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ELEVEN
OCTAVIA
"Here we are, M'lady," Oakley declares as we pull into the rarely empty parking lot of the Saints Arena.
"I have a quick question that I probably should have asked before we left, but what skates am I using?" I certainly didn’t bring any.
Oakley scratches the back of his neck nervously. He reaches behind him to the backseat and grabs what I'm assuming is his hockey bag.
"I may or may not have looked at your shoe size before we left my house. Coincidentally, you and my sister are the same size so I grabbed the skates she uses when they come to visit me. I hope that's okay?"
His nervous rambling is adorable.
"Yeah, of course! Thank you.”
"Stay there," he demands and hurries out of the truck. He runs around to my side and opens my door for me. I feel flushed as he waits for me, holding his hand out for me to take.
I place my hand in his as he helps me down and shuts the door behind us. He slides his arm around my waist and pulls me into his side as we walk into the arena.
The difference a crowd of people makes in the arena is insane. It's odd being here without shouting fans—peaceful even.
I let Oakley lead the way to the team locker room. He lets go of my side when we reach a bench sitting in front of a small row of cubbies on the far side of the room. As I sit down, I decide that since I let him think I don't know how to skate, I might as well act like I don't know how to lace up skates. Honestly, I just really don't want to. It's a serious pain in the ass.
I watch as he unzips his hockey bag and pulls out both sets of skates before turning to the cubby directly behind us and setting his bag down on the bottom shelf. The bold letters placed above the cubby make me smile.
Oakley Hutton #11
He doesn't seem to keep a lot in his cubby. Not on a day off, I guess. The only things he has in there are a few of his jerseys and an extra pair of hockey socks.
In record time, Oakley sits down beside me, has his skates tied, and is on his knees to lace mine. When he slides off my sandals, I try not to focus on the burning trail of electricity his fingers leave behind or the shiver that runs up my spine as he flashes his pearly whites at me. Who turned up the temperature in here?
I watch as his fingers quickly and skillfully loop the laces through each hole. And in no time, he has the other skate in his hand and quickly slips it on my other foot.
"All done, princess. They feel okay?"
I snap out of my trance and realize he's standing over me with a gentle smile.
I stand up and wiggle my toes in the skates. Grinning broadly at him, I say, "Perfect. Thank you."
He helps me wobble to the hallway that leads out to the ice. I purposely stumble a little as we make our way. Oakley slips an arm around my waist to steady me. I have to make my lie believable, after all. Nobody can walk on skates perfectly the first time they wear them. That’s a fact.
As we reach the rink, I take a long look around. I've never actually seen it empty before. There are no goalie nets, only markings where they should lay. No referees are skating around blowing whistles as opposing players push and shove each other around. Gone are the groups of people sitting in the ugly blue seats that make up half the arena, filling it with ear-piercing screams.
"Peaceful, isn't it?" He turns to face me. "Don't get me wrong. I love playing hockey, but sometimes it's nice just to skate. There's no pressure when you're just skating."
I look over and see his mossy eyes flash with an emotion I can't decipher.
"You ready? I promise I'm a fantastic teacher." He steps onto the ice and holds his hands out.
Slowly, I make my way to him and grab his hands. As Oakley slowly guides me step by step, I begin to wish he was teaching me how to skate for the first time.
For the next few minutes, we do slow laps around the boards. Oakley skates backwards, watching me try to make it look like I'm struggling on the ice.
"When were you going to tell me you already know how to skate?"
I let out an awkward giggle and reluctantly meet his gaze. The idiot breaks out laughing and pulls me into a tight hug. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. With a grin, I pull away and skate backwards away from him.
"What gave it away?" I shout when he slides towards me with a smirk.
