scared the hell out of her, and she knew for sure what she had been unwilling to admit to herself before now. No matter what the potential consequences were, she had to pursue this relationship with Leo and Scott. She couldn’t imagine her life without them.
It was impossible to act on that decision, though. For one thing, as Scott had said, the guys were going out of town. Second, she needed to wait for the trade deadline to pass. If she told them she was committing to them and then Scott got traded a few days later, it would hurt all of them unnecessarily. It was better to wait and see what happened and then go to them if Scott remained an Intimidator. With that settled, she went to bed, her mind at ease for the first time in weeks.
The next morning, she turned on the news as soon as she woke up. They were reporting that Calgary had asked one of their star players to waive his no-trade clause for a trade to the Intimidators, and that the player was currently “weighing his options.” The biggest sticking point seemed to be that the player had been with the Flames for over ten years and didn’t want to uproot his family. Kelly prayed that the player’s wife would weigh in and make him stay. If that happened, Calgary wouldn’t have the money needed under the salary cap to trade for Scott.
The sportscaster also mentioned that there were various things about the current goaltending situation that were less than ideal from Buffalo’s standpoint, most notably the ages of both Scott and Leo and their combined contract figure. There was also some talk of off-ice problems, and Kelly wondered if someone had gone to the Intimidators’ management with the rumor about her relationship with the men. If she found out that was the case and that it had been that jerk Roger, she’d make him sorry he’d ever met her.
With that thought crowding her mind, she went in to work, but ducked into the dining area more frequently than normal to check the status of the rumor. Normally she didn’t pay much attention to what channel the television was on, but she’d asked the staff to keep it on ESPN. They had a limited cable package that didn’t include the NHL Network, so this was the best she could do. ESPN wasn’t good for much where hockey was concerned, except for the scrolling news headlines at the bottom of the screen. At least with ESPN on, she was sure to see if anything broke with the story.
The hours until the trade deadline crawled by. The team was in New Jersey, and due to arrive home in the early morning hours after the game. They had a game the next day against Washington, and Kelly decided she would stake out the players’ entrance outside the arena if Scott wasn’t traded. She began to formulate her plan as the deadline got closer and there was still no word on Scott being traded.
She found herself balancing a mixing bowl on her hip, standing behind the counter, her eyes shifting between the bowl and the television as the three o’clock deadline came and went. It was possible he’d been traded and it just wasn’t showing up yet, but her sense of relief was palpable. Her phone buzzed with a text message, and she set the bowl down on the counter quickly, pulling the phone out of her pocket. It was from Leo.
Hey babe. Just wanted to let you know Scott wasn’t traded – weren’t sure if you’d seen the news.
We hope to see you soon and we miss you. – Leo
A smile crept onto her face before she could stop it. She loved these men. It was time to let them know, and she could hardly wait for tomorrow night to set her plan in motion.
* * * *
Kelly took another sip of water as the intermission between the second and third periods got underway in the Washington game. She’d long since put on her makeup and laid out her outfit, and now that the game was nearing its completion, it was time to enact her plan. Keeping one eye on the television, she slipped into the flowing skirt and soft, purple sweater she’d
It was impossible to act on that decision, though. For one thing, as Scott had said, the guys were going out of town. Second, she needed to wait for the trade deadline to pass. If she told them she was committing to them and then Scott got traded a few days later, it would hurt all of them unnecessarily. It was better to wait and see what happened and then go to them if Scott remained an Intimidator. With that settled, she went to bed, her mind at ease for the first time in weeks.
The next morning, she turned on the news as soon as she woke up. They were reporting that Calgary had asked one of their star players to waive his no-trade clause for a trade to the Intimidators, and that the player was currently “weighing his options.” The biggest sticking point seemed to be that the player had been with the Flames for over ten years and didn’t want to uproot his family. Kelly prayed that the player’s wife would weigh in and make him stay. If that happened, Calgary wouldn’t have the money needed under the salary cap to trade for Scott.
The sportscaster also mentioned that there were various things about the current goaltending situation that were less than ideal from Buffalo’s standpoint, most notably the ages of both Scott and Leo and their combined contract figure. There was also some talk of off-ice problems, and Kelly wondered if someone had gone to the Intimidators’ management with the rumor about her relationship with the men. If she found out that was the case and that it had been that jerk Roger, she’d make him sorry he’d ever met her.
With that thought crowding her mind, she went in to work, but ducked into the dining area more frequently than normal to check the status of the rumor. Normally she didn’t pay much attention to what channel the television was on, but she’d asked the staff to keep it on ESPN. They had a limited cable package that didn’t include the NHL Network, so this was the best she could do. ESPN wasn’t good for much where hockey was concerned, except for the scrolling news headlines at the bottom of the screen. At least with ESPN on, she was sure to see if anything broke with the story.
The hours until the trade deadline crawled by. The team was in New Jersey, and due to arrive home in the early morning hours after the game. They had a game the next day against Washington, and Kelly decided she would stake out the players’ entrance outside the arena if Scott wasn’t traded. She began to formulate her plan as the deadline got closer and there was still no word on Scott being traded.
She found herself balancing a mixing bowl on her hip, standing behind the counter, her eyes shifting between the bowl and the television as the three o’clock deadline came and went. It was possible he’d been traded and it just wasn’t showing up yet, but her sense of relief was palpable. Her phone buzzed with a text message, and she set the bowl down on the counter quickly, pulling the phone out of her pocket. It was from Leo.
Hey babe. Just wanted to let you know Scott wasn’t traded – weren’t sure if you’d seen the news.
We hope to see you soon and we miss you. – Leo
A smile crept onto her face before she could stop it. She loved these men. It was time to let them know, and she could hardly wait for tomorrow night to set her plan in motion.
* * * *
Kelly took another sip of water as the intermission between the second and third periods got underway in the Washington game. She’d long since put on her makeup and laid out her outfit, and now that the game was nearing its completion, it was time to enact her plan. Keeping one eye on the television, she slipped into the flowing skirt and soft, purple sweater she’d
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