Page 89 of Remember Me

“I wish you were with me too, but I’ve got the next best thing…I’m in your childhood bed.”

I instantly switch the call to FaceTime and there she is, in my bed looking so damn gorgeous and sleepy. I’d give my right arm to be cozied up next to her right now. It’s confirmed, tomorrow I am not letting her out of my sight!

“You look so beautiful, baby,” I sigh, wistfully looking at her. Then I notice not only her Harry Potter bear, but Bella in her sweater.

“Thank you for dressing Bella. As soon as I saw it, the memory filled my head.”

My cheeks hurt from how big my grin is—that sweater had the exact effect I hoped it would. I need to think of something else for next time.

I notice her yawn and cuddle into her bear, and I decide it’s time to let her go to sleep. I’ll be with her as soon as my plane lands anyway. “I’ll let you go to sleep. I’ll see you in the morning, ok?”

She yawns again and says, “Goodnight, J.” She kisses her fingers and lifts them to the screen, and I copy her and hang up, whispering, “I love you”.

After a fitful night's sleep, where I tossed and turned for hours on end, I can’t wait to get on the plane and get out of here. The flight is only an hour and a half, so we’re back in no time, and I’m heading straight to my car. I hightail it out of the parking lot like I’m being chased by the cops, desperate to get back to my girls. Yeah, I said girls—Bella’s my girl too. Can’t have one without the other.

Pulling up to my mom’s house in record time, I’ve beaten my teammates here, so the noise levels of dogs barking are insanely loud. As I open the door, I’m greeted by Bruiser—Codey’s dog—who proceeds to drool all over my suit pants. Thanks, man, appreciate it. Strolling through the house, saying a quick hello to Mom, I take the stairs two at a time and head to my room.

The door’s closed, so I try to open it as quietly as I can, just in case Lottie’s still sleeping. Creeping my head around the door first, I see she’s out cold, cuddling her bear, and is that...my shirt? My heart flips at the sight, and now all I want is for Lottie to wear only my clothes. Bella’s asleep at the end of the bed, curled in on herself.

Leaning down, I press my lips lightly to Lottie’s and watch her eyes flutter open. When she sees me, the biggest smile graces her face.

“Hey, baby, you sleep well?” She nods and stretches her arms out, reminding me of a cat luxuriating.

As she sits up, I grab her around the waist and throw her over my shoulder, being careful to make sure I don’t jostle her leg too much, and head downstairs. Bella’s hot on my heels whilst Lottie laughs, beating at my back.

“Put me down, you big brute.” She continues to pummel me as I slap her perfect peach of a backside.

As we make it down the stairs, desperate to get her alone, I shout a quick goodbye to my Mom. Then we’re out the door and heading down the steps to my car.

Once I’ve set Lottie down, she glares at me with her hands on her hips

“What’s the matter? Were you not impressed with my athleticism?” I flex my biceps in an attempt to make her laugh. It doesn’t work, but I do see the corner of her lip curl up.

“In your haste to get me out of there like the caveman you are, you’ve left all my stuff indoors, including Bella’s leash.”

I look down and find the little dog huddled against me, tail between her legs. Shit. Picking her up, I hold her trembling body next to mine. When I look at her, I notice why. She hasn’t got her sweater on like she normally would; Lottie must have taken it off her in the night.

I open the car door for her and set Bella down on her lap while I run back inside and grab her things. When I make it back to the car, Lottie has a smirk on her face.

“So, how much time did that actually save you?” Her eyebrow’s raised in question.

“Alright, alright, I get it. Let’s just go home where we can lock the door and be alone.” I pull out the driveway and head for the beach house, which isn’t just Lottie’s, but my sanctuary too.

Another week and another away game. I was awake at the ass crack of dawn and had to leave while Lottie was still sleeping. I hate leaving this way.

We’re in San Jose again, but this is the last one before the actual season starts. Training camp has been tough, but I’ve loved being back doing what I do best. Lottie even managed to come to a home game last week, which was incredible. I scored two goals and an assist in that game, just for her.

This game has been a tale of two halves. The first period, it was like none of us had ever skated before, and San Jose was all over us. We were constantly being checked into the boards, or the puck was stolen from right under our noses.

The second period, after a few curse words from the coach, was much better, and we managed to score a couple of goals, bringing us level with work still to do in the final period if we wanted to clinch the win.

Seeing as we’ve been undefeated throughout the preseason, it would be a shame to lose that perfect score now. So, we shot out of the tunnel like we had rockets under our skates, ready to put this game to rest. There were a few penalties, and the game started to turn dirty when San Jose realized we weren’t just going to roll over.

In the final seconds of the game, we sealed the deal with a slap shot from Theo, and there was nothing the goalie could do to stop it.

The atmosphere in the changing room after the game is electric, but all I want to do is get back to my room and call Lottie. I changed in record time and was the first one back on the bus to the hotel. Call me eager, but I don’t care, it’s getting late and I don’t want to miss my window of opportunity to talk to my girl.

As soon as I’m back in the comfort of my hotel room, my phone is in my hand and I’m dialing Lottie.