When we were done, Zack braced himself on his arms, hovering above me. His face was satiated, but serious.

“You and Ben are coming to New York with me tomorrow,” Zack said out of the blue.

“What?” I asked in astonishment.

“I missed him this past week. I’m getting ready to hit the road again for two days and I want him with me.”

And just like that, I was slated to travel to New York City with Zack and Ben.

Zack upgraded his normal room that the Cold Fury would pay for and got a suite. He and Ben stayed in one of the rooms, and I stayed in the other. There was a nice-sized living room between the two bedrooms, as well as a small kitchen. Zack also hired a car service to take Ben and me to and from the game, as he said there was no way in hell he wanted us to brave New York City cabs or the subway system.

After the game was over, Ben and I got back to the hotel long before Zack was scheduled to arrive because he would have to ride to the hotel with the team on a bus. Since we were the visiting team, there was no family lounge within which Ben and I could wait for him. Thus, we returned to the hotel, and Ben was so exhausted, he fell asleep immediately.

I hear the sound of the electronic key card sliding in the door and my body tenses to face Zack. I find myself walking a tightrope with him. When we’re in the bright light of day, we are employee and boss. We behave in a certain way…at arm’s length, and all of our actions are done in deference to Ben. At night, however, everything changes and it takes a moment for me to be able to transition from nerdy nanny to tempting seductress.

It’s confusing at best, demoralizing at worst.

Turning from the window, I clasp my hands in front of me with nervousness. We’ve been together twice…both times Zack made the first move by coming into my room.

I want him to make a move now, and the wonder of what he will do causes tremors of worry to course through me.

Zack sets the key card on a small counter that separates the kitchen from the living room. “Hey,” he says softly, taking off his winter coat and throwing it over the back of the couch.

“Hey,” I tell him right back. “You were great tonight.”

And he was. Two points and, more important, the Cold Fury clinched their division. They were going to be in the playoffs even if they lost the last three games of the regular season. But the Cold Fury wanted more. If they win the next three games, including one at home next week against Pittsburgh, they will take the top spot in the conference over Pittsburgh and get the number-one seed in the playoffs. That’s crucial.

Zack smiles in acknowledgment and takes off his suit jacket. It hits the back of the couch, coming to rest on top of his coat. He walks around the couch while unbuttoning the long sleeves of his dress shirt, and the act of watching him do this causes my nerves to fire and my breath to hitch.

He watches me watching him. His eyes do a slow crawl over my body and he sinks down onto the couch, pushing up his shirtsleeves and then propping one arm on the back cushion. “You didn’t wear the jersey I bought you.”

He doesn’t sound hurt or offended in any way. Just an offhanded remark, so I go ahead and decide to be honest with him. “Um…actually, it’s too big.”

Zack’s eyebrows raise slightly. “Too big?”

“Yeah…you got me a man’s extra-large, and frankly, it almost comes down to my ankles,” I say with a sympathetic smile.

With a low chuckle, Zack shrugs. “Guess I didn’t pay attention when I grabbed it. I’ll switch it out for one your size. Now, let’s talk about what you’re wearing tonight…which fits you very, very well. Is it new?”

Huh?

I look down at myself. Same new jeans I bought at the mall with my black boots. Except this time I have a fitted black camisole on, paired with a long gray cardigan sweater over it. It was my attempt at wearing Cold Fury colors for the game, since I only have a ratty, oversized hoodie with the team logo.

“Sutton actually gave me some clothes,” I say distractedly.

“She did?” he asks in surprise.

I nod. “Yeah…um, she was going to donate them or something, and we’re about the same size, so she brought me over a few things the other day.”

Sutton brought me more than a few things. The night she and Olivia came over for wine, the first thing they did after Ben went to bed was rave over my new appearance. I had indeed worn my nice outfit and left my hair down. They agreed the change was dramatic. They wanted to go shopping with me for more clothes, but I put a stop to that when I ended up informing them of my ultrapoor status and that I didn’t have the money for something so extravagant.

This, in turn, led into a discussion of my background. I learned about Sutton’s and Olivia’s families too, and we ended up talking for a few hours about shared experiences. What that did was start to form a true friendship among us. It was lovely, and by the time they left I was excitedly awaiting the time when we could get back together again. Both women were smart, funny, caring and completely interested in me as a woman. As a friend.

What shocked me the most was when Sutton showed up the next morning with a large duffel bag over her shoulder. She quickly explained that she was on her way to work, that she was going to be donating some of her clothes because her closet space was limited in her old house and when Alex moved in, it meant she had to do some weeding out. She wanted to offer them to me first, and being as how I was never too proud to shop in thrift and consignment stores, I wasn’t going to let pride stop me from accepting her gift.