Tyler Maxwell was the hottest man in Chicago. The most successful goalie in the national hockey league. He had the world at his feet.
And he was attracted to me.
Was this a good thing or a bad thing? He probably had a trail of broken hearts behind him, and I didn’t want to be one of them. I wasn’t going to get to the bottom of my conundrum today, so instead, I chose to bask in this giddiness that was filling me. I turned on my favorite playlist on Spotify and tapped my feet to the rhythm of the music while I got to work.
Once I had a tentative schedule, I sucked in a breath and messaged Tyler.
Kendra: Thursday at three work for you?
Tyler: Yes it does.
A few seconds later, he sent another text.
Tyler: I can’t wait to see you in a bikini.
I blushed instantly. He liked to play dirty, huh? Ha, the joke was on him. I wasn’t going to wear a bikini. But I had an inkling I’d find out exactly how dirty Tyler liked to play on Thursday anyway.
I focused on work after that, trying not to think about him too much.
In the afternoon, Emma and I went to a hardware store to look at tiles. I wasn't buying anything today, but I just wanted to get an idea of what was on the market and within my budget.
"Damn, I'm dreaming of a day when I'm not broke," I said, looking longingly at some amazing tiles with a Portuguese design on them. They were three times the price of most of the others.
"Hey, that day will come. I have it on my vision board," Emma said. She had future plans on this thing. It was really working for her.
We were walking at a slow pace. The shop was super crowded, but that was okay. We weren't in a hurry. We just stopped whenever we saw something interesting, took pictures, and moved on.
"Hey these tiles remind me of the ones we had in the apartment we moved in after Dad died.” She pointed to blue tiles. I could see the resemblance.
“You’re right. They look similar.
“You were such an awesome sister. You spoiled me rotten even though we had nothing. Remember those amazing lemonades?"
I smiled. "Hey, it was all in the honey. You loved it because it was sweet."
"Yeah, obviously, but you were so good at helping me with homework and even super inventive to keep me from freaking out about the visits from Miss Spooky."
I stared at my sister. Miss Spooky was what I’d dubbed the social worker who came to our place, mostly on surprise visits when Mom was working. The neighbors alerted her that we were unsupervised, and I used to hide with my sister when she knocked at the door. Sometimes she left after knocking a few times, but we couldn’t fool her every time.
"What do you mean?"
"You know, when you asked me to play under the table and not make any noise. Remember that one time when you said we were having a contest of who could keep still for longer, and at the end of it, the winner would get a chocolate chip cookie?"
I was stunned. I’d hoped my sister wouldn't pick up on the fact that I was basically making her hide, but it seemed I’d failed.
"Okay. Wow. I'm sorry. I honestly hoped you wouldn't notice why we were doing that."
She shook her head. "Don't beat yourself up about it. It was a tough time, and you did your best."
We made a round of the whole store, and I noted the name and barcode of the tiles that were within my price range on my phone.
"I think I'm going to have to stick with basic ones," I said, pointing to boring white tiles. "But why not? I could make them seem interesting with all sorts of accessories."
"They remind me a bit of those public pools. And speaking of the pool, are you looking forward to seeing Tyler naked?" She wiggled her eyebrows.
I almost choked on my inhale.
"Hey, almost naked,” I replied when I’d recovered. “Almost being the operative and very, very important point."
"Right, okay, almost naked," Emma said with a grin. "Still looking forward to it?"
I sighed, shrugging. I couldn't lie to my sister. "Well, who wouldn't? I bet the man's a work of art."
"Yes, I bet that too.”
“But he's super good at flirting, so clearly he has lots of experience with women, and honestly, I don't want to get into all that."
Emma pointed at me. "But you said this thing he’s doing for the kids is swoonworthy, right? That's your kryptonite."
"Hey, can you not remind me of that, please?"
She smirked. "Why? Does it make you change your mind? Want to flirt back?"
"Oh, I already went there with my message."
"No, that was involuntary. I don't know if it counts.”
I rolled my eyes. “Trust me, in Tyler's book, it does count."
“Ha! Then your little pool trip will be even more awesome than I’m imagining it. I’m requesting a full report, obviously.”
I chuckled. “Yes, ma’am.”
***
On Thursday, I arrived at the spa a bit later than everyone else. It was in the Gold Coast, the most upscale neighborhood in Chicago, in my opinion, and it was pretty intimidating. The walls in the reception area were draped with dark blue silk curtains, creating the illusion of small recesses everywhere. The lighting fixtures were silver, casting a diffused light. The friendly receptionist gave me precise instructions to reach the pool, but I got lost twice in the narrow corridors lined by bamboo rods.
In the changing rooms, I only took off my shoes and put on flip-flops. They looked a bit ridiculous with my crisp white office dress, but it was forbidden to walk with street shoes in the pool area.
I was extra jumpy, and I knew it was because a certain hot hockey player was nearby. I couldn't believe he’d invited the kids here. Tyler Maxwell was in a league of his own when it came to generosity and just being an overall decent human being. I wished more people were like him.
Pulling my hair up in a tight bun because it would curl from the humidity in the pool room, I held my chin high as I walked out of the locker room.
The pool was great, and there were a gazillion slides around it. The kids were already having fun. There were no other guests here. I glanced around carefully, looking for Tyler. My body seemed to be aware before I finally spotted him and his lips curved into a smile.
This day was starting great. I was still embarrassed about my mishap with the message, but since there was no hiding, I had to own up to it. I smiled wildly as he swam to the edge of the pool closest to me.
"Kendra, I thought you might not make it."
"I have to be here, remember? Besides, I couldn't miss a chance to see Tim and his friends have fun."
"Damn, and I thought you couldn't miss a chance to see me."
I felt that molten gaze travel through my whole body.
“Did you now?” I teased.
He pushed himself out of the water, and I blinked rapidly, taking a step back.
Is this guy real? Holy hell, who even has this many muscles?
“Aren’t you joining us in the pool?” he asked.
“No. I’m not supposed to engage, just observe.”
“Damn. I assumed you would. I was already imagining you in a bikini.” His voice was a low, deliciously sensual whisper. His eyes were playful and hot at the same time.
I fidgeted in my spot, and my flip-flops squeaked against the tiles.