“What?” I gasped.
His eyes darkened when I met his gaze. “You heard me. That was hot. I love seeing you stand your ground, put him right in his place. It was beautiful. We deserve all the cookies. You for being a badass and me for not punching him in the jaw.”
I laughed. “Dammit, we left our plates of goodies, didn’t we? Ugh. I just wanted to get out of there.”
“I totally get it. And if you ever need me to step in and help, just tell me. I can just be supportive or I can turn on the macho bullshit.”
My belly fluttered. Why was that so damn charming? How was this man so in tune with me already?
“Thanks. I’ll make sure to keep you posted if I need the macho bullshit.” I couldn’t resist smiling at him. He almost made me giddy, a sensation I was not familiar with at all. Fortunately, I could stop dwelling on these foreign feelings because we’d made it back to the dessert table while we talked and he grabbed two plates for us to fill. Smart man.
“There you two are,” Cora said, a bright smile on her face. “I’m so glad you could come tonight, Dani. Sorry it was sprung on you so last minute.” She shot Gabe a glare.
“I know, I know. I’m the worst. Want a cookie?” he asked, holding out his now partially filled plate.
Cora chuckled. “Your sweet tooth is almost as bad as mine. I had at least two. I know we should save them for after dinner, but where’s the fun in that?”
I snorted. “Do you try distracting everyone with cookies?”
He shrugged. “It’s a solid plan. Cookie?” he asked me.
Cora shook her head at him and popped a piece of something chocolate in her mouth. “So good. Having a bestie who is a baker is so ideal,” she said after finishing her bite. “Now, let’s go sit before Christian gets antsy about starting the speeches late.”
“Christian?” I asked.
“Oh, my brother. The man loves a schedule more than anyone else I know. He’s the one who suggested we start our foundation focusing on the hospital. We’ve done fundraisers for them for years, but this is the first time it’s being funneled through the team foundation.”
“It’s a very worthy cause,” I said.
“Oh, and Meredith is here tonight. We can talk about One Center if you want.”
“I would love that.” I needed to talk to our director this week, but I was sure Sally wouldn’t mind any extra help, especially from people who could use their celebrity to get the word out about what we offered.
“Wonderful. You and Tucks are at our table.” She linked her arm through mine. “I’m sorry about Jensen. The Blizzard said some of their guys were coming tonight, but they didn’t provide us with a list. Want me to throw him out?”
“Tempting, but it’s fine. Hopefully, he’ll just leave us alone.”
“Damn right he will,” Gabe muttered.
Cora grinned. “It’s hot when they’re feisty, isn’t it?”
“Yes. Yes it is,” I replied, annoyed at the almost wistful tone of my voice.
I needed to get a rein on my swirling emotions. Between Gabe being all sweet and charming, and Roger and my dad putting me on edge tonight, my brain was bouncing like a damn tennis ball.
“Oh hey, Dani. Hey, Tucks, I saw you talking to your idol. You fangirl over Albans?” Sin asked when we got to the table. I froze.
“Uh, a bit,” Gabe said.
“Dani, did he forget how to talk? Malcolm Albans is a former goalie, one of the best to ever play. Tucks worships the man.”
Gabe shifted on his feet. “I wouldn’t go that far.”
“Sure you wouldn’t,” Nate added, chuckling. “Don’t you have his number on your goalie mask?”
“Uh, umm, yeah. So what? He’s a great goalie,” Gabe said. Could his friends hear the stilted his voice sounded?
Fuck. He had my father’s number on his mask. That was full-blown idol territory and the entire situation was fucked up. I could tell Gabe was waiting to see how I wanted to steer this.
