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“Jordan?” Shelby called, gesturing to her.
“Duty calls.” Jordan hurried off, leaving Noah staring after her.
“Noah, you good?” Mo asked.
“Huh? What? Me?” he stuttered. “Oh yeah, fine.” He’d never had any problem following the rules that he had created. Don’t catch feelings. No strings attached. Non-exclusive. So why was he the one so bothered that Jordan going on a date with another guy?
Noah shot the puck towards the net, hitting the post. The noise resonated throughout the rink. Chasing after another puck, Noah took a slap shot, shooting the puck wide this time.
He cursed as he skated around the back of the net. His mind was on Jordan, but what else was new?
“What’s going on with you?” Harrison asked later, when practice was over.
Noah related the amazing grand opening of Slap Shot, including the part about the reporter.
“That’s great. So what’s eating you?”
“The reporter asked her out. Seeing her with that guy, Harrison, I don’t know. It had me—I don’t know how to describe it.” He’d been exhausted after their grand opening, but still he had tossed and turned most of the night.
“Rattled?” Harrison asked.
“Yeah, it sucked. I mean, I don’t even know why. It’s like nothing I ever experienced.” Noah had always had his choice of ladies. He’d leave after games in Nashville, and there would be a line of young women wearing his jersey or t-shirt with his number on it and little else. After every game, he could go home with a different one.
He had been the epitome of a casual dater, though calling it ‘dating’ was admittedly a stretch. He had one nighters down to a fine art.
But since coming to Pittsburgh, the bunnies were last on his mind. Was he losing his touch? Or maybe just getting older? That thought had no appeal. Maybe he was just mellowing, if that was a thing.
“Dude, there’s a word for that. It’s called jealousy.”
“No,” Noah shook off the claim. Puffing out his chest, he added. “That can’t be it. Noah Rodgers doesn’t get jealous.”
He had never been jealous of another guy in his life. He never had a reason to be. He was the guy that all the girls wanted to be with, and the one that guys wished they were.
“So you’re fine with her going out with another guy? Getting kissy with him in the elevator? Maybe taking him home to her place, and—”
“What the hell?” Noah felt heat rush to his face. He didn’t even want to imagine stuff like that. And nobody should talk about Jordan that way. “Shut up, Harrison!”
“Oh yeah. That’s the green-eyed monster.” Harrison laughed. “You want to go grab a beer after the game tonight?”
“Not tonight.” He glanced at the clock and then gathered up his sticks and bag. He needed to get home for his game day nap. “I need to stop by the bar on my way out. See how the night went and maybe look over the receipts.”
“Aw, how cute,” Harrison teased. “Going to see Jordan.”
“It’s just business. I’m sure she’ll be there already, since she’s closing tonight.” He tried to protest, but it sounded lame, even to him. “We’re just friends,” he insisted.
Perhaps they were a little more than friends.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Jordan
Jordan scanned the bar. It was a packed house tonight. But then again, Noah had posted about his new place on social media, with plenty of photos, including one of him serving behind the bar. Patrons had packed the dining area pre-game, and a whole new wave came in to watch the game.
She admired the crowd and didn’t mind that they were here because of Noah. After all, patrons had come to The Sin Bin because of Harrison. It didn’t matter why they were here at Slap Shot, so long as they came.
Jordan grabbed a few orders from the window and helped the servers out delivering food. With all the patrons happy, she sat down at the bar and worked on the new schedule. The Slap Shot bartender, Mo, handed her a water.
“Thanks, Mo.”
