. “Were you dating him when the video came out of him with his teammate’s wife?”

Her question caught me off guard. It was nosey and completely inappropriate. In fact, it pissed me off a little. I thought to tell her that but wondered what either Tangi or Wolseley would do. Tangi would politely tell Nadia she didn’t want to talk about it. Wolseley would be too nice about it. I decided to go with neither approach.