I paused under an umbrella and observed Denny, my heart thumping in my chest for reasons unknown. He looked genuinely happy and relaxed in the company of people he allowed to know him—his ex and his coach. His skin was golden from hours in the sun with Bess, his smile wide and open as if he didn’t have a care in the world. My gaze roamed over his tonedbiceps to his perfect ass…just as Mary-Kate dipped her hand, skimming her fingers possessively on his lower back and?—
“The new neighbor!” Vinnie Kiminski, my teenage hockey crush thrust his hand at me. He was a muscular man with dark hair and a contagious grin. And once upon a time, he’d struck fear on the ice in the NHL. “Good to see you, man.”
“You too.” I shook his hand and narrowed my eyes at the blond kid hopping on one foot beside him. “Jumping beans or ants in your pants?”
The boy snickered, flashing missing front teeth.
Vinnie ruffled the boy’s hair affectionately. “Someone slipped Alec a soda…or two.”
“Only one, Dad,” Alec huffed, hopping around me. “Do you have a horse? I saw one in your field when we were catching frogs at the creek.”
“Ah, I actually have two horses,” I replied. “Bess and Fred. They’re super nice. Well…Bess is nice. Fred can be ornery.”
“Oh. I rode on a pony at the fair two times, but I’ve never been on a horse.”
Vinnie blinked in faux surprise. “Wow, I feel like I know where this is going.”
“Can I meet your horses?” Alec asked, undeterred. “I’m almost seven. That’s old enough to ride a horse, right?”
“Absolutely. Come by with your dads sometime.”
Alec whooped with joy. “Yes! Thank you! I have hockey camp all summer, but I can come after camp.”
I smiled, loving his unrestrained enthusiasm. “I’ll give your dad my number, and we’ll figure something out.”
“Woohoo!” He jumped, punching his fists in the air before darting away.
Vinnie snort-laughed. “That’s what we call the Alec avalanche. Congrats. You just won a friend for life.”
“Lucky you,” JC drawled, joining the conversation. “I have to rely on food to make friends.”
“How’s that going for you?” Vinnie teased.
“Terrible. Kids are bad for my waistline. They like zee shakes andpomme frittesandgateau au chocolat. I should get a horse like Hank. No calories, eh?”
Vinnie shook his head mournfully. “Meh, Riley will never go for it.”
“Go for what?” Riley asked, snaking an arm around JC.
Yep, another hockey idol. Apart from the occasional up-nods in town, I hadn’t had a real conversation with Elmwood’s elite hockey crew. Not only was Riley Thoreau a great player, but coming out publicly when he was still in the league had elevated him to rock-star status in my mind.
“We’re getting a horse,mon cher.”
Riley rolled his eyes. “It would probably decimate the veggie garden, and that would just piss you off.”
“True. Well, it was a nice fantasy while it lasted.” JC sighed.
We all laughed. Our circle grew as conversation shifted to camp news and the higher than anticipated influx of newbies.
“It sounds like a six-week party,” I observed.
“Oh, hell yeah!” Vinnie launched into funny camp exploits from the past.
I chuckled along with everyone else as my gaze drifted across the yard to Denny and his friends, which now included Jake and a couple of guys I recognized from the mill…Niall and Micah, who definitely didn’t like me.
This was a perfect opportunity to charm them. This was why I was here in the first place—to make friends and spread goodwill, on behalf of Bruce Cunningham and RM Mill. I wasn’t Denny’s date. This was a job.
But now Denny was making his way to me…and fuck, I needed to control my smile. I was too obvious.
