Score Her Heart: A Marriage of Convenience Hockey Romance (Philadelphia Bulldogs Book 2) by Danica Flynn (free novels .TXT) 📕

Why hadn’t I asked Fi to come to the game tonight? I asked her to come to Saturday’s game, but I wasn’t sure why I didn’t ask her to come tonight.

I shook my thoughts away when the change-up came, and I was back on the ice again. I would think about all that stuff later, right now I needed to help my team win this game.

Somehow, we managed to win the game. I liked to think it was because we played our hearts out and skated our balls off, but really it was because the other team had the worst penalty kill in the league right now. The superstitious part of me was thanking the hockey gods for our good luck. I rubbed my shoulder as I put my wedding ring back on.

“You okay?” Benny asked from his spot beside me at his own cubby. He was combing back his hair, still wet from his shower, while I stripped off my gear.

I rolled my shoulder again. I had gotten boarded during the second period, and there was no fucking penalty. The refs pretended like it didn’t happen, but I felt okay. Doc Franklin even made me do a baseline test during the intermission, and then he wanted to look at me again after the game. I felt fine, but I’d never had a concussion before, so I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to feel if I was concussed. They wanted me to keep an eye on it, but I thought they were freaking out over nothing.

“All good,” I told him.

Benny raised a dark eyebrow. “You sure?”

“Benny, get off my dick. I passed the baseline test.”

He hummed at me.

“Boys!” G cheered. “Tonight’s win calls for a drink! No one gets out of it, except you underage rookies. You can beat it!”

I sighed. As much as I could use a drink, I really wanted to get home to Fi, but I knew that shit was important to G. It was important that there wasn’t lingering drama in the locker room and that we were a team in sync with each other. I had played on other teams where the locker room was a toxic waste dump, but so far, the Bulldogs had been a good place for me for the past three years. I was sure some of the boys’ significant others would show up, at least those that came to the games, and I itched to call Fi, but I knew she wasn’t ready for being around this part of my life. I wondered if she ever would be.

Benny nudged me. “What’s with you?”

“I miss Fi.”

He laughed. “Ask G if you can get out of it.”

I shook my head and wrapped my towel around my waist. “It’s fine. I’ll see you over there.”

He gave me a little sarcastic salute while he changed back into his suit.

“Yo man.” Hallsy slapped me on the back after I was showered and dressed to head to the bar. He fixed his tie and ran a hand across his recently shaved jaw. His girlfriend Mia wasn’t much for facial hair, and the man obliged her.

“Hey, man. What’s up?” I asked and kept stride with him as we walked outside the arena and to our respective vehicles.

He looked down at his phone and frowned. “Why do you keep retweeting stuff from this one writer? I didn’t even know you could read.”

“Har har har,” I muttered.

Hallsy’s brown eyes widened, and I realized he saw my left hand. “G wasn’t kidding. Did you get married?”

“Yup. It’s my wife, by the way.”

He looked confused. “Who is?”

I rolled my eyes. “The author I keep on retweeting. She’s my wife.”

Hallsy stared down at his phone and smirked. “Damn, your wife’s smoking! I didn’t know you were seeing anyone.”

Didn’t I know it? I punched him in the arm. “Still my wife, Hallsy. And I wasn’t.” I waved my hand away when he gave me a ‘go on’ sort of look. “It’s a long story.”

He shook his head and laughed, his dark curly hair bouncing around. I watched him get into his car and speed away. I sat in my SUV for a minute, debating whether I could go home and get out of having a drink with the boys. The boys were great, they were my pals and my teammates, but my heart ached to see Fi.

I dropped my head onto the steering wheel with a sigh. This was bad. I loved her so much, but I didn’t think it was love for her. Oh, she was very much attracted to me, that was clear, but I thought it was just sex for her. I liked sex, a lot, so it was great, but I never knew how much it could hurt to be with someone who didn’t love you back.

Which was why I hadn’t initiated being intimate with her since we got back from Vegas. I didn’t want her to think that was the only reason I married her. If she wanted this bod, she was going to have to ask for it.

So on that depressing note, I drove off in my SUV to meet the guys at the bar and grab a drink or two. I sat at the bar and drank my whiskey while my mind was preoccupied with how to fix my weird marriage.

A blonde with legs for days sidled up on the stool beside me. “So what position do you play?” she asked with a seductive smile.

“Defense,” I stated flatly.

When I brought my glass up to my mouth, she must have seen the ring on my hand because next thing I knew, she was cozying up to TJ. Good for him, because I was only interested in one woman right now, and she was home alone and probably in my bed. With that thought, I finished my drink.

I clapped G on the shoulder. “See you, man. I gotta get home.”

He eyed me confused, and then his