Leaving Normal, Stef Holm [ebook reader screen .TXT] 📗

any way she felt less desirable. She didn't look less desirable to him. In fact, she'd never been more beautiful.

"It's crazy in here," she laughed, her lips shiny with gloss and the overhead lights picking up varying strands of blond in her hair. "Is it always like this?"

"Absolutely."

"Wow." She returned her attention to the rink, then the announcer called for the start of the game.

The puck was dropped and sticks started slamming as the period got under way. Tony explained several things to Natalie when she asked. He had to lean toward her, talk into her ear. Whenever he did he smelled her perfume and was tempted to bring his lips to the shell of her ear and give her a kiss.

If she had any clue how much she affected him, she didn't show it. There had been a time or two when her question wasn't really a playing question, and he sensed maybe she asked just to get him to come closer.

All he knew was he was enjoying himself more than he had in a long time.

In between periods, they walked around the arena, nudging through the crowd. He wanted to buy her some pucks to throw on the ice.

She lagged behind him due to the tight congestion of people, and he instinctively reached out his arm, took her hand in his.

She was warm and soft, her fingers curling around him. He felt like the luckiest man in the place. Men looked at her, something she had to be used to, but perhaps she wasn't paying attention.

He steered them toward the puck booth, then stopped when he saw Walcroft wearing his blue volunteer EMT shirt.

"Hey, Wally." Tony didn't let go of Natalie's hand and she came up beside him. She shifted her weight as if she'd slip out of his fingers if he loosened his hold and free him from any obligations to keep tabs on her, but that wasn't happening. He wanted to keep her close.

"Cruz." Wally shook his hand, then moved his gaze to Natalie. "Hi."

Tony made the introductions. "I work with this guy. He's one of our hosemen."

"Nice to meet you."

He could tell Wally was impressed, not that it made a difference to Tony. He already knew he had something special. And he planned to get to know her much better and really figure her out.

"We work the games for nothing," Tony explained. "In return, we get ice time."

"Ice time?" she questioned.

Wally filled her in. "We're on the fire department hockey team."

She slanted her gaze up at him, her lips parted. "You are?"

"Yep. This coming Friday we play the police department in the third annual Guns and Hoses charity event."

"Boise's bravest whip the asses of Boise's so-called finest," Wally joked.

Tony knew Wally's words were optimistic—the fire department had lost the last two years, but this time it would be different. "We're going to smoke them this year. Rocky's out for blood."

"Well, hell," Walcroft said, "if Massaro is going for broken bones, the cops better look out."

Tony gave Natalie's hand a squeeze. "Come on, let's buy you some pucks."

At the booth he paid for ten of the yellow rubber pucks and handed five over to Natalie. He kept five for himself.

"What do I do with them?" she asked.

"In a minute, we're going to toss them."

"Oh…okay."

He kept hold of her hand and they resumed their seats. When the announcer made a call, everyone who'd bought pucks threw them on the ice. The one who came closest to the center circle won some money.

Natalie concentrated and made a toss; it was anyone's guess where the puck landed. She got close to the center-mark circle, as far as he could tell. He pitched the pucks he'd bought for himself. It was good fun. Neither of them had the number of their puck called out as a winner.

The toilet race started, his interest not really into the icecapades, but rather the woman beside him.

"You look nice tonight," he said, his voice loud enough so she could hear him but not so loud everyone else in the row could, as well.

She turned to him, gave him a playful bat of her eyelashes. "You already said that when you picked me up."

"I meant it then, and I mean it now."

She smiled. She had a great smile, one that got to him in the core of his heart. While sometimes he was sure he wanted to get crazy-deep involved with her, other times he held himself back.

The night moved quickly, the game was over and a sea of macaroni boxes ended up on the ice in celebration. Afterward, he asked Natalie if she wanted to go to Barde-nay for a drink. She said yes and, rather than move his truck from the parking structure, they walked Capitol Boulevard and crossed the street to the Basque District.

Everyone else apparently had the same idea and the pub was packed with people. He found a table in the back by the distillery.

Holding out her chair for her, he then sat down himself.

There was a bar menu. "Are you hungry?"

"I'm still full from dinner. It was so good."

He'd taken her to Opa's on Ninth Street. The Mediterranean decor and food was something she hadn't experienced before. He was glad he'd chosen it.

"What do you want to drink?" He glanced at the mixed cocktails, opted for something straightforward.

"Wine would be good. Chardonnay."

The server came and he ordered a Corona and her wine. When they were alone again, he settled into his chair, brought his foot to his knee and sat back. He watched her, said nothing until she got self-conscious.

"W-what?" she stammered.

"Just looking."

"Why?"

"Because I like looking."

"Well…it sort of makes me nervous."

"Why?"

"Because it just does."

He kept staring, smiling. "You're cute when you blush."

She put a hand to her cheek. "I'm not blushing. It's the lighting from the television. There must have been a Pepto commercial. All that pink hit me or something."

He laughed. "Don't think so."

She laughed, too. "It could have been possible."

"Don't think so," he repeated. He laid his